Wednesday

It was to be quite an action packed day today as I wanted to get to Greek at Kaponas but had a million and one other things that required my time before I could go so we were up early as it was dry after yesterday's rain and we were keen to get started.  The anemone's have come out in the garden - just one or two poking their heads through and looking lovely - the purply blue ones being such a lovely splash of colour in amongst the fresh green leaves.

I was issued with my set of tools for the day - I have been given the job of trying to point the stones that are on the kitchen wall around the drain pipe.  This is awkward because of the flower bed in front and John would struggle to get in there without crushing the plants.  It isn't going to be easy and I will probably make a right old mess but it isn't an area that people are going to be scrutinising so I shall just do what I can and hope it turns out ok.  Once this is finished then that is all the pointing for the time being - that is until we decide to do some more stone cladding elsewhere around the house.  John has done a really good job but it is very time consuming and he still has a bloody great long list of things to do without adding any more to it!

John was concentrating on the barbeque area.  This has taken a bit of a hammering over the years and was beginning to look very tired so he has stripped it all down and filled all the holes, sanded it back and it going to tile in the inside with tiles that match the pool area, at the bottom on the sides he has stone clad it so it looks like it was built into the wall - the remaining surface area will be painted with masonry paint and then it will get a posh new aluminium door at the end of the week.

It was a beautifully clear and bright day today - the storms seem to have blown all the horrible dust out of the atmosphere.  We had a visit from the goats today and there was the most amazing view right down to the coast.  We used to worry so much when the goats came into the field, grabbing Chivers and keeping him away because he didn't like them - now none of us really take any notice except that occasionally Charlie or Boris will sit on the wall growling at them.

This afternoon we eventually got round to seeing Elaine and Paul.  Elaine has taken on the care of a colony of stray and feral cats in Kato Akourdaleia at the Amarakos Inn but she is struggling to keep a record of which cat is which and what care that cat has received.  The problem is compounded by a second colony nearby.  On occasions Elaine has trapped and taken cats to the vets for neutering or spaying only to find that they have already been done but not had their ear clipped.

Elaine wants to have a photograph of each cat and be able to note down their history.  This is not so bad with the Amarakos colony which she now seems to know pretty well and which seem reasonably friendly even if she cannot actually touch them all they seem to know and trust her.

The colony across the road is a different matter - very feral and skittish and there are so many of them living in one half of an old Cypriot house which a lady from Nicosia has set aside for them.

So Elaine and I spent quite some time chasing round trying to get photographs of as many of them as we could and in some cases they all look so familiar it was pot luck as to whether we had photographed two different ones or the same one twice!!!

Most of regulars Elaine has named in a way that helps her recognise which one she is dealing with.  Today there was one with a prolapsed rectum which she is desperate to trap and take to the vets to be given some care - she asked what it should be called (she is not sure whether it is male or female and with the distended bottom it is impossible to see) so I suggested J-Lo as she is famous for her big bottom!

She has asked if John will go down at some point and we can all try and trap this one armed with gauntlets as it was clearly very feral indeed but really in need of some professional treatment.

The village house where the second colony reside was probably, in its day, a beautiful home.  Half of it still is.  It is made up of numerous little rooms and has a large walled garden which if cleared would be stunning.  Sadly it is going the way of many village houses and slowly deteriorating.

Back at the Lodge we stayed to look at the works being carried out.  Elaine's new kitchen is nearing completion and looks stunning.  The courtyard has been paved and in true Elaine style everything just 'goes' even the clematis chosen to compliment the colours of the canvas on the wall.

Her garden is her joy and there are so many interesting things to see - it is a vast project - far more than most people would tackle on their own but itis all her own work and she should be very proud of it.

We stayed to take a drink outside on the terrace - today had been so much brighter than yesterday but there was still a chill in the air as the afternoon came to a close.

We were joined outside by Elaine's new kitten Pixie who stole her heart when Elaine went to the vets in Polis and Pixie was in the rehoming cage.  Having just lost Sebastian and Charlie Pixie was in the right place at the right time and Elaine couldn't leave without bringing her home.

We haven't caught up with Paul and Elaine for a long time so it was good to do so and we will arrange to do it again sooner rather than later.