Our cupboards are literally at the not-closing-no-matter-how-many-times-I-rearrange-the-cups stage, so you’ll imagine my excitement when our annual Freiburg ceramic market rolled around again last weekend :)

Because I’m so strong and my will power is unbreakable, I only walked away with 4 of these beautiful cups from an atelier in Berlin (oops!). Each one is imprinted with a German word or phrase, some of which are quite old German, and I had to get our friend to translate them for me. In fact it’s the presence of said German on said cups that actually allowed me to fully justify my purchase:

If anyone asks.. I bought them as a ’souvenir’ of our time in Germany, and not because I couldn’t imagine my life without them. Got it?

Auserkoren: Selected, chosen, beloved

Beglückend: Full of joy, Cheerful

Geistreich: Witty, Clever, Ingenious

Kleines Glück: Literally this translates to ‘little luck’ or ’small luck’, but I think it means more like small happiness? Any Germans feel free to weigh in!

Germans, on the other hand are crazy for it in a big way.. particularly the big white variety that only grows at exactly this time of year, and only for a very limited time. Restaurants have entire menu’s dedicated to it, stores have specific Spargel stands, and little road-side shacks pop up next the fields selling their Spargel goodness. But they all only last for about a month and a half, and then it’s gone again (much like my beloved Peonies!). And so, for this month and a half, Germans really make the most of it.

Initially I was a little bit confused by this German variety of Spargel.. where I come from, asparagus is thin and green, and you eat it without much preparation. Lets just say, having now learnt from experience (twice), giant white German Spargel needs to be rigorously peeled and boiled before you can eat it.

Lesson #1 – unpeeled Spargel is extremely tough and bitter.

Lesson #2 – Peeled Spargel that clearly isn’t peeled enough is only marginally less tough and bitter. Spargel Fail.

That latest lesson was only learnt two nights ago, after I courageously decided to attempt cooking Spargel at home for the second time in 2.5 years (the first time was when I learnt lesson #1). Next time (if I dare attempt it again), I will shop at the supermarket down the road that is also equipped with a high-tech ‘Spargel Peeling Machine’. I’m not kidding.. it has a conveyor belt that you lay your stick of Spargel on (one at a time, please), and then you watch it ride through the clear-sided machine where it’s peeled and washed, and then it pops out the other end for you to collect. I think I’ll just stick to eating it in restaurants..

And in case anyone was wondering, white Spargel is white because they grow it underground covered by plastic sheets, so that it doesn’t ever see daylight. If it did, it would turn green.

I’m happy to report that there were no abductions this year, only a lot of confetti assaults (mostly because Evelyn wanted to take photos of all the characters, and as payment for said photo, she then got herself, and us pummeled with confetti), and I had a hair-tie stolen when it was yanked out of my hair from behind by a masked witch, who then ran off with it and left me looking like I just got out of bed!

Who steals a hair-tie?!

So, anyway I came across this tutorial for creating custom bokeh and figured it would be fun to try..! I had a bit of trouble with the first lens cover I tried to create, but with a few tweaks, it was peachy! The only problem I had was that I ran out of lights in our apartment to take photos of :(

Still, it was tons of fun, and can’t wait to try some different shapes :)

All I can say is: Bring It Spring – we’re so ready for you! I keep checking the trees for signs of new growth.. and the ground for the first signs of daffodils.. and the skies for an uninterrupted patch of sunshine. I am proud to report that the first two are coming along nicely, green has been sighted, daffodil stalks are on the rise. The last one I haven’t seen much of lately, but I’ll keep checking.

I’ve also seen the first sheep (yes sheep – exciting I know!) in the fields around here, which is another sign that Spring is just around the corner. Speaking of, I managed to find some photos from Spring last year and was feeling warmer just looking at them.. these were from a walk through the forest/fields behind our house. Yay sheep!