W/e Saturday 20th June
What has this week been like? Well this week began with the first visitors - V's parents from the Czech Republic. It is good to see them but hard work as the only language they speak is obviously Czech, I can identify some words but have to have translation.They spent most of the morning on the beach and I only met up with them late afternoon for a drink.

Everywhere round here is beginning to look very dry and parched, I just pray that there are no fires. I don't think I have been so frightened as when we had the fires a few years ago. Two cats, one dog an myself spent the night on the beach. Just hope holiday makers realise the danger of disposing of cigarette ends and act responsibly when enjoying barbecues.

Noticed the difference in the amount of traffic on the beach road this morning the holiday season is starting. Possibly the Spanish children have finished school now.

Our exercise swimming class started on Tuesday morning, the water was a little cold but after a few minutes of jumping up and down the feeling of numbness ceased. This morning, Saturday, it felt a little warmer. Our group is called the 'Flutter kickers' and at least five of us have been attending well over 20 years. We used to meet at the Rambla bar pool then transferred to the Kimrick when the Rambla closed. Keeps our jaws fit as well as other parts!

Wednesday afternoon I go to a bar called the Loft, we call ourselves the WOW club (Women on Wednesday) apart from having a good natter and putting Mojacar to rights, we have a small raffle to support a local charity. Earlier this year we donated about 200€ to a club called Stepping Stones, this club was set up by a lady called Fanny Davies when she became a carer for her husband. It helps people who are carers and perhaps find they are isolated living in Spain. Here in Spain there is very little social funded care.

Thursday morning along with two other people I spent two and a half hours in a bank opening a bank account.When something like this happens I always think back to what my friends in the UK said to me - What will you do when you get fed up of sunbathing? I wish I only had time to sit around in the sun. I find here in Spain if you allocate one day to do one task and you complete the task then you have done well, complete two tasks and that is a miracle. Don't forget most offices, banks, post offices etc. only open in the mornings, so what doesn't get done in the morning well that's it until next day.

Tuesday's daily task was swimming and a visit to the doctors, yes two things in one morning - a miracle. I have been struggling with a painful hip for over two years and have already seen the orthopaedic consultant but he wouldn't operate until I had had another op. The last few months each movement has been so painful I had to do something, so have now been referred back to the consultant.

I am looking forward to a week tomorrow when my daughter comes for a visit, she is only here for five days going back Friday on an early morning flight, so will have to make the most of the visit, I know it will go so quickly. Hope the jelly fish will have disappeared from the sea by then. Must look out some good restaurants as well.

I am still crocheting the blanket squares and have at least 30 to crochet or sew together. I am still making 'the cross in your pocket' should have kept count of how many I have made altogether, must be 50 at least. Both these projects are so easy to do when I watch TV. 

No photos this week must remember to take my camera out with me, I do not have one of these posh iphones or whatever they call them.

Another month has flown by and we are now half way through June. What a hectic first half to the year it has been. I always find this time of the year very busy, so much to sort out before the heat of the summer arrives.
At the church AGM in April I was elected church warden so am now responsible for the fabric etc of the churches.

My car that I bought as a present for my 60th birthday was due its ITV (MOT) at the beginning of the month and glad to say it passed with flying colours. 

My 60th Birthday present to me

Summer is coming and I made the decision to have my hair cut ready for our water exercise class that begins on Tuesday. Friday I went and tried a new hairdresser  to see what could do about the colour, ( I had heard he was fantastic with colouring hair) he didn't disappoint and I like the new colour.

Last month I lost a dear friend Mike, we had had such good times together and he was my partner in crime when I was church warden many years ago. We had been on holidays together, Santiago, Barcelona, Seville - one memorable one was on the Loire canal, when only a couple of weeks previously I had broken my ankle, so was unable to do much jumping off the boat to man the locks, poor Audrey (his wife) had to open all the locks, as another friend who was with us fell in the canal and had to return home. He taught me about bullfighting and we attend many fights together. A service in celebration of his life took place in church and was attended by at least 180 people. RIP Mike you are no longer in God's waiting room as you used to say.

On the weekend of the 16th May we had a visit from the Suffragan Bishop of our Diocese he came to confirm two adult members of our congregation. On the Saturday we had a rehearsal in church, then a few members of the church council met informally with him and shared a buffet supper. It was gone 10.30pm by the time I arrived home, only to be up early next day for the confirmation service. At the beginning of the service the Bishop installed Pam and myself as church wardens, and as he said rightly so, as we are officers of the Bishop. A very busy weekend with mixed emotions.

Myself, Bishop David and Pam 

It is the Moors and Christians weekend here in Mojacar, the festivities started last night and end with the big parade on Sunday evening. I will not be going to see it as I have seen it more than a few times when my family are staying with me. Tomorrow from about midday all along the beach road there will be loud explosions from their blunderbusses (if that is the plural).

I really wanted to do some craft work but have only managed a few greeting cards, some cross in the pockets, and blanket squares for Africa over the past few months. If I carry on like this I will be gone to the craft room in the sky before I use 1/4 of my materials up! NB not to buy anything else craft wise.

Last Sunday I had an unwelcome visitor outside my front door - a rather large hissing snake, think he was the largest I've seen around here. He was caught on a brush handle and delivered back to the mountainside. Hope he does coming calling again.For the full video see my facebook page.

Hissing Sid

Looking forward to two weeks tomorrow when Sarah and Cameron are coming for a few days,they are not here for my birthday this year so will have to put my birthday meal on hold. Hope to go to the Brazilian restaurant again.

Have some good plants in the garden at the moment, must go and check on the cucumbers  and am waiting for the tomatoes to colour. The sunflower looks a little damp after the heavy rain we had this week.

Must away now and sample my gazpacho soup I made earlier.

Oh dear another month has passed, so what have I been doing this month. Well it seems to have been a month of computer and paperwork. Hopefully all is now in order and I can relax a little. 

This past week I have had two Annual General Meetings - one for the church and another for the Dames in Spain. 

As far as the Dames one is concerned I am only a just a member so no work there.

The Church is completely different as I held/hold the position of secretary, but fortunately I am hoping to split the work and have handed over one job as the church minutes secretary and hope the council will agree to this and I shall become the chaplaincy secretary. Here in Spain it takes an age to get official things done, and especially with an organisation, when you are about to sign documents you find the official signatories could have changed owing to a change of position after a year.

I am still hoping to find more (or perhaps I should say some) time to return to my handicrafts. I really must get down to card making as stock is very depleted, and not one Christmas card remains in the stock box.

I have managed to keep the stock going of 'The cross in my Pocket' and seem to sell about 5 a week. I usually make two a night if I happen to sit and watch TV. (Can't watch TV and not do anything or I will fall asleep).

I have also some blanket squares to sew together and I want to knit some little bags that I have seen on the Fish and Chip Babies facebook page. 

Tomorrow I am off to a restaurant for a cookery demo afterwards our lunch is the demonstration goodies! 

Then on Tuesday it is our 'flutterkickers' lunch. This is a group of women who during the summer months do pool exercises, well certainly mouth exercises in the pool! So when the season comes to an end we meet monthly for a lunch, this we find keeps the group together in the winter months.

My friends Terri and Peter are here from the Gambia this week it is so good to see them after so long. Peter was saying he needed to lose some weight and I said likewise so starting on Wednesday we are in competition. I would dearly love to lose at least 20 kilos but I think that is unrealistic so anything would be great. Whatever I lose will only benefit my health and perhaps reduce the pain from my hip. I am looking to go walking every day as the form of exercise. So wish me luck.

Where do the months go? I have not posted on here for ages and reading the last but one post it says my grandson is celebrating his 9th birthday well yesterday he celebrated his 10th birthday - another year gone.
Perhaps I have been so busy doing other things especially for my church here in Mojacar - I am the secretary, worship leader, sacristan and probably general dogs body, but then that is my life and my choice. We recently opened a new Church of England church here is my area of Spain a place called Llanos del Peral at El Cucador, so a great deal of work has gone into making that successful.
My other love of crafty things has taken a back seat and now the monthly card workshops have ceased there is the saying always tomorrow I will get my card making materials out but of course tomorrow never comes.
I do tend to do little things while sitting in the evening and have made nearly 30 A cross in my pocket.

I have also been knitting and crocheting squares for blankets, didn't know if they were still needed but found out last week there are, so will be sewing/crocheting them together and hand them over to the appropriate person. 

My lovely dog Morse died in 2014, aged 13 and I miss him so much, he was always there for me, the worse part is when I come home and drive up to the house and he is not waiting for me at the gate. He had been with me since a little puppy of about 9 weeks, he was one of 6 that had been abandoned. Never knew what happened to the rest of them as they were all sent to Holland.

I still have my two cats and one of them has become extremely close to me since Morse died, she sits at the computer with me, sits on my knee when watching television, and is even waiting behind the front door when she hears my car. When Morse was buried in the garden she even sat on the roof of my car watching. Strange because she was the cat who didn't bother to much with him it was always the other cat and Morse that slept together. No one will ever know what goes on in animals minds.

Believe it or not these two are brother and sister, one is a long hair and the other very short hair, but as kittens you couldn't tell them apart.

Help please

Please can someone explain to me how to get other bloggers images on the right side of the page. I see they sometimes say if you would like to display this image copy and paste ........ but how do I paste to my page?
All Help appreciated.

Happy Birthday

Today is my one and only grandchild's 9th Birthday. Where does the time go, nine years since I held this baby in my arms and we were joking about him looking like a china man, yellow and slits for eyes.

Wow how he has grown.

Looking back it is just over twelve months since my daughter Sarah and I took him to Florida  on a holiday of a lifetime, leaving his mum and dad in the UK and him going off with two people he rarely sees, I live in Spain and my daughter in Kent. What a risk we took couldn't take him home if he cried for his mum and dad, lucky for us he didn't. Looking at the photo below I see his love of lego has diminished, he loved Legoland Florida.

So what will the next nine years bring gosh he will be 18 then wonder if I will still be around!

Too Old for new technology
I am beginning to give up with Blogs. I just can't lay the page out as I want, and there appears to be no instructions on how to do this. I have only two followers so what if I give it up.

Agua pencils

Looking at a new way to colour my cards and think I have found it in the form a agua pencils. What do you think?

Cards from the last workshop

Below are the last four cards I made at the final workshop that Yvonne and Robin are hosting, they plan to retire again, saying they want some time to themselves. I know how they feel, thought I had come to Spain to retire. Before I came here people used to ask me what would I do after I had got fed up of sunbathing, oh if only I had the time to lie back on a sun lounger and soak up the sun!
Back to the cards, I have thoroughly enjoyed my once a month visit to the card workshops, met some lovely people and learnt many many things, thank you Yvonne and Robin. 
We made one Christmas card every month, think I will have to carry on with this, and also start my Christmas cards in August - phew the heat. 

 

Love the kimono card and so simple, alcohol inks, and gold kimono and bamboo stickers. 

Spain moves with the times but slowly

Ventured into a nearby village to do some shopping this morning, then of course the customary coffee and tostada con tomate afterwards. Whilst sitting in the weak morning sunshine I began to reminisce on the village years ago. Saturday morning would see the Spanish going about their errands, the old ladies in black stopping to talk to one another. (I heard more English spoken this morning than Spanish)  the donkey tied up, the man in the bar, the lady in the shop, now it is cars everywhere, and supermarkets instead of the local shop. Ok a few men are still in the bar but most of the ladies now drive cars so no need for the donkey transport to take home the shopping or the man to accompany them to ride the donkey home and the lady to run behind the donkey. 
How things have changed - for the better I don't know I remember when people had smiling faces and life was a great deal slower.
I still love living here in Spain though.

Next in line

Next of my unfinished items to be finished is this jumper. I purchased the baby alpaca wool on a visit to Peru a few years ago. Can't remember the price I paid for it but it was 'cheap as chips' maybe cheaper. Await the finished garment hopefully by the end of the month.

One down hundreds to go!

Well this is the first of my unfinished works I have promised myself I will finish this year! "Hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil". It is a small latch work rug purchased from Lidl a few years ago. Now it is finished what to do with it?

Christmas over

Well Christmas is over here in Spain, but we still have New Year and Three Kings to celebrate. Everyone is back to work this morning, even the men preparing my new road.When will the tarmac machine come? After the heavy rain over Christmas we have had the vibrator thingy back, the whole house shakes and as it is an old house I wonder if it might develop some new cracks and the old ones become bigger. No way would I be able to claim compensation if this happened.

I am promising myself a really crafty 2014, when I look at all the stock of various kinds I possess I must do something with it all and perhaps make some money at the same time. Start now for Christmas 2014.

Does it feel like Christmas - No

Preparing for Christmas a little late this year

Owing to health reasons it doesn't seem like Christmas to me I have not had that excitement of visiting Murcia to look round the shops. No making of Christmas cake or Christmas pudding or even mince pies, but the mince pies may be made tomorrow.
Perhaps I can get someone to lift the decorations out of the cupboard and then the Christmas tree can go up, with the tree up and the lights twinkling  it might 'beginning to feel like Christmas' as the song goes. The outside trees may be light free this year though, mainly because the dirt track to my house is at long last being laid with tarmac and the dust the workers are making is choking. They will probably only take Christmas day off and be back at work the next day so I won't have a dust free Christmas week. Only waited about 20 years for this road, perhaps the town hall have decided I am a good resident and have paid all my rates!
At least all my Christmas cards were made throughout the year and have been dispatched to the UK at a cost I might add. Making your own cards increases the postal costs as they are usually heavier. Will have to bear this in mind for next year.

My lovely cat QC

This is one of my two cats she loves to sit between me and my computer screen, think she may be trying to tell me something. This morning the screen was bouncing all over the place - her tail was pressing on the keyboard!

Winter is here, my cats cuddling up together to keep warm.

Summer has arrived

Summer is here, yes the thermometer is showing 40C and the sirocco wind is blowing well. Hope no stupid holidaymakers have bbq's and sparks fly igniting the tinder dry land. 
Nothing I have ever experienced was like the fires we had a few years ago very, very frightening.
There is only one think to when it is like this, shut the doors and windows, turn on the fans and aircon, and say to hell with the cost of the electricity, we'll worry about that next month.
Happy holidays.

Christmas in the UK

Coming towards the end of my Christmas in the UK, have I enjoyed it?  yes lovely to be with my daughter and meet her new boyfriend, sorry not to have been able to visit my son and grandson though. Not enjoyed the weather so much a little cold and wet.
I had forgotten about the large supermarkets such as Sainsbury and Tesco and the amount of food choice available in them, People throwing items into their trolleys as if supermarkets were closing until December 2013.
The the sales starting on Boxing Day and the people grabbing everything then if they don't want it just drop it on the floor.
They say folk have no money I find that hard to believe.
Comparing prices I think the UK is cheaper than Spain shops are in competition with one another so offer vouchers etc then there are the customer loyalty cards virtually unheard of in Spain. I suppose because there is no competition so few shops remain.
I am glad to be going back home well stocked up with essentials craft supplies for the coming year.

How does a week go so quickly?

My daughter arrived for a weeks visit and now she is gone. How quickly a week goes when you are with someone you love.

Memories from her visit is my suntanned skin, normally I don't sun bathe, but this week we have been on the beach at least four times. She went in the sea the first day then the next day we saw the jelly fish lurking, so that was the end of sea swimming.

Also this week I had another visitor for a few days, our priest's dog, she is a young Spanish water dog and follows me everywhere and I mean everywhere. Now she has gone back home, so life around here is pretty quiet for me and my dog and two cats, but not for long in 10 days my 7 year old grandson descends on me. I haven't seen him since Feb 2011 so expect I shall see a big difference in him.

Tomorrow I will have to think my programme out, do I want to start making some cards  before the family comes or wait until they have returned home.This week I received some beautiful 'favourite flowers' stamps from Joanna Sheen and some SWALK stamps also can I wait until the end of June. Watch this space.

Does anyone know what this little bird is? He comes every evening and chirps nonstop always sitting on top of the garden swing.