Listography - Mugs

The Listography subject this week at Kate Takes 5 is Mugs. Now neither I nor my husband actually drink from mugs, as we prefer cold drinks, so we don't have that many. I just counted eight in the cupboard and two with pens in. This seems too many most of the time, except when we have visitors and we have to keep washing them up. Because we don't tend to use them, with the exception of one they are all mugs that we have been given, and they all have a story behind them. So in rough chronological order of acquisition, here are my five favourite mugs:

Natural History Museum mug - I received this mug as a prize in Secondary School after a trip to the Natural History Museum. I can't remember what I did to win it, but I do remember that I received Second Prize and was a little miffed not to come first. I save this for guests to whom I wish to appear cultured.

German Diddle mug - The German text reads "Habe meine Sachen gepackt und komme Dich jetzt bald besuchen!" which I translate roughly as "I've packed my things and now I'm coming to visit!". Diddle is a little cartoon mouse who is very popular in Germany, and the mug was given to me by my German penfriend when she visited on the school German exchange. I always expect guests to ask me to translate it, but no-one ever does.

Tübingen Christmas Market mug - I spent a year in Germany as part of my degree. I loved being there around Christmas time, it was fascinating to spend the build up to Christmas in a different country. The Tübingen Christmas Market wasn't one of the biggest, but it was a lovely town to live in and the mug has scenes from the town painted on it. They sell the mugs with Glühwein in at the Christmas Market, and you pay a small deposit which you get back when you return the mug, or you can keep the mug as a souvenir.

Best Brother on the Planet mug - this is my husband's mug, as a rough guess I would say that it was a gift from his sister. It is very useful because we use it to measure out pasta, it's just the right size.

PMT mug - It reads "PMT. Be afraid! Be very afraid!" This was a gift from my Mum. I can't think why she chose this one?