A Weekend Alone . . .
VOCABULARY
It doesn’t matter how well you get on with your partner or the rest of your family, a weekend to yourself certainly has its advantages. You can get up when you want to, eat when and what you want to, see friends or not, do sport or just laze about on the terrace and, most important of all, watch whichever programme on television your heart desires. You can flick through the 200 television programmes, to your heart’s content, without getting dirty looks from your partner. You can even watch Rosamunde Pilcher films, without hearing that they are "such a load of rubbish" or "how come so many Germans live in Cornwall?" Absolute heaven!
Two weeks ago, I spent the weekend on my own. I know that I should have accompanied my husband to Styria to watch him participate in the Welsch Marathon and cheer him on when he crossed the finishing line. However, I wasn’t feeling too well and was really in two minds whether to go until I convinced myself that he might be distracted, if I were there. As I waved him off and wished him luck I had a guilty conscience, but he did really well, even though Styria is very hilly.
The weather was beautiful so my guilty conscience didn’t last for long and I started to plan my relaxing weekend alone. Nobody knew that I was here, so I didn’t receive any phone calls and I lost my mobile phone at one point, without even realising it. Then it was decision time; should I go on a bike ride first or put up the sun bed and start reading the first of a pile of books that I had prepared beforehand? Needless to say, the latter won and I lay in the sun trying not to think of the dangers that come from exposing your skin to the sun’s rays. I always think that anything that feels this good can’t be bad for you. A few years ago, when I was 21, I won a competition for the best sun tan in the Italian resort of Rapallo. Can you imagine, the other competitors were Italians, but a blondehaired English girl won the competition? In those days, we used to rub fat into our skin and put a silver board under our chins to reflect the sun onto our faces. I’m not proud of this, and certainly wouldn’t do anything like that today, but years ago we didn’t know any better.
Anyway, back to my terrace. It was time to settle down and open my book, which I had been meaning to read for ages but had never found the time. I live in quite a small village, where all the children greet you when they come out of school and the friendly staff in the butcher’s shop know you by name. It is usually paradise and very peaceful, but not on this particular day. First, some neighbours started mowing the lawn with lawnmowers that sounded as though they were ancient. The noise was unbearable, especially when one of the metal blades hit a stone. Then the first youngsters drove past on scooters that had obviously been adjusted to make as much noise as possible. There is a "sleeping policeman" near to our house and they seem to go back and forward over the bump, until someone tells them off.
Realising that I wasn’t going to be able to concentrate on my book, I took the binoculars to watch the vultures circling around the Untersberg mountain. I couldn’t help but notice how many people were walking their dogs on the Water Protection Area in front of my house, and allowing them to use it as a toilet, even though there is a huge sign saying that this is strictly forbidden. Through my binoculars, I could clearly see many dog owners pretending to clear away the mess their dog had made, but pulling up some grass instead. It is amazing what you notice on a weekend alone! to get on with sbd. –mit jmd. auskommen advantage – Vorteil to get up – aufstehen to laze about – faulenzen what the heart desires – was das Herz begehrt to flick through – durchblättern to your heart’s content – nach Herzenslust dirty looks – böse Blicke a load of rubbish – totaler Blödsinn to accompany – begleiten to participate – teilnehmen to cheer sbd. on – jmd. anfeuern finishing line – Ziellinie in two minds – im Zwiespalt distracted – abgelenkt to wave sbd. off – jmd. zum Abschied zuwinken guilty conscience – schlechtes Gewissen decision time – Zeit zu entscheiden sun bed – Liegestuhl beforehand – im Voraus the latter won – das Letztere gewann competition – Wettbewerb to imagine – sich vorstellen competitors – Teilnehmer in those days – damals to rub – einreiben to settle down – sich niederlassen to mow the lawn – den Rasen mähen lawnmowers – Rasenmäher unbearable – unerträglich to adjust – einstellen to tell sbd. off – jmd. ausschimpfen binoculars – Fernglas vulture – Geier strictly forbidden – streng verboten to pretend – so tun als ob the mess – Hundekot