Mag update and foods I can make myself and the holiday this weekend

It's been 6 days and the lumps on Mag's back look exactly as they did the day the staples came out, despite lavender oil 3 times daily.

I bathed him yesterday and realized that the area is very warm compared to the rest of his body. I am worried the lavender is actually hurting him, but I'll do another couple days.

Overall the lumps look worse than they did before we did anything at all to them - the hair has not grown back, whereas before, if you recall from the photo, they weren't that noticeable.

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I got a lot of tips from you about making my own foods. I love to cook, I have learned how to make my own Mexican food because it does not exist here in edible form. I learned to make tortillas from scratch, refried beans (I have to go to an Asian market to find pinto beans!), guacamole, enchilada sauce, and most importantly of all, restaurant-style salsa (another trip to the Asian market for both cilantro and jalapeño). I'm very proud of myself for my nearly perfect approximations of American Mexican food, but that was before Atkins, so those recipes have been put in the back of my recipe box.

Update: I must add that I visited Becky Bean and I know she would shake her head/put her hand over her mouth at my previous paragraph, based on the authentic Mexican food she made J and me when we visited her in Oregon. Corn tortillas deep fried with some sort of white cheese wrapped inside, and as appetizers, cucumber slices in lime juice. All new to me, and the best breakfast of my life. Becky, I'm sorry, but when we relocate, we miss what we knew growing up, and for me....it's Azteca. The first place I go to eat in America on each visit. It's what I know. I'm from a place almost as far north you can get without being in a whole 'nother country. I must ask, is there Taco Time in Oregon? We also go directly there on America visits. (Not cheap, fresh Mexican fast food. Again, free salsa, very hot. I mix half of the salsa with sour cream and have a milder version to alternate bites with.) Now I'm having cravings. Why is there no Mexican food here? Oh right, 8 thousand kilometers.

German deli-style mayo is not bad, it's just not Best Foods, so I stretch out my (Christmas) Best Foods jar over 6 months by always using a clean spoon/knife, putting the lid back on super tight, and putting the jar in the back of the fridge where it's coldest. So, I eat expired mayonnaise, but I'm super careful about it. I can stretch it by never using it in mixtures (tuna salad); only eating it straight such as to dip chicken in, or for no-bread-BLTs.

I used to be picky about peanut butter (JIF) but it's been so long I've forgotten what it tastes like and am happy with what I find here. There's a YouTube channel I'm subscribed to made by a girl from Florida living in Munich for the last 7 years, and she talks about her German culture shock. She did one called "Foods Germans find disgusting" and it's right on - she talked about celery (green, the stalks) that is nearly impossible to find here, and very limp when you do, and how you can cut it up and put peanut butter in it, a popular kids' snack. I used to love those, and sure enough, her comment section was full of people saying how disgusting that is. Germans don't eat peanut butter, and they don't eat celery. Once I found it at my local store and the checker actually spoke to me (that never happens) because she just had to ask, "How do you eat that, what do you do with that?" I froze up and didn't know what to say, but said, "Just how you'd eat carrots."

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Today is Pentecost and I have to mention it because between Friday and Monday, everywhere you go people say, "Happy Pentecost" to you, or, "Happy Pentecost weekend." And you reply, "Happy Pentecost to you too." Every single interaction with a person this weekend includes this greeting. It's strange to me because I am not sure they all know what Pentecost means, but it's part of the culture here. And it's a national holiday (Monday). So even though I got my lawn mower blade back, I won't be using it til Tuesday: )

The weather has been non-stop Summer (in the 80s with humidity). It amazes me that so many Germans fly to Mallorca every year to get some sun. Since May 1 we have had three days without sun. However the lightning storms this week have been great. Except that people have been killed by it, and J's computer got killed by it.

The horseflies have arrived. Yesterday was day 1. I also got my first fire ant bite this week, so I'll be poisoning again. At least I can do something against the fire ants. Nothing can be done about horseflies, they hunt mammals indiscriminately.