Overcast.

There was an amber weather warning for possible thunderstorms with heavy rain from 10.00 this morning. It felt a lot cooler here and dark clouds could be seen inland. I spent the afternoon in Aber where it was hot but the minute I drove up the hill out of town I returned to cool cloudy conditions. No thunderstorms or rain though.

First thing we went and collected the camper from the garage and took it back up to the barn it lives in at the top of the hill. It was a gloomy morning so I didn't take my camera and then I wished I had as the view still looked good. Then we returned home for breakfast and eventually I set off for town. I even took my jacket with me in case it rained but in the end it was so warm I left it and the light zip-up top I was wearing in the car.

No wander around town is complete without checking out the charity shops. I don't bother looking at clothes as I have more than enough at home, instead I look through children's Welsh or bilingual books and then check out the ornaments and glassware. I try to be very choosy about what I buy but yet again I found a glass paperweight, only 2 inches high and bought it to add to my collection.

Even more indulgent was this slice of cookie pie, think layers of cookie dough/pie fillings - white chocolate, oreo, caramel and more, from a little gourmet cafe and pudding shop. It's called Pwdin (puddin) and I'd come across it in a Youtube video showing some of the delights of Aberystwyth and decided to treat myself at some point, like today. They sell different types of brownies and cookies as well as local mainly sweet produce. The girl did advise me that it's not a single portion, I ate some when I got home but it is very sweet and filling and there is plenty left for the next few days. At least Peter knows now where he can find sweet treats for special occasions.

My main reason for going to town was to book an eye test. I'm not worried about my sight, I keep pairs of cheap glasses all over the place for close work, but I've had problems with one eye for a while. Last year my doctor advised taking antihistamines which helped but didn't clear it up completely. Then came omicron so I didn't go back to the surgery for such a minor thing. Now it's playing up again. Antihistamines for a month helped but I plan on going back to the doctor just to check it out. I thought it would be good to have the optician look with all their gadgets but nowhere in town does free eye tests for adults and I'm not going to pay £25. I'll just have to see what the doctor says.

I also went to Morrisons and then B&M where there are so many lovely storage options. I bought a couple of small plastic containers for the bedroom and two soft baskets for keys and things we take with us when we go out.

I'm about to go out and do a little weeding and dead heading in the garden before supper which for me will be cottage cheese and fruit.

 

Windy.

Bright and breezy today.

I was up early again this morning as Peter needed to be out by 9.00. That suited me as I thought I could paint on the first coat of the sealant on the terrace slabs before I went down to the community gardens. However when I looked at the instructions they said to apply the second coat within 2 hours of the first coat being touch dry which meant I'd have to wait until the afternoon..

I cycled down to the community gardens bearing my usual offering of lettuces. Sadly the person whom we thought was making the cake this week didn't turn up so we had to make do with chat and whatever drink we'd brought along. I enjoyed my coffee anyway and voluntered to make cake for next week.

Our job this week was to cut back some of the brambles and nettles encroaching on the paths and to haul some bigger stems of willow off to the rough wood pile.

As we worked I got to see more of the allotments.

All the allotment holders have to garden organically ie no chemicals. Some allotments were ultra neat while others had lots of companion planting and yet others were a symphony of flowers. There are a few that are generally neglected and I believe there are moves to persuade those non-gardeners to hand back their allotments.

Back home I painted on the sealant on the terrace and not long after a second coat. I chose a natural/dry finish so the end result doesn't look as if I've done anything. The idea of the sealant is to stop the stone from getting stained especially by avain offerings of which we get plenty. Once that was all done there was just time to iron the sheets which I'd washed and water the back garden before sitting out for ten minutes to watch the sea.

 

Windy.

Wild and windy today and a lot cooler. We had some sunny spells but anywhere in the wind felt chilly compared to the last few days. I think you can say the heatwave is on its way out.

We had to switch round our usual morning routine today as the camper needed to go in for its MOT by 9.00. Usually Peter leaves the car up in the barn but he needed the car later so I went with him and followed him down with the car. The mechanic hadn't arrived when we got there so I left Peter with the car and walked home to have my breakfast and get ready to cycle to the zoo. We've just heard that the camper failed its MOT (it hasn't been anywhere this year!) but only because the window washer pump and the wiper blades need replacing. Only minor faults but it won't be ready until Friday.

It was very busy at the zoo as the wind on the beach sent holidaymakers our way. 

I worked my way over one of the gravel areas where the weeds were just beginning to appear. Got the gravel looking spotless and then did some of the edges around the pens including digging out a lot of bindweed roots. 

Walking around I came across three of Mr Pea's tail feathers, not with 'eyes' unfortunately but still pretty. I checked and it was okay for me to take them home which was a bit of a feat on my bike. I started off with them pushed into my wellington boot and cradled by an arm but worried that they might get damaged I stopped and threaded them across the basket in front of the handlbars. While I was weeding a small child came up to me and worridly informed me that the peacock had escaped. This happens quite regularly and I reassured the child that Mr Pea was allowed to roam the zoo.

Back home I wrapped up and sat outside with a coffee watching the kite surfers and a few surfers and bodyboarders before heading inside to do my Duo Lingo and then blog.
 

Sunset last night.

Yesterday evening a pair of swans turned up for a day out at the beach. I seem to remember them coming last year too.

Thunderstorms.

A hot night and morning followed by thunderstorms and a little rain in the afternoon and then back to hot again. Currently it's 35C on the terrace. It's been the hottest day ever (or at least since records began) in the UK according to the radio.

I was naughtly last night and stayed up reading until after 1.00. Even though I woke as usual at 6.30 it was only to open an eye, look at the clock and go back to sleep for a couple of hours.

Straight after breakfast I was out scrubbing the terrace slabs while Peter went off to the dump and to do some shopping. On his list were decaff coffee which I'm getting low on and a barbecue cleaning tool to replace the one I wore right down yesterday but somehow he came home without either. He put the list away and then forgot what he needed to get. To be fair he didn't sleep well last night but it was annoying. Instead I went down to the village and found something similar in one of the shops, the only one and it was tucked behind other items on the display stand. I didn't have any trouble with the gulls today. Apparently yesterday a number of fledglings left their nests and then got stuck on the cliff and beach causing the parent birds to be very defensive.

I was just cleaning off the last few slabs when the rain fell. It didn't last very long but more dramatic was the crash of thunder overhead. Lots of people stayed in the water and it took the lifeguards putting out a loudspeaker announcement telling them to get out of the water before they moved. Before the storms the wind was increasing and the waves beginning to look good enough to bodyboard on but after the storms the waves died right down.

This morning Speedy turned up looking a right mess with his fur spikey with dried mud(?) It felt like dry sand or silt but when I wiped him over with a wet cloth it turned black with dirt. I gave him a good wipe over and then brushed him with an old toothbrush. He liked being cleaned that way, a toothbrush is similar in size and feel to a (mother) cat's tongue, and lay there purring until I got most of the dry stuff out. (Although he has his eyes shut in the photo they're fine now.)

The sealant for the terrace arrived this afternoon but you have to wait several days after washing the slabs and it's too hot as well so I shall have to wait until it's cooler.

I noticed that the rusty legs of the side table we keep on the terrace had left some marks on the slabs so today I wire-brushed the rust off the bits that come in contact with the floor and then painted them with Hammerite. Hopefully that should stop the marks. 

There was still time to do some pottering about in the back garden before sitting out in the sun for a while. We ate breakfast indoors as it was cooler but will be eating supper outside.

 

Heatwave.

7.00 this morning.

The heatwave is upon us. The photo below was taken at about 6pm while for most of the day it was a pleasant 33C in the shade with a breeze. (38.1C is the official high) Just like being on holiday abroad. We ate all our meals on the terrace and I've spent the whole day outside mostly in the shade. Funniest ever weather happening, I was taking a break and sitting in the shade when I felt something wet on my arm. Thinking it was a bird poo I looked but no, it was just water and part of the terrace was spattered with big fat raindrops from a single cloud in the blue sky. 

My job for the day was to scrub the terrace paving stones. I've got a stone sealant on order but before I apply it I need to get rid of all the stains. The bird offerings; white splats from seagulls, brown splats from rooks? and the result of a bombing raid by the gang of sparrows, were relatively easy to remove with the scrubbing and nail brushes. However as I worked my way closer to the house the final row of slabs was covered with many small paint spots. This was disheartening as I had made sure to cover the paving with a giant tarpaulin each time I painted. All I can think is that as I cleaned the paint specks from the windows without the tarp in place some lots flicked onto the stones and welded themselves there. These specks are so difficult to remove. I went through a variety of tools first scraping at each spot individually and not very succesfully until I settled on a wire barbecue cleaner. I was able to scrape at the worst spots with the corner of the metal blade and then scrub away with the brass wire brush. I did about two thirds of the terrace in three sessions starting before breakfast until I had to stop at 4.00 because I'd worn the wires down to nothing.

After all that work what else could I do but go down for a swim, or at least a float in the sea? The beach has been busy all day long and there were plenty of people in the almost flat sea. I'm not a good swimmer so I made sure to put myself in the small area marked by the lifeguards flags just to be on the safe side. I swam a little and practised being a starfish like they tell you to do if you fall in the water and swam a bit more. The water wasn't cold which was nice but eventually I felt a bit dizzy and decided to get out. I have to say I much prefer bodyboarding to swimming.

I had a bit of bother as I walked down to the beach and then on the way back. Trouble from a pair of aggresive seagulls who must have a nest on the roof of one of the houses along the road. On the way down the birds kept swooping at me and getting quite close to my head. I was holding a pair of wetsocks (weaver fish!) in one hand and flapped them at the birds as they got close. On the way back the birds were even more aggresive and though I crossed the road and walked on the cliff top they continued and one hit me across the back of the head. I'm guessing with its feet as I've seen some nasty photos of wounds caused when they attack people with their beaks. They are not nice birds. I put a warning on the local FB page as there is no way to get to the houses up here except by going along that bit of road. Some of the comments supported the gulls and said they were only defending their nest. Hah!

9.00 this evening there were still lots of people in the water. 

Sunset.

Hot.

Hot again with a warm breeze.

I woke this morning at 6.30 (above) and decided that insted of putting my head back down after feeding the cat etc I might as well stay up and do all the breafast preparations. Clutching my reviving mug of tea I stumbled my way through my Duo Lingo exercises including an extra one. Then I was free to go and sit outside with a coffee listening to the world, in holiday mode, wake up. People were out walking their dogs early before it got too hot and there were swimmers in the water by 8.00. We didn't sit outside to eat our breakfast as we like to listen to The Archers on a Sunday morning.

It has been hazy for a lot of the day and very hot in the sun with a good drying wind. I did one load in the washing machine and then because I'd forgotten to put in the towels I'd had soaking overnight found enough things to run a second load.

Above is the temperature prediction for the next few days and below is the temperature on the terrace at mid-day.

After breakfast I was outside again this time sitting in the shade, for once I'm glad the terrace faces north, and mending an L-shaped tear in the 'hat' at the top of the parasol. It took a while to sew on a patch as neatly as I could manage but it was lovely to be in the fresh air watching the people in the water and all the different boats. Wasn't too impressed with the power boat that came in right up the middle of the area marked by flags for swimmers. I have a feeling that one of the lifeguards had a word as it turned away just before landing and moored over to one side. Very dangerous if somebody had been swimming underwater and the propellors had gone over them.

Having repaired the parasol I cut a couple of wedges, one to put under the table foot that has warped upwards and the other to jam in the hole the parasol pole goes into to stop it swinging round. 

Then it was time to complete my painting job by cleaning off the windows. The plastic scraper Peter got me when I replaced the silicone around the top of the kitchen cupboards was perfect, along with a cloth and water, for scraping off all the tiny spots of paint from the glass. I'm not a particularly messy painter but having to stab the paintbrush into the rough render sent paint spattering everywhere. Then I cleaned off all the render, sealant and concrete spatters (from the rendering and laying the slabs) from the window and door frames followed by a desultory wipe of the bottom sills trying not to squash or drown the spiders that had taken up residence there. Finally I went over the windows again with the squeegee and declared the job done.

But I wasn't quite finished. Even though the sheets were dry when I took them off the line I still ironed them. There's just something so nice about freshly ironed sheets. 

By the time the plants were watered I had 10 minutes to sit out and stare before it was time for supper which we ate outside. A busy day.

 

Sunny.

Borthbados today. Just listening to the news and hearing that the govt held a COBRA meeting to prepare the heatwave at the beginning of the week. (Oh what a surprise, Boris wasn't there but is at Chequers preparing for a leaving do.) The first ever red alert for heat has been issued for some cities possibly 41C, 3 degrees higher than the previous record, and amber alerts for most of the rest of the country. Also hearing of wildfires in France and Spain. That's not good.

This was the view at 6.00 this morning. I got up, fed the cat, took my pills and went back to sleep for a couple of hours.

After breakfast we finally went for a walk. Mind you it was only along the beach. Peter reckons we walked for two and half miles each way while my calculation was under two (we both measured on the map but disagreed exactly where we got to). I suggested Peter put one of those distance apps on his phone but he baulked when it asked him to register. 

This was our turnaround point where we stopped for a coffee and a biscuit. There were marker ropes and signs asking people to stay off the shingle as the ringed plovers are nesting in the stones. We stayed below the tide line where there wouldn't be any nests.

They're very hard to spot (centre of the photos above and below) until they move.

Some of the walk was on the sand while at other times we had to walk over the stones which is a good test for our knees and ankles. Usually I stomp along in my wellies but today I wore my walking boots to give my feet some proper support. Ended up with two blisters on one toe so now I know where to put plasters when I wear my boots again.

We came across a few mackrel fry thrown up on the beach. This is what has been attracting all those hundreds of sea birds.

When we got home I got the parasol out of the garage so that I could give it a good clean. It's been stored in this and our last garage for over five years so was rather dusty and had wood shavings and spiders' webs inside. I hoovered and washed it and now it's open over the garden table on the terrace. Having a bucket of soapy water to hand I just had to wipe down all the skirting boards indoors. They look nice now and I'm sure if I put my mind to it I could keep the place spotless and shiny all the time. But why? I've got better things to do with my time. Even if it's just watching the boats in the bay.

I had a bit of a disaster as I hung out the washing, the line broke with all the washing still on it. Fortunately it wasn't sheets and things but a dark wash so I didn't mind if socks and shorts sat on the concrete path for a while. The line had broken where it was stretched over a mediun sized hook in the garage wall and I was able to make a new loop and hook it over again. I really need to put up a thicker hook or loop. After all that I decided not to bother cleaning the paint spots from the windows and doors at the front but sat in a sunlounger instead. I've done my Welsh and now the blog so the evening is free. We might even eat supper outside though Peter isn't keen on the people walking past at the end of the garden.