Storks, seniors and chilli

It has been a while since my last posting but life has been rather hectic (tell me something new...) and time has flown by.

Summer seems to have been and gone over the past week.  It was nice while it lasted, the smell of charcoal from the neighbours antisocial al fresco dining wafted through the open windows, lawnmowers could be heard from all directions.......and now we are back to winter jumpers and gloves.  I got my own back on the people over the back that had guests shouting in their garden late into the night on Sunday by starting my lawn cutting bright and early on Monday.  Karma is a good thing.

Himself and I had a week in the Portuguese sunshine last month and stayed in a palace of a villa.  It was easy to get lost inside as there were so many rooms!  As it turned out, the owner also owned the one next door and lived in another even larger one further down the street.  He was rumoured to have an interest in a local restaurant too as apparently he directs people there.  I guess he is one of the success stories in the country’s failing economy.  We visited several neighbouring towns and beaches, fortunately managed to avoid the English abroad (easily recognisable by their purpling burned skin, tattoos on display and general loudness) and came across some interesting creatures, the largest being nesting storks.  On the main road along the length of the Algarve several locals had set up stalls selling oranges to passers by, very reasonable prices and fresh looking fruit.  Interspaced with the stalls were prostitutes selling their own home produce at all hours of the day, however judging by the speed traffic was moving past them I doubt if they were doing much trade. 

This holiday followed shortly after I reached my half century.  I have decided it is just a number and does not mean I am old (despite having had a stack of tests over the past couple of months for arthritis and rheumatism).  Sadly, others seem to think otherwise and I have been offered a Saga brochure, the usual incontinence products and a viewing around a McCarthy Stone retirement flat.  The jewel in the crown came last weekend when we boarded a privately run train and the ticket man asked if we were adults or seniors..............Thank you for that.

I have finally set to and made a start on painting the bedroom!!  The house is about 12 years old and this room is exactly as the builders left it so really it is about time to crack on and sort it out.  Still not sure how I am going to reach the highest points of the walls but I am sure I will find a way, possibly by using a small trampoline.  Along with this project I have painted my parents main bathroom this week.  Again I was told by Dad that he would do it.............however he ended up holding the brushes and roller between uses and only managed to get a small amount of paint on himself.  Not sure what the next room to do there is, but a couple of evenings work and it will be sorted.

The funniest thing I have seen in a while happened last weekend.  It was Dad’s birthday and we had a family lunch, presents, cake and that sort of thing.  One of his gifts was Russian roulette chocolate game consisting of twelve chocolate bullets, one of which was hot chilli flavour.  His face was a picture (actually a few good pictures!) when he sampled it and he has been entered for the national gurning championships.  At his most uncomfortable stage of the tasting he made the late Les Dawson look like Mr Handsome.