Categories: life
Date: 13 May 2008 23:15:30
Sunday was the Day of Pentecost - or Pfingsten as it's called in Germany. The day is revered to the extent that Monday was an official holiday in Austria, Germany and Switzerland. I reckoned that most of my clients would not be concerning themselves with translation matters and hoped that my few UK clients would be keeping a low profile; they did so I had a pleasant day pottering in the garden in the glorious sunshine. I finished reading Khaled Hosseini's "The Kite Runner". What a beautifully written story! I can't believe that Jack the Lass hasn't managed to finish it... I was gripped and wanted to know the dénouement. Since finishing it, I have started a couple of other books but they just haven't captured my imagination and they have been returned to the pile. I feel almost as if I'm experiencing the end of a relationship where other suitors are vying for my affections but I am just not yet ready to invest emotionally in another relationship. (Oh yes, gentle reader. This is quite a regular occurrence in my life....)
I felt justified in taking Pfingsten as an extra day off (and as no work came in, I was literally forced to take the day off) as the UK bank holiday the previous week had been spent lying on my sick bed. The lurgy which I shared with Orthodox Ian (in terms of time, if not space) reared its ugly head again just as I thought I had shaken it off. I sounded pretty ghastly when a client phoned. She made me promise to go back to bed (it wasn't a hard promise to make) - and I haven't heard from her since. Perhaps I should let her know that I am no longer clinging on to life by a thread.
(I think I caught the germs from a fellow singer during our Russian concert. I had heard someone coughing and spluttering during the 3-hour rehearsal...so with the 2-hour concert as well, there was plenty of time for the nasties to come winging their way towards my bod and take up residence.)