Another week has passed and the more astute of you will have noticed that I haven't been doing daily posts and will have guessed the Bekir et al have not returned this week. And they haven't. I'm actually not going to chase him for this coming week either as it's looking to be quite a busy week, work wise, and the week after will be more convenient. If he rings to say he'll come I'll not be turning him down, though, that's for sure.
I've actually got lots of pictures to go through but I'm struggling for motivation right now so I don't know how much I'll put into this; A is currently snoozing on the sofa and so would I be if I hadn't had this on my mind to write - obviously I'll be super happy once it is done and it'll go into the backlog for us to read over in the future and bring the memories into focus.
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| Steak and tomatoes sizzling on the hot plate |
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| Table set for a game, and what fun it was! |
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| Magnetic jig for holding parts while they glue |
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| Thelma, Louise and all the balls (and a rope toy) |
Last Sunday, after the blog was written and published, A and I had the last of the UK bought steak for dinner, then played a couple of games of SBG, before it was bed time. It was a very enjoyable way to spend the rest of the day particularly for A who had done an awesome job of tidying and cleaning. I also got to make use of the present my parents got me for Christmas last year - a magnetic jig for holding stuff while it's gluing. It worked a treat! Monday was a day of work for me, while A headed to the shops and then did her artwork. The only picture I have from Monday is of the puppies in their bed where Thelma (and it is Thelma who has done this) has collected every ball she owns and is very proud of herself!
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| Snow on top of the hills across the valley |
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| The sun is out so I'm smiling again |
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| A very large bird of prey that flew over |
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| Beautiful display of Spring |
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| A planting some more flowers |
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| Thelma and Louise enjoying the weather |
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| Lots of run off the land |
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| The Lidl Daffs are thriving |
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| The Tortoise Garden is coming to life also |
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| Colourful entrance, and it keeps getting brighter |
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| A busy little bee |
We woke on Tuesday to snow on the mountains across the way and quite a heavy overcast however by lunch time it was a glorious day and we got to sit outside for lunch, and then spend a bit of time walking around the garden and enjoying it. while we were sat eating a shadow shot across the patio and a HUGE bird flew over low, then went to circle above the hills. I got the camera in case it came back past close, but it didn't do another pass. Awesome. A planted out some little flowers she had saved from somewhere, and they fit very nicely in along on of the borders so hopefully they'll do well, next year if not this. I strolled around with the camera getting pictures of the flowers, and the bees that are already out in force, and just enjoying the relaxation and feel of the fresh new-growth grass beneath my feet.
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| The cherry trees I nursed last year are looking healthy this year |
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| Lots of beautiful blossom on the plum tree |
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| Standing water in the orchard |
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| More buds on all the other trees |
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| Twin searchlight sunset |
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| Another game, such fun |
After this we headed round to the orchard to enjoy the blossom that is appearing there, particularly on the cherry trees. The big plum tree is covered in blossom and smells absolutely divine however the actual orchard is very waterlogged. In hindsight a more considered approach was required here, including putting in automated water and good drainage, to cope with both extremes we see here. That evening the sunset was beautiful, though we almost missed it, and we played another couple of games of Battle Companies which was super fun.
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| The sun rises above a hazy valley |
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| Birds singing in the plum tree |
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| Louise settles down on my chest |
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| Making stone walls, with ever reliable lego |
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| The results of an earlier experiment |
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| Louise helps A make a decision |
Wednesday dawned bright and clear with haze in the valley from the heated greenhouses which are run by wood burning furnaces. I was working but Louise had other plans and fell fast asleep on my chest; what a darling she is. After I put her down I covered both puppies in my jumper and they were very happy with that. I was playing with techniques for making stone walls in my brief downtime during the day and they came out pretty well. This "taking time away from my desk" thing is going really well and despite being tired we got two more games in that evening, though I'd had a tough day and struggled a bit in the aftermath of rolling badly at the end of the first game.
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| Snow fall greets us |
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| Puppies cuddle the fire |
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| A wintry scene that was very unwelcome |
What a difference a night makes and we woke to snow on Thursday and bitterly cold wind. The puppies definitely had the correct idea and refused to move very far from the fire at all. It was really unpleasant and the biggest concern for me was all the delicate buds that you can see pictures of above; the temperature was below freezing and the wind was howling, blowing plum blossom everywhere. It was just a miserable day all in and we stayed inside with the fire going and did very little.
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| A skiffle of snow on the balcony |
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| The plum tree, slightly less blossom and fewer birds |
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| Shitty neck attempt |
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| Sand blown over from the Sahara, and dumped in the snow fall |
The weather did not really improve much over night but the birds were still there in the plum tree braving the elements. I struggled and struggled to get the fire to take properly, while A was out shopping, and just as I got it going the sun came out and shone through the windows into Room 13 and I got way too hot so opened the windows; this made me laugh but also prompted me to kick the puppies out onto the top bank where they had a great time; Louise was busted as she attempted shitty-neck though it didn't stick this time. The storm that brought the snow had brought more than that; there is loads of sand everywhere that has blown over from the Sahara. Our cars are filthy with it and the balcony is also.
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| Fill the table with scenery |
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| These guys need to get the ferry |
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| Louise is super impressed |
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| Couldn't fit him on the ferry |
That evening we once again got a game going but this time with the larger standard forces. I dragged a load of the scenery I made over a year ago (before the crazy working thing started) and made a really interesting and fun table that we battled over all evening; there were some really funny moments as I had to set up on the other side of the river and use the ferry to get my troops into battle. Louise settled on my top and watched and we had a great laugh though we had to stop before the game was over as we were both too tired to finish it up.
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| Getting back to the game |
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| Finally my last mini joins the action |
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| Proud winner with Durin |
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| Smiling Louise |
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| Flowers through the snow |
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| Caught the cockerel, finally |
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| The second one is dispatched |
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| Playing games and having a laugh |
The next morning we were tidying up finally for the arrival of our guests and part of that involved finishing the game off. It ended with A beating me 8-6 and a worthy winner she was too. The snow made a return as well, falling quite fast and with huge flakes but none of it settled. By the time our friends arrived it had stopped completely which was a relief. We had a cup of tea to welcome them then went out to the chicken coop where we were dispatching two of the three roosters; one is particularly nasty and really we only need one rooster as they are damaging the hens with their continual rapes. I went into the hen house with Melly and we managed to catch first one then, later (as it escaped the first attempt) the other and both were dispatched quickly and without trauma. We hung them overnight in the garage as it was getting too dark by then to do much else. We had a lovely evening with superb food and played a game and generally had a really good laugh, including a bottle-kill of the Paul John Indian Whisky. It is always lovely spending time with Lee and Melly.
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| Hammering the nails in |
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| Louise investigating |
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| Hung ready for plucking |
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| A getting a handful and ripping |
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| An expert gets involved |
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| Boiling water helps loosen the tail feathers |
And so we get to this morning. I did bacon and eggs for everyone before our friends headed off and we had the short snooze that I interrupted to start this update. My typing was interrupted in turn by A waking and shouting to get those cockerels plucked. I hammered some nails into the wood shed uprights and we make a start (the girls were very unhappy and had to be put inside - Thelma in particular was disturbed by the whole thing) but when we had only just started the Little Lady shouted and came over to help. The addition of some boiling water loosened the harder to move feathers and it wasn't long before the job was done. I was dispatched back up here while A has been gutting and cleaning them and I think we'll be having curry soon. I was very nervous of this whole process but actually found it less distressing than I thought; maybe we can raise and kill our own meat.
My head is pounding now so I'm going to go and finish my nap before dinner time. Still no call from Bekir so I don't think we'll be seeing them this week either.
