Wednesday 1st May

Well pinch and a punch for the first of the month....and white rabbits.  I did look out for a tank to parade up my main road but couldn't find one.  They were all commandeered  in the main towns.  The day of the workers!!

Seven start and it was a leisurely morning.  I didn't have to be anywhere until nine fifteen and took my time getting there.  I went round picking up what the wind had disturbed yesterday and putting them back in their allotted spaces.  I was most surprised at the catch basket for the grass mower finding itself in the middle of the grass, well away from the  mower.  I ambled over to Haciber's house and took the keys that I hold to my Avatar's house.  I wasn't sure of her arrival time and wanted her to have the keys to hand in case they were needed.  As it happens...Avatar hasn't arrived yet so I would have been OK holding on to them.  

I phoned the Librarian to confirm that I would be meeting her just before ten on car park at the dentist's surgery and that our Fotinovo 'newbe' would be with me. I got into the Nipper heading for Fotinovo, parked up, joined him for coffee and we walked over to the health centre and met up with the Librarian.  We climbed the steps, went into the surgery and he was waiting for the Librarian and was very surprised to see two other victims.  We explained why we were there, He indicated that I should get in the chair, examined the tooth with the problem and decided that it was due to age, nothing wrong with the tooth on the gum margin and insisted that he put a surface coating over the area to alleviate the pain.  I asked him how much he wanted for the work, said that today was free and I've arranged to go down to his other surgery for an x-ray after my guest has left.  Telephone numbers were exchanged, we left and left the Librarian to her fate and she updated us later at the house....and was now minus three teeth....and was on her way pretty soon to get over the ordeal.

We headed out to the local restaurant in Fotinovo...three lunches and one pudding for ten leva....why feed yourself.  I left after lunch and headed to see Ms D of S but one Mr D was in residence so we sat with coffee and she returned not long after with the little one.  Lovely afternoon...the little one is a hoot, never stops talking and lovely with it.  I came home with tomato plants and a cyclamen corm and the tomato plants will go in tomorrow.  

Lovely day, very chilled...more please and free dental treatment...result.  LN....And Avatar still hasn't arrived.....LN

Thursday 2nd May

What a day....Toasted ham sandwich for breakfast, out to the garden and it was non stop until two thirty this afternoon when I came in for a coffee.  I came back from D of S's with tomatoes and they needed to go in but I had to clear the ground first...along with all the other spaces in the veg patch.  Last year's beetroot were heading for the compost.They started growing too late, I overwintered them and now they have marvellous tops and lousy bottoms and are now in the compost.  As for the weeds, they went over the wall for the sheep and any passing trade.  As it stands...only the onions to finish weeding and the old beetroot bed needs a final digging over to get to the roots of the bindweed and couch grass.  All seems to have run riot in that bed.  

Funny happening at around twelve.  I heard a car pull up but didn't see it, two men came into the garden and it took me a while to recognise them.  Two guys from CID.  Now they speak a little English and firstly them mentioned Saturday and Sunday and I immediately thought of speeding but it was nothing to do with me.  Last week I posted pictures of the digger working on the lake and apparently it was to repair it.  Persons unknown have damaged the perimeter and the underside of the lake and he showed me the picture on his phone and most of the water has disappeared down the hill and far away.  The question was...had i seen or heard anything untoward on the said night in question and I hadn't.  It's the first malicious incident the we've had in ten years....it might be down to rakia or a vendetta against the farmer who put the lake in in the first place.  Strange but I couldn't help them and they asked that if I heard anything could i let them know.  Of course....and it's now a talking point in the village.

So when I came in for my coffee and five minutes, my neighbour over from Turkey was at the door and asked me what I was doing,  I explained I was just making coffee and did she want one and in she came, sat down and promptly took out her knitting.  She was only using the one needle as they do round here and I was fascinated.  Seems rather odd but very efficient.  She eventually left, I headed out again to finish off and tidy away the tools and came in at six having achieved fifteen thousand steps on the Fitbit.  Quick wash and change...I had Pilates at seven and had to get a wiggle on.  I saw my ex-student after I parked up, he is home from university in Sofia and had great pleasure in telling me that he has his exams and then is hopefully off to America to work for the summer vacation in an hotel.  I did suggest that he shave his attempt at a beard off before he applies for his visa....he's quite swarthy looking.  

Off to Pilates and it was a little more difficult tonight, a lot of back work and mine's not really up to it.  As we started to walk home we met my garage owner who'd been for a fish (carp) takeaway and chippies and he insisted that I have a couple of portions for my supper.  Not bad but I wouldn't use it myself...I prefer cod.  Home for eight thirty and my Avatar has at last arrived.  I went round to take her keys and offered help if she needed it to settle in.  It was late so I left them to it and half an hour later she is round to borrow the foot pump to get the car sorted for her DIL tomorrow.  I told her not to bother returning it until tomorrow....I shan't need it over night,,,

Ten my time...everything is late tonight.  I might be lawn cutting over the road tomorrow or if not, finishing off my garden.  Tomatoes are in, celeriac, mini-cucumbers and more beetroot seeds are planted, carrots, parsnips and new beetroot are weeded and only onions to finish off.  I've yet to buy cucumber plants and might get those tomorrow at the market....otherwise nothing imperative to get up to.  LN....Tired but happy....LN

Friday 3rd May

Early start and washed and dressed and ready for the bread van.  My bread from Lidl was looking distressed and needed replacing.  My Avatar is holding on to the foot pump...they ought to get the tyre fixed..they've been borrowing the pump for two years more or less.   She managed to stop the van outside her house while I had to walk down to the bottom of the village...age brings it's benefits...maybe she was just jet lagged from her journey from Germany.  I found out at the van that Zelinger has returned from Turkey so I delivered her late Easter pot plant and pot and some chocolate eggs.  She wasn't very well and is sporting a cold...I didn't stay long.

Out with the strimmer this morning and I managed to do the yard, the grass between the house and the front wall and little garden wooden surrounds before the battery ran out.  Back on charge ready for the afternoon shift.  I didn't feel too good after the morning effort so took to the sofa with the Kindle and was out for the count for a couple of hours but woke up with vim and vigour and back to it.  I used the strimmer now that it was recharged to start clearing the weeds from the shrubs along the wall by the top bench and now I can actually see the garden.  I stuck at it and eventually came in at six after putting my toys away and refixing the handle on my trusty fork.  It popped off as I was using the form to twist the weeds from the soil.  It was the side that hadn't been glued so glue in the hole and a quick bang with the hammer and it seems to have done the trick,  Proof of the pudding tomorrow.

In the process the bench had to be removed and virtually fell apart when I did it....probably hammer and nails at the ready tomorrow at some point or a complete remake might be on the cards.  Off to find supper, there's got to be something there.  LN...Made a dent in the weeding....LN

Saturday 4th May

Last night's bath didn't seem to do me much good.  I went off to sleep quite quickly but at three thirty I was tossing and turning and it seemed to take ages to get off again.  Seven start, watched a little of breakfast television, washed, dress and ready for the day but still didn't feel on top form.  I decided that an omelette for breakfast would set me up for the day so put some local white cheese in it and it was just the job.  

I was out with the strimmer by nine thirty and the intention was to clear the bottom wall of the grass that had started to creep towards the top of the wall.  I started at the little house terrace and worked my way down the long tall wall and was down to the bottom my around twelve.  It was time for a break anyway so came in for a glass of water and went out again until one thirty.  It was pretty slow going when I got to the bottom wall.  The chickweed and bindweed are quite easy to remove but it's thickness makes it difficult.  It seems to intertwine with anything that's growing there so at one thirty I'd had enough and was running out of steam.

I found my usual place on the sofa with the Kindle and yes, you've guessed it, I was out for the count for just over an hour.  I'd had a visitor, my Avatar had returned the foot pump and left it by the outer fly screen.  I put it away so that I'd know where to find it when she needs it next time and headed for the bottom of the garden at three thirty and came in at six thirty...I'd had enough.  The washing that I'd done this morning is  now on the clothes airer in the bathroom.  I lit the fire since the temperature has dropped and now the rain's set in and looks like it's there for the night.  Beans on toast was a quick supper and I watched the exciting semi-final of the snooker while eating it.  Looks like a house day tomorrow.  There's a lunchtime session at my Avatar's house tomorrow to celebrate her return.  I've told her that I shall get thoroughly dressed up for it...a worthy occasion.  LN...I should sleep well tonight....LN

Sunday 5th May

Well it's been a weird day.  I woke up at six. went to sleep again and didn't eventually surface until ten twenty and thought it was about time that I jumped to.  I didn't bother with breakfast thinking that I was going to my Avatar's house for an early lunch so instead moved the washing into my bedroom so that it would dry off in the sun and emptied the household rubbish and headed for the bonfire.  I took my trusty fork with me, got a good fire burning and decided to stay in the vicinity and clear out the crescent shaped bed at the bottom of the garden.  The weeds seemed to have taken hold and there were some that I've never noticed before with long trailing roots which took ages to dig out.  I cleared most of it, viewed my work from yesterday and intended going into Kardjali to buy another strimmer but the weather changed so I didn't bother.  Tomorrow is another day.

I got washed and dressed to go for my lunch date and the next thing my Avatar is at the door telling me that everyone is waiting for lunch and why wasn't I there.  We walked over the road together and I was surprised when we ended up at Haciber's house.  Most of my neighbours were there, it was home made banichka for lunch followed by a really sickly cake and I'm not in the mood for supper at all...full to the gills.  I have a bit of an issue at these lunch sessions...the neighbours all insist on speaking Turkish so I sit there only picking up a few words.  My Avatar said that she's forgotten most of her Bulgarian since she's now listening to German and speaking Turkish with her family so her son suggested that she came and stayed with me for a while and got back into speaking her native language....which I though was funny.

So home for one thirty, I lit the fire, the weather had got much colder, the clouds had come over and it looked that we were in for a pretty rough night.  The wind got up to gale force, things started flying so I was out there securing 'stuff' and then the rain started hammering down.  I went upstairs to watch the snooker, went down for a coffee and suddenly noticed that the UPS to the log burner had it's emergency light showing and was making a noise and the only time that it does that is if the power supply is interrupted.  The television was still playing so there was electricity to the house, the panel didn't show that there was no supply to the plug so I decided to empty the wood burner into the ash can.  I put it outside, realised that it was blowing a gale so doused the burning wood with water creating a sauna in the yard but better safe than sorry.  The noise has stopped and it needs more investigation tomorrow, it might be the pump or maybe the pump was just getting over used and the output from the UPS was greater than the input.  I'm not an electrician.

I was about to take the pickies for the blog but I had a phone call from the UK and by the time I'd finished the call it was virtually dark so nothing to declare your honour.  Promise to do better tomorrow.  LN...Back to the snooker...LN

Monday 6th May

Another stupid night.  I watched the snooker, that silly programme that everyone was raving about and I still don't know who is 'H'.....all answers on a postcard please.   Why do they rev it up and then let it fall flat on its face.  Fantastic acting to a very bad script....rant over.  I somehow then went over to Stephen Fry, headed for bed and was wide awake so played Soda Crush and just kept winning.  I heard the mosque go off...it's the start of Ramadam...checked my watch and it was four in the morning.  Anyway, eventually got off to sleep, awake at just after seven and felt fine all day.  No afternoon nap.

Washed, dressed intending to go out to the garden and carry on with the clearing but the weather got the better of me and boy did it thrown it down later this afternoon.  I found the superglue and managed to repair the broken part of the electric strimmer and I'll see how long it lasts.  I don't think there's much change of buy a new part but the original only cost fifteen leva so I've had my money's worth.   I set to on the house, the guestroom has had it's final titivation and he arrives next week.  I've washed the curtains that were in there and have put up another set that I had by me but they might not be the final ones to hang there.  I might even make new...I'll be hunting in my material chest tomorrow.  I had a surprise call from Fotinovo friend in response to my yesterday post about the UPS.  I'd covered all bases so there was nothing else to do, we had coffee and off he went.  

The weather cleared up this afternoon but the temperature has dropped.  I'm heading in to Kardjali tomorrow to get the new strimmer, pay my phone bills and pick up a few things from the supermarkets.  The grass is too wet to get the mower out so I'll leave it for a couple of days, at least the rain is good for the garden.  LN....Last session of the snooker...and back to normal...LN

Tuesday 8th May

Fortunately the snooker had finished before the internet went off or I'd have been spitting feathers.  Just would add that the best player won even though it wasn't the result I wanted.

Very restful night....I snuggled down under the weight of duvets and slept the sleep of the just, waking up at six this morning.  A glass of hot water and my daily tablets and eventually I got out of bed at eight.  There was no rush, the shops didn't close until ten at night.  I went over to see my Avatar to take her some Nivea cream since her daughter was asking what I used on my face and in return she handed me a bar of chocolate from Germany and insisted that I put it in my jean's pocket so that Haciber wouldn't see it.  She'd had one of the locals cut down her grass and I happened to mention that I couldn't see the buddleah that I'd given her last year and he'd beheaded it.  Eventually we managed to find one stalk with a small green shoot so it should survive.  I came back home and sat at the desk forgetting completely about the chocolate and when I took it out it was very pliable so into the fridge with it.  

Into the Nipper by ten fifteen and stopped off at the local car shop to check if she needed anything from Kardjali and while I was there I asked her to check my blood pressure and she said that it was OK.  The doctor would have said 'high' but I feel OK so I'm not going back for more tablets.  I'd written my shopping list so stopped off at the first major hardware shop for a garden shredder but it was expensive and I didn't like the design soon to the next.  I did managed to buy five odd floor tiles with a wood grain finish that will make a superb top for a table.  Next stop cheapy clothes shop and managed to get a pair of curtains, fully lined and very attractive that I'll find a space for eventually....probably my bedroom when I tire of the present ones,  Down to the euro shop and picked up a few items, back to pay both telephone bills, Kaufland for chicken legs and more breakfast cereal, eggs and two sad neglected roses  at a reduced rate.  And home....  I unpacked the car and put everything away, trimmed up the roses, sat on the sofa and promptly fell asleep for an hour or so and woke up cold and it was raining.

I lit the fire and watched it carefully to see that it was behaving itself after the other night's hiccup and sure enough the pump clicked in at the right time and everything seems normal.  The fire just takes the chill from the air and makes the house comfortable...I know it's May but it's cold for May...not as I like it.  I don't need supper....I was tempted by the food outlet at Kaufland and managed a hotdog and chips in the car.  To top it off I had a packet of local smarties ...that's me finished.  LN....Another lazy day tomorrow if the weather is like this...LN

Wednesday 8th May

Another good night's sleep but by eleven I could easily have gone back to sleep again.  Perhaps it was trying to digest the cornflakes and yogurt that I put myself through.  It was a toss up between the new muesli and the cornflakes and the cornflakes won...but probably shouldn't have done.  I stripped the table cloth from the winter lounge table, spent an hour looking for the polish between doing other jobs and eventually came across it at four this afternoon.  I sorted out the tools from under the said table, found the tool box which was empty in the little house and now know where things are.  Unfortunately I ran out of steam about two and got my head down for just over an hour.  Maybe the tablets or the new cracked rib that I seem to have acquired.  It wasn't painful at first but after a few days it really is giving me gyp so maybe I didn't sleep as well as I thought i did last night.

At four I found myself in the little house putting something away and I decided to move the geraniums out on to the terrace.  I cleaned them up, weeded and watered them and put water catchers underneath to give them a good chance of getting back to normal.  From the terrace I was drawn to the yellow flowers in sporadic patches in the garden...and heaved the thistles out of the borders and slung them back on the the hillside from whence they came...I live on a field so the weeds are always encroaching and I seem to get different varieties each year.

Supper in the oven at six and should be ready any minute.  Chicken with roasted vegetables....I am back to normal with my diet....three weeks of being careful and only lost a couple of pounds so I reckon that I'm not eating enough.  Time to top[ up and get back into the habit of cooking with my guest arriving next week.  I've already ordered home made yogurt from my Avatar for Tuesday and she's ordering me farm eggs from her supplier.  So supper ready...I'm off to the kitchen.  No fire tonight...it's fairly comfortable in the house and I've tested out the system and it behaved perfectly well.  LN....Chicken, veg and mayo ,,,here I come.....LN

Hi Elsa, Pics are great, the garden looks very good, and with the flowers coming out, you must have green thumbs & fingers...lol
All good here, hope you had an enjoyable Easter. Take care us in OZ..xxxx

Thursday 9th May

Thanks Linda....love it and hate the garden....today wasn't my favourite but the grass is finished....stripes going in different directions but at least the birds can find the bugs in the grass now.  Easter was quiet and a bit disjointed.  I delivered eggs and flowers to my ladies in the village but they're Muslim so don't really celebrate it but the friends that do celebrate it a week after us so I gave them eggs on the Wednesday in the middle of the two weekends.  

Six start and by the time I got to getting out of bed the sun was up but it was quite and funny light.  The clouds were rising over the mountains and eventually it burnt off the hanging mist.  I'd gone on to my bedroom balcony to take the first pickies but I didn't stay out there long and checking the thermometer in the lounge, the outside temperature was showing four degrees and inside twenty so the house had held the temperature well considering I didn't have a fire last night.  Cornflakes for breakfast, washed and dressed for working in the garden but my heart wasn't in it so I cleared the kitchen, read for a while and settled on the sofa.  I'd opened the windows earlier, suddenly realised that I was cold so went round closing them and settled back down.  I had a surprise visit from the Librarian at around one thirty and a visit from a lady from a charity in aid of deaf and dumb children so donated and she gave me a receipt...  The Librarian stayed until three and I was tempted to take up the initial position but instead decided to tackle the grass so it was out with the trusty mower.  

It was a slow old process and quite damp underneath but I persevered, got to the end of the big house grass, the machine ran out of petrol so I turned it on its side and cleaned underneath before filling it up again.  So forcing myself I finished it off, the starling nesting in the cherry tree was a little disturbed by the noise and was chattering at me but it had to wait.  Silly thing is I know where it's nesting but they're still wary.  I put the machine away, brushed off what I could but damp grass sticks so stripped off in the conservatory down to basics, made a coffee, put the boiler on and intend luxuriating when this is posted.  I've actually knocked up thirteen thousand steps on the Fitbit and feel much better for it and tomorrow  I'm off to Djebel for a few odds and ends and checking out the rugs that I've seen in the material shop.  Cold chicken tonight....it will fill the gap.  LN....Bath time.....LN