Being on the road for the last 5 days, I've been missing some activity. Visiting loads of people, family and doctors. Grey roads, grey weather and even some grey people. I need some white stuff. Being in bed this morning was warm and cosy, it felt a lot better than couch surfing last weekend. At some point I got what I wished for, the white stuff that makes me happy.
Let it snow
I decided to do a long roadtrip yesterday, because the weather warnings became purple. Well, I don't really pay too much attention to these weather warnings...mostly they are wrong. But they introduced a new color now: Purple. The conditions would be even worse than red. Wow, what's going on? Is there a hurricane coming, will the dikes break? No, it's just a day with a bit of snow. Like we use to have sometimes. 10 - 15 cm of white magic powder, the stuff that makes you wanna play. Temperatures between -1 and -3 degrees Celcius. Extreme conditions right? I have a different feeling when I think in extremes.
The palmtree in the frontyard, it survives every time it snows
Although someone forgot to take care of the Christmas trees
I am not 100% sure if my Mercedes Sprinter will survive this winter
Some trains got cancelled, 1 airport got closed. And schools had to be closed, because of possible dangers outside. Walking outside today showed that most kids were more than happy with a day off. They enjoyed sledding down the hill. I loved to walk outside today. A refreshing 8km hike around the area and the huge park here in Köln (Germany). It wasn't cold and my face and outfit were covered in snow after a while. I was still trying to figure out why there was this more-than-extreme-weather-warning. Ahhhh, there it is. Sirenes. The white wonderful world was brutally disturbed by loud sirenes, blue flashing lights and fluor orange colored vehicles. On several locations kids fell while sledding a 10 meter high hill or just tripped in the snow. Yes, the soft snow can be extremely dangerous, I get it now. And I do understand why they chose the color 'purple' today, it's probably the color of your ass after falling. What happend with the days when you crashed with your bike as a kid and went home covered in blood together with a stupid story about what happend. Someone cleaned the wound, gave it some plasters and you went on. Worst case, it still hurt after a few days and you went to the doctor. Or your friends joined you to the nearest house doctor 100 meter ahead. But okay, if you broke your leg, it's more convenient that they pick you up with an ambulance right.
The sound of walking in snow, it makes me more relaxed
The place where the accidents happened and where the sirenes went through the park
Be aware, code PURPLE...the dogs can steel your ball
Deep purple
So what happend, while I kept ranting about nowadays extreme purple weather forecast and purple asses? Of course, something happend and I deserved it. Currently, I am facing some physical issues and I am introduced to this little pill-box. You know, these boxes that you start to use when you reach a certain age and you will soon start to use diapers again. Luckily my best friend's son of 14 also uses this type of pillbox and I didn't feel that old anymore. Before I left the house I took a bite of some cherry-pie. After an hour I started to have huge cramps during the hike. I know these type of cramps, they mostly come when I had some food with bad dairy. But this stuff got a bit more explosive. Dairy turns into diarrhea? No way, not today. I cannot hide here. Everyone would see the brown explosion in the white world. I tried to enjoy the hike today, and focussed on the white stuff. It felt refreshing and fun. The cramps distracted me, and they were hard to ignore. After 2 hours, I arrived at the apartment again, just in time... I realized this was the punishment for my ranting thoughts. And this warning was for real deep purple. I know now, purple cherry pie is dangerous.
Beautiful white scenery right?
My belly had different plans and wanted to erupt
A slight change of color can be a big difference
Just not thinking about the erupting volcano, this was a really nice walk. I enjoyed the snowy sceneries. It's funny that a slightly different change in color, can make the surroundings look like wonderland. From depressive grey to wonderful white. You have to know the area a bit, because you could hardly see the difference between the walking path and the lake. One of the dogs that passed me, had the same difficulty and got in with a refreshing dive. I learned more today. If you don't have a sled, you can also use an inflatable tube. I felt a bit sad for the little kid there with his mom, the only one going down with the tube was the mom. He was only allowed to watch his mom. More safe, purple warning you know...
Can I go now mommy?... NO!
Be aware, code PURPLE...is he chased by a wolf? No, it's the snow shovel coming out of the bush
And when my girlfriend arrived back in the apartment, I said I had a little headache.
Should I blow you?
Wow, I was surprised. You really want to do that, to let me get rid of the headache?
Uhm no, I mean drying your hair with the hairdryer...it's full of cold snow.
What a bummer. I started to use the hairdryer to get the big bush of hair warm and dry again. At some point I received a question why I kept drying on 1 certain spot... Because there is still some snow, I said.
That's not snow, it's grey hair!
Once again, grey and white can be a big difference.
Is looks like a grey asphalt path, but it isn't. You will get wet feet when you try to walk on it
A few duck-faces to end this Wednesday Walk, see you next time