There was a wine stand last night, but Bill and I almost didn’t go because it looked like it was going to rain. However, because I’ve been way too cooped up lately, we decided it would be a good thing to attend and support the hosts. So we went and enjoyed the somewhat agreeable temperatures, even if the sun was behind clouds. I didn’t even bother to wear a sweater. I didn’t get many photos, because it was a relaxed gathering. We could have brought the dogs with no problem.
Last night’s wine stand was a fairly low key affair, as I think a lot of people are either on vacation due to school holidays, or they had the same idea that it might rain. Nevertheless, we ended up meeting an interesting person last night. She heard us speaking English and came over to ask us if we knew any lawyers who could help her with a problem her “niece” was having. I got the sense that maybe she was actually the “niece”, given how urgent and personally invested she seemed about the issue… which I seem to recall had to do with money, the US military, and local taxation. Bill spoke to her longer than I did, since he knows more about military policies than I do.
In the end, we told her there’s an American lawyer who lives in our village and works in Frankfurt. Maybe she knows someone who can help her with her problem. In fact, she even got up and went to their house last night, but they weren’t home. My guess is that the lawyer and her spouse took their kids on a trip somewhere. We were trying to tell us who the American lawyer is, and another German lady sitting with us spoke up and told her about her in German.
What was especially interesting was that the woman, whose name I didn’t catch, though she gave Bill her former business card, spoke absolutely flawless English. She said she had lived and worked in Washington, DC for a long time. She even knew about Fredericksburg, Virginia, and we had a good laugh, because Bill and I used to live in Fredericksburg 22 years ago, just before and after our wedding. And then I told her that I grew up about 90 miles south of Fredericksburg. Then we had a chuckle about how redneck parts of Virginia still are.
I sensed that maybe she’d married an American and they were now having issues with taxes… or maybe she really does have a niece with that problem. I don’t know. The wine might have made things less clear. She said she no longer works, although she still has business cards. I noticed that it looked like she was wearing a wig, but who knows why… She did say that Breckenheim started the local wine stand tradition some twenty years ago or so.
When it started getting darker and we both needed to pee, we went home to the dogs, who were very excited to see us. Charlie even pulled his bed into the dining room so he could hang out with us in comfort.
We have a short break coming up at the end of the month in Bad Wörishofen, Bavaria. After that, Bill has to go to Mons, Belgium for work. Since it’s right before our 22nd wedding anniversary, and about a four hour drive, he invited me to go with him. So that’s what we will do this year. Go to Belgium so he can work and I can enjoy some museums and beer, then afterwards, book at stay at a nice hotel in Belgium or The Netherlands and celebrate our anniversary.
Facebook has already suggested a lovely looking hotel in Nistelrode, The Netherlands. The hotel is on a golf course. We don’t golf, but we can appreciate the beauty and quiet of golf courses. Maybe we’ll go there, or maybe I’ll something even better. I’ll keep looking.
It’s hard to believe we celebrated our 21st wedding anniversary in Armenia last year. The year has flown by, and a lot has happened. I’m glad we got to go there last year… I’d love to go back again sometime, if the opportunity presents itself. I had meant for us to visit Spain for our anniversary, but Bill’s work schedule won’t accommodate that this year. Maybe we’ll go sometime in the winter.