Yesterday was warm and sunny until the afternoon when it clouded over. I went for a shower later and the water was just about warm. Out on the evening walk I was wearing only shorts but with a fleece and windproof coat on top. The same this morning as it was around 20C all night! I woke up to throw off my bedding. The temperature is dropping as the wind moves more towards the west. The forecast is now talking about the possibility of some rain this evening and in the night. I’ll try to get the dogs out earlier as I suspect any visitors to the beach will go quite soon.
Micky appeared at walk time yesterday evening and came with us as far as the promontory. He didn’t seem quite as bouncy as usual follow his operation on Wednesday. I have also seen Five who is looking good and slimmer, now that she no longer has her puppies. Lau told me that he removed her dressing earlier as it was trailing on the ground. Princess still had hers when I saw her last. She is still lurking under the decking.
The supermarket has been open on a Sunday for a couple of weeks but now there is even fresh bread on a Sunday. I usually buy two loaves on a Saturday but it is not the same the following day.
I tried to manually remove ticks from the dogs this morning but decided to use chemical warfare as there were so many of them. I then decided to give them their annual jabs for all the usual doggy diseases and rabies. There is no rabies on Crete but it’s included in the vaccine. The vaccine comes in two small bottles and needs to be reconstituted just before injection. The bottles are stored in the fridge to protect the vaccine. It’s necessary to draw off the content of one bottle and put it into the other and then draw it back into the syringe once it’s mixed. A bit of a performance but heaps cheaper than going to the vet and the product is cheap anyway. The vet told me that some vaccines are €60 each!
Injecting the fluffy dogs is more difficult than Dave as he has very short hair. Most of them took no notice as I’d distracted them with a pig’s ear anyway. Only Luis and Pea made a fuss. Pea because he is small and Luis because he’s a wuss. He dared to growl at me so I nearly changed the needle for a bigger one! I wormed them the other day so now we only have the Leishmaniasis medication for 30 days then we can have a rest for a bit as we’re all set for the summer. I just need to keep them all out of the sea for the next couple of days. I buy the large dog products as they are only marginally more expensive than the small dog ones yet contain six times the amount of product. I then draw it off with a hypodermic into a large syringe before applying it to each dog. I can treat five dogs with a one large dog product. It’s a rip-off for anyone with a small dog.
Some Germans in a Smart Car with a tent, arrived earlier. They were intercepted by Mikhalis, who speaks only Greek. I understand they had some three-way conversation with Maria. I try not to bother Maria unless it’s really necessary, especially if she is away. Mikhalis was probably trying to be helpful I should imagine. Strange really as I have been here all the time so could have dealt with them more professionally. Lau, the Dutch guy behind me, mentioned that Georgia had told him to direct any new arrivals to me.
Beethoven is doing his best with his fifth symphony in C minor. I like to give the dogs an interesting selection of music.
Matthew has returned from Thailand complete with wife and daughter. He said we’d talk today but I reckon he must be pretty jet-lagged. He’s very keen to get this new business off the ground as it’s something he enjoys doing which also allows him to make money. Best of both worlds. Mr Cameron has just had a shepherd’s hut installed in his Cotswold home.