a new week begins...

This morning we were privileged to witness the courtship and mating of two beautiful swallowtail butterflies who were in the garden on the wall.  They were there for ages and we were careful to make sure they were undisturbed and un-eaten by our marauding cats!  These really are magnificent butterflies - large, about the size of the palm of John's hand and with distinct and colourful markings.

Next week my Monday will be different because my lovely friend Hazel will be staying with us and as she is only here for a week I am foregoing Art.

John was going to Physio this morning and hopefully he will not have done any lasting damage when he had his mishap with the plastic chair yesterday.  I walked to Sheila's - it was incredibly hot so I welcomed the cool of the little church in the cemetery before I went for my regular visit to Dad.

All is good, the flowers are still valiantly blooming despite the soaring temperatures, the plot is weed free and his little corner looks loved and well looked after.  We have a chat and I tell him about the weekend and tell him that we miss him challenging John for being leading-most in whatever game we are playing.  Now that rules have been firmly established John seems to have got the hang of Rummikub so no longer fills the drag-arse spot.

I don't spend too long as I begin to melt in the heat and am grateful for the cool of Sheila and Klaus's where the fans are on and a cold drink is waiting for me.  Klaus is busy doing something with his gourds so Sheila and I sit companionably working on our respective pictures.  Sheila is doing something which might have been an illustration in a children's book and I am still working on the picture that Marion has asked me to do.

I finished the sky today and put in some greenery behind the beach huts - this is pure artistic licence and I have been grateful for Sheila's help and guidance otherwise this could have looked a bit odd.  Unlike the last beach hut picture I did these seem to have been constructed from corrugated sheets so the roofs will be a bit of a challenge - I said to Sheila I will have to replace her stock of blue pencils once this one is finished because that is all I seem to be using!

John went off to the airport this afternoon to pick up Lakis, Argy and Kia.  I walked home and couldn't believe how hot it was - I declined a drink with the Australian lady because I just wanted to get home.  The temperature from our weather station whose sensor is in the shade showed it over 44 degrees which is hot hot hot, I hope it cools a little for Hazel!

John stopped off on the way home so that Argy could get some provisions from the Paps bakery at the top of the Mesoghi Avenue and we were invited to join them for supper by way of a thank you for looking after their property whilst they were away.

That was kind of them and we were only going to have a salad so we accepted and went across once they had got themselves settled.

We have been quite happy to keep an eye on their house for them in fact we are happy to do it for any of our neighbours because we understand that this is a worry when you are not on hand and having work done.

We shall have to pull our fingers out after Hazel goes home and make sure we have got George and Pam's looking half decent for them.  Hopefully Stelios will have tackled the weeds in the back garden with his spray and it will only be a question of pulling them out.

Anyway back to this evening we had a nice supper and then we all sat outside in their newly refurbished courtyard to admire Lazarus's handiwork.  They still have bits that need finishing, a lot of cleaning to be done, the pool to be finished and the outside walls painted but at long last it is beginning to look like the holiday home they had envisaged.