Symi Winter – Ventilation

Yesterday started out sunny and a bit chilly as there was a breeze, and I suspect it’s coming from the north. Nothing like northern Europe is dealing with at the moment, I know, and I hope you are snow free and safe wherever you are. I’ve been spending my days inside at the desk, mainly. I keep wanting to go out for walks and things, but it’s been a bit wet and grey and, by the time I finish my day’s work, the urge has faded. That’s why I usually do any exercise first thing in the morning. I like to have the rest of the day spread before me with its not enough hours so I can get done the things I want to do. Walking up hills in the rain is not my idea of fun, no matter how necessary and healthy it would be.

On more practical, Symi-based matters, I was asked recently in an email what the day-to-day life is like at home on Symi through the winter. Well, if you’re interested, the practical home routine, for me, goes something like this. Get up, open the bedroom window to help get rid of some of the condensation that’s gathered there overnight. We also open the kitchen window when cooking and, when it’s not blowing a gale and raining, the living room windows and doors to let the air blast through the house and clear the damp. The bathroom window is permanently open unless I am planning a shower the following morning. In that case, I close the window at night, prepare my clothes, slippers and fleece dressing gown, so that first thing it’s straight from bed to shower before I have time to register how cold it is. It’s usually a dash back to the bedroom in similar fashion afterwards, and I don’t properly come round until I’m in new, dry and warm clothes.

The windows stay open all morning as we are lucky enough to have the workhouse where we spend most mornings and me, most afternoons too. It doesn’t get damp in there, it’s never warm enough, and the shutters are open/closed depending on wind direction. We tend to take a break around midday and at this time, start preparing the sitting room for the evening. That means turning on one bar of the heater and closing windows and shutters and putting up the curtain over the balcony doors, and pulling the other one across to block off the hall. As we have an open mousandra above the bedroom by the sitting room, that’s got thermal curtains drawn across in winter to make the sitting room, open below, easier to heat. Then, it’s blankets over knees, feet up and an evening with films or books.

Some evenings are given over to a drink at the Rainbow bar, but mainly only weekends now as we’re desperately saving for the holiday in two weeks. Domestically, the house is closed for the evenings, window-wise, and we keep a close eye on the black mould in the bathroom, and latterly the bedroom, and wash that off as soon as it appears. We’ve had to paint one bedroom wall already this winter – the first time in three years here. Well, Sam did it as one of his money-making sessions, and a good job he made of it too.

There. That’s the home, domestic, window news for today. As it’s sunny, I will put the washing outside to dry, so I don’t have to clamber over it in the workhouse entrance where it usually hags at this time of year.

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Wednesday workout

(Random photos today. Kalo mina!)
Rain stopped play on Wednesday. Well, it stopped Neil from going to aerobics with Dawn at half eight in the morning. I know that sounds a bit sissy, but it’s actually very sensible when the run-off is turning the Kali Strata into the Zambezi which, I am sure you will know, has some of the most dangerous rapids in the world. Not to be outdone, he is now doing something to 1980s music while wearing legwarmers in the sitting room. It’s like an incident from ‘Cats’ in there. Meanwhile, I’m sitting here wondering what to tell you. I’ve been inside again all week so far, with not much of a view and not much going outside to check the temperature of the rain, and so there’s little news from up here, apart from the usual.

I did see the blue Star come in this morning, I was up that early, and I can remind you that the Dodekanisos Seaways timetable should now be available online taking you right up to October. (There may be some missing weeks around Easter as there was last year, as that timetable can change – but I’ve not looked.) Which means that now you can book your boats across to Symi, find flights to match and accommodation you want to stay at, and plan ahead to take your mind off the snow if you are in the yUK and other parts of Europe currently shivering in low temperatures.

I just checked out the online weather for Split in Croatia as we should be there in a few weeks, and it’s currently a sunny -5, but due to climb to six degrees in the rain later in the week. It’s due to be between 15 and nine when we are there, which will make it warmer than our last trip abroad, which was to Serbia a few Novembers ago when it was averaging one degree per day. Mind you, we still have to get through the Rhodes leg of the trip, and on that note, I need to go and see what’s available hotel-wise in our budget. I’ll leave you imaging Neil in his Day-Glo bodysuit stretching to Donna Summer and go and look at luxury two-star hotels.

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Symi Sheep and Other Animals

One of the things I love about this time of year on Symi is waking up to sheep. More precisely, waking up to the sound of sheep passing the window at 6.30 in the morning, followed by the occasional goat, and getting out of bed to open the window after wiping condensation from it, and seeing a few wandering ovines in the lane. They are brought down from the hills to feed on the weeds around the village to help fatten them up for Easter, I guess. I think some just escape at random times as you do occasionally see them wandering the village lanes at other times of the year.

That sight got my Tuesday off to a good start, but later, the dreaded banking helpline kind of put a damper on it. Actually, not them, but a company I am trying to pay who are not accepting my address. Yes, that old chestnut again. I need to pay for the website hosting service otherwise, shortly, you will find Symi Dream has gone offline. The card I usually use has expired now, and although a new one was ordered at the start of February, the replacement has not even arrived with the bank yet, so will be a few more weeks before it gets from them to here. (It’s also the one I use all the time, so going on holiday with no fall-back credit card could be fun.) Anyway…

I filled out my details for the hosting company who I have been paying regularly each month for years using a variety of cards, including an older version of the one I want to use now – Barclays if you want the detail. The site I am trying to pay tells me the card can’t be validated because of the address. I phone Barclays just to confirm the address, and the chap there tells me it’s, ‘Absolutely fine, Mr Colling, absolutely accurate”, which is more than he was. I try again with the absolute details and still it gets rejected. The helpful helpdesk put me through to online banking for some obscure reason, and someone there gets the full story too, though it’s got nothing to do with him. Anyway, not your problem and I will battle on with this, but if you do open Symi Dream while we are away and find nothing there, you’ll know why. That shouldn’t happen as the hosting company know what’s going on, but not why it’s going wrong, and meanwhile, I need to find a way to pay the hosting fee to keep the site afloat. Such joy. And now back to the sheep. (Or chickens as I couldn’t find another sheep photo.)

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Weekend catch up

A few shots from the balcony today, taken on Sunday, not very inspired, but at least you can see that we opened the balcony doors and shutters for a while. We also went ‘downtown’ on Sunday for lunch with Hugo and some other friends, and had a ‘light’ lunch of five courses. All spectacular. We were also lucky enough to get a taxi back up as one of our party had Thanasi’s phone number and we’d seen him working. He’d just been to Nimborio and was then heading our way, so that was lucky.

A couple of evenings at the Rainbow bar with the football crowd and the usual bonkers, loud atmosphere kind of completed the weekend. That and a bit of shopping, some housework, the godson painting some of the bedroom for us to earn his gym money, a gentle walk down the steps, a bad back on Monday morning, rain, some cloud, and sorting out the book release kind of took up the rest of my time.

As for the rest of this week, there’s nothing in the diary (famous last words), and so I intend to get down to some writing before we go on holiday in three weeks’ time.

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The Witchling published

Good morning from a rather wet Symi. We’ve had a lot of rain these last few days and today, Sunday is no exception. We’re hoping it eases off a little later as we are invited to Harani for lunch, and I’d rather walk there than swim there. At least it is warmer than it has been, and we’ve been able to open the living room shutters and doors to help air the house to keep away the damp.

Today is mainly about letting you know that ‘The Witchling’ is now available in print as well as in Kindle format, so below is the blurb again, in case you missed it, and some other info that was requested by a book review site – who have already given The Witchling five stars, which I am very happy about. I’ve had a right old wrestle preparing the files for the Kindle version, but I think I’ve got to grips with it. Here is some more info, and a few images of other books you might like to pick up. You can find them all on my Amazon Author Page here.

What is The Witchling?

The Witchling is the second book set in my imaginary village of Saddling, on the Romney Marshes, Kent, England.

The Witchling is a follow-on from ‘The Saddling.’ You don’t need to read The Saddling first, but you will get more from The Witchling if you do. ‘The Saddling’ has been compared to the cult horror film, The Wicker Man because of its use of superstitions, solstice rituals, mystery and the isolated community. ‘The Witchling’ takes things one stage further.

‘The Saddling’ took the water element, sacrifice and winter solstice as its background. ‘The Witchling’ takes the fire element, acceptance and summer solstice. There’s a mystery to be solved as the story hits the parched ground running and doesn’t let up until the fire-pile is lit. The question is, will Barry be burnt to save Saddling? Or will Tom find a way to rescue him?

Why Romney Marsh?

I was born and brought up ‘in marsh’, as they say in that part of the world and have used the area as a backdrop to a few of my novels. There is no such village as Saddling, but the church you see on the cover and which is used in the story, still exists and you can visit it.

Dialect

One of the things I have tried to do in these books is use some of the old Kentish dialect. Some of the older characters in the book speak using dialect words (there’s a glossary at the front of the book). There are some words which are still in use on the marsh today, some I have invented for my community at Saddling, and others that come from other parts of Kent, included because I find the dialect fascinating.

James was born in England (1963) but now lives on the small Greek island of Symi. His daily blog, Symi Dream, gives an insight into everyday island life and has been the basis of four very popular books about his experiences of moving to and living in Greece. One of these carries a foreword by Anne Zouroudi, author of Bloomsbury’s Greek Detective mysteries, who writes: “James’ great talent lies in his careful observation of the absurd and the amusing, the dramas and the difficulties…”

Before moving to Greece James worked in musical theatre, writing and directing several full-length musicals, several revues and many cabaret shows. He has won awards for his theatre and fiction writing including an Arts Council of Great Britain Award for creativity.

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