A weekend of graft, and Monday

Welcome back and it has been a super busy weekend so let's get to it without any further delay.

The outside fix for the roof box

The inside fix for the roof box

Space in the boot for more stuff

The girls help me assemble the flat pack furniture

Saturday I was out the door to town a little later than expected for various reasons but my shopping was successful and I had time to try and get the roof box on Maisie before my call with my mum and my sister. Unfortunately I ended up spending about 40 minutes or so fighting to shut the box and it just wouldn't go. I stopped for the family call and while on that remembered the missing rivet and sure enough that was exactly the problem - the catch had rotated 180 degrees so was not engaging. I managed to effect a fix with a screw, a left over flat pack part and some scrap wood pieces; thank goodness as the new roofbox is quite expensive. Anyway with that fixed I finished up the rest of the packing and have plenty of space so that is good. After this I finished building the first chest of drawers and then assembled the second as well so that was my chores for the day. I was ready for bed by the end of the day!

The overgrown garden before...

... and after my weeding

This little critter was too slow to escape

More of the garden needing weeded

And now that is also weeded

(L-R) Tiny, Daddy Dog, Mummy Dog and Socks

Saturday was busy but Sunday was crazy. I was up and outside early to finish up the weeding that I began on Friday. It was a really nice session and I got everything done in about an hour or so, despite being attacked by hornets, though I did manage to kill a few of them. I worked my way all the way around below the patio, leaving only the flags and the poppies, and did about 4 or 5 wheelbarrows full of weeds. I was also watched from the lane by the four farm dogs, including Tiny here on the left of the picture.

Thelma grinning, Louise and Xena snoozing, in the sun

Happily on the mower again

Can you spot Xena, poised to pounce

Xena climbs on my shoulder

Taking up her station

Some flowers on the top bank

All mowed and looking lovely

I had some breakfast, rested a little in the office while the puppies enjoyed the sun, then I was outside again onto the ride-on mower to get all the grass mowed in one day if at all possible. I started out on the top bank and that took me a fair old time, Xena was in close attendance for all of it, hiding when I emptied the collection bag (I was putting the cuttings in with the chickens again) then jumping around when I got back on and finally following very close behind while I drove around. She did also do a lot of running like a loon around the garden as well. There were some lovely flowers in places and it is always a bit sad to cut them however it needed doing and now it's done I'm very happy how it looks.

My first tortoise sighting of the year

Looking across the freshly mowed garden

Lovely flowers in Angela's garden

My saved walnut tree is alive and well

A view of the house with the lawn nicely mowed

This was my reward

I took a short rest for a drink of water and then carried on down to the front lawn which also went really well. I saw my first tortoise of the year and also, sadly, Xena killed her first lizard. Not good. I completed all the ride on mowing, took a quick break again for a drink, then got the new push along mower and worked around all the bits that I couldn't do on the ride-on. While doing this I was able to enjoy the sight of Angela's flower garden next to the drive which is looking lovely, and also was happy to see the walnut sapling we transferred last year into the orchard is alive and flourishing. I did not get every little bit of the mowing done; there were some little bits by the vehicle gate and down the drive, but I was very tired and needed to start to cook my roast so I headed in and poured a very welcome beer which all disappeared over the course of the evening. A very tiring but super satisfying day indeed.

Bekir with the trap for the polecat

Fly screen fitted, and also drain pipe repaired

Halil loads up yet more buckets of sand

Xena watches as the lime is added

Bekir watches the water run in

All hands to the mixing

Slapping it on the walls

And so to today. Bekir and Halil were in on time and I went to grab them to ask to do a quick early job for me however they actually had something else on their minds first up; a polecat trap that they have set near the chicken enclosure. It'll be interesting to see if anything is caught. Xena was NOT happy with what it smelt like either. After doing this they did put the fly screen back on the woodstore window so I can now leave that window open to air it as the balcony is leaking very badly and it was very musty in there. After this they were back to their scheduled task with Halil carrying many buckets of sand up and then this was mixed with lime and water to create the mortar that they then slapped onto the walls. It's hard and slow work but it should result in a good strong finish.

Fully committed to the snooze

The chicken house is nice and clean again

A look, a poppy!

More slapping going on

It was a slightly less sunny day today, and we have had some rain late afternoon, however most of the day there was sun and the girls have slept all day on the sofa in the sun. At lunch I got outside and cleaned out the chicken house which was one of my chores, then got the push along and did a very little mowing. I was out again towards the end of the day to do the final patch and now everything is mowed and ready for my holiday. The first poppy has come out as well, by where I weeded yesterday, so I'm glad I didn't disturb those poppies. The men were just working away all through the day mixing and slapping and have made good progress there.

Louise got a shitty neck. YES!

A flash of gold which was the Oriole

And that's it, other than two very exciting things. First of all Louise today got a shitty neck; more signs that she is returning to her true self again. And finally I opened the window in Room 13 very fortuitously just as two Golden Orioles were singing and dancing around between the tea trees and the oak tree. I did capture one of them on camera, and stood for a fair while listening to them sing and filming it. A great end to this blog post.

There you go. Thanks for reading what was a quite long update in the end. See you tomorrow.

The final week

Finally it is my final week in the UK and tomorrow is my final day! FINALLY!

Watching paint dry

So just a quick overview of the last week as my excitement builds for the awesome day that tomorrow will be. As you will remember Thelma and Louise had done a little bit of damage in the kitchen in the time when they were left there during the day; the linoleum was not something I would be able to fix sadly so I have left it to the landlady to get it replaced out of the deposit money, but the walls where the rubbish wallpaper had been torn were easy. I bought a tester of Magnolia Kitchen paint and was able to cover over everything with some to spare. By the next morning it was dried and matched perfectly. As well as doing this small amount of painting I also spent time cleaning, hoovering, scrubbing carpets and getting the kitchen clean including the cooker and work surfaces. I'm really not cut out to be a cleaning person but by the time I left I was relatively happy with the result.

Brave explorer heading off into the unknown

This was my final week in the office as well, obviously, and while it was very busy with pressure to get things done before I changed to remote working we also had a lot of fun. One of the guys, Ade, was joking about me being an explorer and ended up buying me a pith helmet for the journey. I wore this off and on over the last two days to much hilarity and it is now packed to come with me. Suffice to say I am not going to wear it while driving; it won't actually fit on my head in the car, but it will go with me now on my travels as a reminded of some really good times in the office.

Gorgeous evening sky on the walk home from the pub

My plan was to do a half day on Thursday so as to be able to spend the afternoon doing the final cleaning but I got a head start by spending three or four hours on Wednesday night putting the last bits in the trailer including the sofa and almost everything else that would be taken. This mean that the only thing left to be put in on Thursday was the girls' hutch. Just as I was finishing up the neighbour who I have spoken with most came past on his way home from the pub which was a shame but we had a brief chat and I agreed to send a postcard. Ten minutes later I was on my way round the corner with the girls where I spent a really enjoyable hour or so sipping a few beers (much needed from my efforts loading) and chatting to the locals. The girls get so much attention. On the walk on the way home the sky was stunning so I snapped a few pictures of it. Then I was almost straight to bed and to sleep, exhausted.

Eating lunch in the sun in the beer garden

Thursday arrived and I ended up only being in the office for a very short time as finally A's new phone was scheduled to be delivered and I didn't want to miss it. It arrived at the scheduled time which was good as I was able to get it charged up and then put the time lapse software on it for the journey, but more of that in my next update. Lunch time was a last minute decision by the people in my office to go to the pub for lunch so I walked round, again with the girls, and met them there. It was really nice as we were able to sit outside and the chef, who had been quite sad that Thelma and Louise were leaving, got ANOTHER chance to say goodbye.

The train is ready to leave the station

After lunch Loz walked back with me to the house to give me the final bit of help. I had already taken the hutch down in the morning and so we shoved it in, not very efficiently in the end, after packing the freezer in and then he helped as I reversed to hitch the trailer to Thomas. This actually went very well and it only took a few manouvres and it was all safe and securely attached. I waved Loz off with a man hug and then did the last little bits of rushing around and throwing things in the car so I could leave to get to John's where I was staying for the remainder of my time in the UK.

The drive over was pretty easy however I did see that I would need some more straps on the outside of the tarpaulin as it was flapping a bit on the motorway. It towed fine though which is the main thing and I found that my top speed won't be much more than 50mph just to be on the safe side. When I got to John's I was happy to find that the keys I had did open his front door and therefore was able to gain access to his gated carpark. I then got straight on with reorganising the trailer again which involved stripping the tarpaulin right back, putting the hutch bits in a more sensible location, and then shifting the straps so I had more for the outside however I still was short so I knew I'd be shopping for straps again shortly. I finished this in very short order and settled down in the house to work for the last bit of the day.

A very good ribeye steak

That evening I went into town to meet up with Jamie which was nice as I haven't seen her at all since I got back. It was a good evening with lots of catching up, over fantastic steaks, and I'm glad that I got to see her before going back for good. I returned to the flat to find that Magda had been spoiling the girls as per usual and they were very happy indeed.

Waiting for the UPS man in the car

I had planned on going out for lunch on Friday with Lee and Ryan but for various reasons this got postponed which meant I was able to get back over to the house earlier than planned. I had told the Landlady that I would be there at 8 meaning 8pm but when I got there at about 10.30 I found that the locks had been changed! This was not part of the plan as I had left a few bits and pieces the day before which hadn't fit in, most importantly the cherry tree which was finally showing signs of life, and I was not able to access them. After texting to ask just exactly what she thought she was doing I knocked on the neighbour who shares the side gate and was let into the garden so I could get the tree.

As I was loading it the Landlady turned up with her husband and the whole situation degenerated into a shouting match in the street which was really unpleasant and quite stupid when you consider it has all been prompted by a 6" tear in some cheap old linoleum. Anyway to cut a long story short (for once) it got resolved eventually though the husband was raging and quite irrational for large amounts of the time and best of all the UPS guy arrived dead on time with the delivery (the main reason I had gone over) and because I had already seen them I no longer had to wait around so it was back on the road to go back to John's flat and a cup of tea which was much needed.

Frying up for Saturday breakfast

At this time I still was not sure of when I would be actually returning as my invite to visit the baby had not yet arrived but I spoke to CJC on Saturday morning and we agreed that I would go past about 5pm or so on Wednesday. Immediately I was on the website booking my ferry and I have a flexible ticket based around a planned early Thursday morning departure. How exciting! Finally I know when I'm going home. In celebration I made a lovely fried breakfast for me and John (Magda is a vegie so had her own) which kicked Saturday into gear satisfactorily.

Magda about to spoil the puppies

The girls have loved being in this flat, though they haven't been able to have the exercise they were getting as the yard isn't as good as the old garden. Magda has been spoiling them rotten as expected with toys and treats and lots of fussing and this is good; they have really taken to her and even sometimes chose to fall asleep on her lap rather than mine. I can't wait for A to meet them and start to get to know them. They are so awesome.

Louise keeping hold of the hand grenade

Sunday morning John cooked breakfast which was lovely and then it was a relaxed day as he prepared Sunday roast for when my parents were coming past later in the day. We spent time watching films and relaxing, mainly, and there isn't much to say other than this amusing picture of the girls playing with the hand grenade toy for the last time. Louise carries it with her snout right inside the hollow and gets a really good grip that way. Thelma holds the whole thing in her gob as she is slightly larger. Sadly it really did start falling to pieces and when they started leaving bits of rubber and string everywhere it was tided up and removed.

Beautiful Roast Lamb Dinner

My parents arrived slightly later than planned but still in time for dinner and what a lovely meal it was. The lamb was cooked to perfection and the veg was all gorgeous too. It was really brilliant to get to have this time with my parents as well before the "big off" and I think they appreciated the opportunity as well. After we finished it was not long before they had to get on the road as they were only taking a brief break while on their way home after a week in Scotland.

Before they left we gave the bone to the girls and boy did they enjoy that. It took about half an hour only for them to completely strip the bones and crack them a bit for the marrow. This is the first time they've had a bone and I hope it won't be the last; I'm going to have to make sure we get them bones and things like that as much as possible in Bulgaria.

Sun lounger

I was working on and off all weekend to make up the missed half days on Thursday and Friday and I had some really good progress in the end, though often the girls wanted to sleep on my lap (as they are right now actually) which does make operating the laptop quite a challenge. Thelma in particular likes to put her head on the touch pad and move the mouse and click things. Louise just likes to be in the sun and was very happy to find a patch underneath a chair and completely collapsed into it.

Proper man sustenance

And so we get to yesterday and the postponed Last Supper with Lee and Ryan. I met them in a wine bar and had a glass of red which is unlike me but it was actually quite nice. There then followed a long walk as we went round the houses to get to the destination of our choice, Red's BBQ. Ryan chose the first drinks which was a lovely cocktail with chocolate icecream and maple syrup and whiskey and bacon. The most awesome thing, however, was the steak which I shared with Ryan. It was cooked to perfection and while it looks huge it was actually just the perfect amount.

It's not just the girls who can do this

Of course at the end I had to pick up the bone and gnaw on it like a caveman and under the pretense of taking a picture Lee got this video which I think might just be the favourite video of me I've ever seen. It was lovely and the meat I chewed from the end was so tasty it was worth the effort. Sadly I forgot to ask to take the bone back for the girls which was a real shame as when this was suggested to me (thanks A) I could immediately see just how much they would have loved it.

Fighting over who gets to kill the rat

After another couple of bars and a few beers, but not that many, it was back home for all of us and I hope that they can come visit The Old School soon. When I got back to the flat I found that there had been more spoiling going on and Magda had bought the girls a toy rat to destroy. And destroy it they have. Just now Thelma has torn both the ears off but in the first hours of having it the eyes and tail were removed. They love it though and fight over who gets to kill it again and again.

Final ever rice 'n' three

Today has been a normal working day for me other than lunchtime where I went into town to meet up with ex colleagues from another job for rice 'n' three. We went to my old favourite haunt but my favourite dish was not on the menu any more which was a real shame. It was still a really lovely time made even better after my first couple of friends left and I was joined by a late arrival who I don't get to see that much. MC is a top lad and we chatted and walked back to the car together and promised that we would stay in touch and that he would come and visit. After this I went past B and Q to get the ratchet straps I need and then it was back to work after a bit of a doze because of the curry.

And so it is Tuesday evening and tomorrow afternoon I'm off to see my namesake and best friend and his mrs and then it's the drive down the M1 to the ferry and I'm finally on my way! What a buzz, what a feeling, I cannot wait!