pickleball restarts...

So today, Friday, we were off down to Emba to play our first pickleball game after the summer break.  The Friday crew are late starting - the remainder of the club have been playing since the beginning of September!!!  The weather is unseasonably warm and we are doubting the wisdom of running around in the heat - it seems to be warmer now than it was when we stopped playing a few weeks ago!!!

En route to Mum's we stopped off at the Metal Man because John wanted to get rid of the old wood  burner pipes and he wanted to get rid of them officially rather than just leave them at the dump.

We got to the scrappy's which is the graveyard for fridge freezers past and present and anything else that contains a bit of metal!!!  As we entered the man who appeared to be the owner passed us on his way out - he looked about 12 and was driving a top of the range Range Rover.  We explained what we were getting rid of and he reversed back and had a little chat with a Gadji who was stripping down a hob.

We deposited our scrap and Mr Gadji came across and solemnly handed John a 2 euro coin.  John was bemused and amused and equally solemnly thanked Mr Gadji and we used the two Euros to purchase to large bottles of water so we had something to drink at pickleball and, even better, we still had change!!!!

It was a hot, sticky and hard reintroduction to pickleball - but it was good to be back.   Gluteus Maximus did not rear his ugly head and John's knee stood up to the test - Mum got a bit dizzy at one point but then it was exceptionally warm in the room.  Big thanks to Di and Keith for the competition!



Back at Mum's after playing we had a conundrum regarding her sun room - this is the room where she would prefer to spend her evenings and watch television but we are struggling with this.  The sunroom was not initially an indoor space it was a small veranda overlooking the adjacent fields.  On the right is a photograph of that space before anything had been done to it and the one on the left is how the sunroom looks now as a proper room but it was never designed to have electricity let alone access to the internet.  Dad was adamant that he wasn't going to spend money on having it glassed in but eventually he did!  It is a warm and cosy space for mum and it is where Freddo spends his day safe and sound.  We will do whatever we are able to get the TV working there properly but it is a challenge.

We are thrilled that we have Mike staying with us for a couple of days - he is such easy company and a fellow Blade so tomorrow they will be glued to the TV to watch the match.   John really enjoys his company as do I and if nothing else good came from Elaine marrying Paul (Mike's brother in law) we got to make a great friend.

This evening I had planned to do Thai Chicken noodles for tea which turned out to be a hit although I clearly thought I was catering for the masses!  I also recreated the village bread thingy that you get at To Steki in Kathikas - not sure how Maria cooks it but I cut the loaf and then browned it off in a pan before putting it in the oven.

We had a lovely evening and poor Mike has been bamboozled into participating in our village clean tomorrow poor chap!