Santa Claus has died
Building our own offices over the past three years allowed us to have some unique interactions with some of the Germans in our community. One of those people was Herr Stoll. He was a retired “putzer”. (Putz is the texture layer that is on the walls here instead of drywall or wall paper). He was a fantastic putzer and taught many of us how to expertly mix and put on both exterior and interior putz. Since he was retired, he fit our budget for the project (he got paid but more importantly, he wanted a place to go in the mornings) but got done in a day what took all of us three days to do (and he made it look good!).
He spoke only one or two words of English and his German had a thick, local accent but he was extremely jovial and was always cracking jokes and having a good time. He made the pains in our shoulders from mixing and putting up putz forgettable as he always had a smile and his laugh was contagious. Because of his looks and this laughter, he was nicknamed “Santa Claus” by many of us here.
This last week he died on his daily walk with friends. He is missed greatly.
On a another note, my Great Aunt Marjorie also died this last week. She is deeply missed but we are comforted to know she is with her Best Friend now.
