Gaby Book 25 Only Five Minutes by Maddy Bell Copyright© 2019 Madeline Bell After all the excitement of the last few weeks culminating in the trip to Austria, surely Gaby can get back to some sort of 'normal'? Well it wouldn't be Gaby if it was that simple would it?

 
"So what are we gonna be eating at this soirrée?” my co conspirator asked.
"Well we could do the traditional cheese on sticks and sausage rolls,” I suggested.
"Two things no make that three,” Mand replied, "One, we want this to be cool and two, this is Germany, they don't do sausage rolls and three, we do actually want to speak to everyone afterwards.”
"I only said could,” I pointed out, "I wasn't suggesting that we should.”
"Okay Egon, what have you got in mind?”
"How about if I do a roastie with all the trimmings?”
"I thought you were going to say pizza.”
"Well its option B,” I smirked, "You could have one of those Tofu steak things.”
"Only if everyone else is having schweine, I could fancy some lamb.”
"What happened to being vegetarian?”
"I sort of lapsed over Christmas, gran doesn't get it so it was eat the turkey or starve.”
"That'll make cooking 'round here easier,” I noted.
"Doesn't mean I want to eat it all the time.”
"Like broccoli.”
"Huh?”
"Well I don't mind it occasionally but I don't want it every meal,” I told her.
"It does get a bit old,” Mand agreed.
 
"Well its novel, I'll say that,” Mum opined as we entered Lidl's car park.
"I think everyone's had their fill of finger food,” I pointed out.
"So Nigella, what meat are we having?” Mater enquired.
"Lamb?”
"Expensive and we might have to go to Hagen's, I doubt they'll have any joints in here.”

Well its not like the rest of the grub costs a lot, veggies are pretty cheap, especially if you keep to in season stuff.

By the time we left the store we had a full trolley, all the veg of course plus extra supplies of gravy stuff, mint sauce and other makings besides several litres of Eis to go with the dessert, a last minute decision as they had a stack of Rhubarb begging to become a crumble. The Saab's load space easily swallowed everything and with a wallet somewhat less bulgy we headed for our butcher back in Dernau.
 

"I'll have all that for you first thing,” Jurgen stated.
"Thanks, you're a life saver,” I told him.
"Well I try to please,” he replied with a grin.

And please he certainly does, his English style sausages are excellent, I think he gets ex-pats coming from near and far to buy them. Of course, I bought a kilo for tonights tea – well it'd be rude not to, right?

"See you in the morning, tschuss!”
"Tschuss,” he returned as I headed out to the waiting car.

"Sausages?” Mum queried.
"Tea tonight,” I informed her.
"What about your lamb?”
"He's getting it from the wholesaler in the morning along with some Nurnbergers and streaky bacon.”
"Go on, I know I'll regret asking, but why?”
"Pigs,” I announced strapping myself in.
 

"You got the booze?” I asked Dad when he appeared in the kitchen a while later.
"Yes, I got the drinks, forty litres of diet lemonade, that right?”
"Eh?”

Lemonade? Is that all we're getting?

"The look on your face kiddo, don't worry, I got a crate of Krombacher and a dozen bottles of the Sebenschuh's best red to have with the lamb.”
"How did..”
"I know? Your mother called me when you were in the butchers. So I guess you want some help with that sack of spuds eh?”
"Mand was supposed to be helping, where is she?”
"Last I saw she was hanging decorations in the lounge.”

Damn, I knew i'd forgotten something. And given her speed at potato peeling maybe thats the best place for her.

With Dad peeling taters and me attending to the rest of the veg it fell to Mum to cook our tea, sausage casserole, some purloined spuds for the mash and a Maggi® packet for the sauce.
 

"Everything set then?” Mum enquired as we tucked into our evening meal.
"Pretty much, everythings in water so tomorrow its just boiling stuff up.”
"What about the meat?” our lapsed vegetarian queried.
"I'll fetch it in the morning,” Dad volunteered.
"Thanks Daddy.”

Hey, I can lay it on thick just like the next girl.

I turned my attention to de Vreen, "How are the decorations going Mand?”
"Seems a bit weird putting stuff up after Christmas.”
"Does the twelfth night rule still apply do you think?” Dad mused.
"They're not Christmas decorations exactly so i'd say no,” Mum supplied.
"I haven't put any Santa's up,” Mand told us.
"So its just snowmen, reindeer and angels then.”
"I think thats quite fitting,” Mum suggested, "Angels for the Angels.”
"Just to be clear, we are not singing carols,” I stated.
Dad smirked, "And you sing them so well.”
"Sugar, music!”
"Don't worry,” Mand told me, "I spoke to Marty earlier, he'll bring his boom box down.”
"My stereo not good enough,” Dad huffed.
"Only if you can find some half decent vinyl,” I suggested with a poke of my tongue.
 

"Right you two,” Dad opened, "Whilst I'm fetching this sheep you two can go for a quick ride, its dry and sunny so no excuses.”
"But Dad...”
"Neither of you have hardly touched a bike since before Christmas.”
"What about Mum?”
"Your mother is going out with the others today.”
"We could go with them,” I hinted.
"Except someone decided to go overboard on the party food,” Mand sighed.
"Precisely,” Dad agreed, "I'm not asking you to go out for hours, say fifty K?”
I sighed, as much for the appearance of it as anything, “'kay.”
 
And so it came to pass, a little after nine the pair of us set off up the lane towards Rech.

"Geez, I feel like I'm riding through treacle,” Mand stated.
"Tell me about it.”
"We can't have lost all our fitness already.”
"I think i've put on some weight,” I allowed.
"So you weigh eleven kilos instead of ten,” Mand chortled.
"And you haven't put any on?”
"Never said that but there's more of me to start with and I don't obsess over it.”
"Neither do I.”
"She says, so go on, what gargantuan weight are you this morning?”
"Fifty two and a half.”
"Geez Gab, in my dreams.”
"So like how much are you?”
"Not that I check all the time,” she stated, "Fifty eight...ish?”
"Thats hardly a lot and you are bigger than me.”
"Yeah, I wouldn't want to be a shrimp like you anyway.”
"Why you...”
"Beat you to the crossing.”

And with that she sprinted away from me.
 

"Urgh, I'm pooped.”
"You didn't have to chase down that tractor,” my riding partner pointed out.
"But it was there.”

After the first few minutes, once we'd settled onto our steeds, we had a good ride, up to Adenau, over the hill to the upper Ahrtal then back down the valley. We use the same roads quite regularly, its not as intense as going up to the Ring or as exciting coming back down but for a fairly steady effort its top banana. After Mand set the tone with the crossing, we ended up sprinting for every name board along the way until the chase of that tractor coming down from Mayschoß.

"Looks like company,” de Vreen observed as we approached Schloss Bond.

Indeed there was a Ford Focus with foreign plates on parked on the road by the driveway.

"Wonder who it is?”
"Find out when we get in I guess,” Mand pointed out.
"Guess so.”

We freewheeled past the family's clutch of motorised transport stopping outside of the garage doors.

"I'll get it,” Mand offered as she swung her leg over the bars to dismount.

I grabbed her steed and she clacked over to open the door.

"Coffee?” I suggested as we put our bikes into the rack, no doubt Dad will do the ol' clean and lube later.
"Please, you showering upstairs?”
"Yeah.”
"I'll grab mine down here then.”
“'kay.” I agreed before heading up into the house.

"That you Gab?” Dad's voice queried from the living room.
"Uh huh,” I confirmed, "You want coffee?”
"In a minute, can you come through please.”
"Can I take a wee first, I'm bursting.”

I know, too much information.

"Might be best if you don't,” Pater suggested coming to the door, "There's someone here to see you.”

Of course from just wanting a post ride bladder empty I now needed to do the deed somewhat more urgently, nevertheless I carefully padded into the family room to meet this mystery visitor.
 
The chap, for it was a he, of I guess my parents vintage was already stood to greet me.

"Gab luv, this is Senor Bassi, from WADA, Senor, my daughter Gabrielle.”
"A pleasure to meet you Gabrielle,” he greeted offering a hand to shake.
"Erm, and you,” I limply shook his hand, "Is there anything wrong?”

For those of you not in the loop, WADA, the World Anti Doping Agency are the lot whose bungling resulted in my suspension last year, they do the drug testing for the UCI and oversee the national programmes. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for weeding out the cheats but maybe they should do a bit more checking before throwing accusations about.

"No, nothing wrong at all.” Bassi greasily replied with just a hint of Italian accenting his German.
"Senor Bassi is here to take some samples,” Dad advised.
"Here, at home?”
"We find it is better than dragging you off to a clinic, no?”
"But why, its not like I'm racing at the moment.”
"But the cheats, and I'm not suggesting you are one of course, they use the products not so much for the race but for the training,” Bassi explained, "So we do the testing out of competition to catch them before the racing.”
"Okay I get that but like I'm always getting tested at races.”
"Si,” he agreed, "Most of our testing away from competition is random, you don't have to be Championa du Monde to be selected, it could be anyone with the race licence but still, there is a cadre of elite athletes who we monitor more closely, as a double World Champion you are in that group, questions would be asked if we did not eh?”
"I guess, you should've let us know you were coming, we might've been out all day.”
"Ah, but the element of surprise is lost,” Senor Bassi grinned.
"So um, what do you need?”

So of course, after having a bladder ripe for bursting when I got home, when it came to filling the bottle, well you don't really want to know about all that. Eventually the man from WADA had his sample, Dad had the paperwork and I got to shower and change – well after the delayed cup of caffeine.
 
"Coulda done without that,” I suggested once I was cleaned up and back in the kitchen.
"He was waiting when I got back from Hagen's,” Dad advised.
"So where is it, the meat that is?”
"Keep your hair on kiddo, its still in the car, I'll go fetch it.”

Dad departed on his errand leaving me and Mand in the kitchen.

"So what am I doing?” de Vreen enquired.

What indeed? She can burn water! We all have our strengths, Mand's just aren't in the kitchen.

"Table?” I suggested.
"Phew, I thought you'd have me making gravy or something.”

Dad returned with a tray of meat, it really did look like half a sheep.

"Where do you want it?”
"Er, table please, there's a lot there.”
"There's going to be a lot of us,” Dad pointed out, "Jurgen says can he have the tray back when your done and he's put some liver and kidneys in , said you were looking a bit peaky yesterday.”
"Gott, even the butcher is keeping an eye on my health.”
"Don't knock it spud, you do realise that they're all very proud of you, one of their own, the Weltmeisterin.”

I've had similar conversations before, I go on about how I'm not even German really and Con / Mum / Dad etc tell me that where I come from isn't as important as where I belong and as far as the folk of the Ahrtal are concerned, that's right here in Dernau. To be truthful, its where I feel home is too, after all its where the family home is, my friends are here, I schooled here – well for a couple of years, I train here and I guess I do feel I belong. At one time, if asked, i'd say I was from Warsop but living here but now, well I'm Gaby Bond from Dernau, I was never really Drew after we moved here and the flipside is that most people in Warsop, if they even remember me, knew Drew not Gaby even if I did look like one of the girls half the time.

"Okay.”
"Well I need to pick some stuff up from Apollinaris so I'll leave you to your culinary endeavours.”

Cheers Dad.
 

I ordered neck from Jurgen, it tends to be quite lean with the added bonus of not being on the bone so its easy to prepare and theres no waste. I refrigerated the liver and kidneys then set about the meat, six generous pieces, its a good job we have the double oven! Once the meat was on its way I started on the rest, Pigs, stuffing, batter for the Yorkshires, yeah, this'll be one rockin' dinner!

"Something smells good,” Mand opined.
"I should hope so what it cost.”
"Price is no guarantee of quality,” she philosophised.
"True, but I have the skillz.”
"You do know that everyone will be round at yours to eat all the time?”
"Beans on toast,” I suggested as I checked on the latest batch of Yorkshire puddings.
"With your home made baked beans, yummy!”
"You changing? People will be arriving soon.”
”i guess, what about you?”
"I'll go once these puddings are done.”
 

"I know you said it was a sit down meal Jen but I was thinking, I dunno, Schnitzel or something not this feast,” Maria mentioned.
"Don't look at me, its my daughter's doing,”
"Talking of which, here is the cook, Frohes Neu Jahre Gaby.”
"And to you, Kat not here?”
"Powder room.”
"I'll catch her in a bit then.”

The Pingers weren't the first to arrive, that honour went to Bern and Marty sans daughter who was spending quality time with her Oma. The rest of the guests weren't tardy, if I say we're eating at six thats what I mean! Indeed, by five thirty everyone was in the house, the drinks flowing and speculation about the food rife. At ten to the kitchen alarm sounded, time to dish up!

I know there's a debate on the merits of serving food plated or at table but for todays menu, plated was the only sensible option. With Max and Mand's able assistance, we soon had food on the table. From experience, there was a lot of speculation as to what was on the plates.

"You can start,” I hinted delivering the last two plates to table.
"We were waiting for you,” Mum advised.
"I propose a toast,” Henryck Pinger started, "To our hosts the Bonds and especially to the chef, Gaby, prost!”

While I turned a delicate shade of chartreuse, there was a general raising of glasses and answering 'prost's.

"This pie thing looks very intriguing Gabs, so erm, what is it?” Nena asked.
"Its a sort of traditional way of serving food in northern England, everything is served up in the pudding, you can get more on the plate.”
"So this is the same as the small puddings we've had before?” Bridg suggested.
"Yep, just bigger, you can put anything inside really.”
"And what is inside today,” Maria asked, "It smells like lamb?”
"Rosemary lamb, veggies and taters, there's more if anyone wants it, mint sauce and gravy on the table.”
"Well don't let it get cold then,” Dad urged, "Can you pass me the mint sauce Max.”

"Think we'll do dessert a bit later,” Mum mentioned in my ear as she helped clear the main course debris.
"Er okay, its covered so it won't spoil.”
"That was very nice kiddo, pity that carvery place we went to with Gran couldn't do Yorkshires that well.”
"That'll be my secret ingredient.”
"Which is?”
"Wouldn't be secret if I told you would it?”
 
"Okay,” Mand announced a few minutes later, "I know its a bit late but welcome to two thousand and seven, lets get this party started!”

Mart started his mini disco up, the first few notes of The Beatles 'Help!', filled the house and the tone was set for the evening.

 
© Maddy Bell 16.07.2019