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APRIL 2019  This thread currently has 5,778 views. Print
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Elsa Peters
April 1, 2019, 5:39pm Report to Moderator

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Monday 1st April

So my body hasn't quite got used to the summer time and the clock change....I slept in until just before eight and I seem to have spent the day catching up with myself.  The sun was shining and it looked to be quite calm out there until I went down at around eleven to start the bonfire and the wind took off.  I had to but the lid on the container or it would have been over the hillside...and far away.

I was short of bread and today there is no van....it's market day and he assumes that everyone heads out on the first bus of the week to the market in Djebel.  I fancied bacon so decided to make myself an omelette that started out with bacon and ended up with bacon, potatoes and onion cut very thinly and fried off before I added the omelette mixture.  I took up my position by the table in the stairwell and enjoyed it with my second cup of coffee.  Kitchen cleared, I went up to the bathroom to put the washing away and there were some dogs barking very loudly in the gardens to the west.  I went into the spare bedroom bedroom with the camera and found the culprits and also the reason why they were making so much noise.  Some errant cows were straying towards one of the gardens and there appeared to be some fence breaking happening and I remember those days well.  The dogs were doing their job and they settled down to watch for the next advance.

As I walked through the conservatory I noticed that the bougainvillea's leaves had a few black spots on them so I decided to investigate and  found out that I'd over watered and that there were ants in the bottom of the pot.  Now I don't like these invaders at all so it's now been repotted, the area completely sprayed and we'll see how it goes from now on.  I did go out to get going on the garden but I really don't like wind and have spent the day in and out with no real effort outside,  I read for a while and it was what I would call a 'cudda' day.  'Cudda' done this or that but achieved little but feel rested so maybe my body is telling me something.  I walked the garden and noticed that the onions are up and so are the broad beans so I pulled out some bindweed that's sprung to life and generally tidied round them.  I've also got an unknown that's germinated....look a little like carrots and I'll confirm as they get bigger.

I decided on an early supper and boiled more potatoes and added peas, put them in a bowl with beetroot, chopped onion, a tin of tuna and added mayo and made a huge bowl of tuna salad.  It's all gone and I shall managed perfectly well until breakfast I;m sure.  Eight thirty my time and at last I've managed to reset the time on the indoor / outdoor thermometer.  I was almost tempted to bring in reinforcements or throw it on the hillside but I persevered and it's good.  LN....Time to post....LN



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Elsa Peters
April 1, 2019, 5:41pm Report to Moderator

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And more



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Elsa Peters
April 2, 2019, 4:58pm Report to Moderator

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Tuesday 2nd April

And another lie in this morning....by the end of the week I should be fine.  I knew I had to get dressed and go to the van for some bread but I really couldn't raise the energy  and it took me until nine thirty before I had suitable outside clothes on.  I was undecided whether to head into Kardjali or not.  I hadn't got a huge shopping list and I always spend more when I go so I was tossing it around before I made the decision,  I checked my phones and saw that my Princess had phoned Sunday night much later than she ought and yesterday morning on her way to work and I must have been in the garden.  I phoned her back to let her know that I was still alive and kicking and that she could put the policies away and she said that she'd already checked the blog and would have worried if I hadn't posted.  So no cards for mother's day received and maybe I should blame it on Brexit....every other person is blaming it for everything else.  I'm just rather sick of it...we should jump off the cliff so to speak and let's just get on with it.

So it was a strange morning.  I'd noticed that the seed pod on the oleander had split open and the seeds had ripened so I gathered them and put them to one side in the conservatory.  I'd also looked at the old lumps of stone that are in the little garden between the up and down steps and had decided that I wanted to open up the centre to plant one of my Greek shrubs.  So far, so good.  I moved the stones apart and put in my trusty English garden fork and hit something pretty solid.  I first thought it was a bicycle tyre so worried at it with the spade and the fork and eventually I removed a very large strong polythene sack and I couldn't understand why I hadn't come across before.  I manoeuvred the stones more or less into place and left the planting until tomorrow.  Next job was to fill a flowerpot with peat and plant up the oleander and label them this time.  I seem to have quite a bit appearing and not got a clue but I'll tell you when they flower.

Next I went into town and headed for my secondhand warehouse but couldn't find any furniture suitable.  The leather sofas that I'dd spotted last year were still available and the price had come down but I'm not really tempted....I like my existing style.  I found a couple of flowerpot holders and they came at a bargain price and I'd love to have spent more time looking at the carpets.  They all seem to be in one big heap and you need someone else to get digging with.  Back into town and on to Kaufland and picked up essentials from the list and the wayward items that just appear in the trolley.  I did manage to get forty litres of peat though so my journey was not in vain.  Finished off at Lidl and it's French stick tonight with something yet to be decided, filled up with gas and petrol and headed home for six.  Unpacked the shopping, everything put away and now back to the decision about supper and then relax.  The wind was still cold today despite the sun and hoping it will drop tomorrow so that I can get out and I'm considering doing the grass over again just to make sure that it's not going to be a problem later on if we get rain.  LN....A better day....LN



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Elsa Peters
April 3, 2019, 5:46pm Report to Moderator

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Wednesday 3rd April

Not much to report today...early night and three a.m. wake up and two hours on the Kindle.  Not sure why but woke up at seven thirty and my only objective was to get out to the bread van.  Unfortunately plans were scuppered.  The three big dogs that seem to have camped up in the field opposite were barking their heads off and standing at the other side of the fairly open fence were very intimidating.  I tried to phone the owner to get him to remove them but no go.  I think they've taken up residence because there are bitches on heat down the bottom end of the village...

I made up for it by using the rest of the French stick to made a bacon and egg roll and that has kept me going all day.  I pottered around in the garden but it was just too cold to stay out there for long.  I made sure that everything outside and inside were watered...the wind drains all of the moisture out of plants and I noticed that the sweet peas have at last germinated in the tyres on the workshop terrace.  It's pretty sheltered round there and I've also seen that the supports that I put in for the sweet peas have started to shoot...now there's a surprise.  The three remaining money plant shoots that were in water have rooted and are now planted up.  

The internet was down all day again and apparently it's because the electricity supply was disconnected.  We have a week on and a week off so I suggested that it might be because they hadn't paid the bill for the supply.  The lady on the other end of the phone laughed...I hope it's not true.  So the rest of the afternoon I spent catching up on the lack of sleep overnight and it seemed to have worked.  Almost nine my end...soon be time for bed.  LN...Hoping for a better night....LN
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Elsa Peters
April 4, 2019, 4:46pm Report to Moderator

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Thursday 4th April

Five thirty start so I played on the Kindle and was up and at it by seven.  Washed and dressed ready for the garden and decided that I would leave breakfast out of the equation,  I'd still got indigestion from yesterday's breakfast and had a peculiar pain in the central chest area so it was going to he a day of fasting.  I went out to test the temperature, the sun was up, there wasn't any wind but I put a leather waistcoat over my sweater to protect the back area.  

I put in my green hoodie into the washing machine and sprayed it with spot cleaner first.  I'd washed it two days ago but the grease spots lingered so into the washing machine it went.  I checked for a washing temperature guide but there wasn't one....it had been made in America and the only instruction was to dry flat...so I pegged it out.  

So with my trusty garden fork I cleared the little beds under the terrace wall with the intention of edging it with wood but my attention moved to the bottom of the garden, the edging is still waiting on the lawn and I started to clear the edged beds.  There were lots of weeds but I'm pleased to say that the first bed is cleared and now planted up with things from other parts of the garden.  That's how I garden.  I took the strimmer down with me went round the beds and the areas that I'd missed when the grass was done and I'm pleased with the results.

The fasting went to the wall and I came in and opened a tin of tuna in brine, popped it into a bowl with beetroot and that was lunch with a glass of water.  I'm leaving the oil alone and the mayo and supper tonight is a jacket potato with baked beans....no butter or cheese.  I'm trying to be good.  The hoodie came in and looks much better and is now airing in the conservatory.  Tools in and locked away until tomorrow and if the weather is the same tomorrow...I should have the beds cleared.  The internet eventually came on at five thirty or thereabouts and about time to.  It's been off again today and it's wearing as little thin.  I'd started to do the photos for the blog and suddenly a pair of woodies appeared in the walnut so it was camera out again.

Eggheads has moved time again and I'm not sure why they mess around with it and put rubbish programmes on but at least I caught it today.  Flog it is playing in the background and I'm not really paying attention to it....I can smell the jacket potato so I'm heading down to the kitchen.  LN.....A really good gardening day.....LN  



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Elsa Peters
April 5, 2019, 5:01pm Report to Moderator

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Friday 5th April

Not a particularly night again and the first cup of coffee went with only the top taken from it.  I still had the pain each so decided to go see my lovely BG doctor in the polyclinic.  I didn't bother with breakfast, had my walk round the garden to check on how things had done overnight and maybe delaying the departure to the doctors.  I just don't like going...nothing against her.

I was in the Nipper by ten fifteen and headed down to the post office in Rogosche in response to a phone call from her yesterday.  She wasn't there so I carried on to Kardjali and managed to find a free parking place within a two minute's walk of the Polyclinic.  I went down to the corridor where the doctors have their consulting rooms...all nine of them...and sat down in the waiting area.  There was only one person waiting, the receptionist who works in the consulting room with the doctor came out, noticed me and returned to the office.  She came back out again and took to another room and I had an ECG without even saying a word.  Electrodes snapped on an I was given the print out to take into the surgery with me.  I handed it over, the doctor asked how I was and I smiled and ran through my issues.  She checked my blood pressure, had the stethoscope on my back and front, poked and prodded, gave me the run down on the ECG and prescribed the appropriate tables.  She mentioned that there are lots of stomach issues around this time of year as we change seasons and food intake so gave me an antibiotic.  I go back for the blood test next week without an appointment and as soon as I have the results I'm to go back and see her.  The drugs came to just under thirty lev...I do have to pay...but the service is so good.  Each Bulgarian is encouraged to have an MOT every year.

I stopped in town and paid my home phone and mobile bills and carried on to Lidl and bought a few items.  In Djebel I called in to see my student's mum to make sure that I understood the instructions written on each box of tablets.  Some were morning, some night, some morning and night, some before food and some on an empty stomach....I needed that written out in English.

Back home, unpacked the shopping and settled down on the sofa and promptly went to sleep but woke up cold.  The sun was out but in the shade there was a chill in the air.  My solution, I cleared out the ashcan and got the fire going and it's chugging along beautifully.  I've been four days without lighting it but tonight I needed it.  

Home day tomorrow...i missed out on my gardening today but pleased I did.  LN.....Now to find the right tablet/s.......LN



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Elsa Peters
April 5, 2019, 5:03pm Report to Moderator

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And the others



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tabs
April 6, 2019, 3:35pm Report to Moderator
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Just a quick question Elsa. Have you finished the renovation work on your property now ?
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Elsa Peters
April 6, 2019, 5:17pm Report to Moderator

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Saturday 6th April

Well just to answer your question....my main house is finished, centrally heated and very comfortable to live in.  As for the second house in the garden, I've had it re-roofed and double glazed but I need to finish it inside.  The plan for this year is to get it started in the autumn...it's the best time of year for the men and the weather...normally second week in September is about right.  I need to replace one of the windows with a door and window on to the terrace, the window can be used in the front porch to the property into the yard.  It needs electrics and water fitting out and new solid floors....so not much to do then...    It just doesn't seem that important....I've got enough bedrooms when people visit in the main house.

Last night was horrendous and it was three before I got my head down and seven when I woke up and then I spend the next half an hour working out which tablets I had to take and when.  It doesn't help when you can't read the instruction.  I tried coffee but immediately my stomach rebelled against it so maybe that's a life time's habit broken.  First tablet down and then banana and muesli for breakfast sitting in the sun.  So as for today....I pottered in the garden this morning and put the Greek pretty plant in the front little bed and fingers crossed it's going to like it there.  I watered everything and then settled on the sofa and prompt went to sleep catching up on the lack of last night.  I was cold despite the sun so pulled a blanket over me for another hour in the land of nod.

I lit the fire at five thirty I put a chicken in the oven... this is my start of healthy eating.  It was recommended by the doctor and I'll see how long it lasts.  I quite like my vegetables roasted in the oven but it usually has oil added so they can brown up properly.  It's cooked now so I'm heading down to the kitchen so see what I can find to go with it.  I've had my 'before' tablet and the 'afters' are line on the worktop and tonight is the final of the Voice so I'm looking forward to that.  Gentle day tomorrow...I'll see if it's these tablets that have made me feel tired and chilled.  LN.....Time to throw a log on....LN



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Elsa Peters
April 7, 2019, 4:58pm Report to Moderator

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Sunday 7th April

What a programme the Voice was last night...and the one that I wanted to win won....Molly and Ollie the coach.  She was very refreshing, nervous as hell and such a future before her.  So it was fairly late to bed and a very late start to the day.  I didn't wake up until eight thirty so I've been behind all day....well I would have been itf I'd have done anything but I haven't.

I did put the washing away, got washed and dressed to face whatever might come and nothing came.  It was spitting with rain so my outdoor activities were impeded so I settled in to cook breakfast of mushrooms in butter with toast.  I'd worked out my tablets...one before and two after breakfast so that was one achievement and suddenly my attention was drawn to the hoover that was sitting under my bed.  I'd only used it a couple of times before and couldn't understand that it didn't seem to be picking anything up so it was a maintenance jobbie.  The filter was blocked from last time and it's one thing taking it apart, it's putting it back together which is where the fun starts.  Success, house cleaned from top to bottom and window sills to boot.  

I watched the re-run of the voice again and appreciated even more.  Cold chicken for supper and the boiler has just one on for a leisurely bath tonight and I've just lit the fire although it's late to be doing it.  I feel cold and think the tablets are doing something to my system.   LN..Looking forward to wallowing...LN
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