Tuesday 1st October

So now into the final quarter of the year.  October to me is clearing the falling leaves, damp mornings, smoking autumn bonfires and slow cooker casseroles.  We now have the potential for morning mists in the valleys, potential for sunny afternoons but the pools are all finished now, so time for me to start up with my ancestry records again in the evenings.  This year it will be slightly different, I've not done an autumn getaway to England, my daughter has usually come over here at some point in the year and we've had brilliant catch-ups and this year I missed it.  The cost of air fares from the UK have been extremely prohibitive and since they are both governed by the number of days holiday they can take, the cost of seven days was very high.  So this year I've managed to book a seventeen day trip for under sixty euro for both ways so it makes more sense for Mohammed to go to the mountain since my days aren't governed by anyone.  I've also booked my Christmas break and that was about the same price.

Up and about this morning around seven, bacon and egg sandwich for breakfast, washing up done and then I cut up the leeks, peeled the potatoes, added a vegetable stock cube in hot water and in it went into the slow cooker.  I added chicken wings to it later and had a late lunch/early supper around four this afternoon and around five drove into Djebel to pick up some fly-spray since I forgot to get it yesterday, some insulated windscreen sheets that I've decided will do for the radiators in the house and elastic bungy cables so that I can roll up the hose pipes and get those into the woodstore for the winter.  I'm now into tidy mode and part of that was in the garden when I pulled up a couple of plants that I'm told are dangerous to livestock....I shall have a bonfire and get rid of them tomorrow.  

After I'd finished at the car shop I went to visit my older student's family.  What started out to be a 'let's go for a pizza' had turned complicated so I went to clear the air and confirm the attendees.  It's now been slipped to next week, still not sure whose coming but I'm only having to turn up and shall insist on paying.  I've had a request to bring back some tubes of Deep Heat from England for mother's sore bones, I gave her a tube to try and she said that it really works better than anything she found in Bulgaria or Turkey.  It was a lovely drive back to the forest, no other cars about so I could put my foot down a little and no moon but a very starry night.

Time to see if I can scrape anything from the side of the slow cooker for supper.  LN......Sorry, no photos today, I've just been too busy.....LN

Wednesday 2nd October

Funny old day....I was out of bed by seven, bed stripped down by ten past and sheet, pillow cases and top sheet into the washing machine and then it went down hill.  I made the mistake of looking in the chest in the guestroom for more sheets to make up the bed instead of waiting for the removed ones to dry and ended up finding all sorts of sheet, duvet covers, pillow cases that I hadn't seen for ages.  They hadn't been put in the chest sorted by type and it was all much of a mish-mash and now it's done and dusted or dust-free hopefully.  A new bottom sheet went on my bed, a summer weight quilt now has a new cotton cover and after my second normal load of washing, a black duvet cover when in the machine and now that's on my bed for tonight.  

I used the rest of the bacon with and egg for my breakfast sandwich, cat had the rest of the the leek and potato and chicken from the slow cooker and it suddenly occurred to me that I hadn't managed to get the dry cat food from my swimming buddy from Fotinovo so I messaged her to see if she was busy for the day and if not, could I go over and collect it.  She said that was OK so I drove over and was there for roughly eleven and I left the washing drying on the airers in the guest room along with the piles of unsorted bed linen surrounding the chest that it had all been removed from.  It was a lovely drive over there through the forest and I noticed how green everything had become since the storm the other night.  I also noticed that the ferns were turning yellow and some of the leaves on the trees were doing the same thing.  Unfortunately I'd forgotten my camera and almost kicking myself forgetting that I was driving.

We sat in the garden, the sun was shining, she was preparing the plants from her terraces that were going into their winter home later that month and it occured to me that we're  more or less working to the same schedule.  Winter is coming John Snow.  I walked her garden with her, a very high wall had collapsed, had been rebuilt by Bekir and his son, yes, the Bekir who built my houses with Sally who has since retired and enjoying a relaxed life with his wife.We sat out until around four thirty, I was now getting cold and decided that it was time I left before I outdid my welcome.  I left clutching the dried cat food so even it I don't have any left over for Cat, at least I have something to give it,  I hadn't been back at the house long, when there was a knock on the door and it was my friend's mother who lives in the next village.  We sat on the terrace, hd the usual chit-chat and then she opened her bag and removed a present and it was from Guldjan, the girl who started to teach me Bulgarian all those years ago and she now lives in Germany.  She had sent over chocolates and nuts for me, gift wrapped and she also produced a lamb joint from of of her own lambs that they had killed.  It was just a pleasant surprise at the end of a very pleasant day.  Off she went, I messaged my friend in Germany thanking her for the gift and asked if it was an early Christmas or birthday for next year of a late one for this....and fortunately she understands my humour.  

After watching a little Netflix this evening I was doubled up with cramp in my toes and lower leg and I'm guessing that it got cold this afternoon.  Earlier this week we were experiencing temperatures of mid twenties and above and now we're down to eighteen, nineteen degrees.  I was leaping around the lounge and eventually it subsided but have now decided to have a very hot bath before I go go bed to warm myself through completely.  I have the feeling that I shall be taking chocolate from my newly received goody bag with me.   LN...Rude not to I'm guessing.......wish me luck for tonight.....LN

Thursday 3rd October

Well today has been a continuation of yesterday, more washing done, more tidying of chests and cupboards, it's all to do with the onset of Autumn.  I also had a run at packing my bag for my upcoming holiday, I know it's early but plenty of time to change my mind.  Fried tomatoes on toast for breakfast, cat had its first morning of dried food and was crying out for more when it had finished it.  I was warned that dried food can lead to dehydration so I'd put a bowl of water down for it and thinking that on first eating the dried food it didn't feel that it had eaten very much but I certainly thought it best not to hand out a second helping.  It could go scrounging round the village for desert.

It's been a much better today with lots of sun and I've only just closed up the door to the terrace and balcony, it's warmed up considerably today.  I did have another spasm of cramp in my feet so I found out a pair of woollen socks knitted by Avatar and they went on and my feet have been toasty ever since.  It's early to bring them out and I only found them by accident when I was sorting out one of the boxes in my downstairs winter bedroom.  It demonstrates that I float into summer and pack my swim bag and float into winter when it comes to packing away t-shirts and unpacking winter woollies.

The rest of the day has been very leisurely, I;ve just had a phone call from my Bulgarian friend who lives in Germany.  I'd messaged her this morning to thank her for the present that her mother delivered yesterday and it was a follow up from that.  I'd asked her it they were coming over to Bulgaria but she's just taken on a new job, her husband has just undergone surgery for kidney stones so things have been a little difficult for them.  At least everything has settled down again and again she asked me if I wanted to go and visit them and I will but probably next spring.  Again sorry, no photos but I will do better tomorrow and the weekend we have our local village fair so hopefully the weather will be good.  LN......Time to check out the rest of the windows before the heat really goes out of the building.......LN

Friday 4th October

Up before seven and the sun, collected the rubbish from the bathrooms, quick wash and dressed and went down to start the bonfire to get rid of the rubbish.  By now the sun was up but there wasn't much heat in it so far but it was still early.  I fed cat and it seems to like sleeping under the wall, it comes out to greet me but won't get any closer than arm's length and won't start eating until I move away.  The water bowl still had water in it so didn't change it, it's used to foraging.  I was trying desperately to identity if it's male or female but it just won't let me get that close so I'll probably end up taking a photo when it's not looking to solve the mystery.

I went up to make the bed, read for a while sitting on the chair in the bedroom facing the sun until I came to the end of the chapter.  I moved into the guest rook and put the linen back into the chest but this time in piles of duvet cover, bottom sheets and pillowcases to make it easier when I come to making up the other bedrooms. I don't know how I managed to get so much of it, I brought quite a lot out from England when I first arrived and some of the other quilt cases have come from the second hand shop for throwaway prices but I've never thrown them away and most of them came originally from Ikea so good quality.  One day I'll have a cull but not today.

As for the rest of the day, I tackled a book cupboard under the television and found books that again I've acquired not bought and one of them was 'Five Pounds in Five Days' juicer diet book and it reminded me that I bought a juicer about eight years ago and have never had it out of the box.....maybe the time is now right and I could start eating healthily substituting some of the rubbish I get through.  It's not that I want to lose weight, I'm well within what I should be but the healthy bit interests me.  It does mean that I have either got to buy an exercise bike or work out how to put my bile up on bricks and just pedal away without going anywhere.  It's not safe to go out on the roads here...too many stray dogs to negotiate.

Time for supper so let's see what I can have with mayo be it fish fingers or chicken in cornflakes from the air fryer....the hunger bugs have started to nibble.  LN.....Kitchen duties call.....LN