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All Things German In California

Merrill Lyew Emanuel

Fröhliches Erwachen

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Fröhliches Erwachen –

(Ein Drabble* von Merrill Lyew)

Die duftenden Blütenblätter schwebten in der Luft. Eigentlich war es einen Tick zu kalt für die sonnenverwöhnten Kalifornier.

Der Heckenschütze platzierte sich flach auf dem Dach des Hochhauses liegend, und brachte sein automatisches Gewehr in Position. Er hatte es aus dem Armory Depot gestohlen.

Konzentriert zielte er in Nicks Richtung. Nicks schneeweißes Hemd war platschnass vom Schweiß. Kniend fing er an, das Vaterunser zu beten, anstatt sich in Deckung zu bringen.

Sirenen von Polizeifahrzeugen heulten plötzlich laut auf.

Nick schlug die Augen auf und drückte auf den Knopf des Radioweckers.

Oh Amerika, diese elenden Amokläufer, murmelte Nick erleichtert zu sich.

 

©Merrill Lyew 2018

(* WHAT IS a Drabble?  – A drabble is a short work of fiction of around one hundred words.)

Image: Pixabay.com

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Merrill Lyew EmanuelAs a recent retiree, Merrill Lyew Emanuel now has time for his old and new hobbies. Within his hobbies are writing fan fiction in German, solving chess puzzles, repairing things at home that are not broken, doing a little bit of social media, reading every and anything that looks like a book, traveling a little, and taking snapshots with his mirrorless camera.

Having lived in Germany, Costa Rica, and the USA, he is fluent in the languages of these countries. As a professional geographer, he traveled profusely throughout Latin America. He is living in Southern California for over thirty years. Find more of his work at http://www.merrillius.net

Xmas Baking Recipe: Christmas Rum Cake à la Merrill Lyew Emanuel

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Christmas Rum Cake

This is the recipe for a delicious rum cake that our CaliforniaGermans contributor Merrill grew up with. It’s a treasured recipe from his mother, who used to make many smaller cakes from this recipe instead of one big one. It stayed a tradition for him and his family and every holiday season they are the delight of everyone in his family.

Enjoy!

LIST OF INGREDIENTS:

1. 1/2 Pound Cake Flour
2. 1/2 Pound Sugar
3. 1/2 Pound Butter
4. 5 Eggs Separate the yolks from the egg white
5. 1/2 Cup Evaporated milk
6. 2 Tea Spoon Baking Powder
7. 1 Tea Spoon Vanilla
8. 1/8 Tea Spoon Salt
9. 3 Table Spoon Burned Sugar (see procedure)
10. 3 Table Spoon Raisins and cut Prunes soaked in Rum for several weeks
11. 1/3 Cup Chopped Walnuts
12. 1/4 Cup Red Cherries cut into Halves
13. 1/4 Cup Green Cherries cut into Halves
14. 1/3 Cup Dark Beer
15. 1/8 Tea Spoon Grinded Nutmeg
16. 2 Table Spoon Orange Juice
17. 1 Orange Skin Grated orange peel

PROCEDURE:

STEP #1: Burn the 3 tablespoons sugar to a dark syrup then add 1 tablespoon of water, keep to a thick consistency. Let it cool down.

STEP #2: Mix butter with sugar, add dark syrup from STEP #1, grated orange peel, vanilla, nutmeg, orange juice. Add egg yolks one at a time. Add evaporated milk little by little.

STEP #3: Strain flour, baking powder, and salt together in separate bowl and add to the batter.

STEP #4: Add the cherries, prunes, chopped walnuts.

STEP #5: Whip the egg white apart and add to the batter at low speed. Add the dark beer.

STEP #6: Pour into a buttered 9-inch mold.

STEP #7: Bake at 350 ° F for around one hour

Bon Appétit!

Image: Pixabay.com
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Merrill Lyew EmanuelAs a recent retiree, Merrill Lyew Emanuel now has time for his old and new hobbies. Within his hobbies are writing fan fiction in German, solving chess puzzles, repairing things at home that are not broken, doing a little bit of social media, reading every and anything that looks like a book, traveling a little, and taking snapshots with his mirrorless camera.

Having lived in Germany, Costa Rica and the USA, he is fluent in the languages of these countries. As a professional geographer he traveled profusely throughout Latin America. He is living in Southern California for over thirty years. Find more of his work at http://www.merrillius.net

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FRED

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Fred

( A Drabble* von Merrill Lyew Emanuel)
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He was like the new kid on the block in downtown San Francisco. He wore his white suit, that did not have a single white spot any longer, it was sweaty and smelly. His sophisticated manners revealed his noble origin. Yet, striders avoided getting too close to him.

He roamed the streets as the displaced scrambling for food in the waste containers would haste away as he approached them. No one would dare defy his claims, though he struggled to get used to the unreceptive environment.

His hunting ground glided off the North Pole. He was Fred, a Polar Bear.

©Merrill Lyew 2017
Image: Pixabay.com
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* WHAT IS a Drabble?  – A drabble is a short work of fiction of around one hundred words.
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Merrill Lyew EmanuelAs a recent retiree, Merrill Lyew Emanuel now has time for his old and new hobbies. Within his hobbies are writing fan fiction in German, solving chess puzzles, repairing things at home that are not broken, doing a little bit of social media, reading every and anything that looks like a book, traveling a little, and taking snapshots with his mirrorless camera.

Having lived in Germany, Costa Rica and the USA, he is fluent in the languages of these countries. As a professional geographer he traveled profusely throughout Latin America. He is living in Southern California for over thirty years. Find more of his work at http://www.merrillius.net

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Die Reise

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Die Reise

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(* Eine Micro-Fiction Story von Merrill Lyew Emanuel)
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Ich zog die Gardinen des Hotelfensters zurück, das Zimmer hellte sich auf, die warmen Sonnenstrahlen drängten durch die Haut.
Ich holte mir ein buntes Polohemd aus dem Gepäck.
Im kompakten Mietwagen bog ich meine langen Beine zusammen, dann traten wir die ersehnte Tour durch das unbekannte Bergland an. Zügig fuhren wir durch die allzu steilen Straßen. Beim Klettern wurde der Blechkasten merklich langsamer. Dafür raste er mit wahnsinniger Eile bergab. Mein Herz hämmerte hart gegen den Magen. Ich bereute es, überhaupt eingestiegen zu sein. Endlich blieb der Wagen schnaufend stehen.
Ich schwöre, in eine Achterbahn steige ich nie wieder ein.
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©Merrill Lyew 2016
Image: Pixabay.com
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* WHAT IS Micro-Fiction/Flash-Fiction?  -Mikro-Fiction tells a story in 10 to 300 words. Flash-Fiction does this in 300 to 750 or up to 1000 words.
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Merrill Lyew EmanuelAs a recent retiree, Merrill Lyew Emanuel now has time for his old and new hobbies. Within his hobbies are writing fan fiction in German, solving chess puzzles, repairing things at home that are not broken, doing a little bit of social media, reading every and anything that looks like a book, traveling a little, and taking snapshots with his mirrorless camera.

Having lived in Germany, Costa Rica and the USA, he is fluent in the languages of these countries. As a professional geographer he traveled profusely throughout Latin America. He is living in Southern California for over thirty years. Find more of his work at http://www.merrillius.net

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SPARMASSNAHMEN

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 Sparmaßnahmen

(Ein Drabble* von Merrill Lyew Emanuel)
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Beim kalifornischen DMV windet sich die Kundenreihe um das Gebäude herum, wie eine dahinkriechende Schlange. Die Beamtin Mary müht sich lustlos hinter dem Tresen ab. Bei jedem Klienten überprüft sie, ob das richtige Formular vorliegt, ob es vollständig ausgefüllt ist, ob der Antrag auf Führerschein rechtens ist. Sie heftet Akten ab, lichtet Passbilder ab, nimmt Fingerdrucke ab.

Apathisch quält sie sich durch die Minuten des Tages, dabei macht sie einen Patzer nach dem anderen. Aufgrund der Sparmassnahmen im Staatshaushalt sind die Planstellen halbiert worden, leere Stellen verbleiben leer. Die Gescheiten finden anderswo leicht einen Job, nur Mary bleibt beim DMV.

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©Merrill Lyew 2016
Image: Pixabay.com
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* WHAT IS a Drabble?  – A drabble is a short work of fiction of around one hundred words.
 .
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Merrill Lyew EmanuelAs a recent retiree, Merrill Lyew Emanuel now has time for his old and new hobbies. Within his hobbies are writing fan fiction in German, solving chess puzzles, repairing things at home that are not broken, doing a little bit of social media, reading every and anything that looks like a book, traveling a little, and taking snapshots with his mirrorless camera.

Having lived in Germany, Costa Rica and the USA, he is fluent in the languages of these countries. As a professional geographer he traveled profusely throughout Latin America. He is living in Southern California for over thirty years. Find more of his work at http://www.merrillius.net

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Discover the World with Adolesco.org

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Die waltende Stimme

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Die waltende Stimme

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A Drabble (story of 100 words) by Merrill Lyew Emanuel
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Wir bewegten uns auf dem Berlinertordamm in Richtung Borgfelderstraße. Die Hitze lag flimmernd über dem Straßenpflaster. Aber die gebietende Frauenstimme kommandierte unbarmherzig,

“…noch acht Kilometer geradeaus“.

Wir standen seit frühmorgens auf den Beinen und die Erschöpfung machte sich in unseren Gemütern bereits deutlich bemerkbar.

„Wir kippen alle gleich um.“, murmelte eine Kollegin hinter mir.

Ich sehnte mich nach dem Feierabend bei einem kühlen Glas Alsterwasser. Schließlich befanden wir uns auf der Billstedter Hauptstraße. Unser Ziel war schon deutlich zu erkennen.

„Jetzt sind wir da.“, atmete ich erleichtert auf.

Ich drehte den Zündschlüssel herum und endlich verstummte auch dieses nervige Navigationsgerät…

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©Merrill Lyew 2016
Image: Pixabay.com

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Merrill Lyew EmanuelAs a recent retiree, Merrill Lyew Emanuel now has time for his old and new hobbies. Within his hobbies are writing fan fiction in German, solving chess puzzles, repairing things at home that are not broken, doing a little bit of social media, reading every and anything that looks like a book, traveling a little, and taking snapshots with his mirrorless camera.

Having lived in Germany, Costa Rica and the USA, he is fluent in the languages of these countries. As a professional geographer he traveled profusely throughout Latin America. He is living in Southern California for over thirty years. Find more of his work at www.merrillius.net

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Verpasste Kindheit

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Verpasste Kindheit

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A Drabble (story of 100 words) by Merrill Lyew Emanuel
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Im Sekretariat der Hochschule wurde ich gebeten, erst einmal Platz zu nehmen und zu warten. Kurze Zeit später betrat ein Polizist das Büro und forderte mich auf, ihn auf das Revier zu begleiten, es gebe dort eine wichtige Angelegenheit zu klären.

Arglos folgte ich dem Polizisten, weil ich mir keiner Schuld bewusst war; ich nahm an, dass es sich lediglich um ein Missverständnis handelte.
Im Polizeibüro holte ein älterer Wachtmeister eine Akte aus dem Regal und zeigte mir ein vergilbtes Blatt – ein Fahndungsplakat mit meinem Konterfei als fünfjähriges Kind. Unter einem Fahndungsfoto stand der Name des gesuchten Entführers: meines Vaters…

© Merrill Lyew Emanuel

Image: Pixabay.com

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Merrill Lyew EmanuelAs a recent retiree, Merrill Lyew Emanuel  now has time for his old and new hobbies. Within his hobbies are writing fan fiction in German, solving chess puzzles, repairing things at home that are not broken, doing a little bit of social media, reading every and anything that looks like a book, traveling a little, and taking snapshots with his mirrorless camera. Having lived in Germany, Costa Rica and the USA, he is fluent in the languages of these countries. As a professional geographer he traveled profusely throughout Latin America. He is living in Southern California for over thirty years. Find more of his work at www.merrillius.net——————————————————————————————————————

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