During That Odd Week

It’s that strange week when Christmas is kind of over, and yet it’s not, New Year is just around the corner, and there’s not much going on. The rain is falling today, the Blue Star has come and gone, at least, I heard it. With all the shutters closed, I don’t even have a view unless I go onto the roof, which I don’t like to do in my slippers. Mind you, I have been onto bathroom roof in them to check the overflow. If it gets blocked, the rain drips through the bathroom ceiling.

As I’ve not been out, the photos today are from the December archives.

It’s New Year’s Day on Monday, and I intend to put up a post and then try and get back into the daily blog routine, even if there’s little to tell you. Next week, I also aim to work out how much was raised from the sale of the Symi books since ‘Symi, Stuff & Nonsense’ came out. I won’t get the payment from Amazon for several weeks, but that will give me time to find out what the school might need. It’s not going to be a huge amount, but the books are still on sale and sales made right up until Sunday midnight will be included in the donation, so it’s not too late to help out. You can find the books on my Amazon Author Page.

I just went to check that link and noticed that ‘Symi, Stuff & Nonsense’ now has four reviews, all five-star, I am pleased to say, including: “The logophile James Collins gives us a generous and entertaining peep into his life through his travels, his wordsmithery, and at times a quirky look at the day to day happenings on the magical island of Symi where he and his husband now live. Perhaps Symi has found its own Bill Bryson.”

Thank for that! Fab. You can find reviews and add to them here.

Now then, it’s back to work for me and here are a few random shots to keep you going until I next venture out with a camera, which may not be until next year.

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Symi Christmas

A few random photos to catch up over the past few days. Carol singing at Lefteris’ kafeneion, the ferry, the weather on Christmas morning (sunny), curious kittens, and so forth. We hope you are having a good time. It’s Boxing Day today (26^th December), and I’m leaving these up for a few days before I post something else. I should be back at the weekend with another update and maybe a look back on 2017 before we head off into a new year.

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Symi Christmas: Friday/Saturday

The end of the working week for me… will be tomorrow as I have one chapter of something I still need to deal with and I can’t do it today. Off to Yialos this morning for the last of the Christmas shopping and then the carols this afternoon at the kafeneion. I am writing this yesterday as usual.

I hope to get some photos to put up over the Christmas period (these ones are from last year and last winter). Otherwise, this will be the last post for a few days. There will be more posts next week, ready for New Year as there’s a lot to reminisce about this year. Meanwhile, here’s wishing you a Happy Christmas if you celebrate it, and if not, then a general peaceful time wherever you are.

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Symi Christmas: Thursday

Thursday, first thing, was a case of recovering from Wednesday last thing. We went to the Sunrise for a Christmas quiz, guess the song and singer included, and had a jug of wine or two. I won’t post the later-night photos of people having a good time. As usual with those kinds of shots, they are not very kind to the models in them. There’s one where I look as happy as an out of work Santa-elf, with a beard and what Neil calls an ‘upside-down happy face.’ I was more than happy, it was just the moment the image was taken.

It wasn’t a late night, we wandered home around eleven and had a moment’s peace and quiet before turning in. The next day dawned colder than of late, ten degrees in the courtyard, and the sky is clear. The harbour, when I see it, is very quiet. I say that as the shutters are closed to keep the heat in, and so I only see it if I go up onto the roof, or along the lane. I may head down there today though for our Symi Dream Christmas outing (shopping and a beer at Pacho’s, possibly a giros). We’ll have to be back in good time as there are the carols and Christmas songs at Lefteris’ later this afternoon. I’ll leave Neil in charge of the camera for that and see how many more photos of people having a good time I’m unable to show you at the weekend.

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Symi Christmas: Singing

Today’s photos were taken on Tuesday from up near the windmills.
I have a little more time today, though things are still a bit rushed around here at the moment, what with preparing for Christmas and being only five chapters away from finishing something. Should I bash on and work up until Christmas Eve to get it out of my system? Or should I take a break and have it playing on my mind over the next few days? I’ll do whatever feels right at the time. Meanwhile…

We are ready for Friday. Remember if you are on Symi there are the carols and Christmas songs to sing along with or just listen to at Lefteris Kafeneion on Friday from 5pm, with all money raised going to the orphanage on Rhodes. There is also Peter’s Christmas Quiz at the Sunrise tonight (Wednesday) which we are going to with Miss DJ, so there will no doubt be an update about that tomorrow. Out next engagement after Friday is, at the moment, not until Sunday afternoon when we’ll be in upper Horio with the Godboys and their mum preparing vegetables and other things for Christmas Day.

That’s become rather a tradition – us going to help with the veg, not Christmas Day, that’s been around a while now – and I look forward to it. Sitting around the table chopping carrots and potatoes and keeping an eye on Neil. We have to do that, and we don’t let him prepare the sprouts else he would fiddle with them and drop each one in the bin when we’re not looking. I have difficulty not eating them raw as we’re getting them ready, whereas he would up-chuck his breakfast across the table if he tasted even a leaf. (Been there, done that, not letting him eat them again.)

I may take next week off from blogging, we’ll see, but I’ll try and upload a couple more posts tomorrow and Saturday with any images of anything that might happen. For Symi weather followers, it’s clear and dry again but the temperature is dropping, and there was a slight breeze. It’s supposed to be getting windy again soon, and then the warmth will be gone. Back to the thermals for Christmas maybe.

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