Thursday 1st June

Welcome June, welcome the sun and giving me the opportunity to manage twenty two thousand plus steps today on the Fitbit.  Not quite my record but pretty close.  Another early start, it was five when I was awake and ready for action, I made coffee, back to bed with the little Kindle for a spot of games and Sudoku, washed and dressed ready for the garden and waited for the overnight rain to be dried off by the sun so that I could burst into action.   I fried off the remaining spicy sausage and had it with two eggs and it was still only eight o'clock so I meandered into the workshop, found the two strimmers that needed the spools rewinding and managed to find a sping to replace the one that I'd lost when I took it apart.  I found the cover that holds it all together for the big strimmer and then couldn't find the reel that holds the chord and joy of joy, it all came together.  I tested them out and they both work, I went back in the house and it was still only nine so more coffee and I positioneed myself infront of the television forgetting that I'd removed plugs last night and unplugged the internet......that storm was overhead and I didn't want any catastrophes.  I watched the one the programme that I'd started last night...still not sure of it three episodes in but I'll stick with it for another one and then flick through to see if anything else catches my eye.

And so it began.  I left the grass box off the biggie, the machine wanted cleaning underneath but there was too much fuel in it to tip it on to it's side so I just went with it.  It didn't run out until I'd finished the side grass and half way down everything so I grabbed the chisel from the workshop and more fuel to replenish the machine, tipped it on its side and cleaned it thoroughtly.  By now it was one o'clock so I filled up with squash and water and went out again at two and carried on where I'd left off completing the rest of the grass.  I came in again for more refreshments and without realising it attacked the small bed outside of my downstairs bedroom window.  The poor plants in there were being swamped my clover, grass and sticky willy so I made a start on it and now the bed is more or less clear.  The yucca that is in there can now breathe and tomorrow I'll find a few plants to fill it out again.  So you know what it's like when you start something that you think to yourself...'just a bit more' so I started the rose bed in the grave garden and tomorrow I shall finish it.  I feel that this years rain had slowed everything down except for the weeds and they've had the best season ever.  

Tools away at six, mower away and I'm in the same predicament.  I only put a little fuel in hoping that it would run out so that I could clean it before I put it away but it wasn't to be.  I'll have to use the same tactic next time.  Supper was tuna with onions. betroot and mayo and now I'm about to take another squash to the bathroom and linger in the bath for an hour or so to avoid aches and pains.  I't a very calm night and hopefully it will stay that was until morning....it's a bit late but I've got the weeding bug.  LN....And over the wall with them for the cows......LN

Friday 2nd June

Very early start and yet again...I even changed into my summer-weight PJ's last night but it made no difference at all.  Ah well...at least I had a start on the day.  Coffee and back to bed and a few games on the tablet, washed and dressed by seven and first load of washing in and second wasn't far behind.  Somehow I started putting winter stuff away in the chest and bringing out summer trousers, one fine day and the mood changes.  That's how I came to have two loads of washing....I pulled out t-shirts and thought I'd freshen them up a little.  I think the cruise is still on my mind so I've been finding out potentials and the problem is, I have too many clothes and I forget what I've got...every season is full of surprises.

Two boiled eggs for breakfast with toast and I forget that the eggs that I get from the garage are four minute ones, not five.  Any way...they are super yellow and very tasty so just need to learn how to cook them so I get perfection every time.  Kitchen cleared, washing pegged out so next move was on to the rose garden to finish what I'd started yesterday.  I was doing really well until I broke the handle off my old wooden English fork....I was tuggiing at a particularly large bundle of clover and I suppose it was my fault.  I'd repaired it before but unfortunately my guest had a go at it last time and the bolt holding the handle on had sheared off and there was no getting it out.  I gave it a good shot, I think he'd used lots of glue so now I have thetwo peices and I've got to try to get the remains of the bolt out but today wasn't the day.  I must have spent a couple of hours on it so let my brain work on it tonight while I'm asleep and maybe a solution will pop into my head...fingers crossed.

I worked on the garden until three, came in and had a cheese sandwich with silverskin onions as a side, watched another episode of the one that I'm not quite sure about and I'm still not.  It seems too complicated and I have the feeling that I'll get to the end and wonder what that was all about and you can't get time back.  So out again and worked my way down the garden, removed one of the garden - lawn dividers that had seen better days and had a bonfire.  Tools away at seven, had a quick shower and one more day on the garden to cut back some of the shrubs that have already flowered and that will be it....maintenance and structure more or less complete,,,until the next time.  Hopefully the grass will slowdown a little and fingers crossed...another day without rain will suit me fine.  No supper for me tonight, not hungry after a late lunch unless I get the munchies later.  LN.....Another good day......except for the garden fork......LN

Saturday 3rd June

Silly night again.....I woke up at four with the light still on and I'd obviously fallen asleep while playing games.  I made a pit stop and went back to bed but this time I switched off the light, snuggled down and it was nine fifteen when I woke up...result.  This doesn't happen to me, I can't remember the last time that I woke up so late and I've been playing catch up for the rest of the day.

Breakfast of toast, I was tempted with boiled eggs but didn't want the responsibility of under acheiving and having hard ones again.  I made more coffee and wnt out into the yard with the intention of getting the strimmer out and giving it the once over but my attention was drawn to the sheep, using my tree for shade and the four huge sheep dogs splayed out on the road.  I made a movement towards the gate and up they jumped, going berserk and barking like made, if I was going to go into Djebel it would have been impossible to get the Nipper out onto the road.  I carried on into the little house and continued the repair on the garden fork.  I knew it was going to be difficult to do, it's old and the shaaft is made out of oak so hard to chisel but fortune favours the brave.  I found a piece of wood that I could shape into a square that would go between the handle and the shaft and that was the easy bit.  It was complicated but the last repair, the bollt that had held the handle in place had sheered off and in the end I cut the handle down to expose more of the bolt and managed to get it out.  So far so good.  I knocked a nail through the square that was going to sit between the handle and the shaft, removed it, line everything up and inserted the new bolt finding tools that I don't think I've seen before and obviously bought for other workers.  Slow and steady wins the race,,,I'd screwed the bolt into the shaft before I assembeled everthing  so that I could create a path, removed it and with everything in place started the assembly.  It took a while, I now have a useable fork again and so it had to be tested out and the little bed in the grave garden is now cleared of bindweed, grass and clover.  I live on the edge of a field so I get everything when the wind blows.

I came into the house feeling very pleased with myself, put Netflix on and watched two new episodes of the 'Blacklist', wnt out again with the hedge trimmer and cleared the briar roses growing proud of the terrace, moved to the garden and created more balls out of the baby plum trees and the quince in the grave garden,  It does make the garden more ornimental.  Did a check on the tortoise, Avatar had given me some strawberries that her friend had given her, they'd gone over slightly so this morning they'd gone out for tortoise.  At ten this morning they weren't really interested but at five this evening, Green God was all on his lonesome finishing off one huge one...they'd been other things on his mind with Rosie earlier....I meant to take a picture but forgot.

Belly pork in the oven with potatos and onions for supper.  It smells like it's doing OK and should be ready in about twenty minutes.  Morre of the same tomorrow if the weather holds, wehad a few drops of rain today but nothing more that high clouds releasing moisture on the thermals.  LN.....The light will be off tonight, no games on the tablet and hopefully the sleep of the just.......LN

Sunday 4th June

What a night and what a day.  I was awake at two this morning, couldn't sleep, played silly games until five, had another shot at sleeping and was out of bed at six making coffee.  I'm getting enough exercise to make me sleep but it's just not happening.  At seven I was making toast for breakfast, the water was still off and that trickle that I had yesterday was no more so it's back to bottled water and I shall have to go and get another few bottles if it goes on for much longer.  

I was out in the garden for eight, it was a slow start weatherwise, it clouded over and again we had just a few drops of rain so I thought I better get going early.  First job was to dig up the three babies from the Sumac tree which I did.  I gave one to Avatar for by the fence between her and next door, the second one is for my older student's father who liked it when he came to visit and the third one I'm not sure.  There's still two more in the garden, it's been prolific this year but those I'll get rid of with the mower.  Next I used the hedge trimmer to tidy up the trimmed shrubs and self sets, it just adds another dimention to the garden...points of interest which the neighbours don't really understand....'She has an English garden!!'.  I popped round to see Avatar and deliver her Sumac and I'd left it in the soil that I'd dug it up with and it was about eight inches square.  The grass was still on it, she'll sort it out when she comes to plant it.  She then force fed me with eggy bread and even though I resisted saying that I'd fed already she insisted.

Back to my garden and because she said that rain was forecast I set about the bottom of the garden with the mower and thinking about it I should be providing my tortoise with new road maps. I've been clearing flower beds, mown behind the fire bucket bed and cleared a lot of the clover and hiding places but still left five feet or so of rough ground under the wall so that they can get out of the sun and away from me.  They were all out and about this morning and they crop up in odd places.  It's tempting to put a Fitbit on one of them to see how far they really do go or little tracking monitors...that would be fun. So all the grass is cut now, most of the bushes are trimmed but still a few left to keep me occupied.  After mowing I got out both electric strimmers, the little on worked for a while and then the cable snapped so I put the other one on and I'm obviously doing something wrong with loading the cable but today wasn't the day for sorting it.  Avatar popped over around two this afternoon and sat on the bench for a while to check up on what I'd been doing.  Jokingly she said that she was moving in so I offered her, in jest, the little house and said that I'd get builders on it immediately.  No way did she mean it...her garden looks on to the road, because I'm on the opposite side of the street mine looks to the mountains with unobstructed views....very private.

Tools away at four, I'd done twelve and a half thousand steps so called it a day.  I filled up with orange squash in the absense of water, settled on the sofa and went to sleep for an hour or so.  I woke up sweaty and cold at the same time so boiled a kettle, stripped off and had a top to toe wash.  My hair which has been scrunched up, I've saturated with conditioning oil, plaited it and put it back up out of the way with a hair clip.  I've put on a lounger top and bottoms and socks, it's not cold but the sun clouded over and I feel so much better after my scrub down with hot water.  Not sure what I'm having for supper, the cupbourd is bare Mother Hubbard and the tin supplies are low so might need a trip into Kardjali to restock.  It's been a good day, next year I promise myself that I'll remove the clover and other rubbish earlier in the year and not allow it to take hold.  Of course the weather didn't help but that's been the same for all of Europe.  LN.....I'm on the hunt for food......LN

Monday 5th June

Six start and it looked like it was going to be a good day. Mist in the valley and once it had burnt off the sun shone for the whole day, but the wind didn't drop until around two this afternoon.  I made coffee, again we have no water and I'm down to my last half bottle of bought water but I just couldn't raise the energy to go into the supermarket.  Around nine when I went up to get washed and dressed there were a few gurgling noises from the boiler and I thought that they was lift off ...in fact it was nothing of the kind just hot air.  I imangined the scene, one digger, about five men leaning on shovel and at the end of the day....ah well, there's always tomorrow.  I made breakfast and managed to get both the eggs with soft centres and I think it was more by luck than judgement.  However I got there, they were delicious and hot buttered 'soldiers' to go with them.

So what else did I do today?  I stripped the guest room bed and got it ready for my visitor on Wednesday, put everything ready for washing and that turned out to be a useless task...one big pile and no water to wash it with.  I also removed my sweaters from my downstairs bedroom and put them in the upstairs chest, put coats away now that it appears the weather has changed for the better.  I also put winter PJ's, tight and Bulgarian vests away ready for the coming winter remembering 'Ne're cast a clout until May is out' and I didn't and now I have.  I walked the garden to check on the livestock and how much of the garden was still to do.  I wasn't doing it today though, I've had a grueling few days on the wrong end of a grass cutter and today wasn't going to be another one.  My biggest problem was finding my swimsuits from last year.  I checked the swim bag and there was nothing in it, checked upstairs and downstairs and was giving up all hope when I fell upon the last folding storage box with 'bits' in and there they were.  By now it was three in the afternoon so Netflix went on and I watched a film that I really enjoyed and whats more, I didn't go to sleep....result.

I did another swoop of the garden to get some steps on my Fitbit, with the last few days being a hard act to follow.  I've managed almost six thousand and now it's on charge and I think those six were on the swimsuit hunt.  Nothing required for supper and I've just noticed that it's almost nine my time so soon be time to take to my virtuous couch and relax.  LN.....Note to waterboard...please bring back the supply to our village....my hair wants washing.......LN

Tuesday 6th June

I take back everything I said about the water board, the water came on late last night and apparently there is a problem with the reservoir...the water is going somewhere and they know not where and one place it wasn't coming to was my village.  I watched a good film on Netflix last night and it was a happy ending ,,,,no sex and a love story, now that makes a change.  

I went to bed at twelve thirty, slept like a babe and woke up at six.  My first thought was the water and whether last night's appearance was for keeps or maybe they had further work to do on it today.  Having accumulated a fair load of washing, the first load went in six o'five and I was pegging it out by six fourty five and the second load was aready in.  I did four in total, everything is up to date and then I was looking for other things to do.....and I found them.  There has always been a gap between the fly screen and the outer door to the porch and I should have complained at the time but never did.  Last year I'd bought some sort of tape from Lidl that gets fixed to the frame, thus solving the problem.  I carefully measured how much I needed, got the step ladder out so that I could reach the top, stuck the said tape perfectly aligned, got down from my ladder, closed the door and fly screen and it was perfect....nothing could get through,  I opened the fly screen to get back into the house and as I did, the newly position tape fell slowly to the floor and I just burst out laughing.  It wasn't to be, the sticky obviously isn't sticky enough I'll have to look out for a new batch in Lidl.

Next job was to mend the stimmers feed lines which was a disaster so I gave up and used the little electric to complete the yard, the gap between the house and the wall and the outside verge and parking outside my wall for guests.  I finished it at one, photocopied the book for today's lesson with my student, swept and tidied the little house workshop, watered the plants on the terrace and was getting ready to set off for Djebel for the lesson.  We started at three thirty and it was only when he was reading the text that I realised, because the book is falling apart, I'd missed out one page completely but my bright spark added that the mice must have escaped, it made sense so we ran with that. Roal obviosly described it in more detail but we went with the edited version.   Lesson over at five fifteen, I decided to head into Karjali to update the contents of the fridge and goody box and add to Lidl trading figues.  Stopped off at the little supermarket for bread and a few other things and heading homeward in a fifty zone, one of the local constabulary sprinted across to my side of the road and pulled me over.  As I saw him I threw the packet of crisps that I was eating to the floor, reached for my purse for the documents that I assumed he would require, he greated me, asked me how I was, gave me a beaming smle and said that there wasn't any need for him to see anything, that everything was OK and I carried on home.  .

Car in the drive, shopping unpacked, freezer stuff split and in the freezer, goody box brimming over, washing in from the line and folded, hamburgers in the frying pan and chippies in the air fryer, served at almost nine and finished at nine thirty.  I'm absolutely knacked....it's been a full on day and just over ten thousand steps registered on the Fitbit..my energy tank is on empty, the washing up can wait for tomorrow.  LN.....It's been one of those days that you feel blessed to be able to achieve at my age......LN

Wednesday 7th June

It's late, I've had a drive to Plovdiv and back to pick up a friend from the airport.  I'd spent the morning ironing the sheets and generally tidying the house up but at eleven, I decided I'd had enough, the sun was shining so I ladeled out the suntan lotion and settled down on the easy chair on the terrace from my balcony with nothing more than underwear on.  I was puttiing down the base coat for hopefully more days in the sun.  I had thought about running the mower over the grass but fortunately that didn't materialise and after an hour and a half baking myself, I had a shower and washed my hair and tried on several outifts for the airport visit.  

By now the day was moving on and I wanted to avoid the Kardjali exodus so I left a little too early.  As I approached Assenovgrad, the traffic coming the other way proved to me that I'd made the right choices.  I stopped off at Lidl on my way to the airport, on my list that I'd forgotten on Tuesday when I was filling up Mother Hubbard's cupboard were baked beans and horror of all horrors, Lidl in Plovdiv didn't have any.  What they did have were extra large Cornetto ice-creams, jelly sweets and potato salad that I've just  remembered I left in the boot of the Nipper.

The flight was more or less on time, we found each other, toilet stops for both of us, parking at the airport was three lev and then we set off for home.  On the way back through the mountains we stopped off at an old favourite restaurant of mine for cheesy chips and refreshments, the man apparently was closed for the early evening but opened it up for us all for a bill of ten leva.  Uneventful rest of the journey home, we stopped off at the supermarket in Djebel so that my guest could buy basics for her return to her home.  She elected to stay in the downstairs bedroom saying that she had too much luggage to cart upstairs.  LN.....I'm looking forward to my bed tonight, I'm tired and hopefully should sleep well......LN

Thursday 8th June

So much for me thinking that I would fall asleep easily last night.....I didn't.  Games until one, tried to settle down and couldn't, the tops of my feet started to itch like mad and I though I would scratch holes in them.  My friend was tucked up in the downstairs bedroom and that's where the 'itchy foot cream is kept' and there was nothing in the bathroom cabinet.  On my bedside table I had some Vick to clear blocked noses so in desparation I tried a liberal dose of the said methol salve to both feet and low and behold it worked.  I went straight to sleep until six this morning, no smell on the feet but I must remember it works for most things.  There was no movement from the downstairs bedroom, I had a kettle on the landing so made my coffee, took it to bed with me, it was a beautiul morning and looked to be a promising day.  I made my second cup, washed and dressed, heard noises from downstairs so made her coffee, knocked and she was sitting up in bed looking really relaxed after the day that she'd had yesterday.  She'd already made coffee for herself so now she had two to go at.  The curtains were open so I opened the dividing curtain from the lounge so that she could see out to the hillside and then I went about the rest of my morning,

Washing in the machine, she didn't want breakfast so I made toast for myself with sour cherry jam.  We sat in the kitchen, she has things to work through so I left the talking to her and by now the washing had finished and I was on to the next stage of pegging it out.  By ten I was ready to drive her home, she'd been in England for six weeks so there would be a few things to do.  So electricity switched on, we tried to remove the cover from the water entry point but some bright spark had made it out of four inch thick concrete and it was just too heavy to lift off so I found a crow bar in the yard and started to lift and wedge underneath. She disappeared and came back with a policman have a morning coffee at the local cafe, complete with pistol in is belt, I think he though he was in for something easy to do, his whole demeanour changed when he saw the requirement.  He stood back, thought about it and I was on the right track...he used the crow bar to move it away from the opening so that the water could be turned on.  Number two task complete.   Freezer and fridge turned on, kettle for more coffee, and it was then that I said we should go and try her car to make sure that it would fire up...and it didn't.  I went to the workshop, found a battery charger, so took it out to the car and noticed that the red cable had come apart from the connector so it was back to the workshop and I repaired it.  So connected up the charger and and left it for about two hours and no go, put it back on charge while she strimmed the grass and I removed the stickly willy that was stuck to everything in sight and then we sat in the sun.

Eventually we went to the local shops, I've not been there for about three years and caught up with lots of old friends.  I bought apricots, chocolate and a pot of strawberry jam for a change, and then back to the benches in the garden for more chinwags.  I was ready to leave around five thirty and suggested that we tried the car one more time and success, it fired up.  I said farewells, refused the offer to stay for supper I wanted to get home, I'd got washing to get in and tomorrow I've got to do the grass again.  Almost seven my time, I've demolished a bar of chocolate and I think that could be supper unless I get the urge to be creative.  LN.....It's good to help friends out and we achieved quite a lot......LN

Friday 9th June

Started watch Netflx and the Body Guard while I was having a late supper of tuna with Lidl prepared potato salad that I bought in Plovdiv.  It managed to survive staying in the Nipper all night.  I put some bottled beetroot in it, finished off with a chocolate pudding and slept like a log.  I'd fallen asleep downstairs in front of the TV, woke up suddenly, straight up to bed and asleep in quicksticks.  Bank on six when I came to this morning.....it's getting to be a habit, I had nothing pressing to do this morning so was enjoying playing games, drinking coffee and just enjoying the morning.  Another beautiful day in BG.....toast with strawberry jam for breakfast followed by a yogurt, watched what I slept through last night of the Body Guard and then out with the mower and tackled the grass.  

I was out there until one when it was getting pretty hot out there, I was chugging up the steps on the Fitbit so I came in for a little rest and recouperation.  I hit the cream cheese with bread sticks, lots of sour cherry squash to keep me hydrated and I eventually went out there again just before three and finished off the grass.  Cracked Shell was almost caught betwen the devil and the deep blue and didn't know which way to go to avoid me but I avoided him or her instead and it eventually toddled off down the bottom of the garden.  Tools away and I went to check on my Fitbit to see how many steps I'd recorded and the only thing on the display were five dots with the middle one lit.  I couldn't remeber when this was was replaced by Fitbit for a previous faulty one so back to my virtual assistant and my daughter opened her last communication with them and confirmed that this was replaced in December 22.  We tried jarring it into life again and the teckies must have tried their end while it was on charge and eventually it sprung to life after much to-ing and fro-ing.  Fitbit had agreed with my daughter to keep the case open so if there were any more problems we'd be ready for it but instead, when they passed it over to the next department I received an email offering me a replacement or fifty percent off a new model.  My daughter says to accept it, only problem is getting it to me in Bulgaria.....I'll start conversations with them tomorrow when I'm more in the mood.  The last thing I want is for it to land up in customs and have to pay to get it released.

Now to 'hunt the supper', have a shower or possibly a bath this evening.  Good day, a little fraught towards the end with the Fitbit but I so expect things to last a little longer than six months. My daughter reckons I cooked it in the sun.  The company don't exactly get rave reviews from me.  LN.....I know them so well...and so does my daughter....LN

Saturday 10th June

Very late....I've been with a friend to the Jazz night in a hotel in Kardjali and try as I might no way could I get the photos that she took and sent to me ready for posting....It will happen tomorrow.

I've had a very quiet day after yesterday's grass cutting, Avatar came round with some cheesy bread for breakfast but I'd already poached egss and was having them on toast when she arrived.  Hair wash and shower at around three, found something to wear for tonight and she arrived at four.  I was unsure whether she was bringing food over, we'd talked about it so I hadn't prepared anythng so I suggested we stopped for pizza in Djebel, I wasn't drinking because I was driving but she was so a solid base was required.  We stopped off at Kaufland on the way through Kardjali, Lidl were out of baked beans and I'd heard that Kaufland had them so I now have four tins and one with chilli flavouring...It should make a change for supper one night,

Lots of different sorts of jazz was played by various bands, the disco started at eleven, my friend took to the floor, I didn't since I was on water.  We left just before twelve and got stopped by the police as we drove through one of the villages outsde Djebel.  I recognised the officer, he recognised me and I asked him if he reqiired documents and he said that he didn't and we were soon on our way.  

I enjoyed the evening, music was good and next time I shall be boogie-ing away I'm sure.  LN....Photos to follow tomorrow or rather today......LN