Safety Second

I slept like the proverbial log last night, waking at about 6am when a woodpecker kicked off at high volume in amongst the tea trees. I needed a wee so got up and didn't take my camera with me then went back for it so I could try and take a video and, typically, just as I approached for a second time, I heard it fly off and didn't get any video at all. What a shame.

Rambo at his waiting station

I went back to sleep, heard it again about 6.30 but didn't shift and then blinked and it was 7.30; so much for me getting up and ahead of the day. Oh well, I struggled out of bed and, as I had slept a bit longer, I think I was a little slower to get moving once I was finally up and out of bed. I put the kettle on, made a brew (there was enough water out of the tap upstairs to fill the kettle which was great as too much walking must be bad for you I reckon. While the kettle was boiling I popped out onto the balcony to snap a picture of the mist in the valley; I know this is a picture that has been taken many times now by me but I can't get over it and love to share it.

My morning was dominated by other people and first up it was Lubo. He arrived dead on time (as usual) and looking very breezy and summery in a colourful red check shirt. I had been round marking on the plans he left last week and today we spent twenty minutes or so confirming my measurements and discussing various things, mostly around the spiral staircase between the kitchen and living room. I was also able to explain the change around the guest suite which he really liked and he left smiling, having told me that the kmet had been seen going to town as he was on his way up.

That was a pain because I needed to catch him to fill out a form for my residency. I have decided to just crack on and not wait for him to come over to help me. As soon as Lubo left I jumped into Thomas and headed into town. I had a list of things to achieve and first was to put more credit on my Bulgarian mobile as I was out. I achieved this easily, the serving girls in the shop know me and one of them speaks a little bit of English, and then with this credit I rang and arranged to meet the Kmet. This was completed very quickly however I have since realised that he hasn't done everything I need so I will be going back down there tomorrow (or ringing him first thing in the morning) to find out what house number I actually am in the village.#

T, Thomas, and the work station

Anyway, after this I scooted over to the builders merchant and bought another six bags of cement which were loaded into the back of Thomas by a burly assistant and then I was up and home before time for my morning meeting. Excellent timing. When I got back first of all Rambo came and jogged really slowly in front of Thomas and round to the passenger side, causing me to have to emergency brake and this meant he was put in his enclosure in disgrace for a bit. Secondly T was on with moving a load of materiel up to his working site so I drove Thomas up with the cement bags in the back so he wouldn't have to hump them up there on his own. Here he is looking particularly dapper up the top of the land where he is making excellent progress.

That should be easy to shift....

While I was out I had realised that at some point a blister had developed on my big toe (the same one that was battered twice yesterday) and it was agony walking around so that put a stop to my plan of doing some scything today; I'm not going into that long grass bare foot as I expect to disturb a snake or two on the way. Because of this change of plan I finished my phone call, did some work and then, while I was waiting for an email reply, decided to go and have a look at the ceiling in the bedroom which needs the plaster pulling off it. I grabbed the ladder, the iron bar and the camera and climbed up to have a look.

... and it was - right onto my head

It looked pretty simple to do so I picked a bit that appeared loose but not too big and, having put the camera in a safe place and grabbed a plastic tray to hold over my head just in case, stuck the iron bar in and wiggled it. This was not the best idea I've ever had to be honest as a much bigger chunk than expected broke away and a portion of it plummeted straight through the tray and right onto my head with the thump. What an idiot. I knew I would need a hard hat for this and why I even thought it clever to disturb any of it without one I don't know. I went straight outside to the stand pipe and washed my head thoroughly, finding that there was blood, and then asked T to take a picture so I could see the damage.

Simple ice pack

It wasn't hurting that much but the lump was starting to develop so I went back upstairs and pulled out the bag of peas (I have no intention of eating these; they are in there for emergencies such as this) and sat for the next our or so with them balanced on my head, shifting them every now and then to achieve the best cold-to-injury ratio I could. It was a salutary lesson (and fortunately not a drastic one) in not being careful and making stupid decisions. Maybe some sense has been sunk into my thick skull.

Anyway I did a bit of paid work while balancing the peas and then it was lunch so a lovely set of cheese and nardenitsa butties with mayo was put together and taken outside onto the balcony, with my book, and I spent the next hour reading, sipping my carroti juice (I am now completely out of this, so this must be sourced again) and soaking up the sun. When I went back inside after this I felt so much better for it.

Hard headed man

The rest of the afternoon was spent on paid work and I got quite into it, with a new task finally being assigned, before I suddenly noticed it was raining and legged it downstairs to help T bring the cement in. This done I tasked him with popping down to the shop and buying some safety equipment for both of us, including a hard hat, some safety glasses and some masks. He did this quickly and returned with a bright yellow hard hat for each of us. If only I had waited I wouldn't have a lump on my head right now.

Stunning cloud formations

The rain had passed while T was out so he took Thomas back up the bank and cracked on with the wall. I popped outside onto the balcony at one point as I had caught a glimpse of the sky from the side window of Room 13 and was just amazed at the formations of the clouds that formed the rear edge of the storm. For a fair while after this the rumbles and burbles of the storm could be heard and I had a message from S and S suggesting that they had caught far more of this one than we did.

Rambo cooling off

Also while I was up on the balcony Rambo came to say hello, bringing his kong with him obviously, and then went round to his pool next to where the trailer is now parked for a quick cool off. I have been wanting a picture of him in there for a while but never had my camera so finally here it is.

A spider down his hole

Finally it was time for T to head off and I was going downstairs anyway to grab a picture of this little beasty. This morning, when I woke up, I saw something just by the step skitter off into the undergrowth and a little investigation revealed that there was a hole spider (they aren't called this but this is what I call them) living just there. I will probably stake his hole out and try and get a better photograph than this but this was the best I could get, with T holding his phone light up to try and illuminate down the hole. Spooky looking fella isn't he.

T had caught another funny video of Rambo and sent it to me. Apparently there was an injured butterfly, which had probably been attacked by a bird, and it was fluttering around near the ground. Rambo was not sure at all what to make of it and kept starting away when it moved, and then batting at it. He is a funny dog sometimes.

Sunset two ways

So I headed inside, put the chicken thighs I had been defrosting over today in the oven and started this blog. It has been slow to write this evening as I have been distracting myself a lot with various other things however I'm now drawing to the end. I did my normal leg it out to get some shots of the sunset however this time I went to the balcony as well and took a picture looking both ways; with the sun on the hills and its last rays through the trees. What a sight. I can't wait for my bedroom to be done so that will be my view every day.

Sassy back out of hiding

Sassy has not been well for a couple of days and she still isn't right. I wish I knew what was wrong with her but she isn't eating her food and spent the previous two days hiding under her lent over windows. Today she has emerged and I saw her nibbling on some straw which is an improvement. I really hope she is just having a bit of an upset and will recover; I'd be so sad if she was really ill and didn't make it. I don't think the vets here are really set up to cater for rabbits though. She is better than she was, for sure. I'm keeping a close eye on her.

And so the blog is over and tomorrow I will don my hard hat and pull that ceiling down. I may even have some visitors to spice the day up. We shall see. One thing to add for my memory banks is that today I have killed three mosquitoes in here, and heard a fourth. The wind has been low the last couple of days though so that might be a factor. Also, some really awesome decisions were made today which will become apparent over the next few weeks. Watch this space... very exciting times.