creepy crawlies

We have a visitor camping out in the vine under the gazebo - we know it is there because it leaves an inordinate amount of poo behind which is all over the decking - perfectly formed corrugated pellets of poo about the size of a piece of sweetcorn!

I didn't have to look too far before I spotted said visitor - it is the caterpillar of a hawk moth which, by the looks of it, is about to pupate because normally those we find are green because they are from the oleander hawk moth or the yellow and grey ones are from the death's head hawk moth.

This specimen is about 8-10 centimeters in length and is munching its way through the vine - there is no damage to the nearby oleander!

I have to go out every morning and do a good old Cypriot swoosh down with the hose to remove the poo and clean the table and as we hope to have a barbeque with Mum on Sunday will have to give that area a good bottoming (if you pardon the pun!).

It is really too hot to think about doing anything but John has been planning to build some shelves in the pump house to tidy it up a bit.  This is where he keeps his beer crates and I keep my veggies because generally this is about the coolest place we have so today was the day and even though the temperatures have been hitting nearly 40 degrees up here in Droushia John ran in and out of the sunshine to build the shelving.

It has been good to be able to tick jobs off of the To-Do list - some of them have been on there for some time.  We have had some down-time since Dad died for a number of reasons - changes to routine and lack of enthusiasm but we are getting back into the swing again.  We have one big job that we have budgeted for and that is to put a second 'skin' on the conservatory roof using poly-carbonate sheets which hopefully will make the room cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter - the only trouble is that it is too hot to work in there during the day - it must touch nearly 50 degrees in there at times and John's knee still can cause him issues - he isn't good at resting unless it is imposed upon him.

We were out again this evening with mum meeting up with Jackie and Costas at Gabors Restaurant which is above their newest Tea for Two restaurant down on the hotel strip in Paphos.  It has always been a favourite of ours although recently some of the long term staff have gone and so it is lacking something - the food is still as good but the care and attention is not quite the same and sadly this evening we had to inform John the owner that dad, Mr Ron, had passed away.

It has turned out to be a really busy and quite expensive week for us because tomorrow night we are going out with Di and Rob to see the Jersey Boys at Ampelones in Peyia.  We would not normally pack all these things into one week and certainly not before we are about to have visitors!

We are on a limited budget - our income doesn't change until John's pension becomes index-linked which isn't for another few years - and life conspires against us all the time - John's pension will soon have to be taxed at source in the UK which is not so favourable as being taxed here and we have read that they are changing the way they calculate tax and emissions which means that there will be in increase in road tax on our two vehicles.  We will manage - we just have to cut our cloth accordingly!

We always have a lovely time with Jackie and Costas - we have all known each other for such a long time.  Jackie always looks so stylish and cool that I thought I should make the effort and wear some heels so I dug out the pair that I wore to my nephew's wedding in Dubai last year - I have only worn them the once and they are very high although they have nothing much too them for them to be uncomfortable even with my bunion or whatever it is on my big toe joint!  I so rarely wear heels nowadays partly because I don't really go anywhere to need them and partly because the road and pavement surfaces are not conducive to wearing them - with this in mind I suggested we left early so I could totter from the carpark and negotiate the steps up to the restaurant!

This is not the most flattering picture of Jackie and Costas - I took it without warning them!  We had a great evening sitting at our favourite round table - we were the only ones inside which would have been ok if the air conditioning had been working but boy it was pretty warm in there.  There weren't too many other diners which is unusual - in the past we have seen diners turned away because it has been full and they haven't had a booking - maybe it is suffering from all the all-inclusive hotels, or from the fact that it is upstairs so not as visible as other venues or maybe like us regulars have seen subtle changes there.