It is cold outside...

This morning I woke feeling like I had been encased in an iron lung or how I would imagine it would feel not ever having been in one and this was because not only did we have fat-boy Charlie on the bed but also almost as fat-boy Boris and I was completely pinned under the duvet.  Many of you will be unfamiliar with what an iron lung was because nowadays this piece of equipment is nearly obsolete but it was mechanical respirator which enabled a person to breath on their own when muscle control was lost or the act of breathing became too much for the person.  I remember watching Wimbledon years ago and seeing people in iron lungs watching the games with the aid of a little mirror.  Nowadays these almost Frankenstein like pieces of equipment have been replaced by the modern ventilator and thank goodness for medical progress because how awful must it have been to have lived for years and years encased in a metal pod like that.

January is proving to be equally as horrible as December in terms of the weather. Today we woke to massive hail storms which means that it is very cold and we learned today that all roads to the Troodos are currently closed.  The mountain range has been constantly swathed in cloud so we cannot see the snowy peaks - I quite fancied going up to see the snow but will have to leave it for a while until it is safe to investigate with Kenny.

The appearance of two cats on the bed confirmed that the temperatures are dropping - they only seem to do this when they themselves are feeling the cold.  It is now that I am grateful that our house is furnished for the winter with lots of rugs, throws and soft furnishings and Chivers is in agreement as he settled himself down on the sofa this morning and stayed there for most of the day.

I was being given a Sunday off cooking today which was lovely and we had organised to meet Mum down at Darcy's which is a place she particularly likes.  We hoped that, as it is down between Coral Bay and St George's, we might be lucky enough to have some slightly warmer weather and I am guessing that those mad people who were participating in the local custom on Epiphany (today) of diving into the sea to rescue a cross which has been thrown in by the Bishop.

We decided to fill up with fuel in Peyia because the Eko at the bottom is the cheapest around at 1.08 a litre.  This is even cheaper than when we first came out here permanently when we were paying around 1.19 a litre and then at its highest I think it reached 1.45!!!   I think if we were to fill Kenny from empty it would cost little more than 30 euros which is a bargain.

We had a very chirpy attendant today who was Thai, we know that because he greeted us with Sawadi-Kah.  On a Sunday the petrol stations are un-manned in that the shop and till is closed but they actually employ people to man the machines and provide change so that you can fill up and the bonus is that if you put in more money in the machine than the car will take in fuel you are given a receipt as proof so the next time you visit you can get the shortfall.

The weather down on the coast was changeable but with some nice sunshine which made the dining area at Darcy's very pleasant plus they had two very good gas heaters pumping out some heat.  There was some confusion about our table as they said the booking had been changed to five people which was a bit of a surprise to us but as it turned out was an error.  John took it all in his stride by supping a pint of 6X until we were moved from our original table to a smaller one.

It was Sunday lunch only which was fair enough - it being Sunday! and I think it would be fair to say that you would have to go a long way to beat the meal we had at the Farmyard on New Year's Day (not a Sunday I know but they were serving their normal Sunday carvery).  Today's was a plated meal which I know puts Mum off straight away as all portions are the same - huge.   John had beef, Mum had turkey and I had lamb.  Personally I would say this is a nice place to go and eat when you can chose off of their ordinary menu but for me the Sunday lunch fell a little short of expectation - it is early days for this establishment and it is clearly very popular especially with the ex-pat community but I think it felt like they had bitten off more than they could chew - if you pardon the pun!!!

On our way home we called in briefly to drop of a TV Times to Di and Rob - from their house you could see that there were pockets of sunshine down around Argaka.  From up here it would appear that the sun always shines on Argaka but theirs was the first dam to overflow so that perception is clearly wrong.

We are all complaining about how cold it is at the moment and we can confirm that January so far is much worse in the electricity generation stakes than last year which means that there has been much less sunshine.  The same was true of December.   I am contemplating converting the lovely tea cosy that my sister knitted and gave me for Christmas into a hat - there is already a split on both sides which can accommodate my ears!!

John was keen to get home and settled to watch the Mighty Blades playing the lowly Barnet in the FA Cup - let's just say it was woeful absolutely woeful as SUFC players didn't show any interest and as a result lost.  It was so boring and such a pathetic spectacle that I gave up watching.

I am hoping that the lovely colours in the sky tonight means that tomorrow will be brighter - I want to get some washing done and get out in the garden - there is no art for me as Sheila is poorly with a bad back - I do hope she feels better soon.