Oh, what a lovely green day...

Recently I was lucky enough to have, what turned out to be, a green day.

Green number 1:

I was messing about in the garden and decided to trim the pepper plants,of which I have several.  Well, what a first crop.  None of your Tesco, Sainsbury, or any other Supermarket chain in England who insist on ALL fruit and vegetables being the same size, shape, and wrapped in plastic and very often on a plastic type base.

When we first moved to Cyprus we were intrigued with the fruit and veg departments, whether they were in the supermarket or smaller kiosks.

I got the impression some of the Cypriots we spoke to found our attitude amusing.

Since moving here in 2012 we have become more and more aware of the question of plastic waste and Cyprus is at the forefront of use of bags in the supermarkets.  They did at one time introduce the  ‘bags for life’, but that didn’t last very long.  But all was not lost, the shops. Then got hessian bags, which was a big improvement together with the introduction of charging for carrier bags.

I used to take my hessian bags which came form England, and stopping the lovely cashier from still using the plastic bags was, at times, quite hard work.

But things are now one step further, I am in the process of buying some bags from Lakeland which are Carrinet Veggio Reusable fruit and veg bags. Should be fun using those.

Green number 2:

We used to have an amazing lemon grove at the back of our house separating the garden by a wall.  Apart from being really pretty it was also jolly handy just to go and grab some lemons.  (We had permission from the land owner.). It’s a bit like a near by avocado field.  We have known the owner since we moved here and he is happy for us not only to walk out dog on his land by also to help ourselves to and avocados.  So generous.

But,  the lemon trees have nearly all been cut down now.  This is a bad, sad thing on two counts.  One is we are no longer shaded from nearest neighbours, which we have always enjoyed as it has given us a sense of isolation.  The second is we can no longer just pick one or two fresh, fresh lemons.

Someone told me it is because the government made a new law that all windfall fruit now has to be picked up, and the land owners can not afford to pay pickers to pickup the fruit.

Mmmmm, not sure I was being told the truth on that one.

Any way, bought some lemons which are still green at the moment, but looking good in the fruit bowl.

Green number 3:

The watermelons are ready.  This is part of the farming cycle I enjoy the most, because they grow to such an obscene size that you have to laugh.  When I first saw them growing in the fields around us I was curious, to say the least.  But I didn’t to wait long to see what they were.  It was like someone had gone into the field overnight and pumped them up with a bicycle pump!

Well, with all this green thing going on I though I ought to take a photograph, all set off by the blue coasters which we bought at Latsi Sunday Market.

We had never been to the  market before and was surprised on how pleasant the afternoon was.  Looking forward to the next one.

Stream of Consciousness......

Hi everyone,

It is later in the day when I posted an invite for you all to come and view my blog, and the response has been absolutely fabulous.

So much so it has encouraged me to read through all my posts.

My goodness,  what a mixture of stuff.  Some half written,  some half finished.  Where will it all end?

Shall I try and tie up a few loose ends?  Maybe not.  Maybe that is what makes it slightly ‘Virginia Wolfe’.  I like that, not having to tie up my thoughts and drifting  off in different directions when I am trying to explain something.

I think that ties things up nicely.  I hope you continue to enjoy the read.

New beginnings and boiled eggs

Bit of an odd title, but then again it has been a bit of an odd week.

The ‘new beginning’ bit relates to my daughter and her new home.  We finally caught up on a call in the early part of the week when I had the honour of a guided tour of the new abode.

Having lived in Hastings for a number of years I know exactly where the flat is and the wonderful views she will have with it.

She is really excited making plans of forthcoming purchases, and glad she has a holiday to chill out and get the flat sorted.

She works long hours and is normally too tired when she gets homes even to cook, so I hope this time out will give her the lift she needs.

We have discovered we have a mouse which has moved into a drawer in the kitchen of all places!

Now, considering we have two cats and their favourite pastime of catching them etc (we don’t need to go there) they are showing absolutely no interest whatsoever.  Daisy the dog on the other hand is VERY excited by the activity, but I am nervous she may break the kickboard down.

We have had to take things into our own hands and hope to resolve the problem p.d.q.

Spring onions from the garden with local grown baby potatoes - a good start for potato salad!  

I have finished putting the spring garden to bed and now just have to maintain it.  I think I may have mentioned how much I enjoy having my garden in pots is the ability to move them around at will. (Or get Mr D to move them for me). 

Even the hanging baskets get moved around...

Unfortunately the courgettes were not such a great success , but will know better for next time.

I really must make time to have a full and frank discussion with Honey the cat who now thinks it is part of morning play time to jump on me at 5.30 precisely- it is like things were in the good old days when you had to ring the Post Office “speaking clock” to get the correct time.

I could now slip into my technomaniac mind warp, but will spare you that today and go and get a shower!

I will tell you about the boiled eggs another day.

Have a great day, and be happy.

Not much musing

I’m back and raring to go.  There has not been much musing in my garden recently but lots of work and tidying up.

A trip to the nursery kick started what was going to be a gentle finish to putting the spring garden to bed, and ended with some fairly major sorting out.

We are lucky enough to have an empty field next to he garden where all garden waste gets piled high until it can be burnt.  This is a job, thank goodness, which is not our responsibility,

There are strict rules in Cyprus about fires, but even so every year some idiots manage to start some major fires.

A few years ago there was a fire in the forested hills behind our house - far enough away but even so. It took about three to four days and nights to get it out properly, with the help of helicopters from Greece, the British bases on the island and Israel together with the Cypriot fire service.

All very terrifying.

But I can say I am pleased with the result in the garden.

The best news of the week was that my daughter has found a new flat and will be moving in this week.  I can’t wait for more news on that with some pictures.

The continued mess in England is putting her, and no doubt, a few thousand others, under great pressure but she continues in her key job.  I am not sure she is impressed with the lifting of all the restrictions, but if Boris says it is ok then it must be.

Seem to remember him saying something similar before he contracted the virus (and still looks like he is ill).

We took our first dip of the year in the pool this week, absolute bliss and so glad we have our pool man to keep it in pristine condition.

I even braved giving my new tankini an airing and must say felt pretty good.

We are having a discussion about the new peanut butter and marmite mix for your breakfast.  Mr D “we probably won’t get it here” ; me “get the two things and mix them” ; Mr D “it’s not the same thing”.  Watch this space for the outcome!

Hope you all have a good week.

Sad times..... again

It is a religious bank Holiday in Cyprus (again) this weekend.  Sunshine and a fairly relaxed feel even though it is still tough for a lot of people after the effects of the virus on their jobs and finances.

Sadly, not so in parts of England with demonstrations in the name of ‘Black Lives Matter’.  If the looters and thugs who turned up at the demonstrations to wreak havoc and destruction had an ounce of intelligence surely they would have acted in a different way to get their point across and get people to listen to the other point of view.

I have been left feeling sick to my stomach about the way things played out.

I would imagine black people do not want my (or any one else’s) sympathy, just a bit of respect for them to get on with their lives.

The American police force would appear to have a lot more to answer for than taking the life of the man in their custody.

God (if there is one) help us all.

I feel it would be inappropriate to blog anything about my garden today so will leave that until tomorrow.

Time to meet the pets

This is Honey, she thinks she is number one pet, but they are all equal

This is Daisy. Daisy is scared of Honey.

This is Daisy’s house. She suffers from separation anxiety and feels secure in her house when we go out.

This is Honey in Daisy’s house.  Daisy pretended not to notice.

We also have another cat, Jazz, who spends her time playing hide and seek around the house and garden..  Jazz does not have a proper meow , but is lovely and Daisy is her best friend.

And you wonder why we make up the mad household!

A bit of a wobble

Almost a week since I posted, I have been having a bit of a down time.  Having kept positive, looking forward to each day and breathing a sigh of relief hoping that the lifting of lockdown works we then discover we are hemmed in by major road works around the corner with laying of yet more enormous pipes underground.

Why, what are they for, where are they going?  All the normal questions you would be expected to be able to ask!  Ask who, our local Muktar seems to have done a disappearing act and, according to one post on the sacred Facebook, has changed his telephone number.

I expect his ‘chosen few’ will have been put in the picture and in turn will sit on their thrones and feed crumbs to the rest of use.

Someone posted to me recently  ‘we all live same community’.  My view is only when it suits the hierarchy  who nobody voted in.

There was similar work going on near to us some months ago.  Within a short space of time a large dip appeared in the middle of the road which had to be manoeuvred with care.  The repair job was a plastic bollard placed over it!

Add all this up and I can now see why I prefer my garden than local community on the whole.

Well, another day another dollar so will put on my positive face and get on today with putting the spring garden to bed.

I am still waiting to be able to pick the first tomato but nearly there.  I have also got loads of spring onions neatly in the freezer....

Thanks for reading, viewing figures looking good - if you enjoy, please share.