The LazyAssGeek’s

After Saturday’s party Sunday was going to arrive far too early no matter what time we actually had to get moving, and sure enough it did. We were to head to lunch at around 12:30 or so with Cristel and Peter, including bugging out of Cristel’s flat. True to form, they arrived around 11:45, fortunately we had anticipated an early arrival and while we were out of bed and moving, saying we were awake would be stretching the point. We shook what cobwebs we could from our heads (one of the heads in particular didn’t take kindly to shaking), got cleaned up, packed and headed off to lunch.

Lunch was at a nearby winery and farm that has a restaurant and since our car was the only one big enough for 5 of us we got to drive. I should say I got to drive, because Andy was in no condition to drive. This was rather amusing because it was quite clear Peter was very nervous having the American driving and he doesn’t speak a word of English. So in addition to pointing which turn or exit from a traffic circle I needed to take I got advice on when to slow down, how to park, etc. His hand gestures became a running joke any time we were in the car from then on. We got to the winery with no trouble however. They have an old train car that if you can believe the signs was from the Orient Express and we got a table in that train car. It was a very nice place, wine was pretty good and the food was excellent. After some brautwurst, kraut and spaetzle I was feeling much more human and I think Andy could actually begin to form sentences.

After lunch we drove up onto the hillside to where they keep steer to take some photos. The steer and the stench were quite impressive, as was the view, gorgeous area.

From there it was time to go get our luggage and say our goodbyes to Cristel and Peter and head to Jimmy & Baerbel’s. Their house is really cool. It’s an older home perched on the side of a hill surrounded by vineyards. They have done an amazing job renovating the interior. Baerbel is very good with tile and the whole place has great tile accents. It’s a combination of old farmhouse with a southwestern flair. They also have 7 cats, 4 of which are kittens, of which they will be keeping 1. Anyone that thinks Serena is spoiled needs to check out this picture.

We had a quieter, less crowded version of the previous evening’s party. They cooked up some really tasty Thai food and Jimmy used a… special butter to prepare some of it that made for a rather, shall we say, mellow evening. Their friends Michael and his wife and kids, Joerg & Danni and of course Reddy were there as well. There was also another guy there and guess what, I don’t remember his name. But he didn’t have much to say in German and didn’t speak any English so that’s not a surprise.

Danni & Joerg brought the photo book of our Vegas trip that Andy & Biggi had given them for Christmas and it was REALLY nice. Hard-bound and nicely printed it makes for a great way to remember a trip like that. Late in the evening as the Thai food had REALLY set in they wanted us to sign the book… oh boy. I looked through the book again, had a couple of moments of inspiration and clarity and I think I managed to write something decent. Andy however pretty much just copied what Biggi said.. he had way more Thai food than I did!

Jimmy’s wife Baerbel understands and can speak English, but she was yet another one that clammed up around me, afraid to say the wrong thing. However… once the sparkling wine was flowing it was all you could do to get a word in edgewise! I went through the Vegas photo book with her and quickly determined there’s not a chance in hell she would go to the top of Stratosphere or stand at the edge of the Grand Canyon. It was a lot of fun talking to her, but at breakfast the next day she was English-free again.

Late in the evening I got to talking with Reddy. The man has been a lot of places I would never want to go in the course of doing his job, which I didn’t really ever catch what it was, other than working on equipment. He’s something of a mechanical genius so his skills are in demand where he works and they wind up sending him places like Libya, where he winds up telling stores that sound like they’re straight out of the movies. Did I mention the stories never end? At two or three points I could have sworn he was getting ready to leave, and then 30 minutes later you realize, nope, he’s not leaving. This apparently is typical Reddy and it was just my turn. He’s a cool guy and the stories are amazing.. wish I could remember them but at that point in the evening…nope, no way!

At the very end of the evening Jimmy laid out a late night snack spread that I gotta tell ya, the Germans kick our asses when it comes to this shit. A big plate of cheese, toasted bread, all sorts of meats and killer mustard. I made quite a fuss over one mustard in particular and the next morning Jimmy gifted me with a tube of it. Did I mention he’s a great guy? Can’t wait to make some brats at home and open that up.

So another set of thanks to generous and great hosts and a few pics of the evening to close this one out.

Looking out from their smoking porch