CROZIERS ON FIRE ...

Sunny afternoon in Panormo

Great week this week. The weather has been sunny and warm and K has been in better spirits – up in the morning and labouring over tea making – slow, but full marks for effort. In addition, the Urologist has put him on a different hormone injection which goes into his sit-upon rather than tum and doesn't seem to have caused such a bad reaction. The remains of the abscess was syringed again and a sample sent off to the lab for analysis – result after 2 weeks antibiotics, all clear.

The Thursday appointment clashed with our Knitting Bee, so three of us went in the car with me driving into the city centre and hatching a plan to park at the Marina Car Park which was a tiny distance to Soldier Square where the taxi rank was. Then as K can not walk far and needs a zimmer, he could get a taxi to the busy street where the Thursday Market and the Urologist's Office was. Such a nifty plan. In true Cretan form, the road was closed by a temporary barrier between the Marina Car Park and the Soldier Square so that all vehicles had to go all round the busiest part of town to get back to where they started which caused minor chaos and frustration. However, we all managed to do what we set out to do, so it was a minor success.

So, this week, we are winning.

On Monday I tried to set the house on fire. As the firewood delivered this year has been so difficult to get going, I remembered a few large pieces on the terrace and thought I would try to put one of those on the stove. It ignited like a rocket and got a wonderful fire going. 10 minutes later, I was trying to watch TV, wondered where the scorched smell was coming from, Skype called me over the TV programme on the computer and then the smoke alarm went off. I leapt upstairs and saw the floorboard round the stove pipe beginning to glow. Fortunately, we always keep a bottle of water up there and I soaked the area for a good 10 minutes to ensure that the floorboards were OK. I've forgotten who was on Skype, but they had a mad 5 minutes while I leapt about hither and thither. (Kimon was in bed dozing!) Rik the Builder came to give us a quote for a new chimney, insulation and so on the next day and made the area temporarily safe. We hope he can sort it out for us in the near future! We also need another supply of olive and not carob wood!

Yesterday, two ladies came from the Geropotamos Social Services and took our blood pressure. Then one of them stayed and helped me in the house by sweeping and mopping the floors. I am not sure whether they will turn up every Friday, but it did help a lot with my sore old back. Giving nursing care to K on a bed which is much lower than a hospital bed is very hard going. Anyway, this service is FREE and I am grateful for any help going.

Pharmacy Corner!

About the same time, Liz the Nurse arrived with two bags of bitter oranges from her friend Nancy's garden. I had the stickiest afternoon trying to make marmalade and recover all the pips from the jam before bottling. However, Nancy was pleased and I hope that she will enjoy it. The best part is always making the labels and the mob caps for the top of the jars! “Nancy's Garden Roumeli Orange Marmalade”.

Apart from our phone line breaking down again for nearly a week, we have quite a few anxieties from the UK with news that my very elderly Dad has been in hospital after having fallen and broken his arm. My brothers and sister in law have done a fantastic job in trying to sort him out and we hope that the Care Plan in place will keep him comfortable for the time being. We have a rogue tenant in our house who has been given ample notice but is not moving out or paying anything, so this means that we have to start the Court process to get the house back again if we do try to get back for treatment and we don't run out of time for the radiotherapy that K really needs. I also had the worry of waiting for a new UK passport and after several weeks of worrying and a few adventures, actually received it yesterday. Many people think that using Couriers is the best way of getting things to people but sadly it does not work that way in Crete. We had food parcels horribly delayed after Christmas and our experience of Couriers is not nearly as good as the postal service. Having made a definite appointment to meet the Courier in the Village Square on Friday and having telephoned to confirm this appointment on Friday morning, and having waited all afternoon in the Village Square – I had an interesting, rather stilted conversation with my friend the Flower Lady who lives on one corner of the square and has made an entire green sward from empty paint containers and a multitude of plants. After hours of waiting, telephoned DHL, tracked the package on line, found to our horror that someone else had signed for it the day before. Finally, having seen us waiting, the lady in the house next door to the cafeneon gave us the package which had been delivered and signed for by her on Thursday, Worrying! Infuriating! Still, all's well that ends well.

Sunday Lunch at Lake Kournas