Burnt Stew

Today we were to have some goat stew, it was put on a low heat and left to simmer for a few hours. We got called away by neighbours and what with one thing and another, our return was delayed. You have no idea how hard it is to say goodbye especially in the winter season and lots of time on everyone's hands in the village. On our return we discovered the stew had cooked but so had the pot. Most of the stew was burnt, there was just enough from the top of the pot for one meal as we had now bread and salami to suppliment it.

Smoke Filled Room

A little gardening done today as the roses were pruned and cover up. About time and probably just in time for some cold weather is due soon. Back in the house the woodburner is lit. A burst of smoke just filters out of the burner when lit and not the fire is in full swing the room is filling up with smoke. There is nothing we can do other than let it burn out with the windows wide open. The soot had to be cleaned out of the vent leading out of the room. not a difficult job but we had to wait one hour in the cold room waiting for the fire to die down before we could do it.

Broken Stable Door

My back is much better now but still not good enough to do any gardening. I walk aroudn on this sunny day in the village a coupe of days before the New Year kicks in and and feel quite relaxed. On my return back to the farmhouse I find that my stable door had fallen off in the wind. It had slammed itself and the bracket had shattered. I can't fix it right now as my back to too painful. another job to be done at a later date.

Rat Problem

A Good night of sleep and it was a relaxing day, but the bad luck continued to hit as I tried to hook up on the Internet, there wasn't any! We had paid the bills up to date and we didn't understand why we had been cut off until we followed the cable to the roof and found that rats had chewed through it! Looks like no Internet until a return to Yambol town to get it fixed. Not good as we aren't due to return unit the New Year.

Back Seized Up in the Car

To the Skalitsa farmhouse today a I try to drive there. No problem until we get there and I have to get out of the car. I couldn't move. We had to get a neighbour to help me out of the car as my back had seized up from being in a seated position for half an hour. What made it worse was they kept making me laugh which really hurt as well. Once in the house the wood burner was lit and a hot bath had and a lie down thinking how long this painful back has to last.

Boxing Day and Bed Again

On my feet today feeling much better, in fact the best for two weeks, but know that I have to walk before I can run. Gingerly walking around now the day seemed to go quite well, not too much pain, then a slight lapse of concentration trying to move a 10 litre bottle of spring water, it was back in bed again for a few hours to recover from the effort. Getting there though.

A Painful Christmas Day

Christmas Day and I can't move this morning, we did end up going to the Christmas Eve traditional get together and we enjoyed ourselves, but it was very painful all evening, even pain-killing injections and rakia couldn't stop the piercing pain throughout the night. The bad luck was that I had to try and sit in a chair all evening and that was extremely difficult.

Christmas Eve and Still Ill

Christmas Eve and I still haven't bought anyone presents for anyone due to being confined to the house with my slipped disc. I should count myself lucky that no one expects presents, but my previous life keeps nagging me that gifts have to be given. Not much I can do about it right now though. We are meant to be guests tonight in another apartment, but it remains to see whether I can actually physically get there to see Christmas in with family.

Sock Problem

Feeling a bit better today, actually put my socks on myself, but I shouldn't have. The bad luck turned worse as the effort in dressing my feet with socks just made my back even worse and it is back in bed for the rest of the day. Looks like Christmas could be spent watching the ceiling.

Expensive X-Ray

If you are ill that is bad luck in itself but this always leads to more bad luck as yo have to do things that are much harder then normal. Just putting my socks on is a major problem. Today I have to have an x-ray, the bad luck it that I have to pay 100 Bulgarian Leva for it! Not a good time to be forking out money three days before Christmas.

Sunday - Day of Rest

Sunday is meant to be the dayh of rest - too right. Still confined to bed with my back that still is giving me cronic pain, walking impossible, can't go anywhere resigned to laying with a loptop that keeps slipping off my lap. We should be relaxing in the village farmhouse but that now seems like a distant dream as it may be another 4-5 days before I can drive again - That's Christmas over with then! Not good fortune at all. New Year? Will the old man be dancing?

Weekend - Bed

The weekend has started, is the Saturday before Christmas and I am in bed. My guests have left the village farmhouse and I wanted to go there to prune and cover up the rose bushes to protect them through the winter. This is not going to happen as I am not in bed from laziness, but paralysed with backpain. Will this continue though the whole of Christmas? It feels like it right now as I have great trouble just getting out of bed right now. The worse thing is everything you do is based on bending down, as I have only recently found out!

Journey of Pain

Still out on my back and I have to pay the internet bill as they have cut us off. No one about to do it for me as it is too far for Baba to walk, so it is in the car with serious pain and a drive to the Internet Company's office. The road are being repaired so the bumps are more pronouced than normal making the pain even worse. After paying the bill it was the return of pain as the road were negotiated again only this time I got stopped by the police, they found out I was English and let me go just delaying the jurney back to the house. It was a relief to lie down again.

Knock! Knock!

During the day we don't normally get many callers at the house, they usually come in the evening when they know we are all there after work. Of course I am out on my back with a slipped disc and Baba is out paying the bills in town so what happens? We have a series of callers at the house and I have to crawl to the front door and shout across the yard that I can't come to the front gate. Three callers, the water meter reader, the postwoman and a gypsy who wanted his bottle filling with water. Baba comes back early afternoon and no more callers! Why does this happen?

Slipped Disc

I'm normally a very healthy person, not much wrong with me, but on occasions some things happen and you know that you are going to be in pain for days on end right at those moments. This happened today as I was screwing back my front headlamp on the Lada as it had come loose from all the pot holes it had been bumping along on over the last few weeks. As I bent down to view they lamp, by back sounded out a 'Click!' A moment of sharp pain came about and at that moment I knew my disc had slipped. It was a slow and painful crawl back into the house and out on my back for the rest of the day. This will be the case right through to the weekend. It makes blogging especially difficult right now.

Dried Out Pen

It is not often that I get to write with a pen nowadays. Everything here is word processed. no letter written or even cheques signed (they don't do cheques here in Bulgaria.) This afternoon I was asked to add my signature one of my book from an Engish couple who had just bought my book from one of the Yambol bookshops. They recognised my picture on the back and stopped me in the street basically for my autograph - Fame eh! "No problem" I said as I went to get my pen from my male handbag. It hadn't been used for at least six months and as I tried to sign the book, it just wouldn't work. The ink must have all dried up during the hot summer months. It was off to a shop to buy a pen in order to fulfill my obligation as a famous writer and sign the book. Of course this story is now is writing material so not all back luck today.

Bloody Gypsies!

This was the first time I had been the victim of crime in Bulgaria since I've been here. On getting into the car this afternoon to to the factory run something just didn't feel right. I drove off and turned up at the factory to pick Galia up when I realise what was wrong. One windscreen wiper was missing. I have only recently bought a pair of new wipers and now one had been stolen. I can only put it down to Gypsies as no Bulgarian neighbours would do this kind of thing. It is probably being sold for one Lev in the streets of Yambol right now. What do I do now, buy another one and wait for that to go missing? A chance I'll have to take as the police will pick me up and fine me if they see it missing! Bad feeling, but I'll get over it.

Leaking Pipe

A long lay in this morning on as we slept through a cold night, the bedroom was freezing as we were thankful that we didn't have to get up at 6:30 for work today. By 9:00 there was still no sign of the sun coming out so we decided to spend more time in bed. We wish we didn't. The water pipe outside had frozen over night and with the morning and a slight defrost was spurting out water by the gallon into the yard. We didn't know about thins until a phone call from a neighbour told us. We spurting out of bed on the news and spent the rest of the morning fixing the leak. Never a good time for this to happen but that was out relaxation on our day off over. Tomorrow more repairs when the shops are open for a new pipe to be fitted.

Money or Sanity?

Saturday and again stuck in Yambol this weekend as guests are still occupying our farmhouse in the village of Skalitsa. Not being unkind but we hope that they can leave well before Christmas week as we want to spend some time there and have some quality time alone. The phone rings, it is an English family, they want to rent the farmhouse out over the Christmas and New Year weeks. We dearly would like the money and this is the fourth request we've had from various people. Just like the previous three, I had to say sorry but no. I didn't know these people either so that was the decision made easier, Iwill not take the risk like before. What luck, we really do need the money, but also need the space.

No Smoke, But Fire!

It was half past seven in the evening and at home for the night. It was bitterly cold outside, we didn't want to venture out this evening but just have an early night cuddled up in bed. We had a problem though, my partner had run out of cigarettes, she usually has some spare, but they got smoked the other evening when guests were around. I offered to go to the town centre and buy some as the local shops shut at 7:00. My partner insisted that she'll manage without them. The bad luck you may think was for my partner - you're wrong. The back luck was for me as my partner was in a mood all evening without her nicotine fix and I was the punch bag!

No Towel!

I had a shower this evening, a powerful jet of hot water. Everything was fine as I took my relaxing knowing that I was on my own in the house and wouldn't be prompted to hurry up. A good 10 minutes in the shower was enough to see me to a good nights sleep an hour or so later. Having finished the shower I try and reach for the towel which is usually hung behind the door. No towel could be felt as I wiped my eyes and looked instead of feeling. Yep, no towel! It was a dripping body that had to walk to the bedroom to find another one leaving wet footprints all over the floor and freezing in the cold bedroom that we don't heat up.

Barbecue in a Thunderstorm

Lovely bright day warm with the sun as we planned a barbecue after work today. All the meat prepared as the barbecue system was set up in the yard. charcoal alight and the 15 minute wait until the coals establish a good heat then into the house to collect the meat. From the first sizzle from the meat was now accompanied by the first sizzle of raindrop on the hot grill. Ten minutes later a full blown thunderstorm and downpour! and there was I under a fishing umbrella trying to juggle it in the storm force winds that came as well. What a struggle and what bad luck.

Pockets Galore

Yesterday I went for a walk, it was very warm so I took a light jacket to wear and that's where I put my keys. This morning of course the keys were still in my jacket which had been hung up in the the wardrobe. It didn't dawn on me until all the pockets of all my trouser and other jacket had been searched that I remembered wearing the jacket in the cupboard. What's more the jacket in question has six pockets, would you believe that it was the last pocket I put my hand in that found the keys! Always when in a rush in the morning.

Cold Batteries = Dead Batteries

Yet another wasted journey to take some pictures of Yambol.this morning. I had charged up some batteries and left them in the camera in the car parked outside so I wouldn't forget them when I left for some library pictures of Yambol. Having arrived at the venue in Yambol that was to be photographed, I got just five shots and the batteries failed. I can only put it down top them being subjected to a very cold night in the car. Next time I'll put them under my pillow at night.

Remember, you can recycle batteries at your local collection point

One Centimetre Too Wide

We needed to change the furniture around as we had to lay a carpet in the bedroom for winter. We had a new bedside cabinet to fit in as we lay the carpet in the now bare room. On putting all the furniture back all was going really well until we tried to place the cabinet by the side of the bed and the door. It just wouldn't fit as it was one centimetre too wide, the bedroom door caught it as it opened and the bed couldn't be moved over any more. There was no other place for the cabinet as we took it back tot he shop in exchange for a smaller one. One centimetre is all it took for so much trouble!

Stubble Trouble

It is Saturday and this morning I decided not to shave, sometime the face needs a rest and this weekend was a good time as we were staying at home. We needed some bread as we buy it everyday here so it was off to the shop with my one Lev to buy the loaf nice and early. When I got back Baba and Galia were laughing their heads off. They wouldn't tell me why, they just told me to look in the mirror. I I did there was loads of fragmented toilet paper clinging on my stubble under my nose! After I wash and brush my teeth, I always blow my nose on a couple of sheet of poor quality toilet paper. Because I hadn't shaved, the paper had clung to the stubble and I'd been shopping looking like that! No wonder they laughed. Funny no one in the shop said anything, but then I am considered an eccentric for being English here anyway.

Deep Puddle

If doesn't rain that often in Yambol but when it does it is torrential. Last night we had one of these torrential downpours and by the time we were on our way to work at 7:00 in the morning most of the rain had drained away just leaving rain trapped puddles lying along the road verges. As we arrived at the factory I opened the car door and stepped out only to find that my foot had immersed itself into a puddle that was near up to my ankle. On my daily morning trip her taxiing Galia to work, I only normally wear socks and sandals on my feet. My sock on my left foot was soaked as I drove back to the house. You never know how deep a puddle is until you step in it, if only I thought about that fact this morning!

Too Much Red Pepper

Pork and cabbage stew is a favourite Bulgarian food traditionally served throughout the winter months. Delicious and warming it usually has some red pepper sprinkled over it before eating. I our house we sprinkle it straight from the packet with a little tapping. On this occasion the little tapping didn't tempt the pepper out so the a slightly stronger tap was used. With this a great wedge of red pepper spilled out onto the plate of stew. We managed to salvage it by sharing the now dampened pepper onto other plates of stew. It was now the thought of buying purpose built pepper disperser with this bout of bad luck.

Barrel of Water

It was Galia's son Ivo's fault this time as he said that w were going to be cut off with water for two days after he had been speaking to a friend I thought it was lucky that he had been told it as I dusted off a big plastic barrel to fill up with water to see us through the mini drought. In the first instance the barrel picked was too big for the bathroom so that had to be put back and a smaller one taken in. This was filled and left in the corner waiting for the water to be cut off. It was later this evening that we still had water and I wondered why as it was reported that we should have been cut off at lunchtime. Watching the news this evening, it was apparent that Ivo had been misinformed, his friend was joking and of course he fell for it, and the inadvertent joke had rubbed off on us.

Splinter in Finger

Making the coffee every morning for Galia before she gets out of bed is a routine carried out every day. Never usually a problem, but then just one thing out of line and it leads to problems. That's what happened this particular morning. The coffee was being made and the teaspoon just dropped out of my hand onto the floor. As I reached down to pick it up, my hand brushed against the wooden cabinet door. A sudden pain was felt as a splinter form the door wedged itself into my finger. The coffee had to wait while I got the tweezers to extract the small splinter of wood that had submersed itself into my flesh. Good morning Martin!

Socket Problem

As usual the laptop was set on the table, all I do is plug the socket in lift the lid and switch it on every morning. As the plug was inserted into the wall socket there was a little rattle with the plug as it was handled. On further investigation the screw that holds the the plug together had come loose. it was into the DIY tool draw int he kitchen to get a screwdriver to tighten it up. The screw was tighten, but that wasn't good enough as I gave it another little turn just to make sure it was extra tight. I wish I hadn't the hard white plastic pug fractured and I had two halves of a plug in my hand. The plug still works after it is now held together with insulation tape in true Bulgarian style. A simple tightening of a screw is never easy with bad luck.

Zzzz!

Sunday at last and a lay in to 7:00 for me, I just can't sleep beyond 6:30 in the morning. Galia is different she can sleep to midday if she wants, but never does as I am far to active and noisy looking for things to do. Luck would have it that we were due to be at a friend's house for a meal this evening as they were off to Sofia for a month with relations for Christmas. We arrived at 8:00, by 10:00 I was fast asleep on the sofa and wasn't woken until we were due to leave at 12:30. I'd slept through the evening, but being Bulgarian they weren't offended at all. Galia on the other hand was full of beans, but then she had lots of sleep.

Saturday - I Know Now!

First thing in the morning I make a cup of coffee for Galia before she gets out of bed, this is to go with the cigarette she has as her normal Bulgarian styled breakfast. No different this morning as the coffee is made and placed in the bathroom next to one cigarette and lighter. Back to the bedroom to get my work clothes on and a gentle kiss for Galia to wake her. It was at this point that something wasn't right; Galia didn't stir as she normally does. The penny right at that moment dropped, it was Saturday no work for Galia today, it was 6:40 in the morning, what do I do now. This happened because there is never any time here that we have lay ins, we are normally at the farmhouse non working days!

Snap! Window Wiper Broken

Scraping Ice off the window screen is something that you have to get used to here in the winter. This morning was no exception. Normally a bowl of warm water does the trick, but we had a power cut this morning and not time to get the gas bottle out. So it was all hand on deck with knives scraping the windows this time round. We would normally put a blanket over the window screen overnight but gypsies would steal them for certain. Not a pleasant start to the morning as one of the window screen wipers snapped in half as I tried to move it. More expense, but then what do you expect from a car anyway.

Cold Shower

In the shower, just before bedtime, it's really cold this evening and really looking forward to being warmed up before tucking myself in bed for a good night of sleep. All going very well indeed, then two or three minutes into the shower with lovely hot water, it turns into cold water as I shout out. There is however nothing anyone can do as the washing machine had started to draw the hot water. It was a quick exit from the shower freezing cold and into the kitchen, the only heated room in this Bulgarian styled house. so much for a warm prelude to slumber.

A Big Ouch!

Still getting used to my new slippers I walked into the bedroom this evening and tripped on the carpet, my right footed slipper was dislodged, that wasn’t the end of it though. Being distracted by this my normal routine of avoiding the metal doorstop just wasn't there anymore as I tried to recover my balance and stepped on the obstacle. The pain of a metal stopped with full body weight over my right foot is indescribable. If I had trodden on it with the slipper on there would not have been an incident. Such cruel luck.

Huh Men!

Five to five and time to go and pick Galia up from work. It takes 10 minutes to get there but she is late most days. I arrive a 5 minutes past 5, still no sign of Galia as I wait in the car. I normally go to the office to meet here and wait there but is bitterly cold and the car in now warm from the run. 20 minutes later, still no Galia. I ring her, she has been waiting 25 minutes for me at the tradesman’s entrance. I had forgotten that this was where I pick here up as from today. I drive the 500 metres to meet here; she is freezing. All I can do is apologise, 'Men huh', was her answer!

Hot Potatoes

Hot boiled Bulgarian potatoes, lovely with a little sirene (Bulgarian white goats cheese) spread on the top. We just couldn't wait to get tucked in, but we all wish we hadn't. We were talking Chinese for the next five minutes as this wonderful chemical free food was being juggled about in our mouths. It was piping hot, but we couldn't wait. We all had blisters in the roofs of out mouth later that evening wishing we had more patience.

My MS Word What a Day

Today I tried turning a Microsoft Word document into a PDF file to download to a company that want to see drafts of my third book in the making. Something that should have taken 5 minutes took 10 hours! There is a fault or bug with my version of MS Word and it wouldn't resize or be read by the converting programmes. I had tried everything from using different word processing programmes, five different PDF converters, even putting it all on a fresh template and editing the style again (took two hours,) but the same thing happened. I ended up going to a neighbour's house and converting it there at 10:00 in the evening. The deadline was met, just, but what a horrible day at work today.

Snow Break this Weekend

No Skalitsa this weekend due to guest staying at the farmhouse, and I really do miss the pottering around the farm. We had decided to go somewhere this weekend as we hadn't been anywhere for 4 months, not complaining at all but there is noting wrong with a treat once in a blue moon. Of course the one weekend we decide to go somewhere (It was to be Stara Zagora) it snowed! Weekend was cancelled.

Cremated Slippers

My slippers have lasted two years having been worn every day, they are a part of me and even though they are close to tatters, I remain loyal with them. My Galia bought me a new pair as a surprise today. As I pulled the chair from under the table to sit down, they were staring me in the face. They were really nice but I didn't see the need as my old ones where still doing their job. That very evening there appeared a gaping hole in my old slippers as I took then off to go to bed. It was as if to say goodbye fair feet I knew and served you well. These will now be cremated in the wood burner along with my sandals that died two days ago.

'Action' Stations

Looking out of the window of the car this morning on the way to taking Galia to work, I saw a young man lying by the side of the road. I stopped the car straight away up and walked over to where he was and asked if he wanted some help. He got up smiling saying that students were filming him across the road and that they had to retake the scene because of my kind gesture. I did feel a bit stupid at that point as a policeman approached my car for parking illegally. I rushed back to the car and drove off before he reached me. Huh charity, I don’t know why I bother sometimes.

End of Sandals

As I was walking towards the house my foot slipped and I stumbled in one of the many potholes that are scattered throughout the roadways in Yambol. It was dark and I thought no more about it at that point. It wasn't until I got home and took my shoes off that I saw what damage had been done. The sole had spilt in half making the shoes absolutely useless. What was quite a coincidence was, that was the last time I was a to wear these 'sandals' as winter was here and my winter shoes ready to put on the following morning. Every cloud has a silver lining, or in this case a black cloud as the sandals are to be put in the wood burner for heating!

Cut Finger from Waving Away Flies

Flies are still around in this warm winter sun, the trouble is they are dozy and land on the front door where the sun has warmed it up. When you open the front door they all fly in the house, it's so annoying, but that isn't the bad luck. As the front door was opened this morning I tried waving the flies out and my hand when doing this hit the side of the front door and a big cut was made on my finger. The flies still got in the house and the pain in my finger still throbbing away.

Internet Off

Damn, no Internet this Monday morning as I was bright as a button an raring to start work early. The bill should have been paid last Friday but we just didn't think with the rush to get to the farmhouse after work. They don’t start work until 9:30 during the week days but that is a Bulgarian 9:30 which could mean anytime, possibly not even morning! so it was writing off line until lunchtime as I knew if I went there the office would be shut any earlier. When I did get there they informed me that they had opened at 8:30 to day as their boss was coming in. So a morning wasted because I presumed incorrectly.

Shop but Empty Shelves

We went to visit out local shop for some bread and beer. We knew there were new owners that had recently taken over so we were looking forward to meeting them. We knew who he was as everyone knows everyone else here. We enter the bar areas with a few people sitting, drink and talking as we waited for the owner to open the shop.

A few moments later he and we asked if he could open the shop, as we wanted bread and a bottle of beer. We followed him into the shop and found that all the shelves were bare. He explained that stocks were due tomorrow (Monday). So it was a failed shopping trip and we won't be here tomorrow. Looks like rice and rakia instead of bread and beer lunchtime.

Freezer Defrosted

Back to the Skalitsa farmhouse and up early in the morning as usual to start some cooking again but as I entered the kitchen I felt a cold sensation on my feet as my socks had sapped up water that lay on the floor. Looking down, the whole floor area next to the freezer was cover in water. The freezer door hadn't been shut properly and had almost completely defrosted. So it was lots of cooking this weekend as much of the freezer's contents had to be used up. Not what we planned at all.

Pliers and Flying Drawers

We needed a pair of pliers as I was fixing a plug that needed the wires to be more secure. The pliers are kept in a drawer along with all bits and pieces such as screws, tape, tape measure, many odd prices of wire, string and loose ends which may be of use one day. The drawer tends to stick and needs a good tug to bring it fully open. I knew this as I approached. As I gave it a big tug, the drawer came out smoothly, so smoothly that the whole draw when flying from its shelf and all the contents, along with the drawer spilled all over the floor. We found the pliers but then had to spend the next five minutes picking up all the other contents and replacing them back in the drawer. Of course if I had not given a a big jerk the drawer would have jammed anyway!

No Power Cut

It was dark all of a sudden as we were sitting there talking over dinner this evening. We have had a power cut we all thought. It was a candle out as we knew these only last some 10 minutes or so usually. We carried on with out meal and talking.

Half an hour later, the light still hadn't come on as we now were getting frustrated as we wanted to watch some TV and do the washing up. Another 20 minutes past as I decided to go outside to see if anyone else had a power cut. As I went out I automatically switched another light on in the hallway, it came on. We didn't have a power cut at all, the bulb had blow in the kitchen! Still we had a candlelit dinner.

Grated Knuckles

Grating a pumpkin to make some pumpkin dessert is something I love doing. We don't have a food processor here and have tot do it by hand with a metal hand-grater. All was going well but we don't like waste and that where the luck ran out. Grating away right to the end of the pumpkin then my knuckles ended up being grated. Plasters administered but not before all the pumpkin was processed. This will be sore for quite a few days, but the pumpkins tasted nice.