Tuesday 1st November

And now I feel that I'm moving in to winter.  Glorious day again today, down to shirt and jeans in the house but a sweater on when I went into town this morning.  Woke up at five for the first time, back off to sleep and seven thirty when my eyes came open for the second time and it wasn't long before I was washed and dressed and ready for the day. I went out with the remains of the ham for the cat, made my clicking noise and no emergence from bushes so the meat went back inside the house and will come out again in the morning.  I was in the Nipper and heading into Djebel by nine thirty, I needed to ask questions of a local that only they would know and I now have a better understanding of how to negotiate an issue that I intend passing on to whom it may concern.  Cryptic but that's the way of the world sometimes.  I chatted to my student's mum for a while in the car-shop and decided to go for a cheesy bread for breakfast but all they had left were pizzas so I had one to take away.  I didn't stop for much from the shops only bread, spicy sausages that I was intending to have for supper but that went out of the window after I'd finished my lesson this afternoon.

So home for twelve, on the computer for a little more research and made a phone call to Dudley archives to still try to track down the cause of my two brothers back in the day.  The man that answered the phone I had the feeling was passing and just picked it up but he did suggest that since he hadn't the information or the means of finding it to hand, I email in a request giving full details and they would have an answer for me in twenty one days.  Since their deaths were back in the nineteen forties I didn't think that was too long to wait if I get an answer to something that's bugged me ever since I found out about the two boys.  Next job was to find a text for my student and I downloaded and printed off two that were utter rubbish when I came to look at them properly so I dug deep into the folder and came up with a couple I could work with and off I set.

I started the lesson at three, football until twenty past and I'm getting good, I didn't start off with goals in credit when he tries to catch me up and normally does.  This time I held my own and we were neck and neck at one point until he took off with a vengeance so I called time and we got down to our English lesson.  We recapped on his homework, decided that some of the questions set from the internet regarding the text were obscure so we put that aside pretty quickly and we covered on on the environment and plastics in the oceans which we both found interesting.  We learnt how many plastic bags are probably in circulation and landfill and how many find themselves in the oceans and it's an astounding figure.  We discussed how we see it here and in my time it's changed but not sufficiently.  I told him how I remembered that my mother would always have a shopping bag to put the shopping in, no plastic bags in those days and we also discussed how certain countries have people sorting landfill rubbish, collecting it and selling it to live on the proceeds.  I feel that he's seeing how life was through my eyes giving him a different perspective on some of the current issues in the world.

We finished the lesson around five thirty and he suggested that we all went as a family for a pizza this evening and he asked me to ask his mother if we could go.  I replied that she would probably say no after working all day but he thought differently and he was the one that finally dropped the question and she said yes without any hesitation.  I asked if she was sure, and she said that it was a good idea since then she didn't have to make a decision on what to cook, her husband confirmed it and we waited for him to finish the car that he was working on and father and son, my first student of the family appeared at around six.  The shop was closed up and off we set to walk to the restaurant by six thirty, found a large table and had a very interesting night with pizzas all round.  Home by eight thirty and set fire to the kindling in the woodburner, lit up straightway and water round the radiators in quicksticks taking the chill off the air.  I wouldn't be surprised if we have a frost tonight and it will be the first of the year so tomorrow the pots all come in.  LN.....Lovely night with the family and big student reminiscing about the time I took him to England and second one waiting his turn.....two years to go......LN

Wednesday 2nd November

So I woke up this morning on the sofa in the lounge at five thirty, the television had switched itself off and the programmes that I'd lined up carried over from my Monday quiz night to Tuesday had long gone.  I must have been tired.  I moved myself to the bedroom and slept on until seven thirty and felt really good this morning despite the sleep pattern been disorganised.   I checked my overnight input to the phones and I had a message asking me to help out in a shopping trip and that was my morning sorted.

I was washed and dressed and ready to hit the road by nine, headed into Kardjali and did the Lidl shop as requested, adding a few more items to the list and searching for others that weren't obvious for me and had the trolley loaded by ten more or less.  I stopped for gas for the Nipper and at least I was road tripping at a reasonable charge and not burning the petrol.  I delivered the goods, all good and was back on the road heading home for around one.  Beautiful journey through the mountains, leaves all turning beautiful colours and the only hiccup was having to follow a tractor for around five minutes before he noticed that the had a following. Eventually he pulled over and me and one other, bombed round him before he changed his mind and went on our way.  

I carried on to my home run and suddenly noticed a deer and a cow and they seemed to be interacting.  The deer was trying to, the cow was having none of it and it ended up with the deer running alongside the cow nudging it with its horns, the cow kicking out and eventually I sort of intervened by following in the car.  The cow shot over the field, the deer went back to the other side of the road towards the trees, stood for a photo call and then disappeared.  I got the impression that the deer was trying to suckle the cow and that's the only explanation that I had for the whole episode.

I arrived home by two, had nothing to unload but had to clean the passenger seat off.  I'd opened a chocolate bar to eat on the way home, the bars had been in the sun and the chocolate coating had transferred on to the seat so knife at the ready to remove most of it and then hot water with washing up liquid and squeezy and it seems to have worked.  It took me ages to transfer the photos from my phone so eventually I emailed them to myself and did the transfer that way.  Early for me to be posting but it's done and dusted.  The ham has gone out to the cat, I gave my clicking sound and it came galloping up the garden, the ham was soon moved to another patch of dry grass and didn't last long gathering dust.  LN.....Spicy sausage for supper tonight with onions when I get round to cooking it.....LN

Thursday 3rd November

So another good night's sleep and this time in bed all night.  I went to bed at eleven, woke up at six thirty which gave me a good start on the day.  The washing went in the machine by seven and was pegged out by eight fifteen, sausage and egg for breakfast in a huge sandwich and that set me up for most of the day.  I did fiddle with the temperature station thermometer that sits on the desk, the display was very pale so I decided to change the batteries and what a difference that made. The only problem was that it picked up the time from the satellite, I hadn't set the time zone properly so I fiddled, it reads the correct time now so I'll see what tomorrow brings.  The time was right for today at least.

The rest of the day has been quite unproductive but I think I'm calming down after the last few days.  I lay on the sofa in the lounge, in the sun and had begun to read a new novel that I'd loaded onto the Kindle but that didn't last for long.  My eyelids went southwards and I woke up at twelve more or less and the sense of inertia has stayed with me all day.  I did  go down to check whether the washing was dry or not and decided that a walk round the garden wouldn't do me any harm and it didn't. It's been a beautiful day as you can see from the pickies, probably not got up to a high temperature since that wind was pretty fresh, but I brought the washing back in with me and put it straight away, dried and aired in the breeze.  I did go out there again though and sat on the bench in the sun out of the wind and had to come it, I was over dressed in a thickish t-shirt.

Not too bothered about supper, I settled for a pack of crisps late this afternoon and reckon I can manage until morning.  Nothing on the agenda for tomorrow so far but who knows....I might get the urge to go somewhere different.  LN.....Or find lots to do here......LN

Friday 4th November

What a funny old day.  Done lots of things that I didn't intend doing and somethings that I did are still on that back burner.  I was fairly quick off the mark this morning, washed and dressed in good time, cleared the kitchen from yesterday and settled for toast and jam for breakfast, it was enough.  I somehow found myself listening to a podcast that I'd received in my Friday Report of all things spiritual, clicked on it and it was an in-depth interview on a guy who I have a lot of time for....Hans Wilhelm who has a website.  He runs his spiritual stuff without any advertising on his site and funds it from the books that he writes, illustrates and sells...not many of those around.

So by now it was getting on for ten so caught up with emails and messenger and when I'd had enough of that I decided it was time to empty various bins around the place and have a bonfire.  Very gentle breeze, very dry material so was very careful and stayed down at the bottom of the garden until it was virtually out.  Next job was to find a small sharp blade and adjust the wood either side of the latch fastening on my upstairs bedroom door.  The door wouldn't close so I shaved off some of the wood and now....it closes and opens again easily....such a talent.  Next job was to pot up some plants sitting in water and now they have more chance of surviving...they have two chances, they will or they won't survive.  Just finishing off when my neighbour from the bottom of the village who wants any cutting that's going came up to borrow a saw and to ask if I had a pane of glass to replace one that had got broken during her renovations.  I could supply the saw, a mitre and a pencil and I drove down to hers to see if she wanted help.  I really wasn't sure what she was doing apart from ruining a wardrobe by cutting it down so I took no part in it, took her to the local handyman who would ruin the rest of it on Monday and drove her home.

Back home I decided to sweep the leaves up and direct them over the fence for the cows, attached some mesh to the Beast to stop the leaves settling behind the cow bars.  Coming back through the I noticed that the old engine oil had now got very grey in places so I attacked it with the remains of a tin of dark brown paint and it looks much better.  I think it longer to clean myself up that it did to paint the gate but hey...it's done and not even on a list.  Came in at three thirty and had received some good new that my subscription to my ancestry programme can be updated to include the nineteen twenty one census when I renew.  Unfortunately their systems trigger and auto response which doesn't reflect what I wanted to happen so after a few more emails back and forward, it was resolved.  My next call was to speak to a lady that was helping me with some death certificates and finally something has been resolved....this now needs more investigation but at least I know I'm on the right track.  What a very helpful lady on the other end and she emailed me with the proof of the work that she'd done....a thank you card might be on its way.

I've just lit the fire, not really necessary but pleasant to look at and takes the chill of the air.  There's a halo around the moon and it's hanging in a cloudless very starry sky.  It looks like being another late night....the World Gymnastic competition on one of the unusual channels tonight.....and yesterday one of the twins collected an  individual bronze medal in the all round event while the women won a silver in the team events and the men won the bronze.   LN..... Rugby, gymnastics and football...what a choice.....LN

Saturday 5th November

Five first start and then back to sleep for another couple of hours and felt much better for it.  Another beautiful morning and by this time in other years we've had snow and really cold nights and this year...we're still waiting for our first frost.  May it carry on for a little longer.  Toast and Marmite for breakfast and I wandered on to the terrace to eat it and the cat was sitting on the grass meowing as me but I think I needed it more that the cat did.  Washed and dressed, I needed to do a shop and make a small delivery and made the decision to do it locally, make the delivery and then carry on to Kardjali and do my own shopping.

I arrived in Kardjali just before three and started off in Kaufland.  The store was absolutely humming so I didn't linger long and only bought potatoes, reduced sausages and Coca-Cola and then made my way to Lidl.  This was equally as crowded so again I was in and out in a flash and home for five thirty, shopping unpacked and ...starving so made a ham sandwich as a starter.  I put the television on and fell upon the World Gymnastic finals and we won a gold in the mens' floor even and a bronze in the rings.  The team is doing OK and more to come tomorrow.  I finished off supper by making another ham sandwich and put some chips in the air fryer and had them as a side dish with mayo.  I know how to live.

Strictly is on later if I manage to stay awake that long, nothing on the agenda for tomorrow but if the weather is good I reckon it might be a day of leaf collection and general clearing up.  LN.....I need to post and relax......LN

Sunday 6th November

Another sleepless night and I have no reason for it.  I woke up at three thirty, wasn't really concerned about anything except that I was awake, read for a while, sudoku and dog dozed for half an hour and then out of bed by seven.  What's the point of lying there, so I made coffee, did the washing up from yesterday, was eating breakfast of poached egg and ham on toast and the rest of the day was before me.  What did I do?  I put a pork hock that I'd bought yesterday into the slow cooker and the intention was to add vegetables to the pot but that didn't happen.  I logged on to the computer on the landing and still in my PJ's at eleven sitting and looking at some of the very early entries on my family chart and tying up a few ends going back to fifteen hundreds.  It's when you think about the history of the time, on my computer they're names and dates but they lived through history and some of them probably made it.  

At one I was feeling that I needed to catch up on sleep so I did what I normally do, I ran a bath, put the water heater on so that I could keep the bath water topped up and slept for an hour or so and felt much better for it,  eventually I emerged at three and got dressed in tracksuit bottoms and top, I'd lined up the gymnastic world championship for this afternoon since GB had interest in both floor finals and guess what....GB won gold in both.  It's good...GB are now recognised and competing on the world stage.

I removed the hock from the slow cooker and took the meat from the bone....the cat can have the rest of it in the morning...too late to put anything out for it tonight.  I'll do something with the liquid remaining in the slow cooker tomorrow.  I've had a beautiful relaxing day, I lit the fire this evening, drew the curtains in the lounge and will stretch out and watch the Strictly results tonight and then stay awake long enough to hopefully have a good night tonight.  It's been a bit of a dull day today and the temperature has been around fourteen degrees outside, twenty four in so no real need for the fire but it does look good.  LN.....Eight o'clock my time....time to put the computer to bed......LN

Monday 7th November

So I watched the results final last night and was all lined up for Antiques Roadshow which I missed and woke up for the closing credits.  I'm not quite sure what I was watching after that but then fell on a film, forgot what time it was and watched it until the end....one thirty to bed and managed to sleep through until seven so not so bad.  I seemed to get into action quite quickly, firstly I tried to feed the cat with the skin and bones from the hock that I had last night.  I went out and made my clicking noise and nothing...no sign of the thing so I brought it indoors and tried later and...success in a plate.  It's still very feral and normally grabs a piece and moves to the wall if I'm standing there so I thought I'd leave it to have its breakfast in peace and I went inside.  I remembered that I had a chicken breast in the fridge that I'd taken out of the freezer and that needed something doing with it so I found the little slow cooker, browned off the chicken, added a chopped up leek and a potato and everything went in with water and a stock cube,  That was for my supper and it's there whenever I want it and that's  going to be as soon as I've posted.  Breakfast for me was a scant affair, I used up the rest of the ham in a sandwich, realised that it was a very cold wind this morning so no danger of me knocking myself out until it had warmed up.  I did manage to have a bonfire and included stuff from the little house to start getting that tidy for the hibernation of the outside pots and plants.

I first did emails etc. put Transponder on the little machine and fell on to Antiques Roadshow that I'd missed last night, move to Netflix and finished off two parts of a series and at twelve thirty thought it was about time that I got washed and dressed and at last tackled something,  The outside umbrella is in and put away, the covers are off the outside furniture and the large wooden chest has been maneuvered into the little house along with the cushion chest from the terrace. I swept up two containers of leaves and dumped them in the field over the road for the cows and removed a couple of the branches from the acacia on the short wall but I felt I needed to get up a ladder to finish the job off properly...maybe later.  I realised that I'd put washing in the machine and it was still sitting there so that got pegged out, the wind was still brisk and it took most of the moisture from it and it's finishing off on the airer.

So now I can rest easy...I managed eight thousand step today so it's not been a complete disaster and I've prepared the little house and terrace for the winter.  Not that it's been like winter today, twenty seven degrees in the house and fourteen outside.  Student tomorrow and tomorrow I really must find a text that we can both enjoy,  LN.....Supper calls.....LN

Tuesday 8th November

Quite a productive day...out of bed by seven thirty, bed stripped and duvet cover and sheet into the washing machine only this time they went on the banister rails to dry.  I made fried mushrooms and egg on toast for breakfast, topped up well for the day and then set about clearing the leaves and finishing off what I started yesterday.  Five container loads over for the cows from the yard and garage, two over the road from the rest of the drive and one over the wall for from the terrace.  I had to move the long benches, the leaves had wedged underneath but at least I've only got the pear tree debris to sort out, can't afford for the grass to die under that.

I noticed that the long garden edging near the wild plum tree was waving in mid air and nothing joined it to the wall so I decided that the plank would be much better to replace the side rail of the old vegetable garden.  I removed it from where it was, took the nail pot, the hammer and saw and became a carpenter for an hour or so.  I was going to finalise the job by coating the rest of it with old engine oil but I had my student this afternoon so didn't want to get into too much mess...tomorrow is another day.  T carried on with the removal of leaves from the top garden and round the wild plum tree, moved down the garden to the mulberry and then on to the walnut.  I deposited most of the leaves on the garden close to the wall and they might just suppress the weeds.  I noticed that there was still a lot of medlar fruit so I grabbed a bag from the house and set about clearing it.  I'd promised them to my student's mum so kept my promise and there must have been around three kilos.  Next job was to clean up the bowl of walnuts that have been sitting in the conservatory for quite a while,  They needed the husk taking off them and washing and it's now done and they're spread out on a cloth on a tray to dry off.  Most of the black coating has now been removed, not sure what the insides will be like, I'll open up a couple of them tomorrow.

Getting pretty close to the mark for heading in for my student so found an old text pm the computer and printed it off.  It was about the history of Madame Tussauds, how she began and when it first came to London.  New to me and definitely new to my student with some interesting details and lot of new words for him.  He's got homework to do but if he doesn't manage it so what, he's speaking it much better and he is only twelve.  We had our compulsory football game, it's not a lesson without it and at five we went back down to the shop, noting the changes on 'Mr Macgregor's garden on the way down the stairs to the street.  His garden was full of cabbages and now they must be processing them and making winter preserves.

I sat for a while until her husband and number one son, my first student appeared, arranged my winter check for anti-freeze for tomorrow morning and I'll probably follow it up with a check up on the Beast.  Despite the sun the nights are getting colder and it can't be too long before we have our first frost.  Other years we've had snow by now.  First job was to light the fire, make up the bed for tonight, I cooked steak, onions and mushroom on the griddle for supper and finished it off with a chocolate éclair that I bought from the supermarket when I stopped for bread.  Such a temptation when they're sitting by the checkout.  Monday quiz night again moved because of the football or rugby, not sure, and hopefully I can managed to stay awake to see it through tonight.  LN....Cars and then gardening tomorrow and onwards and upwards with the list.....LN

Wednesday 9th November

Six thirty start this morning and eventually out of bed by seven thirty and the cars were going to be winter checked but as it happens only one went, the Nipper.  I settled for toast and jam this morning, the cat had short pickings with the stale bread and was probably off searching pastures green for better offerings....no sightings of it at all.  I washed and dressed, it was really cold outside at three degrees and that's the coldest it's been for this winter, You couldn't see the bottom of the garden for the fog and it seemed to take a long time to lift and the temperature dropped to two degrees at about eight.  I went out to the yard and my neighbour, that normally scrounges plants from my garden was pulling a bundle of the branches that they use to keep the cows from gardens.  She must have had a heck of an early start to be coming back at that time.  She also mentioned that my next door garden neighbour had lots of cow manure that she wanted to move and so I'm on the hunt for a new wheelbarrow or maybe take the Beast down the road, fill up bags and bring it back that way...much easier so tomorrow might be the day.

I meandered around this morning and eventually set off just before ten for Djebel.  I called into the shop nd delivered the walnuts that I'd washed yesterday saying to her that if they're no good, sling them.  I felt guilty that I hadn't cleaned them up straightway but she said it didn't matter and thought they would be fine.  I carried on to the garage, undid the bonnet and left it to my ex-student to sort it.  He left it for a while to cool down, I went to look at the river and when I came back, his father was just getting in his car to fetch a filter, which I'd mentioned I thought it needed yesterday and it did.  I listen and look after my cars.  Twenty leva later I was driving back to town and popped in to see my flower shop lady and we discussed whether an English word was spelled right in a text that she was having to answer questions on as part of her new course at college.  I said that it did and spellcheck said that it didn't....the word was 'skillful' and I'm not sure if spellcheck won or not...didn't wait to  see.

Home and filled up the remainder of the water washers with a two litre bottle that I'd had in stock for ages and it saved buying another small bottle from the garage.  The day was paved with good intentions and I did nothing notable.  The weather had warmed up, I had every opportunity but took to the sofa, I'd woken up too early and fell asleep for a couple of hours but woke up cold.  I'd left the doors to the outside open so that was soon sorted and I soon warmed up in the sun and so did the house, it was up to twenty seven in the stairwell.  Locked up outside around four, made tuna mayo for a late lunch, early supper and the washing up is sitting in the kitchen sink for tomorrow morning.  As I came back through the porch I noticed that one of the morning glory that I potted up a few days ago is flowering already so it must have settled in.  Let's see how it fares this winter and checking the house flowers, two new flower heads on the pot in the lounge and the one in the porch has lots of seeds on it for next year.  Beast in tomorrow morning for it's winter check and then bring on winter....but maybe not that quickly although it is November and late already.  LN.....Manure moving tomorrow and outside wood painting....but only if I feel like it.....LN

Thursday 10th November

So another six start and it seems to be the routine.  It probably has something to do with me having an afternoon nap.  I made coffee and went back to bed eventually emerging from my virginal couch at seven thirty not managing to beat any of my records set for 'easy' and 'standard' sudoku and not even coming near to my record for 'hard' level.  It filled in an hour and a half so I was ready to get the show on the road.  I made boiled eggs for breakfast and set about making sausage, potato and leek casserole in the slow cooker for tonight...saves thinking about stuff later.

One task on the list today, the Beast had to go in for its winter check of tyres, tyre pressure, antifreeze, oil, brake fluid and I had new windscreen wipers fitted.  Thee was nothing to report, everything was good and when my ex student was fitting the wiper blades I mentioned that it was a pity that the arms were rusty so he got the sandpaper out, cleaned them off and sprayed them black for me and now they look like new.  Cash required for the half hour I spent there, twenty leva and that can't be bad.  I left the garage and went to the cash machine to top up the reserves, walked the square and took a few photos and noticed that we have more improvements going on.  I took photos of the notices that had been posted about more euro funding coming our way and really must pass Google translate over them...just to find out what they're doing,  One of the complaints is that several of the smaller towns are spending money that would be better spent on people, walk through water fountains area appearing when I 'm anticipating that the cows will have more use out of them than the locals.  I made my way back to my garage shop, it was very quiet today and we managed to have quite a good conversation until she had what sounded like a private phone call.  I'm not the wiser and don't even try to translate but after about ten minutes a thought came into my head when my daughter would put the phone down at the end of the conversation and say 'wrong number' and I related this to my student's mum and we had a chuckle about it.  She's really appreciating the English sense of humour these days.

I walked to the local supermarket on my way back to the car park and bought bread, grapes, biscuits and nail varnish remover so that I can pretty my toe nails up for the trip to the UK.  As for finger nails, I think they are beyond redemptions...too much scrabbling around in the garden.  Set off for home and it was only when I got to my village turning from the main road that I noticed that the diesel was a little low, no light showing so can't be that low just as long as the bulb is working.   I had my nap and at five had a bowl of stew and that's me finished for the evening.  There's enough left for tomorrow so the slow cooker bowl will be going into the fridge until then.

Tomorrow I'll take the Beast into town, check out wheelbarrows since both of mine have seen better days and have wonky wheels and shan't struggle getting it back.  It will do it good to have a decent run but first I must remember to fill up the washer bottles from my aged supply.  LN.....Another beautiful day when I should have done more...and didn't....LN

Friday 11th November

Another cold and early start so I had beans on toast for a warming start, washed up, fed the cat, put a load of washing in and it looks like I've beaten the rain.  I decided to go into Kardjali and pick up requested items and deliver them, have an afternoon catch up and home before dark...and it all went to plan except that it took me ages to get into gear, I had a shower and watched my hair and put clothes on and took them off....it was a cold start but normally warms up and you end up trying to take layers off.

I droved into Kardjali and parked up on Kaufland car park and some how found my way into the DIY shop on the next car-park.  I looked round for offers and found nothing so went up the stairs to look at carpets and somehow found two that looked to be reasonable and the right size but I must have had my magnifying glasses on.  I bought them both, moved the car so that I could load them and with a bit of maneuvering got them into the Nipper and then decided not to bother going to Kaufland and carried on to Lidl.  I checked off the items on the list that I had, bought a few things for me, loaded the Nipper.  I stopped off at the gas station and filled up my tank and was surprised when the attendant greeted me with a cheery 'Hello darling' to which I replied 'Hello handsome' and trades description would have had issues with both statements.  It cheer me up though.  Made the delivery, chatted for awhile and headed home as the weather was drawing in along with the night but just managed to get home as the rain started.  Washing in and on the airer, fire lit, slow cooker set to on and supper will be any time now.  I added the remains of the baked beans from this morning to the slow cooker, will take what I can eat and the cat gets the rest tomorrow morning.  

If the rain stays off the pots are definitely coming in, I'm chancing my luck at the moment.   I've put the one carpet down and the second on is up in my summer bedroom but I haven't the energy to put it down tonight.  It has to go under the big chest and that's going to be heavy.  Sports day tomorrow on the television, I have nothing to go out for and everything to stay in for especially if that rain comes down and I would complain but we do need it badly.  LN.....I think supper is ready....LN

Saturday 12th November

Seven start but there wasn't much of a start about it.  It was a cold, wet, miserable morning and looked like it would stay that way and it has.  I made coffee and found bacon in the fridge so breakfast was bacon, egg and fried bread, I washed up the dishes and the slow cooker from yesterday and did a general tidy round and found some very warm clothes to put on.  I didn't light the fire though I was sorely tempted and managed to hang out until three thirty before I got the home fires burning.

I managed to put the second carpet down in my summer bedroom except that it hasn't not exactly been mine this year.  For some reason I didn't move upstairs, the weather at the beginning of the year was slow to get started and then it was all systems go, house tidying and the bedroom was earmarked for my daughter and her husband and I just stayed downstairs.  The winter sheets came off, the summer ones went on and now the winter ones are back on and I'm so grateful.  I love my fleece sheets and duvet covers. just so nice to get into and easy to wash and dry over the winter.  If I can't put them outside they go over the banister rails and dry in quicksticks.  Back to getting the carpet down....I realised the chest was far too heavy for me to lift so I emptied the contents directly above the legs and put it on the far side over the other legs and tilted the chest getting the carpet under the two legs.  I applied the same technique to the other side and task complete.....another job done.

I watched the rugby and England get beaten and now watching the Billie Jean King tennis and England have made it to the semi-finals for the first time since the eighties.  There were two singles matches and we won one of them in a resounding fashion and now the double match is being played and is really exciting.  The addition of the brass instruments playing between sets gives it a carnival atmosphere...a really lively event and not somber like Wimbledon.  Strictly tonight, supper is chicken fillet and croquette potatoes...the air-fryer is coming into its own.  Just had a lengthy messenger with an old friend...I'm thinking I might have a visit from him and his wife next summer.  LN....Kitchen calls and so does the wood burner.....LN

Sunday 13th November

Six thirty start and the morning seemed very long.  The fire has made it through the night so I resuscitated it with a medium sized log and let it go out around one this afternoon.  I was making breakfast at seven thirty, taking chicken from the freezer and already planning supper and wondering what to get up to.  Washed and dressed for outside by nine so I slowed down with a cup of coffee and waited for the sun to come up and the terraces to dry off which didn't take too long.  

Started off with a bonfire and noticed that there was one over the hillside and if he was sending a message, I didn't understand so didn't reply.  I soon put the lid on though, the cats have a habit of sorting through even though there's never much in there for them.  I noticed that the hoses were still snaking their way over the garden so now the three of them are coiled up and put to winter in the wood store and joining it was the lawnmower....I don't think there's going to be much call for that over the next few months.  Next step was to get the plants in but the novelty wore off, the weather had changed for the better.  I did put two of the cacti in, tried to pick up one of the larger ones and so I grabbed the loppers and removed a couple of acacia that had self set...they are just too vigorous and I've got enough.  

I came in at one and took orange squash out and sat on the bench enjoying the sun and watching the pied fly catcher birds flying up, catching insects and then returning to the trees.  I always thought they were territorial but there was about five of them flitting between the wild plum and the mulberry and they all seemed happy together...not interacting with each other, keeping distance between each other and going quietly about the feeding frenzy.  Break over, I attacked the leaves on the terrace yet again, cleared off the window sills and put things into a bowl and they're in the little house.  The loppers came into play again and I cut back the honeysuckle round the well and tied it back to the well, I didn't stop there, I rescued a laurel that had been held back by a twisting honeysuckle  and it's now liberated. Over the wall I heard turkeys and went to have a look and the mayor's brother appeared to be taking them for a walk over the hillside.  He was herding them like sheep, he stopped for a chat and realised that they'd carried on and last seen chasing them over the hillside towards his village.  I cleared the grass from a couple of little garden, disturbed some bulbs and they're going into a pot and will come into the porch, tools away, little house and woodstore locked up and my Fitbit informed me that I'd chalked up ten thousand steps.

I relit the fire, kitchen duties called and I made chicken breast with mushrooms and onion in a mushroom sauce.  I put pasta on to boil and it just didn't go soft for some reason so I changed the menu to croquette potatoes and I was soon eating it watching the snooker.  Strictly results tonight, nothing much on the agenda for tomorrow and if the weather is good it will be more of the same. gardening and general tidying.  LN.....I lovely active day......LN

Monday 14th November

So I posted last night, I didn't fall asleep half way through but no sign of it this morning.  Normal busy day once the sun had got up but up until that point I was filling my time with television, bonfires, washing and the usual house hold tasks.  Unfortunately I fell upon snooker on the Beeb and guess who was playing ...Ronnie your actual so that was my afternoon sorted until I realised it was getting a little dark out there so I rushed out, locked up the little house and the woodstore, managed to find the washing that I'd put out earlier and got it on to the airer.  Of course that's not going to get dried unless the fire was lit so that was the next job that had to be done.

The supper that I'd put in the slow cooker this morning was ready and to be honest, I'd used pork that had been slightly freezer burnt so I realised that I was probably cooking for the cat and as it turned out, I had.  I'd made a very tasty sweet and sour sauce and that had gone into the pot with it, I served it up and that was about as far as it got.  I had one mouthful, didn't want the rest, back into the slow cooker pot with it and the cat had it this morning and no complaints from that quarter.  I also watched the women's rugby semi-finals last night and we were really out-played.  The New Zealanders were quick, heavy bruisers and were successful, we tried hard but just hadn't got it last night.  LN....Bed by eleven....and fingers were crossed for a good night.....LN

Tuesday 15th November

Eight start so the rest of the day I was playing catch-up.  As to what  got up to, firstly as I said on the previous, I realised I'd been cooking yesterday for the cat and as I went out the garden, it emerged from the honeysuckle and followed me to the wild cherry and scoffed the lot.  I came back to the house, made toast and slathered it with dairy triangles and that was breakfast.  I cleared the kitchen put morning television on and waited for the sun to come out.  I set the fire for tonight, filled up the log basket in the house and the log carrier for the porch and remembered that I needed to fill up the water reserves for the Beast washers front and back so found the keys and opened up the bonnet.  It's very heavy so struggled but managed it, moved the Beast forward so that I could get to the back window washers and clear the leaves from underneath the Beast.  I'm surprised how many are still hanging on the tree and are green.  I've also noticed that plants that I thought had shut down for the winter and now putting up new shoots...everything is confused this year.

Climbed the stairs and started up the main computer, cleared the junk mail and decided to take out a subscription that would hide my activity online.  I'm tired of being so obvious to the advertisers on line and the amount of junk I'm getting substantiates this....fingers crossed it will be worth the fifty pence a week I've invested.  Next task was to find a text for my student and searched my folders coming up with one that contained texts that I'd used for his brother.  This one was conversational discussing why society chooses either to follow designer clothing or to shun it.  It really does sort the sheep from the goats and we had an interesting discussion about it.

We went down to the shop and my first student and his girlfriend were shop keeping, mother and father had gone to Kardjali.  We sat in the shop for an hour or so, my student asked if I liked eclairs, which I do and off he went to the supermarket and came back with three of them saying that he absolutely loves them and has at least one a day.  My phone went and it was my daughter for a catch-up, I mentioned that I was with my student and she remembers him from his visit and the laughs we had when we went up to London on the train.  I was home for eight, lit the fire, put some turkey dippers into the air-fryer along with some croquettes and I had supper at the desk on the landing and had just finished when my daughter phoned back for a much longer catch-up and we were on for an hour.  Quiz night tonight, looks like the Monday schedule has moved to Tuesday....might move back when the sport flurry has subsided.  Nothing much on the agenda for tomorrow, the starry night looks like I might have to get in the rest of the plants tomorrow and that we're in for a temperature drop.  LN......Better go throw another log on the fire......LN

Wednesday 16th November

As you can see from the pickies we had a another very miserable start but eventually the sun broke through.  It was down to three degrees last night but was up to six at eight but the wind had a raw  edge to it.  I was pretty slow off the mark and eventually made boiled eggs for breakfast with toast soldiers. got washed and dressed and waited until it had warmed up somewhat before I made my move outside.  I set the fire for tonight...it's getting dark early and temperatures are dropping.

My plan for today was to chop enough starter wood to last me well into next year and I managed it.  It was pretty slow going, a lot of the wood that I was trying to split was used for a lot of the building work on the house, had a layer of cement on it and was very dry.  The technique wasn't scientific, more brute force and ignorance and I used my little hand axe not the big one that I bought form Lidl but I remembered to count my fingers before and had the same amount at the end so did OK so to speak.  I had three large tubs of the split wood, decided that was enough and enough energy had been used up so swept up the splinters not worth burning and put them onto the garden to rot down.  Next job was to confirm that the water reservoirs in both cars had been filled up with a winter fluid not a summer one.  I'd mentioned that I'd filled them up yesterday and was questioned by my student's mum whether I'd used summer or winter and I hadn't a clue so checked today and it was winter and guaranteed down to minus sixty degrees so that should do me.  I also remembered to pot up the bulbs that I'd dug up by accident the other day and they're now in decent soil that the blasted moles have left on the surface of the grass and some compost that was laying around.  I've put them in the little house to winter and they should be flowering when I get back from the UK.

I came in at one thirty, made a coffee and somehow laid my hands on a packet of tea biscuits and they are no more.  It's amazing how quickly you can go through a packet with a cup of hot coffee and somehow I didn't manage to leave half a biscuit in the cup....easy done if you are watching the television at the same time.  I also remembered that I'd bought a bar of hazelnut chocolate yesterday and unfortunately that's gone as well.  I did manage to get my head down for an hour of so while pretending to watch television but woke up cold.  I'd left the outside door open and had opened windows this morning to get some air through the house so closed the doors and windows, lit the fire and the house soon warmed up.  Had a very interesting conversation with my grandson this afternoon on Messenger, he's looking to buy a Pajero 4x4 and was asking me about mine.  I love mine, automatic, easy to drive, comfortable and reliable.  I'd use it all the time except that the cost of diesel compared to the cost of gas brings my mean and sensible side to the fore...why would you unless it's for a journey where a 4x4 is important or when I have the family over and need a seven seater.

Almost seven my time, the fire is going, the house is warm, I watched Ronnie in the snooker this afternoon beat the Chinese opponent by six games to nil...that's my boy and forward into the quarter final.  Sorting through clothes that I want to take to the UK tomorrow, I've realised that the days are moving on and decisions have to be made.  LN....Nothing so far for supper springs to mind...maybe the biscuits and chocolate will see me through until morning.....LN

Thursday 17th November

Well I went to bed early with a chunk of Cheddar and I chocolate wafer bar but I managed to leave that for later today.  I'd pigged out on biscuits yesterday and really wasn't in the mood to cook or eat and I didn't until I raided the fridge for the cheese at eleven last night.  Slept well and woke at six to a very red wintery sky and even managed to go out and take a few photos but soon came in.  I made a cheese omelette for breakfast, ate it while I watched the Repair Shop and the Travelling Auctioneers, thought it was time to get washed and dressed ready to face the day.

I looked down the garden and noted that there was activity the other side of the wall at the bottom of the garden. I'd complained to the turkey man who happens to be the brother of my old mayor about the water flow and what a waste it was and he must have passed the message on...hence a digger, an orange van and around five men at this point.  I sauntered down the garden and had a word with the men and noticed that the water was gushing over the hillside and smiled when I saw a bucket alongside the trench.  I didn't stay long, I offered coffee or tea and they reminded me that the water was off and I mentioned that I had a ten litre bottle of the stuff for such emergencies.  They didn't need anything so I came back into the house and went out about half an hour later and this time there was a man in the hole and three watching and after an hour or so they left in the van and the digger made its way along the back wall and over the next field.  I heard lots of noise and it appears that they have capped it off on the main road near the little square.  A job well done...I don't think it was supplying any one.

So now I was in the mood for activity and the water barrel from the down pipe from the little house is cleaned out, the water put into bottles for the winter for watering the plants and the container put away for the winter.  I had a bit of a job with the tap, it was seized solid and as I turned it undid the connector between the barrel and the tap so rust remover and brute force and ignorance and finally a tap with a hammer sorted it out.  The problem if there is one can be sorted out next year.  As I emptied the watering can into the outside sink I notice a huge spider so I coaxed it into a flower pot, flower pot into a bucket, bucket to the wall, flower pot on wall and unfortunately, spider and flower pot went over to the other side. I little bit of creative thinking and with a bungy cord, I got the hook through the bottom of the pot and brought it back to my side, leaving the spider over the other side of the wall.  I don't like spiders.

The rest of the afternoon was spent trimming shrubs and bushes, moving some pots into the little house and cleaning up both Bougainvillea to bring them into the porch.  I came in at five thirty, lit the fire, not that it was cold but it might be later, spare ribs and potatoes and onion in the oven for supper and it should be ready soon.  I've had a good day, got a lot done and feel better for it.  LN...I didn't get to sorting out clothes but that will keep for another day......LN

Friday 18th November

Six start, tried to go back to sleep again but my brain was having none of it so was making coffee just before seven.  Lovely cloud this morning hanging in the sky...it started off looking like a mackerel that morphed to a shark then took on the appearance of a whale.  In the end, when the sun came up and warmed up the air, everything disappeared in a very thick fog.  I just love my mornings and evenings...never are there two the same, such variations.

The washing was in the machine by eight and out on the line for nine, bacon, egg and fried bread for breakfast and I stayed in scruff gear for most of the morning but I did wash and clean my teeth.  I was very tempted to go out and clear leaves but that mood soon went by the wayside and I ended up on the upstairs computer looking at attachments to one of my Friday emails that I hadn't got round to looking at properly.  By not it was moving on to lunch-time so I laid the fire knowing that I wouldn't be lighting it tonight I was out on the town.  The washing came in at three and I put it away, realised that the clock in the hall wasn't working so I changed the battery and for some reason the hands weren't going round and I had trouble replacing the pendulum and it became quite a challenge.  The battery came out again, I cleaned the contacts and replaced it, got it back on the wall, eventually got the pendulum to attach, straightened the large hand thinking that it might be catching on the little hand, reset the time and decided to leave it to it's own devices.  

I did spend some of the afternoon watching Ronnie get thrashed but couldn't bear to watch so I had a shower and washed my hair and felt much better for it,  I was ready to leave for Djebel at five thirty, stopped off at the supermarket and bought a box of eclairs which I gave to my hostess when I arrived at my family's house for supper.  It was good seeing them again, it's been too long.  Chicken and roasted potatoes with salad for supper followed by the eclairs and then we set off for the sister's flat in Kardjali and had the evening with her and her daughter.....almost my namesake....the letters are all there but in the wrong order.  We stayed until nine thirty, I drove back to Djebel and dropped them off in the town and was home for ten.  LN.....A very relaxing evening, good to see the little one growing up.....LN

Saturday 19th November

Another early start and I seem to be falling into a pattern....head down again and it was seven thirty second time around.  I received a message from my ex-student to let me know that she wasn't baby sitting for her niece today, it was left that she'd let me know and I'd give her a lift into Kardjali if she was needed.  So my day was all mine, I had shopping to do for me and top of the list was butter but the shopping for my friends had nothing in it that required refrigeration so I decided to do mine, come home and deliver the other later in the day or tomorrow and now it's definitely tomorrow.

First stop was Kaufland and goodness was it busy, the world and most of its friends were in there and most locals don't see to have much trolley discipline, blocking aisles and leaving children to push the trolley and it's just what's needed.  I remembered to pick up onions, swung by the plant section and they'd reduced quite large potted roses to just over a leva so I picked up five of them.  They only had pink and almost red left so I had a mixture of both and they're now sitting in a large bucket in the porch having a good drink before I do something else with them.  I bought ham, chicken reduced for quick sale, a giant tin of After Eight mints which contains two packets and not a big shopping list for me.  I moved to Lidl, eventually managed to park up and this again was heaving but by the time that I'd finished my shopping the checkouts were quite empty.  I found another outside shrub that had been reduced and apparently it has super colours come the cold weather and is related to the bamboo family but it is the 'domestic' version so shouldn't be so rampant.  I remembered butter and then set about selecting the cat food for my friends and bottled water and straight to the checkout and out in quicksticks.  I heard someone shout me and it was Bekir shopping with his village buddy, we were leaving the store at the same time.  I asked him about my roof repairs that are lingering on and said that I would like it done before I go to the UK....it probably wont be but you have to make your point.  I set off to Djebel and stopped off at my student's mum's shop and gave her one of the roses explaining that even though reduced they deserved a life and she promised to give it one.

I drove home, parked the car, emptied the shopping, plants into a container with water and chicken into the oven so that it would be ready for when I wanted it.  I settled on the sofa to find something on Netflix to watch and by now the chicken was cooked so I switched the oven off, returned to the sofa and promptly fell asleep for an hour or so and felt much better for it.  I lit the fire, it's warmed the house up ready for tonight.  I watched the end of the snooker and the Chinese guy is through to the final, am about to serve up supper and then get settled to watch Strictly tonight.  Probably make the delivery around mid-morning tomorrow, come back and sort the plants out....nothing much pressing at the moment.  LN.....A very chilled day.....LN

Sunday 20th November

Seven thirty start and it was a gentle start to the day.  The chicken bones went out for the cat but there was no sign of it.  I made my usual clicking sounds but nothing stirred, not even a mouse but that wind had been pretty violent during the night.  Pots were overturned, a carpet that I'd put on the bench outside the porch was on the terrace, we'd had some rain but not enough to wet things through.  I picked up the carpet and moved it into the little house, put the pots the right way up, laid the fire for tonight and did a general tidy round.  I'd messaged my friend asking if eleven was OK to deliver the shopping and they'd suggested one so one it was.  Until then I was going to be at a loose end, television was rubbish so I did a search on Netflix and decided to start watching Peaky Blinders from the beginning and it's amazing how much you forget.  I only watched the first episode, it would have been easy to have gotten sucked in and carried on watching it but instead, I turned the television off and watered the house plants.

I set off to make the delivery drop at around twelve thirty and stayed chatting until two thirty.  They're off to the UK next Sunday so I returned their house keys and reclaimed mine...we shall all be away at the same time.  Driving down there was a man in a 4x4 parked up on a two lane part of the road so I set off to overtake and at that point he pulled away and I really had to swing round him.  We ere heading into a sixty where there's normally a police presence so I was watching my speed following a car and he was slowly pulling towards me so I kept braking and indicated that I was pulling off to the right as was the man in front and also the idiot following me.  Approaching my left hand turn I started indication well in advance and blow me down, the idiot started to overtake me just before my turning and more defensive driving and accident avoided.  I was calm about it, I'd had my warning on the two lane main road and really wasn't surprised by his driving .....maybe he won't me so lucky next time.

I said my goodbyes to my friends, not sure when we'll meet up again and we do have Messenger to keep in touch.  I arrived home just after three, lit the fire although it wasn't cold outside or inside for that matter, attacked the second chicken leg that I'd cooked last night and demolished two crème caramels and half a packet of biscuits.  I settled on the sofa, plumbed in to Peaky Blinders and have just switched it off.  I watched Strictly last night and know who I would be getting rid of but have resisted the urge to look at any spoilers...I'll only do that if I fall asleep watching it tonight around nine.   Nothing on for tomorrow so far so maybe it's time to start getting clothes ready for my trip to the UK with only seventeen days to go.  I might even go and get the pressies for the ladies, pack them so that they are ready to deliver when I get back....the weather might be cold and snowy in January.  LN.....Options, options and more options.....LN

Monday 21st November

Very stormy night, winds rattling round, again plant pots over and some of the smaller branches had dropped from the trees in the yard as well as another pile of leaves that had swirled round the garage.  The really tall lemon tree was over and the soil spilt over the terrace but it would wait until my morning really began.  A load of washing went into the machine but no way was this going to be pegged out, it would have either ended up in Turkey or Greece.  One job that I'm really pleased about, I have a black sweater with a high neck but the stitching had work away so I found some black thin elastic and with a needle repaired the damage and you can't even see the joins...and now the sweater has a few more months in it.  It's because it's really comfortable to wear with a zip in the neck that you can put down if the weather really warms up.

I made bacon and egg for breakfast and sat in the stairwell eating it while checking emails and the overnight accumulations.  I washed up and cleared the kitchen, cleared the rubbish bins and thought about a bonfire but it went on my back burner.... too much wind about to risk that even though the hillside was damp from overnight rain.  The washing was put out on the airer in my upstairs bedroom, fire laid for tonight even though it probably wouldn't be needed looking at the thermometer.  Still no winter.

I then made a decision that there would be very little activity this morning so I settled down to watch a few episodes of Peaky Blinders and disciplined myself to the end of series one and then I switched it off.  I thought about a sleep but instead went out and cleared up the leaves from the garage and yard, brought a load of logs into the log basket and filled up another to leave in the porch.  It was now getting on for three so I put the computer on to catch Eggheads and tried to move over to Countdown and that's when Transponder TV decided to give up the ghost.  It's been a bit unreliable for the last couple of days and it's not so bad for me, my subscription has ended so this is  at their expense and I'm still waiting to pay for the next year.  Unfortunately or fortunately they're updating their payment systems so it will be when they ask for it but I'm hoping they sort out the reliability issues.

I gave up and went on to series two of Peaky Blinders, lit the fire and that's gently ticking along and at six put four small hamburgers into the frying pan, added chippies to the air-fryer and still there was no connection to Transponder.  I played a few games of Solitaire on the computer, thought I'd try Transponder again and lo and behold, it went straight in to the channels page...it's working again.  Quiz night tonight, no more interruptions from sport etc. so time to exercise the brain and see how many more cells I've lost.  LN...Time to put a log on the fire.....LN

Tuesday 22nd November

Six start this morning for some unknown reason...probably because I slept through my quiz night last night very comfortably on the sofa.   Ggggrrr.  Never mind, at least I had a good start on the day.  Much calmer morning, we were back to clouds to the four points of the compass but there were very few over the village all day.  I did the usual chores and made poached eggs on ham for breakfast and that did me through until I went for the cream cheese and bread sticks around one this lunchtime.  What did I get up to?  Very little today, I'm not sure if I mentioned that I've knacked my left knee trying to get something from the floor while I was sitting in a chair.  I pushed my knee to oneside to get it out of the way and I got my just desserts.  It's been painful for the last couple of day despite the Deep Heat, swollen with fluid on the knee and now with the weather being very damp and changeable. the other knee has started playing up....it's come out in sympathy.

I took to the sofa after breakfast and settled in for a few more episodes of Peaky Blinders interspersed with emails, messenger and FB.  I moved to the upstairs computer around lunchtime and went looking for a text for my student and found one already printed out with questions to ask to fill the allotted time.  Lot's of noisy planes around at lunchtime, I went onto the terrace and managed to spot them, triangular shaped and very whizz bang so I'm thinking that we have Nato gong thought the motions.  I took the camera out but nothing but blue screens...they were too fast to find and focus.

I left for Djebel at two fifteen, his mother was busy in the shop and my student had a visit to our dentist to sort out his braces on his teeth.  Apparently it took longer than anticipated, some of the fixings had come loose and had to be replaced so we didn't start the lesson until four this afternoon.  My first word was that there was to be no football, my knees weren't up to it so we were more or less straight into the lesson.  The text was a little difficult with lots of big words but fortunately I'd gone though them at home and written out the alternate words that could be used and we managed to do the questions together.  We went down to the shop, his father was there and he had also got problems with his knees so I skipped off to the chemist and bought two packets of Voltarin tablets, one for each of us and at five lev for two....well worth the investment.  

I stopped for bread and a packet of chocolate biscuits, lit the fire and it got going first time.  The two hamburgers I'd left from yesterday were warmed up and that was supper, both of them slapped between two slices of the new bread.  As for the chocolate biscuits, they will not be mentioned again.  The temperature has dropped tonight so the fire was necessary, I must find something to do tomorrow, I'm getting lethargic.  LN....Tablet taken...do your stuff.....LN

Wednesday 23rd November

Bit of a disturbed night.  I got warm between the sheets and as I tossed and turned, my poor knee was playing up and despite the slow release tablet last night..it wasn't releasing it quickly enough to stop it hurting.  I must admit though it's been much better walking on it so it should be OK by the end of the week.  Beans on toast for breakfast, the cat got the rest of the ham and looked very wet and bedraggled waiting for food.  The washing up was done, emails were top of the list and today I managed to sort out the various list of passwords that I have, some with lots of scribbles on them, programs sorted and now I feel more secure on the net.  

I haven't really been out today except to take a few photos.  It was too wet to go out and get the bonfire started initially, then it dried up and then it rained again.  It's almost been like April showers and now the stars are all out but this afternoon we had lightning flashing over the Greek mountains but no thunder sounding.  In fact it might have been, I'd settled on the sofa with the Peaky Blinders and that competes very well with thunder.  I did have issues with one security program connecting to the internet so with a little help from their help desk I deleted the application, reloaded it and now all is well.  The other thing that I challenged was advertising material from my ancestry program offering me a twenty five percent discount which I didn't really understand.  My subscription get's updated early December and would I be better or or not...so I asked a man who was able to tell me that I would save around seven pounds so for that money....hardly worth the effort so I didn't bother but why do these companies make the offers so difficult to understand.

Not in the mood for supper, I made sandwiches from Bulgarian equivalent of corned beef and brown sauce and that should see me through to tomorrow morning.  I lit the fire around five and that's really warmed the house through, it's not cold but it's when you come to sit, you just need something from a fire or a blanket.  So nothing really achieved today, the lightning is still batting around and I've got a super view from my desk on the landing.  LN.....Let's hope it doesn't stop television tonight....LN

Thursday 24th November

Seven start and again it was a cloudy perimeter around the mountains, the sky above was blue, the temperature was three degrees but as the sun came up the mist came down and it took a while for the temperature to start to climb despite the sun.  The rest of the beans became my breakfast, kitchen tidied and I collected the rest of the rubbish and headed down to the bottom of the garden. The bin was still fairly full of unburnt rubbish and as I added the new stuff and lit it, it caught fairly quickly,  There wasn't any wind so the fact that the lid had seen the best of its days wasn't too much of a problem this morning but I really need to do something about it.  As a temporary measure once it was going well, I put a couple of stout timbers on the top of the burning container and rested the lid on the top of the timbers so that no stray sparks could take to the hillside.

The sun by now was warming up so I sat out on the bench on the terrace enjoying the heat.  I could hear the turkeys on their morning stroll and in BG they're more of a New Year than Christmas special.  I went back into the house and noticed that the roses that I'd bought cheaply weren't doing so well so I found a large rubber bucket and decided that they should all be planted together.  I filled the base up with soil from under the trees near the garage, lots of leaf mold in there, added normal potting compost and planted up the four roses and watered them well.  They're staying out tonight but will obviously spend the winter in the little house and go out next spring to get established and bigger.  Next job was to start to tackle the old vegetable garden that I sectioned off.  There were established shrubs in three of them but I needed to put in the 'quick sale' shrub that I'd got from Lidl, the label does say that they are able to go down to quite a few degrees below so I cleared one of the sections.  I put more leaf mold in the bed and planted the shrub, cleared another two sections and now the area is looking good.  One last plant to go in was a pink tipped willow that had sat in a pot for a while so now everything left on the terrace will go into the little house but the weather is so good, we're still waiting for the first frost.

Tools away, little house locked and I sat for a while at the table in the stairwell and caught up on emails etc.  I'd managed to knock up six thousand steps which was a big improvement on yesterday so I thought a little binge watching might be in order.  The sofa was very accommodating, obviously I had a little sleep and when I woke up it was time to light the fire, raise the house temperature enough for a very pleasant evening.  I've had a good day today, I've got to find another way to repair the lid of the bonfire and that might be done tomorrow with wire, a few cross strands should work.  LN.....I suppose I should start to think about supper.....LN

Friday 25th November

So I had the first wake-up at six, turned over and eventually saw the light of day at seven forty five.  I made coffee and it was a very slow morning, toast at around nine and television until eleven. I did get round to cleaning my earrings that were definitely in need of some spirit and a toothbrush and my how they sparkle not what they are done.  I prepared supper and that went into the fridge until five tonight and as for the rest of the day despite the weather being good, I binge watched Peaky Blinders and don't feel guilty about it at all.  I lit the fire at five which is when my supper went into the oven to finish off and it was delicious.

I had an invitation to go to a showing in Kardjali of an art exhibition but unfortunately the drive wasn't there to get off my backside and go there.  There will be other times and I really don't like driving in the dark these days and I was going on my own and, despite knowing people there, it wasn't going to be the same as other evenings at the event.  Maybe next time.

I've just spent time on the internet regarding my subscription to my access to English television.  They are having issues updating a payment system and have asked for payment to another personal account so I got through on their support line, they answered all my questions.  The boiler is on, bath tonight and a good soak and an early night.  LN.....Promise myself to be more active together.....LN

Saturday 26th November

Late start for me, I checked the thermometer and the outside temperature was minus three.  I predicted it and sure enough, our real frost of the winter.  I should have brought in the rest of the plants but not felt on top of the world today, checked my blood pressure and had a bit of a wake-up call and back on the tablets.  That of course was after I'd scrambled a couple of eggs with extra butter added with buttered toast so tonight's supper was a slice of dry toast and coffee is off the menu.

The sun eventually showed its little face after the mist had cleared and nothing much has really been achieved today.  I spent quite a long time on to a support desk on an onscreen system and I'm sure they all go to the same school or college.  When you've written the question the response is normally that you can confirm that this is the issue you are trying to sort so you reply that it is and then you get referred to the online help and asked if you've been through the process.  My response is normally that I wouldn't have bothered using the current system if the help pages had worked...doh....I wouldn't have minded but the problem I was chasing was the same problem that I went through earlier in the week and after reloading it again, it was reporting the same errors.  Technology egh...and really good for the blood pressure.

This afternoon I spotted that the film Dr. Zhivago was on Beeb 2 so I settled in to watch it.  I tried to read the book but it was one of those that the names all seem to blend into just characters and it was difficult to establish the relationships but after the film it all made sense.  Watching it around fifty years later, it's obviously not as slick as the modern day films but beautiful scenery and what a good looking chap he was.  A very gentle character in the film and off screen I gather.  I lit the fire at four and it's going well but I had to go and get more logs in.  The routine sort of went out of the window today and enough are in to last most of tomorrow.  

Strictly tonight, football seems to have dominated the channels today so now I've decided to stick with Beeb 2 for the triathlon highlights and watching Flora Duffy from Bermuda attacking the last lap of the World Series and it looks like it's in the bag that she becomes the World Champion for the fourth time and GB Taylor-Brown pick up the second place.  Now settling in to the men's race.  LN.....And tonight it looks like it might be another frost.....LN

Sunday 27th November

Seven thirty start and it was the sun rising over a cloud base and the mountains.  It stayed a mottled morning and eventually the cloud gave way to quite a pleasant day if cold.  It was more that the wind was cold, I only put my nose out of the door a couple of times, one to throw some breadsticks out for the cat since I had nothing else for it and secondly to fill up the log carrier this afternoon so that I have plenty in for this evening.  I had dried toast again for breakfast and water since I've decided to lay off the coffee again, I think I've been chancing my luck with coffee, mayonnaise, chocolates and biscuits though not all at the same time may I add.  This probably hasn't done my blood pressure any good at all so back on the tablets as I said.

One job I have managed today was to clean the glass on the cooker both the inner and outer of the door.  I removed the two screws and had to use stainless steel cleaner on the glass and my did it look good when I'd finished.  In fact the oven really does need a spring clean so I'll wait for the season to arrive...no point in rushing it.  Next job was to source two baskets of washing and the second one was quite by accident.  I'd lost pyjamas, I put them away in the grand tidy-up for the family visit and had forgotten where I'd put them but something led me to the small chest in my upstairs bedroom and lo and behold, there they all there.  So now I had  my second load and two lots are now drying on the airer in my upstairs bedroom.  I suppose I could have pegged them out but it almost looked like rain at one point so gave up on that idea.

Not much activity this afternoon, Peaky Blinders is now complete and I've just discovered that there is to be no series seven, it will be covered by a film probably to be released early 2024.  This seems to be the plan for most of them now, the Last Kingdom is going the same way apparently.  Fire lit, two chicken legs in the oven, one for supper and the second one which is much bigger is for tomorrow.  I hope they didn't come from the same chicken otherwise it would have gone round in circles.  I've just had the smaller one and the other is finishing off and I've left enough for the cat for tomorrow.  Strictly tonight and I've just checked on the schedules and it's been brought forward because of the football and I've missed it.  Fortunately you can find out and I did this morning who was in the dance off and who left.  Why they just don't show the whole programme and be done with it beggars belief.  Second chicken leg needs to come out of the oven and washing up needs to be done.  LN...Time to throw another log on the fire.....LN

Monday 28th November

Seven thirty start. I opened up the curtains to see a very wet terrace and it was still raining.  The thermometer was showing eight degrees and it's only gone up to three point five degrees all day.  I had muesli for breakfast as part of my new regime to get on top of the blood pressure again, water to accompany it, the coffee is destined to remain in the cupboard when I learn to leave it alone and not just top up that one coffee for the day.  I threw the remains of last night's supper out to the cat.  It was hiding under the honeysuckle, I carried on with my call and out it came.  

Washing up done I got the fire going well, it was eighteen degrees in the house so not cold but it felt 'chilly' which was a word from my childhood.  It soon warmed up and first job was to move the washing that had been on the airer overnight in my upstairs bedroom.  It was going into the upstairs bathroom since it is the warmest place in the house once the fire is going.  I should really have put them in there from the 'off' but pleased to say, the transfer worked and it's now all put away.  My work was up for the morning apart from moving the television from the summer lounge to the winter lounge, taking up position in front of it and promptly went to sleep waking up at three thirty, just in time to salvage the fire.  I refueled and ate the chicken leg that I'd cooked yesterday and cat has something for tomorrow, I peeled off the skin and took the overcooked bits from it so it should be pleased with that.

Television this afternoon, waiting for them to cancel the subscription since the payment method they were using I didn't feel comfortable with but as I watched my usual winter programmes. I realised that it's a bit of a lifeline in the winter here when there's not much change of doing anything outside once the snow is cleared and the wood is in so I paid up this evening despite eternal protests.  Having said that there were lots of checks by my bank and my security provider so now I feel much better about it.  I tried to print out hard copies for my records and then the printer went berserk....went for the torch to see down the back of it and the batteries were flat in....what a day but all sorted now.  It's still raining.....but I can't do anything about that.  LN....Student tomorrow...must find a better text than last week....LN

Tuesday 29th November

Another cold, wet and miserable day and so, despite me going out this afternoon to my student, I lit the fire. I put the food out for the cat and it was still eating it about fifteen minutes later, I'd put hot water on the chicken left-overs to remove the grease and 'bits' from the pan so that it got the benefit of all the juices.  It's still sleeping under the honeysuckle at the base of the terrace but thinking of putting a box in the garage so that it's out of the cold and wind.  I used up the last of the bread and made toast for me and put some jam on it and remembered to put bread on the shopping list to get when I finished with my student'

I did a few chores like getting in more wood, filling up the log basket and bringing more into the porch.  It wasn't real rain but was that rain that gently falls and could turn into snow at any minute which it did according to my student's mum when I got the update this afternoon.  I also finished off a job that I'd put to oneside yesterday when I didn't manage to thread a needle up with cotton.  The eye on the needle was just too small and with my eyesight going down the pan I intended getting more needles from Djebel today but I persevered, managed to thread it. The curtain was for the lounge window that goes through to the stairwell and I normally put one up there to stop the air movement and I found a tab headed curtain, folded it in half and managed to stich the base of the curtain to the tab header so that it was double thickness.  I loaded it on to one of the expanding curtain rails that I have, remembered to remove anything glass from under it incase it fell down and managed to put it up and it looks OK and does the trick.  

I went up the the computer on the landing and managed to book my hotel for the night before I fly to the UK and tomorrow I'll go to Kardjali and book my bus ticket.  It's much easier going up the night before and the hotel has a courtesy bus and gets you there without any hassle.  I found a new text for my student about Chad and the lake, it wasn't too long and wasn't too long.  I didn't have lunch, got dressed for warmth and set off for Djebel at around two thirty and sat with his mother in the shop until he came home from school.  I went up to the apartment, lit the woodburner for them so that it would be warm for us and for the family when they finished work and got down to the lesson.  It worked well, the lake in Chad has shrunk down to under ten percent of it's original size and we checked it out on the computer at the end of the lesson and it showed how it had decreased over the years in ten year blocks.  I related it to the river that runs near his father's garage, in the summer it dries up but when the rains come it fills up and starts moving again,  Unfortunately Chad doesn't have any rain and other countries surrounding the lake divert it for irrigation of crops, hence no control has created this situation.  Finished the lesson, drove home stopping off at the supermarket for bread, tea biscuits, potatoes and an éclair (naughty but nice). got the fire going from the embers and had fish finger sandwiches for supper.  England and Wales football on the tv downstairs and I heard the roar and saw the replay of the first goal and managed to catch the quickly scored second goal.  

So a I mentioned, Kardjali tomorrow for the bus ticket and to pay my home phone bill and Lidl for a couple of large bottles of water in case there isn't any when I get back from the UK.  LN.....Back downstairs for the rest of the match and the fire.....LN

Wednesday 10th November

Six thirty start and it was another wet miserable day so I decided to light the fire and keep the home fires burning despite the fact that I was heading out early to make sure that I bought my ticket to get me to Sofia.  I didn't go back to bed, boiled the kettle for a cup of hot water, still off the coffee and checked out the internet on the little computer in the stairwell but nothing really to report.  Washed and dressed for town, managed to get the suitcases out and decided which one I'm taking with me...I'm moving towards action.

As I walked through the porch to open up the domain I realised that the burning rubbish bin had a bit of a whiff on so I grabbed the fire lighter and bin and headed down to the bottom of the garden to get rid of it.  It was raining slightly, I'd got my gloves on ready to go out and that was a wrong move.  As I removed the two stones holding down the lit to stop the cats getting in I realised that I would have to find some new gloves, they were really dirty.  I carried on, the damage was done, put the contents of the bin into the burning bucket and set fire to it hoping that it wouldn't set fire to the two pieces of wood that were supporting the lid.  Stones back in place, gloves in the washing machine and new gloves found.  I was into the Nipper by just after nine and parked up in the bus carpark, bought my ticket and unfortunately the buses had changed the schedule and now I'm leaving at four thirty in the afternoon not the expected one so a little later to Sofia but more time to finish off what I want to here.  Moved to Kaufland and bought the birthday present for my student for the 1st December when he becomes a teenager/  Over to Lidl and picked up a few items, went to the next electrical store next door and remembered I needed batteries for various things and then drove home.  First task was to salvage the fire, I put the shopping away, made a sandwich, took up position on the sofa, put the TV on and promptly went to sleep for an hour.  A girl needs her rest.

Curtains drawn to keep out the cold and damp, chicken drumsticks in the oven for tonight and there's not much more activity coming out of me tonight but tomorrow I'm doing my packing and if the rain ever stops I'll get the rest of the pots in, put the cold jacket on the water inlet pipes, turn off the outside sink water supply and that should fill my day. No photos again and I apologise, damp, miserable you don't want to see.  LN.....And now I'm on countdown.....LN