Late, late, late. It appears to be a constant state I’m in these days and if it keeps up I’ll be forced to change my routine with posts for the Blog since this is getting to be annoying. Every night when I come up to my cabin for the evening rituals, I have no other choice but to hurry through the procedures just to get everything done. Very annoying.
But, be that as it may, today was a busy one.
Two of the younger sibs and mom have to go to the embassy to get their paperwork in order, so they can get their new passports, and a month from now, two at most, big brother and I will have our turn. Hopefully, by then things will have quieted down a bit, and if not…well, we’ll see how it goes.
My day: I wake early, as planned. The dogs were quite restless, starting up a long-distance back and forth orchestra with the main pack in the house several times, when the sibs and mom depart. It took a little while for things to quiet down again, but when they did, I managed to fall asleep until it is time to rise two hours later, and hour and a half earlier than usual.
I’m still in the midst of the morning rituals when the departed family members return, looking haggard and relieved at the same time. They give their report of their exploits and how the silly bureaucrats kicked up a fuss again, forcing them both to get new pictures ‘cause they had to be just so. Aaargh.
Now, the sibs are both attractive young people, but somehow this photographer always manages to make the likenesses look like mug shots. It’s an art, I guess, and not everyone bothers to treat it as such…photography, that is.
While poor middle sister and little brother head for bed to get some much-needed sleep, big brother and I start on our day.
First we start checking out our own pictures, which we took this week, feeling pretty confident that they’ll fit the “high” standard the embassy requires, but it ‘ll remain to be seen. I’ve a feeling that the bastards just made some sort of deal with the photographer and will simply send us (and anyone else needing a photograph) over, no matter what.
After going through our paperwork again, making sure that we’ve prepared all we can, we set up our computers to get more editing work done.
It goes well, the quiet of morning allowing us to immerse into the book I wrote years ago and improving on it continuously until three hours later it is time for a short break, Yadzia’s feed and my own. Hah.
The break doesn’t last long, and we continue with the chore of dots, commas and whatnot until the younger sibs arrive from their very short rest, of just a few hours and start on their day.
It is around this time that big brother and I decide to head outside to start on one of the many chores that need to be done on the property. First thing is the upper fence that the dogs have been attacking for weeks now. What with the new roll of fence we bought recently, we apply a long strip against the old, effectively blocking all the holes in the rusty metal until we’re pretty sure the dogs will no longer be able to break through it.
They’re a smart bunch, though, so we’ll have to wait and see if it suffices. Knowing Prama and Tadayka, the youngest members of the pack, they’ll find a way, somehow, even if they have to chew their way through.
While big brother starts to work on the satellite dish that provides grandpa and our invalid tenant with TV, I head down to the lower part of the property for a quick inspection of all that needs to be done down there.
It is a daunting sight I admit, as my pack rushes down through the under growth with enthusiastic exuberance. Weeds come up to my chest, ivies have grown through, in and over trees and bushes alike, and the old pool looks like some ruin in a horror movie scene. It’s fun, actually. Reminds me of when I was a kid and I was watching “The Secret Garden”.
But anyway…there are many, many hours of hard labor ahead, that much I am certain off by the time I’ve made a list of everything that has priority.
Since daylight is still available, I decide to tackle one of the big jobs immediately. Due to a parasite problem that is raging all along the southern coast of Spain, our three gorgeous palm trees have given spirit and are now limp, composting heaps. One of them, the biggest–the one we were most proud of since we planted it ourselves almost thirteen years ago–has basically fallen over the main path and I spend over an hour removing the nine feet long leaves until we can freely move back and forth.
By the time I’m done–and the desperate escape of three rats housing inside the dead plants–I’m pretty much exhausted and head up to the house in the gloom of dusk. Big brother has finally solved the satellite dish problem by then too–bugs got into the receiver and nested there–and we convene in the kitchen where little brother has just finished making fries and nuggets for dinner.
Famished, I sit on the corner of the counter while I eat, bringing both brothers up to date. We’re all pretty tired, and decide to relax a bit since this is the hour when the best shows are on TV anyway. Chilled now that I’m no longer active, I bundle up in my vest and settle on a chair with needlework on my lap. Might as well repair some stuff while I sit, and after I’m done, Trin Trin crawls on my lap for a much needed petting.
When “NCIS” and “Burn Notice”, both excellent episodes, are over, the TV goes off, and I get the laundry I forgot to take down this morning. Afterwards big brother and I settle behind our computers for another short hour of editing before the night is over and it’s time for me to head up to my cabin for the night.
After I’ve fed Yadzia his special mix of kibble and tuna, and supplied the other dogs with their meals as well, I manage to read a chapter of my relaxation book, before I settle on the bed for my last foray onto the Net.
A busy day for sure, but at least we got some stuff done and have a good idea of what lies had.
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