Back to lockdown

I don’t think there will be many new Friday photos for a couple of weeks. If you haven’t already heard, we’re back into lockdown from tomorrow. Only seven viable reasons to leave home, and a form or SMS is needed before you go out. Bars, cafes etc., all shut, so today is Neil’s last day at the bar (it was going to be Sunday anyway). As far as I know, those traders and pilgrims already at Panormitis will have to leave as that won’t be happening, and there will be fewer boats.

Meanwhile… I must prepare a blog post for my other blog ready for tomorrow where I will be showing off the cover of my new book for the first time. Check in and take a look here for a regular Saturday post about all kinds of writer things.

I’ll keep slogging away here, but once again, the posts may simply be morning thoughts and photos from the balcony when we have the shutters open. And talking of photos, here are a few from the files. Have a good weekend.

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Wind

The wind is blowing in the wrong direction and sending the smell of the drains into our laundry room via the sink… somehow. I’ve taped up every join in the pipes, the trap is working, the plug is in, I still don’t understand how it’s possible, but there you are. Somewhat unpleasant but one of those things, like when the wind blows in any direction, it blows the dead leaves into the porch. They rush into the house as soon as you open the door as if there’s a sale on and they’ve been queuing all night. It’s also rattling the balcony doors where the latch/lock mechanism only fits into the top fastening, and to keep out the draughts, we have to close shutters, fill the gap between shutter and door, and then hang a thick quilt over the whole thing. In other words, we’re gearing up for winter.

That gives me an excuse to remind you that you can have a Symi summer all year round simply by buying one of Neil’s calendars. This year, the photos are all of sunrises at Pedi and were taken during the summer. You can only buy these online from one outlet, and all you have to do is follow this link to Symi Sunrises 2021.

And here’s the kind of image you can expect to find on the calendar. There is one like this for every month of the year, and the calendar is one of those that has boxes (about one-inch square) in which you can write notes and reminders.

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Panormitis Festival

In case you were wondering if the annual Festival at Panormitis is going ahead this year (7^th to 9^th November), the latest I heard is, yes, it is. But…

Church services with mask-wearing supervision.
No feast in the refectory, but take-away only.
Market stalls only for traders from within the Dodecanese.
Stalls to be distanced (I heard 5m.)
Food stalls, take-away only.
There will be extra ferries running as usual.

I’m not sure how accurate that is, nor what I feel about it, but we’re not planning to go. In fact, when Neil finishes work on Sunday, we’re planning to stay in as much as possible for two weeks just to make sure nothing nasty has been left behind on the island by summer and other visitors. That’s a personal choice.

Now, back to some random photos…

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Preparing for winter

What’s happening today? Well, not a lot really. As you can see from the photos, the square was quiet (on Sunday), although the image of the light on the chairs is misleading. The other side of the bar, out of shot, was busy with the family having a barbeque. It was All Saints Day. There was a baptism too, and the party was booked into the George and Maria taverna, so I assume that was busy later in the evening. The nighttime photo was taken around six-thirty, although it felt much later because of the shorter days.

The Nikolaos, one of the day boats, was in on Sunday, so there must still be some holiday-making activity on Rhodes, but I’ve seen fewer and fewer visitors on Symi these last few days. We’re preparing for the winter. Sam painted the flat roof, another part of a roof which also leaks, and the bathroom ceiling, all in an attempt to keep out rainwater when it next rains. We’ve also put the fans away and have started the hunt for the heaters with ‘I know I put it somewhere safe… It’ll be somewhere.’ That kind of thing.

I am thinking of turning my computer desk into a modelling station for the winter and moving my writing paraphernalia over to the big desk instead. The computer desk is a corner thing with shelves I can put the paints on so everything is in easy reach. Also, I won’t have to clear it up every time I’ve finished. Last year, I did my winter hobby on the kitchen table, but you get that kind of tutting and ‘Can you clear the table so we can have breakfast?’ thing going on when you do that. I’m making Aurora horror model kits, in case you were interested. These are figures of classic characters from Universal and other studios horror films. I’ve only done Dracula and the Witch so far and started on The Invisible Man earlier this year, so he’s first to be done. Then, when I have some spare pennies, I’ll look around for another one. I do have a couple of originals in my cabinet, but these are collectors’ items and not to be made. Instead, I’ll hunt out the remoulds and go with them if I can afford them. You can get them at a reasonable price, but from America and pay just as much for the postage as you do for the kit, so I am trying to find somewhere closer to home to buy them from.

Anyway, you didn’t need to know all that, but some people do ask ‘what do you do in the winter’, and there’s one of your answers.

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And into November

It’s been a bumpy year so far, and Greece is about to go into another lockdown situation with two tiers of severity. Here on Symi, we’re classified into the lower level which means bars, tavernas etc., can stay open according to the current rules, but there’s a curfew for everyone from midnight to 5 a.m., and masks must be worn outside and in shops at all times.

Thank you to everyone who sent messages of concern following the earthquake last Friday near Samos. Symi wasn’t affected, though the quake was felt. I expect you’ve already read about it from the world’s press. I have to admit, I didn’t feel it. We were watching TV while having our lunch break, when Neil said, ‘can you feel that? It’s an earthquake.’ We turned the TV down, and I heard what I thought was a plane going over, but said, no, I couldn’t feel a thing. ‘In that case,’ Neil said, ‘there’s something wrong with me, and I’m going to fall over when I stand up.’ He was sitting next to me on the sofa. I’m usually sensitive to tremors but didn’t feel that one.

As for my weekend, it was partly about this…

That’s the special paint we use to coat the flat roofs to help stop water penetration. I was up on the roof on Saturday cleaning it off and filling small cracks with silicone ahead of Sam coming around on Sunday to paint it over. Our godson #1 comes once a week to earn some money by doing odd jobs and cleaning, and he’s far more adept with a paintbrush than I am (and far more thorough with the hoover). Godson #2 also comes once a week to learn the piano, and I have to say, little Mozart is doing brilliantly. We’ve been working for a year now, with a four-month break when we were away earlier in the year, and then lockdowns and so on, and he is more than halfway through grade one, so we’re very proud of him. Both of them actually, as #1, currently at technical college on the island, has been a staunch supporter of mask-wearing among his peers. Now 17, he has turned into a sensible and caring young man.

The other young man around the house is as caring as ever, but as for sensible… Well, this was Halloween at the Rainbow Bar…

And talking of the bar, we now have internet installed (it’s only taken about 17 years of persuasion). Neil continues to work there until Sunday, the festival of Panormitis weekend, though we’re not sure how much of a festival there will be. And talking of Halloween, my novel ‘The Judas Curse’ a horror-thriller set on an imaginary Greek island, not unlike Symi, is on special offer on Amazon until Saturday. You can pick up the Kindle version for £0.99 if you haven’t already. Just click here.

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