And, to finish the week, a roundup of a few images taken recently. Nothing very stunning, I’m afraid, but some snaps to give you a flavour of the island in February (and a couple from Rhodes).

March has blown in on strong winds which have kept me from travelling to Rhodes. Have kept the boats from going too, apparently, as the forecast is for force seven or higher. So, I shall be staying in for most of the day, finishing my edits and plotting and planning stories as usual. Later, we’re off to the Sunrise for a quiz. The winter quiz started as a Sunday lunchtime crossword, or a quiz word I suppose. Marj and Brian kicked it off years ago by popping into the café for a Sunday lunchtime drink and to do the crossword before lunch, and it grew from there. I think this was in 2007, because we were on holiday in Peru and the Galapagos when it started, and when we came back, joined the crosswords session for one or two afternoons, then Neil broke his foot, and couldn’t go. It became my only day out of the week, as he wasn’t able to move around the house, so I could only leave him for a couple of hours. At least in the early days of recovery.

The sessions are still going, now enhanced by Peter’s stash of random quiz questions. There are no teams, it’s just a free-for-all all, and there’s such a mix of people there’s also a mix of knowledge. Artists, writers, film fans, gardeners, some with a vague interest in history (ahem), music old and new, and even some science… you never know what’s going to come up, and you never knew you knew what you thought you didn’t know until you found out you knew it. Who knew?

And so, to the random images for you to scroll through over the weekend, during which, perhaps, I may find some more things to photograph.

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We should mark today as a special day because we only get one every four years. It was 20 years ago today my uncle died, so we can commemorate that event for only the fifth time, but as for what I might have been doing on other 29ths of February over the years, I have to ask that keeper of my past, Facebook. When I do, I come across these…

That was eight years ago. Not only was the weather good enough for paddling at Saint Nicholas Beach, but the godson was light enough for a piggyback. Today, the weather’s not bad, but we’re expecting a storm, and there’s no way I’m putting a sixteen-year-old on my back and walking up the Pedi Road. Instead, we will mark the occasion with a music theory and clarinet lesson followed by model building.

I was meant to be in Rhodes tomorrow. (Did I tell you this?) I had an appointment but after making it, learned that we were in for high winds, so I changed it to next Wednesday. Just as well, as the ferry is now not scheduled to return to Symi during the night rather than in the early evening.

As we’re talking grumpy weather, I’ve had a couple of photos knocking about my folder since around Christmas time, so I thought I’d post them. Not that this is what it looks like out there today, but I may as well use them, and you might have missed such views. On some days, we can’t even see the small island of Nimos, which isn’t that far away, and on other days, we can’t even see the clock tower. Today, though, has started calmly, so that’s good news. It’s also about the only news I have, so let’s leave it there for today.

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Nothing much to report today. I’m here, not there, as I’m now going there next week, so today I can stay here and edit. That’s about all the news I have, as I spent yesterday at home pottering about, and don’t intend to do much more than that today. I’ve got some snaps I took last week when I was in Yialos. The first one I thought might interest anyone who comes here in the summer and wondered what the harbour front looked like during the out-of-season months…

Closed, obviously, as are many places, leaving only a few cafes and general shops open. Things like the pharmacy and supermarkets are all year round, of course, as are the services like the post office. On which note, the model had indeed arrived only four days after being ordered, and two of those days were the weekend, so that’s something of a record. It looks like my kit-building companion has his work cut out.

That’s only one side of the instructions, there’s another set of hieroglyphs on the other side. Yesterday, I came across an image of the Cutty Sark in her current location and noticed she doesn’t have sails, so I’m now thinking I will leave the sails off my version and just have the rigging on display. The sails are a strange plastic which doesn’t paint well anyway, so it might look better as it is, and it means I can start my Phantom at the same time as my godson starts his Yamaha. Interesting that, as his piano is also a Yamaha. There’s a discussion starter. As is this, which I saw online yesterday and had to keep. How many of these words do you use? There are only around three that I’d never heard of before.

And that’s enough of that. Must get on. Have a good day.

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We had something of a storm blow through yesterday afternoon and evening. The edge of it is still hanging around in a stiff breeze and a few clouds, but otherwise, everything’s calmed down. We’d been summoned to Rainbow to see Yiannis who had been away for ten days, and were inside when the steps became rapids, as you might be able to see from the photos below. For a better idea, check the Symi Dream Facebook page where I shared one of Neil’s videos.

At least the rain watered the plants and washed away the dust and debris from the courtyard painting extravaganza which the boys finished on Sunday. Just a couple of minor touch-ups to do when the sun’s out and it’s all done. Meanwhile, I’m keeping an eye on the weather for Friday as I am meant to be off to Rhodes for the day. Having said that, I have asked to change my appointment and go tomorrow, but I’ve not heard back yet, and if I don’t hear by this afternoon, I’ll assume it’s a no, and will go on Friday when the wind is forecast to be force eight or nine. I.e., no boat. However, on the forecast, it’s since come down and is hanging around at six, so I might be okay. If there’s a blog tomorrow, then I’m here; if there isn’t… You get the picture. (I’ll let you know if there’s a change in the singing plan, L, for now, it’s tomorrow as usual.)

You know how I was wittering on about this model-building season? Well, my Cutty Sark is more or less finished, just the sails to put on, which I will do on Thursday. However, you might remember that H had finished his Porsche, all bar the damaged windscreen which the model shop in Athens is ordering for him. Meanwhile, I ordered him a motorbike on Thursday afternoon, the shop rang on Friday to check if it was okay to replace one make of paint with another, and yesterday, Monday, the Symi post office rang me to say I have a package waiting. I mean, that’s pretty good going, so bravo Elta Courier and Fasma Models. As H is starting on his Yamaha on Thursday, I will be starting on my Atlantis reissue of the Aurora Phantom of the Opera (glow in the dark). I already have one of these built and on the shelf, but this time, I want to experiment with some tiny lights I bought from Temu. Watch this space.

Talking of which, I need to watch this space and fill it will draft one of the next book, as I have two weeks to finish my edits. So, I’ll get on with that, and, by the looks of things, I’ll see you tomorrow as I’ve still not heard that my appointment has changed.

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Let’s kick off the last week of February with a photo of the harbour Neil took on Friday, which, apart from the lack of boats and people, could have been a summer view.

Right, that’s done, now back to work. The house has been a hive of industry since we last spoke. I have finally finished the draft of my next book, ‘Follow the Van,’ and now have two weeks in which to perfect it before it goes to be proofread. While I’ve been doing that, Neil and Sam have been painting the courtyard. This enterprise started when we had the outer walls of the bathroom redone because the paint was falling off everywhere. That being pristine white then showed up the rest of the walls as being gone-off white interspersed with aged woodwork, so we began repainting the shutters and windows. Now, the boys are finishing off the walls, and before long, we will have a newly painted and restored courtyard.

That’s quite an enterprise considering we don’t know if we will be living here in two months or two years. The owner of the house passed away, and we have to wait and see to whom the property belongs, or will belong when the will is dealt with, if there is a will. Then, we will have to wait and see if the new owners want to rent it or want it back, and if they want to rent it, if it will be at the same price, because we certainly can’t afford to pay any more. They may decide to turn it into a holiday rental, in which case they will have to fork out a lot of money to bring it up to scratch, or they may want it for themselves. Obviously, we’re more than happy here and would like to stay, but that decision isn’t up to us, and we won’t know any more until… Well, who can say? We have a lovely man in Rhodes who has been our liaison, and he will keep us informed as and when there is news.

Meanwhile, other activities around the house… Harry finished another model and we’ve ordered a third, a motorbike this time, while I am still putting the rigging on the effing Cutty Sark. We visited a model shop in Athens when we were there, and the two guys who run it were funny, charming and very knowledgeable. So, it made sense to order our new models from them via their website. Also, something went wrong with the windscreen of the last one, so I sent them an email asking where I might find a replacement. They rang me the next day to get the serial number from the box, and told me they would order one. Then, when I ordered the motorbike and popped in some new paints, they rang again to say they didn’t have the make of ‘rubber black’ we needed, but had the same colour, same price (€2.50), but different make, and was that okay? Talk about excellent service. Last time we ordered a kit it arrived in five days, so hopefully, H can start his new kit on Thursday.

That’s enough of a ramble for a Monday morning. I’m off to give my draft novel its final check before proofing.

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