Oktoberfest, New England Style

 Two large beer steins filled with amber Oktoberfest beer being clinked together in a lively pub, with warm lights and blurred people in the background creating a festive atmosphere.

Prost from the Northeast!

đŸș A Bavarian Party
 New England EditionFour glass beer steins filled with golden MĂ€rzen beer topped with thick foam, sitting on a wooden outdoor table at a festive beer garden.

Oktoberfest is in full swing again, but here in New England, we celebrate it a little differently than Munich. Bavaria throws a two‑week marathon of beer tents, dancing, and tradition. We throw
 a Saturday. Maybe a Sunday if the weather cooperates and the band can find their accordion. But honestly? It’s charming in its own way.

Every September, little pockets of Bavarian cheer pop up across the region. Breweries roll out their MĂ€rzens, towns set up tents, and someone inevitably shows up in lederhosen they bought on Amazon at 2 a.m. We may not have the Theresienwiese or 14 massive beer halls, but we do have enthusiasm — and enthusiasm counts.

 A large golden‑brown soft pretzel sprinkled with coarse salt on a blue plate, with another pretzel, mustard dip, and a napkin blurred in the background.đŸ„š Pretzels, Polka, and People Who Commit

New England Oktoberfests are “weekend warriors.” Harpoon hosts a big two‑day festival in Boston, Vermont gets in on the fun, and even the German clubs break out the oompah music. You’ll find pretzels the size of steering wheels, bratwurst sizzling on grills, and bands that are absolutely giving it their all.

It’s not Munich, but it’s spirited. And there’s something endearing about watching New Englanders — who spend half the year shoveling snow — suddenly transform into honorary Bavarians for 48 hours.

đŸ» Why It Works Six musicians dressed in traditional Bavarian clothing holding brass instruments and posing indoors at a festive Oktoberfest-style event.

After the week I’ve had (looking at you, Balboa), a little Bavarian cheer doesn’t sound half bad. Sometimes you need mountains. Sometimes you need a giant pretzel and a band in lederhosen. Oktoberfest, even in its New England mini‑version, is really just about joy — gathering, laughing, eating, sipping, and letting the world slow down for a moment.

We may not run Oktoberfest for 16 days straight, but we show up with heart. And that’s enough.

🎉 Prost to the Season

So whether you’re raising a stein in Munich or grabbing a bratwurst at a local brewery, Prost to good company, good food, and celebrations that don’t take themselves too seriously. New England may not be Bavaria, but we know how to enjoy a good party — even if it only lasts a day.

 

“Tis the Season to be Jolly”

Happy Holidays my blogging friends and followers! It a busy time of year. The Taunton Green is beautiful. They , like so many other places, used the theme of “Frozen”. I just need an evening when I’m not headed to a party or its not raining to get some pictures to share. Maybe this weekend. I don’t care if it snows. That would be pretty and fit right in with the theme  but rain would put a damper on things. 🙂

frozen-disneyland

I made my deadline and got my 2014 Christmas cards out on time! I used my “Christmas House” photo from last year for this year’s card.

Christmas house

I have some ideas for next year. I just have to get time to try capture the images.

Buddy continues to destroy the little Christmas Tree. He knows it wrong because he jumps down as soon as I start toward him. I look away and he’s right back up there!

practice 009a_edited-1

I’ve been busier this year with holiday parties. I usually stick pretty close to home. I’ve outgrown being a “party animal” but I was invited to a “girl’s night out” for my team at work and I decided it would be fun. I wasn’t disappointed. We went to an italian restaurant in Belmont, MA called Il Casale.

Il Casale

We had a wonderful dinner. My teammate , Eileen had just come back from Italy and she said her meal was better than anything she had while she was there. My chicken parm was exquisite. They didn’t take any of the short cuts that so many restaurants do. But by far the chocolate cream puffs we had for dessert were the crowning glory of the meal.

cream puffs

That was Thursday, then on Friday we had the Redfin Holiday party. It was held on the Spirit of Boston and what a good time! Everyone was smiling and  happy, there was an awesome buffet and lots of dancing. I don’t get into the office very often as its just easier to work from home so it was really nice to see everyone.

spirit

Of course when I got home the tree had been ravished again. 🙁 I’ll have to re-string the lights this time as well as the beaded garland. But it’s all about the holidays anyway. Right?

 

Less than 3000 miles

Well That explains a lot.

I haven’t had an oil change since March so I stopped by my car care center today and had them check the records. I just hit 3000 miles!  Proof that I haven’t been anywhere or done anything worth writing about this summer. That’s depressing!

mechanic cartoon

I’m still having pain in my abdomen/side even though the rash is gone on my side anyway. It’s stubbornly hanging on in the middle of my back where it started.

I work for Redfin Real Estate and we are opening up in Rhode Island. Thursday night Redfin held a Launch party in Providence. The Rhode Island Team is Agent: Jeremy, Buy side coordinator : Tara and Listing coordinator: Me! Tara and I felt it was important to attend to offer support to our leader, Jeremy. Both Tara and I also have Massachusetts agents we support but that’s not a new market.

deb and Jeremy1

It was a nice party but I noticed that I really couldn’t stand for that long before my back started misbehaving. It’s improving but there’s still a long way to go.

Sometimes I wonder if I’ll ever get back to 100%.