Wednesday 28 September 2011

Lost in Translator

I tackled a my first cake recipe in German, with trusty Google Translator. 

I left out one letter, and a key step became "experimental cows".

Friday 23 September 2011

Birthday girl



Berry: "Mommy, when I say I'm six, I feel all weird and a little bit scared of myself."


. . .

Wednesday 21 September 2011

Oh my

The little boy next door is calling Berry's name over and over, and lifting his backyard slide up over his head. Berry is standing on the other side of the fence twirling her hair and giggling.

I'm seeing flashes of a scary, scary future.
 
 

Thursday 15 September 2011

Language barrier

Any time you tell Manshow something he doesn't want to hear, or obey, he puts up his hand and says, "I only speak German."
 
 
 

Saturday 10 September 2011

Saturday 3 September 2011

Like magic


Jules and I had two enraging days of failed espresso pulls and failed milk frothing on the Vibiemme. So at 8:30 this morning — Saturday, no less! — I left a message on the phone of the appointment-only espresso machine shop where I bought my set-up, asking for lessons and knowing I wouldn't even hear back until next week. Would you believe by 2:30pm we were in a specialist Kaffeerösterei in Landau, getting a one-on-one, hands-on education AND a tour of the roastery. What are the chances?

Tonight, I pulled a completely successful shot and frothed amazing microfoam. Like magic. My hat is off to the fine men of Espresso-Maschinenraum Landau and KFE Die Kaffeerösterei. They are great, generous people, and they REALLY know their craft.