Sunday Bloody Sunday...

Today started out well and then deteriorated.  Whatever the opposite is to the Midas Touch (the Sidam Touch apparently) John and I have it at the moment - but more of that later.  Let's just say if there is something to go wrong it goes wrong for us!

As I said Sunday started so well - I woke this morning and shared my bed with George Clooney, Brad Pitt and Matt Damon amongst others - yes you've guessed it, John and I decided to watch a film in bed having peered out of the window at 7.30am - saw it looked like sh*t and snuggled down - we are watching an Oceans film - Oceans 13 to be exact.  We shoved the ipod in the TV and pulled the duvet round our ears.  What is the point in putting on the heating when you are toasty warm in bed?  The kiddies opted not to join us as I don't think even they fancied the journey across the buildings in the wind and rain.

When we eventually got up we treated ourselves to poached eggs on toast using my new silicon poachers which I got from Lakeland.  This is the first time I have tried them and although not 100% successful they were by no means a failure - John cannot stand 'snotty' eggs after years of snotty eggs in the Navy so I am mindful to make sure that the white is completely cooked but this can mean that the yolks are nuked!  Slightly over today but I will know better for the next time!

We had been invited to a party at Rosie and Dave's today.  Rosie and Dave live next door to Mum and Dad down at Emba and they had decided to do something now because they hadn't done anything over Christmas.  Just look at the weather as we drove down through Kathikas - you could be forgiven for thinking that you were back in Blightey!!!  Rolling mists are a feature up here in the hills!

En route we followed a truck containing what is quite a rare sight over here - live cows.  Probably poor cows that are being transported to the abattoir and although I am a meat eater, and I have to accept the birth-fattening-death cycle of livestock, it is still quite a sobering thought - although not sobering enough to stop me cooking chilli con carne for tea!

Outrageously Dave and Rosie's party was being held outside - in January!!!  When we arrived the weather was dry but deteriorated rapidly to the point that we are now in the midst of a mega-storm with thunder, lightning, driving rain and high winds - AGAIN!

We managed to get down to Mum and Dad's and then disaster struck as something happened to the car which meant that ultimately it wouldn't go. Something to do with battery and immobiliser and recognising the key.  Unfortunately Dad and John were out in very heavy rain trying to sort out what was causing the problem.

In the field at the end of the road where Mum and Dad and Rosie and Dave live they are clearing the Kolocassi (root vegetable).  You could forgive yourself for thinking that now you are in the Far East looking at the little ninja girlies in their coolie hats!  Poor little buggers must have got absolutely soaked as they steadfastly worked through the raging storm.

Dad resolutely remained outside as the rain started pouring down but then he had chosen the woman that was most easy on the eye (Lou, Dave's daughter) to speak to!  We began to think that we should have brought the table top gas heater with us for some personal comfort!  Lou and her husband Simon are going back to the UK for a four day visit next weekend.  They were bemoaning the fact that (as Simon is a gardener out here) they needed a golf club carrier to bring back some sort of hedge trimmer and they though Dave had one but didn't.  Well we did have one but had given it to Irene some weeks ago to sell for her feral cat programme.  I texted Irene to find that she still had it so we have arranged that we will give it to Lou and Simon and they will give Irene a donation towards the feral cats.  What is it they say about one man's rubbish being another man's gold?

Rosie (and Lou) had put on a marvellous spread and because of the weather people gravitated indoors.  Dave is originally from Radstock and Rosie hails from our neck of the woods having been a hairdresser in Sherborne and lived in Martock (amongst other places.  

We have a friendly rivalry between our team Spyro's neighbours and their team Fat Chance at the Thursday quiz.  Interestingly the thing which ties their team (of about 12-14 people most weeks) together is that they all hail from the West Country and so we rubbed shoulders with the people who used to own the Nags Head Pub in Martock and then ran the Podimore Inn or the guy and his wife who ran the Bakers Arms in Martock - what a small old world it is and how much easier it is to chat to people when you have just a little something in common.

The weather means that people are forced to wear something warm and maybe something they wouldn't normally be seen dead in!!!  Dave (ex-landlord of the Nag's Head Martock and the Poddy Inn) was sporting this little Ecuadorian number!!  We have promised to bring down our treasured copy of the Western Gazette so that he can read up on the recent fire at the Poddy.

Janice and Ray pitched up with their visitors having collected them from the airport.  They are here for a week - first ever visit to Cyprus and possibly at the worst time weatherwise and they had a baptism of fire being introduced to everyone three hours into a house party - I mean take a look at Mum and Dave's son in law Simon!  

Good old Ray took a look at the car with John and has sorted some of it already.  The battery is on charge at Mum and Dad's and we have travelled home in their CRV buying us time before we go down to Paphos tomorrow to get it sorted.

It is my very very good friend Hazel's birthday tomorrow (16th) but it will have been and gone by the time this is published so I hope that it was a good one.  Haze we have spent some legendary times together in the past so I hope that we might just get together one day out here to add to the memories xxx

PS Aunty V is coming to Cyprus in May from Canada - we are all SOOOOOOO excited - Aunty V, I hope that you have found this blog and are reading it!!