Near enough a perfect day

Well here I am again and today has been a corker. I want this done, and it'll be short, so no delaying.

A really thick fog this morning

My sleep last night was pretty fitful as I had rested so much of yesterday and I was also trying to find and kill a couple of mosquitoes that were zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzing around the room. I got one of them but the other was way too quick to catch. I was woken in the night by a bat flying down the chimney and out the petchka opening into my room. I tried to get a picture but it was way too fast and it was only later I thought I could have videoed it. The bat was far cleverer than the bird and as soon as I opened the fly screen it was out into the night. I followed it and looked at the milkyway, and the stars, and then headed back to sleep. I was woken by the dogs barking but ignored them but eventually decided I should get up because it sounded like they were out of water. The first thing that struck me was how misty it was, after having been so clear in the night, and it took a while for this to burn off.

Both trays have seedlings already

It was even cold as I stood on the balcony taking the picture but then, as I turned to go back in and get on with a brew and the feeding, I saw that the lettuce seeds, which I only put in the other day, have already started to poke green above the soil. Wow. How exciting. This just proves that where I planted them by the entrance really isn't getting enough light.

Feeding time was pretty good today, no problems at all, though I did start the process of getting Rambo to understand that growling when he is eating when someone else comes near is not good. This could take some time. I started off very slowly, just stroking him while he was eating and when he growled, telling him to sit down and then making him wait til he stopped growling before allowing him back to his food. We shall see. It isn't good enough really as he has never had anyone threaten his food but this is a problem he has had for years which was just never addressed. Ralf also only ate half his bowl and, even though I have left it out for him all day, he hasn't touched it. I think he doesn't like this meat that I have fed him. He's going to have to learn to just eat it because he isn't getting anything else until he does.

My big melon, and flowers

After the feeding there was no need for watering and I went in and had kinda middle-class scrambled eggs, as there was no mushrooms in to add to make them really posh. They were very lovely indeed, however, as the bacon was done perfectly into crispy cubes. My Special Guest had survived her night out and we talked for a little bit before she cracked on with her day and I went out to carry on with the weeding of the front "lawn". I checked on the melon that had been spotted by Bekir on Friday and it was even larger than yesterday; at least twice the size. While I was working I found another couple of fruits as well so I'm going to have to add this to my routine to check every day. The flowers were super pretty on the melons as well.

My hand planted Honeydew Melons

I filled up the four big buckets with weeds and went in for a break of a cup of tea and some chocolate bars and then went out and did four more. It is harder work than you would expect, walking along half bent and then pulling up weeds that are pretty well established and require you to use your whole body to yank them out of the ground. It was pretty satisfying, and I had Ralf pegged near me, and Rambo kept trotting over to say hello as well. I took a bit of a break to look for Jesus (still no sign) and also check on the melons by the olive trees. They are also growing well.

Can anyone identify this one?

Another tree I checked out was one down by the front fence that has shiny red berries in it. I have no idea what this so this is your question for the day. Any clues? I'd love it if this was another edible crop which is just on my land.

Tomatoes still hot from the sun for my butties

Lunch was cheese with home grown tomatoes on bread which was tasty but more important as I was so hungry from the effort expended in the morning. I had done eight big baskets full and was getting close to completing the job. I had a shower then heaed down to my favourite little shop to get fresh bread, eggs (20), mushrooms, onions and beer (4 big bottles). I also got some cheese and nardenitsa and as always the cost of this trip was so minimal (about £12) it astounded me.

Still got bits to do, but much nicer now

When I got back I went straight out into the garden to finish off the weeding and, with seven more buckets full of weeds, all the tall weeds had been pulled out from the driveway to the edge of the green building. I still need to go up the other side of the drive, and also keep regularly on top of it, particularly for those nasty thistle that are everywhere, but the worst of it is done and now it will just be a maintenance task.

A huge pile of weeds

The volume of weeds which I pulled up is amazing; this pile is nearly as tall as I am and the weeds are squashed in tightly as they were in the buckets. I now will hope that it rots down nicely; I may need to build a retaining wall again for this but that isn't urgent just yet. There is loads more to go in, as I keep on top of the ever expanding area of cultivated land.

So my task for the day completed I headed inside for another cup of tea and spent some time just chilling out before deciding that I would put a film on. I picked "Two Guns" and I was quite pleasantly surprised. It is by no means an intelligent film but it had its moments of cleverness and a few bits which made me laugh. I was entertained. While the film was on I paused it a couple of times to start roasting my tatties and then put the pork belly in to roast with it and finally I chopped some cabbage and boiled it up, taking a bit out for Shiva (I'm now convinced, sadly, that Jesus is a gonna somehow) and letting Ralf have a bit of a run around in the process.

My dinner, waiting to be eaten

Dinner was served sat on the balcony and it was lovely to be out there, in the sun with Ralf pottering around (and getting excited whenever Rambo went past on one of his rounds) and getting stuck into my next book; Memoirs of a Geisha. Talking of books, I did some research on the book I recommended yesterday and found out that it was all based on falsity and he was a plagiarist to boot. This does not take away from the entertainment of reading it, but does put a sour taste in the mouth as you find his reassurances at the end are just lies.

Hiding under the chair

I finished my dinner and came in for a beer and to type up this blog, which has taken me near enough no time to do. Ralf had his tying up point inside moved from the ring on the door to Room 13 over to the ring on the door to the room next door (that is a lot of doors!) because he was continually trying to climb on my lap again this morning and clawing at my legs to do so and this was starting to get annoying. He has settled into the new limitation and while i have been writing this he has curled up underneath my extra chair very quietly. Now he isn't nagging me I am getting up very regularly (I have done three or four times while I've typed this over about half an hour) to give him fusses and cuddles.

So I can't be bothered now to wait for the sunset so publishing it now.