Horridays, and culinary oddities....

In one hour, the whole damn country is going to shut down. It is almost as bad as Xmas. And nothing is going to reopen until Tuesday, because we don't just have Easter Sunday, we have Easter MONDAY.

Which is fine and dandy.... I re-did the Easter tree because it was put up too early, and so I cheated. God, whomever she is, is going to get me for that... am certain.

BUT.... I just outlived my first Easter Jause. Which is what this entry is about. Your Easter snacks here are outrageously rich, and actually delicious, but the first time I saw one I scratched my head inwardly, and thought, WTF is THIS? So.... lets just say unusual.

You get a rich yellow bread with raisins in it. And butter it. And then you put thin slices of smoked ham on it, and that ham is always the best of the entire year. And then you slice some hard-boiled Easter eggs, and put them on that. And then you sprinkle it all with grated horseradish root, not the creamed in a jar stuff. And then you cut it into fine slices, and snack.

Now I know that some of you are going to have such a 'eeeewwwww effect'.

But you know what? It is bloody delicious.

And I do not have bad taste!

So that is what we do at Easter, and usually on Mondays, I did a lamb.

This year I can't because I do not have an oven at Peter's place.

Only.... I got ROBBED on the bus on the way to Peter's. Shopping for three days' groceries is a real chore for me alone. At the market, you would have thought the next Thirty Year's War was about to break out, they were so frenzied. (Smart people order ahead, and sneak over at 6 a.m. and get that at the back doors of the stands...)

Whatever, I got all my stuff together, and then, blind rooster that I am, got on the wrong bus at my stop. Going to the central cemetery instead of our version of Times Square. (It was still early and I was on auto-pilot.)

So I sort of rearranged everything, and heard a 'thunk' on the floor next to me, rearranged my big grocery bag, and looked for what had fallen out. The horseradish root was missing. And it was one mahonchous root, or it wouldn't have gone 'thunk'. And as always, I blame myself for when I am clumsy, and thought, 'What the HELL?'

And I got up, and looked under the seat? Nowhere to be seen.

And then I saw him, right across from me. Somewhere from the Middle East, and looking all beligerent, as if to say, 'Don't you fucking look at ME!' And I thought, 'To hell with the one Euro fifty cents, it just isn't worth it.' I had to transfer at Jacki anyway. The main transfer place is called Jakominiplatz, but we call it 'Jacki'. And they have stands there. So I bought another one. And was laughing about the incident, and added, 'I hope that root is so sharp he will cry for days.' 'The vendor nearly wet herself, laughing.

So, Preciousess.... (gollum).... we hopes he chokes on it, nawsty, dirty, lying little thief!
Of course I could have asked, 'What's it got in its' pocketses, Precious?'

He must have been as quick as lightning.

But what is a horseradish root, after all, if you can still get another? It was odd, altogether....

And on the way home, we got a live one on the number 40 at Jacki. Pensioner, talked aloud the whole time. How he was looking for a good lady to take money home and he couldn't find one. And my shoulders started heaving, because I was giggling inside, and thinking, 'now I wonder WHY?'

But it got better. Someone from Peter's old street got on, and this paragon of hilarity knew him.

'America has a new president. Obama. Boosh is gone. Obama has a beautiful wife. Her name is Michaela.'

And THAT, my Preciousess is when I completely, and I mean completely fell apart. I giggled all the fucking way home.

He wasn't wrong, by the way. The German version of the name Michelle is Michaela. But it hit my funny bone so hard, I was nearly in tears till we got to my stop.

Quietly. We (former) New Hampshirites have to keep up our Great Stone Face. I died inside, however.

I think that riding the busses is gonna be a new feature here.

Still, it is nice that some people here admire her already. Even if they are a bit bonkers.