I know what I did last Autumn

It's been a while.. Whilst the calendar may say five or so weeks since the last entry on here, it feels like five minutes with the annual array of jobs that September brings.
Kittens taking their first steps across manure 'grouted' tiles covering half the kitchen floor. It is a new experience for all to have a near finished floor.
With the sunflower heads drooping in the fields knowing their season is nearly over, it is quite sad to wave the summer goodbye. It also signals the return of the wood cutting. Two days so far spent in a ravine, our unfortunate allocated location for this year given to us from the local foresters. The recent arrival of rain has led to a landslide of footprints and dragged tree trunk markings, digging and eroding what little is left behind. Not that it stops our neighbour and his ancient green tractor pulling all he can reach with his broken chains, he likes nothing to distract what he wants to do.
Two years ago I had never chainsawed, and until now I have never chainsawed fallen trees at head height right angles left behind by previous woodsmen.

136

The blistering weather is taking a short break with the return of clapping thunder and a night of strobe effect lightening. Tiling has also halted for a few days at a count of 136 laid with the return of guests arriving. When we see how many tiles there are still stacked outside the front door and then continuing with a full palette in our storage room, we know that this might be a huge task to finish before snow falls.
But try as we will, we must keep going and what with the garden sufficiency too. This week we took our last potatoes from last years crop into our indoor sack ready for consumption and started unearthing this years supply. Pumpkins have also re-appeared in the cellar, much as we like them hopefully not as many as last year please..
Last night's and today's expecting rainfall has given the ground some much needed damp relief. It also allows us to try out our UFO shaped umbrella cover over the tipi poles. Whilst it was a struggle to raise it to reach over, we know over time it will become much easier to do (I hear laughing from Jana when I read this out..!). But the cover hasn't flown off yet and it has kept dry inside and that's what is most important. 

Havran: The heat is on

Havran: The heat is on: The summer sun beating down everyday is making for the current unpleasant and excessive heat.  My only place for solitude is to start lay...

The heat is on

The summer sun beating down everyday is making for the current unpleasant and excessive heat. 
My only place for solitude is to start laying down near to a thousand floor tiles in the bathroom and kitchen. 
After a couple of sessions there are now 42 carefully placed terracotta squares squashed down in Havrans special cob mud mixture base. 
Having been reluctantly putting off this humongous task for an excessive amount of time (no such thing as a small job at this cottage..), there is now a dash to have the job completed before the summer disappears. With the way the hot stifling days are it seems a very long time away. 
Certainly the hot weather has given nature something to think about. A collection of unfortunate stiff insects is mounting up, crispy tinder dry grass has given up to grow anymore, and the crusty ground is becoming to appear like one large broken egg shell. 
Our dogs, panting like a couple of steaming locomotives, are happy to sleep the days through for relief.
And the plum season has finally arrived in full. Falling like stones, and in abundance as normal, the heat is certainly on.



  

Sun cream

Another day at the office!
After watching the beetroot coloured faces returning home from Havrans' own wild swimming hideaway it has crossed our minds whether sun cream is ever bought in this country.
When it comes to pain my morning had been pretty spectacular too. 
It started with a vicious attack by a bramble bush which left blood dripping and a thorn piercing the back of my ear without noticing it until lunchtime. The secateurs though had the revenging last laugh.
Next were the nettles. Wearing in-appropiate gloves with conveniently placed holes on the fingers, regular stinging pursued whilst making a new batch of natural fertilizer feed for the vegetables. Intensive scratching followed.
Over ripened pears have been falling quickly from our two old trees lining the track outside the cottage. Bruised and battered, they make an excellent addition to the compost. As I picked up this content I heard the regular ruffling of a new pear falling through the leaves, too late to take cover as I softened its landing with my head. There was still time to be stung by a wasp enjoying the inside juices of one of the fruits.
And it is not a good idea to wear gummy slippers and use a pick axe to excavate hard dry ground. Nothing needs explaining as to why I had a sore toe. 
Consequently I decided it was time to leave before any further injury. Sun cream packed, as I was already red-faced from all the other previous events of the day.       

Unbroken sunshine

When your bum sweats after a few seconds in the sun you know it's hot. 
Whilst all nice to have such warm weather it is proving as much a hindrance towards work on the house and in the garden as did the winter months before. 
This has pushed the focus of attention back inside and the final strokes of lime wash are added to the open plan kitchen walls. The off-white tinge rather than the hopeful polar look can stay now as far as I am concerned after 7 attempts of adding to the wall content taking a day each to do..
DJ Playboy has his party posters up all over town to advertise his latest contribution to Slovak life, the heat is rising more this summer.

Lazy sunny afternoon

The summer whizzing by; guests coming and going, kittens growing, weeds growing even more but life here stands still if it wants to. 
The regular blue Travant seen in the town, beautifully dressed elders with their cooperative shopping bags, and the death board attracting the attention every friday to see who's not left in the local population. 
So what's new here? A bizarrely named 'deaf kebab' shop (complete with hearing aid symbol logo!), D.J 'flirt' party in some remote village location and constant rays of sunshine. With ever-lasting pointing of the stone on the cottage walls and countless limewash coats still to apply there is only just enough time to catch up with some relaxed swimming in the nearby lake.
In fact there should always be time made for this experience on a lazy sunny afternoon no matter how quickly the summer passes by.