We have a new toy...

You have got to love the electrician that Nicky and Mark have got  coming to sort out the supply in their house.  He was due to come today and John had agreed to let him in after he had phoned to say he was on his way.  We did not in a million years anticipate a phone call at 7.00am!!!!  Anyway that was the time he called and he arrived shortly afterwards with his crew and they started work.  Good job John was already up and about!!!

I have been charged with looking after The Bobster's beloved Cyclamen whilst they are away.  I am not normally good with these plants so I have been worried that I might have to go out and get a replacement - would Bobby notice if he returned home to find a yellow gerbera I ask myself????

Anyway I have lovingly nurtured said cyclamen.  It has survived and even produced new flowers and today I decided to return it to its rightful place on the Veaseys dining table.  

John and I were going for our final house check today before I went to Art.  Di and Rob return home tomorrow early afternoon and we wanted to have a good look round to ensure everything was tickety-boo.  There has been an issue with their water supply and we noticed the road was still dug up where the leak had been discovered.  We think they must still be doing some work on it but knowing Cyprus this is just how they plan to leave the site.

Anyway bar a little hiccup reactivating the alarm everything was fine which is good news and hopefully they will have a safe and uneventful journey home tomorrow and that they will have had an enjoyable and successful trip back to the UK.

It was a glorious start to the day and the view from their house was so spectacular that I took a quick photograph to send to Di and Rob as a reminder of what will be waiting for them when they get back.  The forecast looks pretty good for the remainder of the week and bearing in mind that it is the first week of December we really can't complain.  Well we can and we do but we shouldn't!

The main road through the village is blocked off again so John took his life into his hands to go to check the post before we went to the cemetery as we normally do on a Monday.  The grave next door but one to Dad's is a riot of colour with what I think are called Tagetes which are a sort of simple marigold.  It is clearly a haven for butterflies and bees which were busy doing their thing in the glorious Winter's sunshine.  In the words of John Marsden "in the midst of death we are in life".

Sheila finished her picture of the bee-eaters today and it is beautiful - full of stunning vibrant colour.  I, on the other hand, am still working on my house leek picture although I can see that the end is in sight, well if it were just the one house leek I would be on the final stretch but there is a smaller one at the bottom of the picture with as much detail and colour as the large one!!!

As always I have a lovely morning with Sheila followed by lunch cooked by Klaus.  Later this week we are having our December Ladies Lunch which is to be a Ladies Evening Meal, made a bit special because it is so close to Christmas.  It will be the last culinary get-together that Sheila is going to organise - after several years she is bowing out and no-one seems keen to take up the reins.  I have done my stint prior to Sheila doing it so it wont be me!!!

It is a bit of a thankless task because it is impossible to keep everyone happy and even though you cannot be responsible for the food which is produced you feel that you are because you have organised the event.  Anyway my personal thanks go to Sheila for doing it all this time.

We had quite a pile of post today.  Lots of parcels which is always exciting and two of them contained Christmas gifts for John and I.  A parcel from my sister and a parcel from Lakis, Argy and Kia.  We are very grateful that people remember us at this time but John is wondering what is going on with all the blue wrapping????  We are most definitely a red household!!!!!

We have decided to go on another Christmas shopping trip tomorrow as we need to try and get something to open on Christmas Day.  I know John says he used to get very excited as a child to get a satsuma and a walnut in his Christmas Stocking but as of yet I have neither so he is going to be very disappointed.

We decided to go down to Polis to do a bit of shopping this afternoon and to do our recycling and we had to go and pick up John's new toy - a halogen cooker which he thought would be a good addition to the kitchen particularly for cooking sausage rolls which they are currently stocking in Paps and from Sainsburys so not the frankfurter type, proper English sausage type.  I cooked some last week and they didn't get any further than the cooling rack!!!

We got it home and put it through its paces and it passed the sausage roll test.  Actually I was quite impressed and have ordered a halogen cook book so that I can make good use of it.  I do remember Mum having one of these years ago when she first moved to Cyprus and I remember she used to do some pretty fabulous roast potatoes using nothing more than water.

We were going to eat up the remainder of the curry this evening but the sausage roll quality control tasting overtook events and we didn't want anything else after that!!!  Any tips on using one of these ovens will be gratefully accepted.  I have taken the opportunity to have a clear out in one of the kitchen cupboards to find it a home.

Escape to the County reminded me of my Nan as the beginning of the programme was broadcast from outside Caerhays Castle where Nan used to work.  Her home was located in East Portholland which is part of the Williams' Estate and was a tied 'cottage' although it was actually an old Inn and when she passed away young Mr Williams gave the eulogy although I think 'young' was a bit optimistic and I also remember that old Mrs Williams was sat in her wheelchair all dressed in black at the back of the church and she frightened the life out of my cousin Christine and I.  Dad could remember playing cricket on the grass in front of the castle.  Dad's cousin Philip was head gardener there for over 40 years and there is a magnolia named after him.