Rocking Your World 2021: Week 26

I am starting this week with this happy picture. Who can resist smiling back at this bright little face. My great-grandson had every right to feel pleased with himself as he had just scored the winning goal in the final game for his club.

My week has been busy but not very exciting, and my photos reflect that, but I am sharing them anyway.

On Sunday we went over to the plaza outside the 'new' theatre on the edge of the village, for a music occasion. We knew it was a special event to pay homage to an elderly gentleman who had devoted his life to promoting music in our community, but we hadn't realised that there would be quite so much talking. There were personal tributes from his life-long friends, people he has taught to play an instrument, folk from the band which he led for so long, the village Mayor and others. Of course we didn't understand much of it though we could get the gist of what they were saying.

However we were sitting in a lovely place on a warm summer evening. This was our view looking over to the Cabrera mountains.

This rather blurred picture was taken looking the to the other side, where the sun went down leaving the row of palm trees silhouette against the darkening sky.

The gentleman who's life they were celebrating, (Miguel Cánovas), was apparently very fond of the paso doblé, as are most Spanish folk, so the band paraded passed where he was sitting, playing some tunes with this timing.

We stayed to the end, sitting towards the back where social distancing was better observed, as it was very pleasant there, and though it was not a proper concert, there was some good music played, and it was lovely to see the warmth and love of the village folk for this elderly man.

On Monday Chris drove me to Huercal Overa, about a half hour drive from us, for my CAT scan. I was surprised to get the appointment so quickly, but our Covid numbers are very low here now, so the hospital is trying to do some catching up I think. I had an iodine contrast intravenously, which meant I could not take my diabetic medicine for three days, but I have been checking my sugar levels each day and they have not soared as I had feared they would. And I had no other side effects from the injection. The actual scan was over in minutes, so now I just have to wait for a follow-up appointment from the hospital. But I was told it was nothing to worry about so I am not!

At the weekend I called Chris to see the ground outside the kitchen door because it seemed to be constantly wet, even more than recent rainfall could account for, so he checked the meter regularly for a while and we decided we had an underground leak. We tried to phone our insurance head office but apparently they have changed their number recently and hadn't gotten around to informing us! So we turned the water to the house off for most of Sunday and all that night, and the next day we went up to the local office and were given the new number. Water is a valuable commodity here, so we knew they would send someone as soon as they could, and by mid-afternoon he was here. He took up some of the crazy paving and found a fairly serious leak which he repaired straight away. So we were left with a hole in the ground which he will return to fill in when it has had time to dry out.

However, we soon realised that the meter was still whizzing round even though no appliances etc were in use, so we came to the conclusion that there was another leak. I think blocking the major leak put more pressure on the smaller one, causing it to run faster and by the next day a damp patch was forming a short distance away. We were expecting a private plumber to come for an unrelated job so we waited to see what he said, but he is super busy right now and couldn't really stop to help us, and suggested we call the insurance company again. So we had another couple of days keeping the water to the house turned off except when we really needed it, and on Thursday the insurance company sent their plumber back. He took up another slab of paving and found a smaller leak, this time going down into the ground, so he also repaired that one. So now we have two holes in the path and a longer wait for it all to dry out before it can be put right, but at least the mains water is now on!

The reason the private plumber was coming was to fit a new filter and tap in the kitchen. When we came here we inherited a five-way osmosis system under the sink which enabled us to have drinking water on tap (from its own little tap at the side of the sink). This was quite exciting as most people use bottled water for drinking and the big bottles are so heavy and difficult to pour from. But the five filters and main pressure tank took up most of the space under the sink, were expensive to replace each year, and wasted a lot of water. Chris says it takes up to 10 litres of water to produce 1 litre of drinking water. So when we had the chance to buy a new single filter we jumped at the offer. Now we have one small filter, which also needs to be changed annually but is much cheaper, and all the mains water coming to the kitchen sink is now filtered and drinkable, so we only need the one tap. We had a new tap fitted when I had my new kitchen around three years ago. It had the osmosis tap on the same stem as the mains tap but I never liked it, so I am very happy with my new modern line tap which is all we need now, and we are looking forward to considerably lower water bills!

And while on the subject of water, I also have a new 'toy' given to me by my friends who are leaving for UK soon. Before they came here, they owned a big car-recovery and maintenance company and had two of these for their workers. They have used one out here but the other has sat on their patio unused. So I was very happy when they offered it to me. They know I drink a lot of water and will make good use of it.

Because it had stood empty for a long time we bought some of the Spanish equivalent of Milton steriliser and added it to the water bottle, and then we ran it into the tank and left it overnight in there. The next day we emptied it, and ran clean water through it several times. Then we put a bottle of fresh water on it and I now have chilled water to drink at any time. It is nice, because it is cold but not too cold to drink. The water bottle holds 19 ltrs and was incredibly heavy to upturn onto the machine. Originally we were going to buy bottled water for that but now we have the new tap and filter we can fill it from there, and I can take out all the bottles of water that take up all the space in my fridge through the summer. (You might wonder why we still need the filter on the sink, but I also use 'unchilled' drinking water for things like taking medicine, cooking rice etc that will absorb the water, and various other things, and also to drink in the winter when it doesn't need to be chilled, so it is still good to have it on tap.).

As you know, I have been working on some other little projects along side my blanket squares and I recently finished this little summer jacket, and the hat and cardigan set for our new grand-daughter. I posted them off with the little Miffy rabbit I showed a few weeks ago, and they have now arrived safely so I can show them on here.

It is usual in S.Spain for cities and some villages to put up shades across the street where most of their shops are, but this little village just down passed Malaga, went a step further. They must have been working on this as a community all through the winter. How bright and happy is that!

And with that I will link up with Rocking Your World and Annie's Friday Smiles.

Rocking Your World 2021; Week 25.

It's Thursday night again and I am trying to get ahead as Friday always seems so busy. I have had a busier week than usual, but mostly a good one. The weekend was relatively quiet though I did have some nice video chats with the boys.

On Monday we made yet another visit to the phone shop where one problem was resolved (our error, not theirs!) but I am still not connected to the new provider. It seems my old provider is reluctant to make the transfer, but the new company are on to it, and I am hopeful it will be all sorted out next week.

We then moved on to Mojacar to have photos taken for our new ID cards, They had to be so tiny - about half the size of a passport photo, so it was easier to get them done at the shop. The man was very efficient, and after we had been to the post office just around the corner, to post a small package to UK, we were able to pick the photos up. We also had to go to the Town hall to collect a copy of our 'Padrons' which are sort of proof we are on the village electoral roll.  We can get a copy at any time but it is only valid for around three months.  Back at home we sorted out a folder each of the papers needed for our ID cards. (Correct name, TIE cards). As well as the padron and photo, there was our residencia, a bank receipt to show we had paid the fee, a form we had to download and fill in in advance, a printed copy of our appointment confirmation and our passport. The Spanish really like their paperwork, and it pays to have the right documents with you or they just send you away, but as long as you are properly prepared, they are very efficient.

Monday evening we set out again, this time to Huercal-Overa for my hospital appointment. I was glad I had asked a translator to come with me. It made everything much easier. I came away reassured that there was no need to worry, but I have to have a CAT scan, and then go back to discuss the results.

So on Tuesday morning we set out in good time to go to Almeria, to the 'Officina de Extranjeros', (Office for Foreigners). We arrived in good time and had to queue for a while. To enter we were scanned and so were our folders, bags etc, like they are at the airport. We typed our ID number into a machine which issued a ticket and then it was just a matter of waiting until your number came up on the screen and going to the assigned table. I think there were around 40 tables each with a computer and a worker who checked the papers, told you where to sign and took digital finger prints. Then he issued a new appointment for a couple of weeks time when we have to return to collect the new cards. They are credit card size so much easier to carry around then the old A4 residencía papers we had, and they can be used for identification in any situation, and also to prove we live here if we travel out of Spain and want to get back in!

Because we left home early the sun was not quite up and there has been early morning cloud most days though the sun does break through with some force by mid-morning. I saw that the sun was behind a dark mass of cloud but trying to break through so I took these photos through the car window - apologies for any smudges. The windows are always a bit dusty! As you can see it did turn into a rather beautiful sky.

As we drove along the motorway I took a few photos of the lovely flowers. These are oleanders and they fill all the central reservations and along the outsides of the motorway. They are in full flower right now and look beautiful. Some stretches have dark red or white ones, but mostly they are these pink ones and they looked so pretty, and brightened up the drive no end.

Where we live it is a fairly rural area and there are no really big towns or cities, so no big super stores. Of course, Almeria being the capital of our province is a bit different. The office we had to go to is not in the city centre, but to get to it, it is easiest to go to the parking area of a big shopping mall and walk the short distance to the office. So while we were there I had to take the opportunity to have a brief look at the shops. We didn't have much time, but I managed to pick up a couple of small items I needed, and I found a C&A where I bought a simple cotton sun dress, so it was a good visit.

Then we had to get back home and a bit further to a restaurant near Albox where we were going to a lunch to say 'Good-bye' to some friends who are returning to UK tomorrow. They came out here a couple of years before we did so they are some of the first folk I got to know. Janetta was the warden at our church, so the meal was organised by the church and it was good to meet up with so many old friends, who I haven't really seen for over a year. I have not yet returned to regular services as we still have to wear masks all the time, and I find that difficult, even more so now it is getting so hot.

The restaurant is run by English people, and they had opened up their dining room especially, and exclusively, for us, with social distancing of course. There were 49 people there, and the tables were laid for 2,4,or 6 people. Of course we were allowed to take our masks off for the meal though most people put them back on to walk around and chat. They did an excellent meal for us, one of the best we have had out here. Of course there were some speeches and gift giving, and the church leaders all gathered around the couple to pray for them, and their future. Len and Janetta are the couple sitting against the back wall.

This was our table. Just to be awkward we were a group of five! The top one is not the best photo but a friend took it just as I was preparing my camera to take some myself. The lower one is my husband and my friend Chris' husband, having a good old chat. They always get on very well. Sadly they will be the next couple to leave us as they too hope to return to UK before the end of the year.

I think it was last year that I posted about a bird called a Hoopoe that I had been wanting to see ever since we came here, and last year one did briefly visit the green zone behind us though I never caught it on camera. This year I have heard it calling most days but did not know where it was, but as I got into the car this week I spotted something on a roof that I could see was an odd shape. So I zoomed in with my phone and there he was. Sitting on the far corner of the white house across the road from us. It was too far away to get a good photo, but these were the best two I took. It has such a distinctive shape and is a good size too. 

Because my photos leave a bit to the imagination and don't really do this beautiful bird justice, here are a couple I took from the internet. One showing his lovely colours, and one with his crest and wings open.

The day we went to the Town hall which is at the top of the village, we drove up there so we could go straight on the Mojacar. We parked by the railings that go all along the rambla at the top of the village and once again they were covered with these lovely purple-blue trumpet flowers. They look a bit like the convulvulus or bindweed that can be such a nuisance in the garden, but their leaves are the same as Morning Glory. I love them and they flower so freely. I have collected their seeds and tried to grow some on our railings, but so far without success.

This little visitor is quite a common sight in the garden, but they are not often this big. It is, of course, a gecko, and I disturbed him from behind a window box when I had the hose out to water the flowers. I love their little hands and feet with a sucker on each finger and toe, enabling them to shoot rapidly up a vertical wall when they need to. But this one sat on the ledge and posed for me. They catch flies and other unwanted bugs so they are always welcome.

I have had quite a lot of other projects on the go recently, but in between working on  them, when I need a change of eyesight, I have continued to crochet my squares, and this week I finished another set of three made with a ball of wool called Turkish Delight. I prefer the ones with the more gradual change of colour like the first two in this set, rather than the last one where a light colour, quickly changes to a very dark one, causing the speckled effect for a few rounds. But like the others, they will all work together. These all have one round of a dark teal to finish them, like all the others have, and that will also be used to join them together. I have one more ball of wool to use. I really only need two more squares but I think I will make all three and discard whichever one fits in least well when I come to arrange them all.

Last night we had a spectacular thunder storm that lasted for nearly three hours. As usual we didn't get it as bad as some folk around us, but it was still quite amazing and it was followed by very heavy rain. Today started very grey but eventually the sun broke through and we had another really hot day. It is all very strange for mid-June.

And finally I spotted this little cutie this week. It is not our baby but it was in the public domain so I thought I could share it. It made me smile and I sent it to my son and daughter-in-law who have just had a new baby, and it made them smile too.

And with that I will link up with Rocking Your World and Annie's Friday Smiles, and get ready for another week.

Rocking Your World 2021; Week 24.

My highlights of the week: those moments I am grateful for and that have made me smile. I had so many plans for this week, so many things I hoped to achieve, but there have been a series of sidelines that have altered my course, so I am not sure I achieved very much at all.

We have had a couple of technical hitches but they are all sorted now, and we are happy with our new fibre internet. Chris decided to keep his current provider for his mobile so I wanted to change to the same one as him, as my signal is very hit and miss around the house and our village, whereas his is very good. But this needed a visit to their shop and the first time it was closed. The next time we filled in everything but one small detail was missing so the transfer was refused. We went back today and the sign on the shop door said "Closed today for bank Holiday", but no-one else seemed to know about it! So tomorrow we will return and hopefully it will be fourth time lucky.

When we left the shop on Tuesday we decided to stop for a coffee, and a tostada (typical Spanish snack of a half baguette toasted and spread with chopped tomato and olive oil, then topped with tuna or cheese etc). It was nice to sit somewhere different from our usual haunts. We were  on a pleasant shaded patio and looking out at this rather splendid palm tree with a misty mountain behind it.

Today, when we again found the shop closed we decided it would do us good to walk for a while so we drove just around the corner and down to Vera Laguna. They have re-layed the board-walk around the laguna so we walked around there. I didn't take many pictures because I have taken a lot there before. But I did spy a big bird across the lake from us, that seemed to stay apart from the other ducks, geese and moorhens, and sea-gulls of course. He looked very aloof and I thought it was probably a cormorant, so I put my phone camera on full zoom and took this picture, and now I can see I was right.

From the laguna we carried on down the beach and walked right along with our feet just in the water. It was hard work as the sand and gravel were soft and we kept sinking into them. I stood for ages trying to catch a wave as it broke over my feet. They kept rolling in and stopping just short of where I was, but eventually one broke just far enough in and I got the picture I wanted. I turned away to speak to Chris and of course a big wave came straight in so I then had a wet dress for the rest of my walk. But fortunately the sun was warm and I soon dried.

It was funny looking along the beach as it is a wide stretch of sand with some rough grass and scrubby plants growing near the top, and then there is quite a slope down to the sea and most people choose to sit along the ridge. So all we could see was a row of colourful umbrellas stretching into the distance. There were more people sitting there than we have seen before but it was still a long way from being crowded!

When we reached the far end there was another board-walk up to the promenade. They are a great help as already the sand is too hot to walk on with bare feet. We went up to the top, washed the sand off our feet and walked back along a quiet, well paved prom and stopped at the end for the nicest tinto verano I have had this year, and of course, another tostada!

One thing I did manage this week was to clear out a lot of kitchen equipment that never gets used. I am well known in the family for my love of kitchen gadgets. I think I inherited that from my mum, though now there are a lot more to choose from! I had accumulated quite a selection but my hands are just not strong enough to use many of them, so I went through all my cupboards and the garage storage and Chris and I took a huge collection down to the Lions Club charity shop. I am happy to support them as they do so much good for both the Spanish and English families in our area. Now I just have some electrical machines that between them do everything I am likely to need, so I must refrain from buying any more!

I also planned to shorten two dresses this week. The ones I buy online are always either way too short or nearly down to my ankles. I am not very motivated to do sewing but they needed to be done. I have managed to get as far as cutting them down and turning up and tacking hems, but so far the machine hasn't made it out onto the table. I am busy now until at least next Wednesday but maybe then...

I did also mange to finish a small crochet project but I won't show that until I know they have arrived at their destination.

I went shopping for some basics such as bread and milk, and just slipped into the garden centre as I passed! I wanted a couple of small annuals to brighten up the window boxes but they mostly had much bigger plants. Then just as I was leaving I saw some pots of mixed plants so I bought two of those. It turned out there were six plants in each pot, but they were very root bound and I had trouble separating them. But I managed in the end and I put some round in a trough that hangs from the back railings just outside by craft-room window, and some in the window boxes outside Chris' room. They looked a bit sad for a few days,  I must have damaged them a bit breaking them apart, but I have watered them regularly and now they look fine.  They had some very pretty little flowers in them that at first I couldn't identify, but with a bit of help from google I found they are Surfinias. I should have remembered that as I used to have them in the garden in UK. They are a type of petunia with many small flowers. I have not seen the double variety before though. Each pot had at least three surfinias as well as a small verbena and one or two large petunias, so they were actually a very good buy. Here is an untidy collage of them.

There were two very dark purplish petunias that can get a bit lost I think, so I planted them with the bright yellow surfinia and they look lovely together.

And just in the corner of the front yard we have a succulent shrub - well almost a tree now. It was there when we moved in and we have paid little attention to it. It has grown a little over the years. It was planted in an old half barrel, and last year the ring around it broke and the barrel split open, but the roots of the plant stayed as they were. I just went on watering it like that for a while, but a few months ago we finally got around to moving it into a new, slightly larger pot, and it has just rewarded us with a mass of tiny pink flowers. I have only seen flowers on it once before in the twelve years we have been here. The bees absolutely love it, there were at least a dozen buzzing round when I took these pictures though I don't seem to have caught any of them on camera.

I have written this on Thursday evening as tomorrow we will be off to try the phone shop again, then to Mojacar to post my parcel to UK and the photo shop to have passport-style photos taken for our TIE cards. They are a new ID card to replace our old residencia papers, and we will need them to show we live here if we ever travel out of Spain. We have appointments in Ameria to complete our applications next week. On Saturday I have to go to Huercal Overa for a Covid test. I got a message about it this afternoon. I have no idea why, but can only assume it is because I have an appointment with the ENT specialist at the hospital on Monday. So I will be back there again on Monday to see the doctor and this time I have decided to take a translator with me. I am fairly confident speaking to the doctors in Spanish, and can tell them anything I need to, but I still cannot understand when they speak to me. So when it is something medical I think it is important to understand everything properly so I have a lady coming with me. I have not used her services before but she has been with Chris a couple of times during lockdown when I have not been allowed to go with him.

So next week is going to be a fun week too, but hopefully I will be make it out the other end and have several things to be grateful for. In the meantime I will link up with Rocking Your World and Annie's Friday Smiles.

Rocking Your World 2021: Week23

Another week has flown by so what were the bright moments this week. I have spent a few happy hours pottering in the garden. I do this in the morning before it gets too hot. First of all we worked together to pot up the climbing rose and Mandevilla flower that I showed last week. They are both happily attaching themselves to the climbing tower my friend gave me, and within minutes of us finishing it, a Spanish neighbour walked passed and commented on how good it was. (They don't miss a thing!). They do like their plants and not many houses in the village have gardens as colourful as ours.

Another happy follow-on from last week is our silk tree which has now had several flowers on it. I think they are really pretty, but sadly they only last for a few days, but there are plenty more coming to take their place.

The bees like them too!

I also planted up two lavender plants for round by the back railings. We like to sit there in the early morning for our first cup of tea. It is the coolest place for a short while, and lavender is sold to ward off flies and mosquitoes, so it is a good place for them. It is actually too hot to sit there from lunch time onwards, and is the last area to lose the sun, so the plants dry out very quickly and I have to be very vigilant about watering them.

On Tuesday we woke up to black skies, thunder and lightening and then heavy rain, so the animals were not very happy again. It lasted until just after lunch and then the sun came out and it was one of our hottest afternoons so far this year. You really can't guess what each day is going to be like.

As it happened I used the last of our bread on Monday, intending to go to the bakers on Tuesday morning after the market. But the weather being such as it was, the market was of course cancelled and I forgot about the baker. So at tea-time we had a treat - I made pancakes, with fresh juice from lemons just picked off our tree, and they went down very nicely!

It has been grey most mornings but not always raining, and even on those days it remains quite warm. Often the sun has returned for the afternoon and I have spent every afternoon this week sitting on the porch working on a small piece of counted cross-stitch. It is making a nice change. I have several big cross-stitch pictures on my walls, worked many years ago, but I wasn't sure my hands or eyes would be up to doing it now. However I am getting on with it quite well. There have been a few dropped needles, and some frustration with threading them, and a few times when some stitches have had to be undone because I realise I have 'missed the hole' in the aida fabric. But I am enjoying doing something different. I'll show a picture when it is done.

To help my hands, and use different muscles, I change back to crocheting in the evenings, and most nights I have sat out on the porch working on it until midnight. The sun goes by around 9.30, but we have fairly good lighting outside, so here is my usual late night set-up. Crochet on my knee of course, and on the table, a brandy for a night-cap, my bottle of water to wash the brandy down!, a citronella candle to keep the flies away, a fly swat for the ones who have got used to the citronella,  scissors and another hook because I need to change size halfway through, and usually a cat , (Tango or Tolly).

And this week I have another addition, this pretty bottle. It is an old lemon-cello bottle that one of my visitors bought a good few years back. The contents were way too sweet for us to drink and eventually I tipped it away but I kept the bottle because I liked the shape. I came across it again this week when I was having a clear out, so I gave it a really good clean and bought a couple of sets of these 'bottle lights'. They are USB rechargeable with the battery and on-off switch built into the cork. The lights are quite bright and look really pretty after dark.Now I must look out for two more interesting bottles for the other two sets of lights. (They came in a pack of three.)

Wednesday was another very hot day but Thursday through Saturday are forecast as being grey and possibly wet again, so I took the opportunity to get two loads of washing out on the line. All was dry and folded and put away by tea-time. But it was no surprise to see little puffy clouds forming on the horizon by sun-down. But instead of joining together for more storm clouds, they blew in still as little puffs. Although it wasn't a dramatic sky, it was still very pretty.

As I watched they started to get a touch of pink on them, so I was hoping for a bright sunset, but actually it never came. The light just faded and the clouds merged into the dark sky.

I like this one because you can see a few of the little birds hurrying home to their roosts for the night. The sky is full of birds right now, particularly sparrows constantly feeding their young under the eaves of the house next door, and swifts, swallows and house martins swooping about and calling to one another in a last feeding frenzy of all the little bugs that rise from the green zone at dusk. Then suddenly they all head for the trees or their nests and all is quiet again. They put on quite a show.

And finally, another photo of Tolly. (He seems to be getting more than his share of photo shots just now). He just amuses me so much. Now he is allowed the freedom to come and go at night like all the other cats, I think he does a fair bit of playing and roaming around because he seems to sleep nearly all day (when he isn't eating that is!). There are several cat beds around the house, as well as dog beds out on the porch, and every chair in the house is available for him to sleep on, but where does he chose? This tiny square of mud outside the back door. Admittedly it is shaded by an old discarded garden chair, but it is rough and filled with a dead tree stump, scratchy dead leaves, weeds, rocks and mud, and can't be the most comfortable spot, but that is where I can usually find him. There is no accounting for taste!

And that is just about it for this week. I had a video chat with my sister for some advice about the cross-stitch, a little chat with my son in Denmark, and my usual weekly chat with youngest son, Ben, which lasted for over two hours. Thank goodness for Messenger and WhatsApp. 

This week the new shop opened just a few doors up from us, promoting the new fibre internet, so Chris went in and signed up for it. We saw the men laying the cables all through the village, ready for it, a month or so ago, so we were pleased their shop is now open. The men came and installed the new router on Wednesday. There have been a few teething problems, but Chris is quite 'tech-savvy' and I think it is all sorted now. If it proves successful, and an improvement on what we have now, we will probably change our mobiles over to them soon too.

So I am off now to link up with Rocking Your World and Annie's Friday Smiles.