*Chapter 7*
Fit for Action
So okay we had the bike rack on the car but my Schauff is no racing lightweight. We had a right Laurel & Hardy time trying to get it on board; you need to be an octopus. Of course I was hardly any help as I couldn’t even reach the rack, we were eventually rescued by Marty who spotted the pair of us doing the bike tango – he had it up and locked in place in seconds – grrr.
“Cheers, Mart.”
“No probs, Gab, Frau Bond.”
“You heard from Bern?” I enquired whilst Mum stowed my basket amongst the assorted bike kit in the car’s boot.
“She writes every week, even my mother is taken by Drea’s antics.”
I’m not really a baby fan, I might’ve helped Drea into the world but the mere thought of having children myself – well, urgh, it doesn’t bear thinking about.
“I should write to her, it’s been quite hectic the last few weeks.”
“Gabs,” Mum hinted.
“Have to go, thanks for the bike.”
“Anytime, see you tomorrow.”
“Tschuss.”
“He’s a nice lad,” Mum opined as we negotiated the afternoon traffic out to the bypass.
“Yeah,” I agreed, “he’s a good egg and pretty stuck on Bern.”
“Did you say she coming to visit?”
“In a few weeks,” I confirmed.
“She bringing the baby?”
“Think so.”
“That’ll be nice, eh?”
“I guess.”
Of course it won’t be the same as before, having a baby along will cramp our style and our options when we go out.
“Just don’t you and Max give me grand children too soon eh, I’m not old enough to be Oma.”
“Mum! That is just so not going to happen!”
I couldn’t help but see the smirk on Mum’s face, phew; she’s winding me up.
We parked in Lidl’s car park; we often come down to Sinzig, as it’s usually quieter than the ones up the valley. It was one thing we had to adapt to when we moved out here, there were a few Aldi, Lidl and Netto stores opening in the Worksop area but they were a bit of a sideshow. If you wanted to do the weekly shop it was Sainsbury’s or Tesco – huge shops selling everything from knickers to haggis, you kind of got used to buying pretty much everything and anything under one roof.
If you’ve ever been into a German supermarket you’ll know what I’m talking about – a smaller range, less branded stuff, absence of cafes and certainly no clothing or TV’s – unless you count the weekly offers. It might explain why Germans love their department stores; there are butchers, bakers, shoe shops and boutiques aplenty. You want a Geburtstag card – go to a card shop, printer cartridge – a visit to Saturn is for you, drinks for a party? The Getränke Markt will have everything you want.
So why do people use the ‘supermarkets’? Basics and emergencies for the most part. You have to buy toilet paper somewhere, they are the go to place for milk and of course they are open from dawn till dusk. Mum’s shopping list was short but important, the aforesaid loo roll and milk but also some fixings – more stuff you don’t see in the UK semolina dumplings, Bratkartoffeln dressing, Jäger sauce.
Instead of an hour or more in Sainsbury’s our Lidl shop took just fifteen minutes – I managed to sneak some gummi bears into the trolley, I’m Gaby, I’m an addict!
I wasn’t looking forward to my appointment, yeah it should clear me as fit but the prodding and poking – not fun. Then there was the bloodletting, weeing into a pot and the smell, they must bottle that hospital odour, it’s the same everywhere and I should know, I’ve been in enough of the places. We found a parking spot and I changed my jeans for a long skirt and yes, clean pants before we headed into the Remagen Frauenklinik.
We didn’t have to wait too long past our appointed time before Hilde called us through to the examination room where Dr Schindler was waiting for me.
“So how are we doing, Miss Bond?”
Rub it in why don’t you.
“Okay,” I replied non-commitally.
“So no problems? How have your period’s been?”
Apart from bloaty, bloody and messy?
“The last one wasn’t as heavy was it, Gab?” Mum volunteered.
“Gaby?” Dr Schindler prompted.
“I don’t have much to compare with so I don’t know what normal is but I guess it wasn’t as bad as the one before.”
“It should settle down.”
“What about the birth control? They stopped it before.”
“If your bloods are okay we can see about putting you back on them, have to make sure we get it right, eh?”
That was supposed to be the bright spot to today, getting the prescription for those tiny tabs.
“Yeah, I guess.”
“I’m sure everything will be fine, let’s do the exam, Hilde will give you a hand.”
I am not telling you about that, it’s traumatic enough as it is, half naked, legs akimbo, on view to the world.
“Well everything looks fine,” the Doc announced when I returned from Hilde’s bodily fluid extractions.
“So I’m clear to train?”
“Yes you’re clear although I suspect you’ve already started?”
“A bit,” I allowed.
“Well take it easy to begin with, any pain or inflammation ease off eh, Mum?”
“I’ll keep an eye,” Mum agreed.
“Okay, well I think that’s us done, you’ll get a letter in a few days discharging you, you can talk to your own doctor about birth control or go to the Well Woman clinic in Bad Neuenahr.”
“Thank you, Doctor,” Mum offered.
“Um yeah,” I added.
“Well we don’t get too many patients as troublesome as you young lady, I don’t want to see you again until your annual, eh?”
“Yeah, I mean no.”
When we got home Gran had cooked dinner, an English stew that only lacked the suet dumplings. Well you can’t have everything, Mum suggested doing some Yorkshire puds, you know, the king size ones for which we did have the makings – it only delayed eating for half an hour and went down well with everyone. Homemade rice pudding completed the meal – Gran makes it particularly glutinous, it’ll stick to anything, can’t be beaten!
The problem was that it made me even more Gran sick; I’m really going to miss her when she goes home. I don’t even know when I’ll get to see her again, she’ll probably come again next Christmas but that’s like a year away. But before then, well I’ve no idea when we’ll be together again, in a few weeks the racing season kicks off and time will be at a premium.
“So the doctor says you are well?” Con suggested passing me a coffee next morning.
“Well I shouldn’t start falling apart at least.”
“Gaby, can I have a word?” Herr Thesing requested from the bakery door.
“Er sure.”
I slipped out of the booth and went across to the bakery.
“What’s up, Mr T?”
“Saturday,” he started.
“I’m yours all day.”
“That’s the thing, Gaby, Gloria has swapped her shift so we only need you in the afternoon.”
Bum, I could’ve done with a full shift, my current account is looking a bit thin after Chrimbo.
“Er sure, what time then?”
“One o’clock okay?”
“Sure,” I agreed.
Thursday wasn’t much different to any other school day, well the weather was a bit crappy but it is January after all. On the plus side I didn’t suffer any clothing issues, the flip side though was a mock exam in English and a disappointing mark on my Geography homework. Just another day in the life of Gaby Bond, spinster of this parish.
“Well if you aren’t working in the morning you can train with Manda,” Dad suggested as he dropped me off at Friday’s Garde.
“I guess so,” I allowed without much enthusiasm.
“Look, kiddo, I know you’ve been off the bike for a while but you need to get back into the habit.”
“I’ve been on the turbo.”
“Once, I know it can be hard getting back in the habit but if you want to race…”
“I know,” I interrupted, “no pain, no gain.”
“I wasn’t going to say that but yes. We’re not going to force you, Gaby, if you don’t want to race, you don’t have to, we’ll support you either way.”
“But I want to race!”
“So the morning?”
“Yeah, yeah, we can do the Nurburgring I guess. Have to go.”
“Don’t forget your bag!”
I returned to the car and retrieved my dance bag.
“So where’re we going again?” Mand asked as we clacked out of the garage into the weak January sunshine.
“Münstereifel, well it’s Bad Münstereifel, really.”
“I’ve seen that on a sign somewhere.”
“Altenahr, we go up the valley then we turn off just past the campsite,” I told her as I clipped in.
“So why not up to the Ring?”
“Dad thought it would be a bit more even effort, it’s not as much up or down.”
“I might be able to keep up then.”
“You’re not on a horse this week,” I pointed out before poking my tongue out at her.
The roads of course were damp, a few puddles of course and the temperature low enough to warrant heavy gloves but not so cool that the air hurts your lungs. We set off up the valley at a steady pace, a pace that took us easily through Rech and Mayschoß, the climb past the Tanzklub and through the tunnel the first time we had to dig a little deeper. I wasn’t trying to push things, to be honest it had me working harder than I’d expected, I usually float up.
We dodged the usual Saturday morning traffic through Altenahr, hausfrau hitting the Fleischerei, the florist doing a steady trade despite the time of year and the usual daft driving. Along to the bridge and up to the level crossing, which we crossed as the signals, started flashing and jangling. Things settled down as we took the sweeping bend around to Kreuzberg where the new road crosses and the sign pointing to Münstereifel.
It might not be the long, long climb up to Adenau but the mix of following the river before the hairpin climb to Effelsburg give a more varied mix of effort. You can just see the telescope from the road; Mand was quite impressed when I pointed it out to her.
“Looks more impressive than that place we went past when we were at Manchester.”
“Jodrell Bank?”
“If you say so.”
Now that brings back memories, Mum memories, Gran memories and yes, Gaby memories.
Maddy Bell 05.05.16
