The fidgets

I suspect some of the dogs found it a little cool during the night as there was some fidgeting and general moving around. Luis encountered my wrath by growling at someone else as did Charlie who I stupidly allowed to remain outside. I shall not be making the same mistake tonight as he barked when some of Georgia’s guests returned in the early hours of the morning. Wanding around at some silly hour outside when it’s cold is not one of my most favourite passtimes.

It was surprisingly light once we crossed the field and walked up the road to the Promontory. We were only a few minutes later than normal however there were very few clouds and plenty of sunlight creeping up from behind the mountains to the east. It’s been a while since the sun rose from the sea so now there is a progressively longer period of sunlight before it eventually becomes visible.

The sea has been busy again. This time it has removed much of the shingle and stones to reveal large sandy areas to join up with those further up. The sand is quite course but perhaps a better option to shingle and pebbles. Building a pebble castle doesn’t have the same attraction as a sand castle.

The dogs either wandered around or, in the case of the more energetic, galloped along the beach in a futile attempt at chasing the birds who enjoy tormenting them daily. Isabella and Skinny looked quite puffed on occasions and even ventured into the sea to cool down a little. All this racing around will stop once the weather warms up a little.

The second Promontory visit was very pleasant as it was warmer and sunnier with a particularly clear sky.

I left the dogs to cycle into Paleochora. Tony was just arriving for work so I mentioned that Elias was planning to take his family on a day outing on Sunday so that would be a good time for him to clean the area which they like to occupy. He seemed a little disappointed as he’d planned to do it today. I left and headed into Paleochora passing a rather dead cat in the road which I suspect I might recognise…

My first visit was to the electrical/plumbing shop to return the parts of the filter I didn’t need and pay the 7€ for the part I did. I explained there has hardly anyone at the camping before leaving to go to Petrakis.

There were not many people in the supermarket and I didn’t need many items as the main aim of the visit was to return the filter and pay for the body. I purchased a glass bowl with a plastic lid not dissimilar to the one I use for the Doggy dinners. These bowls are made by Duralex so are robust although dishwasher but not ovenproof. I shan’t be putting it in my dishwasher anyway. It’s possible to keep track on the dough without having to peer into the mixing bowl and the lid keeps the moisture in as opposed to the supermarket plastic bag which I currently use.

The ride back to the camping was dusty in places as the unmade sections of road were dusty due to the passing traffic. I pulled up my mask so as not to have to breath in the dust. The aforementioned pussy was no longer in the road when I returned so there was either a resurrection or it was removed by a passer-by.

The lads were busy creating dust storms near the storeroom so I passed quickly inside to release the dogs, feed them and bring in a new bag of food. They like this bit as they get to eat any biscuits loafing at the bottom of the plastic container or the plastic bag which is inside the container. I have to be careful not to create too much stress since feeding it always a delicate area.

Other than put on my breakfast, the only other task was to bake the dough which was proofing quietly in the van during the night. There was very little danger of it going too far given the temperature during the night. It looks reasonable although I’ve not cut into it yet. I remembered I had a thermometer attachment for my multimeter which I put into the oven to measure the temperature. I discovered that both top and bottom elements need to be on to achieve a temperature greater than 150℃ so I suspect I’ve been cooking my bread in a cool oven. It will be interesting to see what the crumb of this bread looks like. Even though the bread is not as I would like, it’s perfectly edible and better than many I’ve produced in the past especially considering it’s made from 100% whole flour which is not easy to create a good gluten strength as well as rising well when baked. The fermentation period needs to reflect the nature of the flour. White flour rises comparatively quickly and requires less water so is consequently much easier to manage. Whole flour can take a lot more water and still remain manageable but the long fermentation process required might lead to a sourdough which is too sour and acidic making it inedible possibly even for the dogs.

Tony and I injected Georgia’s dogs with their annual vaccination and will need to be injected again in one month. They were very cooperative and Tony held them steady so jabbing them was very straightforward.

The day passed gently by with little activity on my part other than to feed my bread starter, prepare something to eat later and put on the doggy rice which is now cooked. Skinny and Isabella have been periodically pestering me so I need to give in and take them out for their walk. Some of the dogs are inside the van as they were silly and barky earlier. Charlie and I need to have a conversation and I suspect he, Luis and Oskar may find themselves confined to the Small Dog Compound tomorrow until much of the activity subsides.

The temperature is dropping now the sun it nearly at the horizon so it’s a good time to walk the dogs.