Newbies

This morning was a morning of preparation.  Hopefully if the weather holds off we will be getting our flat roof tiled.  As we sat with our early morning coffee, planning our strategy, we could hear a not-very-light-footed Boris running up and back along the conservatory roof chasing something - slipping and sliding on the morning condensation - I blame the E numbers they have put in his catfood.

On that subject as I went into the kitchen to feed our quartet I paddled through some water - this is not normal so on closer inspection I found that the black 'ex-drinks' fridge had got over frozen and the ice was falling down and thawing and making a bid for freedom - this happens periodically - fridges can be a challenge over here and this one is no exception.

John decided to take it outside and give it a hosing off to get rid of the ice.  This is quite good really as it means the fridge gets a serious clean and I can wash all the shelves and put everything back inside 'Sleeping with the Enemy' fashion (watch the film and you will know what I mean!!)

This order, which John loves, lasts about a week and then I go back to my normal shoving things in and he despairs because he cannot find anything even though I will tell him that the yoghurts are on the bottom shelf although well hidden amongst a lettuce, passion fruit and some shoushouko or at least they were the last time I had a look!

When I saw Elena last night she brought with her some new pegs from her visit to Ikea - I know it is very sad to get excited about such minor things but over here the sun reeks havoc with all things plastic and the general standard of pegs is poor.  These are, in my opinion, the creme de la creme of pegs and after nearly five years here my original ones are only just beginning to break.

As part of the preparation for the arrival of Bassam we are clearing the dining gazebo area so that he can put tiles and guff there so we had taken down the curtains to give them a wash because upon removal it was clear that all sorts of wildlife had met their maker inside the creases and sadly after washing them the evidence remained - good job they only go up as ornament and remain folded back.

Anyway it was a good opportunity to check that Ikea hadn't changed the make-up of their pegs and they were still the best a man can get - I can confirm that they are!!

All this activity is causing the cats some confusion - Minnie has disappeared in a right huff because the outside dining table and chairs has been moved and she spends an awful lot of time sleeping on one of those chairs because the table cloth means she is partially hidden from view - this she likes!  If she is feeling like taking in a little sun she climbs up onto the flat roof and sleeps on or under one of the chairs or sunbeds but they have had to be removed in readiness for the work - this she does not like.  She eventually settled on one of the chairs in the front garden until I started hanging out the gazebo curtains and disturbed her so in desperation she is now sleeping in the outside shower where she has managed to find some peace.

We made the best of the flat roof as it was - I tried to 'dress' it up a bit but at the end of the day the waterproof coating always looked a bit like a bandage!

It is the one area where we get continuous sunshine (providing it is sunny of course) so cannot have anything living up there in pots save for the cactus which Galatia gave me which seems to thrive on the conditions.  I did move some succulents I had thinking they would love the dry conditions but they got burned to a frazzle.

Our view of the coastline is to the North so we have the chairs facing that way and for the serious sunbathers we have a couple of loungers which are turned round to face the sun and which can be moved to track its progress.  John and I prefer to sit up there of an evening as neither of us sunbathe!

With everything removed we could see how dirty the roof had become and could see bubbles and areas where it was lifting so the time is right to do something about it.  We just have our fingers crossed that the rain they are forecasting will hold off long enough for the work to be completed.

The garden and the house are now in a right mess because we have had to find homes for things in places where they do not normally live.  It is only temporary and it is an opportunity to get to areas and clean them when they are not normally accessible but it will be worth it when the work is done.

John has persevered with the wasp issue in the roof and looks to have won the battle as for the last couple of days we haven't seen any evidence of activity up there.  Whilst I was in the garden this morning I thought I would see if I could find any seeds from the Morning Glory as Elaine had asked me for some.  I was just delving into the middle when I suddenly realised that there was a group of wasps clinging to one of the dead leaves - we reckon they are beginning to build a new nest there and that they have probably moved there from the roof.  We don't mind if they do - just so long as I remember they are there - because it wont be too long before that whole column gets cut down and thrown away and the nest can go with it.

We were off down to Emba today and en route saw about four fires in the distance - as we came through Kathikas the smell of smoke got stronger and then we saw it.

This was the stretch of road where you can see the coast on both sides.  No idea if it was accidental or planned but it was pretty big.  We didn't hear or see any of the water bearing helicopters so we hope that this one was under control from the outset.



The intensity of the smoke got worse the nearer we got to it and as the wind was blowing it across the road pretty soon visibility was poor - I know that the ash makes for good fertilizer but it just seems so extreme and dangerous.

We have witnessed first hand how quickly a fire can spread at this time of year when everything is so very dry and those fires which are started maliciously are such a drain on resources.


It is good to be back playing pickleball although it was pretty warm on court today even though we are more than half way through October.  We had five today which means that one player gets to sit out each game so at least we get a little rest now and again.

Surely playing this a couple of times a week and going walking, cycling and belly dancing will help to get rid of some of the excesses of the summer - I certainly hope so!!!

The only problem is that all the good work we do on the court goes out the window when Mum and I then go off and sample a tea and sticky somewhere!!!

Today's venue was the newly opened tea rooms in Peyia where we sat out in the garden with a very nice cuppa and a very nice eccles cake for me and a fruit scone for Mum.  The sandwich/snack menu looked nice and was very reasonable so Mum is planning to take Dad there one lunchtime for something to eat.  She will soon be the doyenne of afternoon tea particularly once she has been to the Elysium to use the voucher that her friend Eileen gave her for her 80th birthday!!

Finally this evening we caught up with the village newbies - Janet and John Jinty who have moved from Scotland and will soon be joined by their dog Roxy who is currently enjoying a break at Hounds on Holiday with our friend Mina.

Janet found me on the internet when she was looking for information on Drouseia and we have kept in touch.

We took them for a walk around the village pointing out places of interest and then finished up in Finikas where we enjoyed a light supper and bottle of wine and they went for the full meze!

It is nice to see you here at last and hope that your stay in Drouseia is as happy as ours.