General ramble from Symi

Images from Symi Greece by Neil Gosling and James Collins
Yialos pre-dawn, around 5.20

Had a great piece of spam email in today, well, semi-spam I guess as it was from Amazon and I haven’t taken myself off their email list and I suppose I could do. But it’s worth staying on it for moments like this.

Dear James Collins, we thought you might be interested in these publications for your summer reading: ‘Symi 85600,’ By James Collins…. ‘Carry On Up The Kali Strata’ by James Collins….. ‘Village View, a year on Symi, by James…. I think the clue is in the question hon!

Images from Symi Greece by Neil Gosling and James Collins
To the east, pre-sunrise, around 5.40

And there’s a thing. Since when did everyone start calling each other ‘hon’? Facebook users will know what I mean. I know some people do use the word (and when they use it on me the flesh does tend to creep, sorry), but also a lot of people don’t; and yet they do when putting messages on FB. ‘Hi hon, how you doing?’ ‘Mind your own business and don’t call me hon, hon.’ ‘Okay hon.’ I mean, what’s all that about? And how much more American do we need to get?

Images from Symi Greece by Neil Gosling and James Collins
You know what this is

Anyway, it’s Thursday as I write, I’ve done my morning’s work, I’ve been up since 5.15 and we’ve walked/run up the mountainside to the monastery again and all the way back, and I’ve not really been out an about anywhere else recently, hence today’s images of the same old same old. I’ve had emails in from the UK keeping me up to date with what’s happening in Greece (a couple of gullets going out, the Symi Sea Dreams just came in, there’s a wood pigeon singing, the Alarm Cat’s asleep on the Louis Vuitton trunk) and telling me what is going to happen in Greece in the near future (a few more gullets will go out, the Symi Sea Dreams will come in, a wood pigeon will sing and the cat will sleep on the trunk) and perhaps I should think about stashing my money under the mattress. I would but I don’t have any to stash so there’s no point in doing that, is there?

Images from Symi Greece by Neil Gosling and James Collins
The Panagia going out at 6.30

I know, things are getting serious and the UK press (I can’t speak for other countries) are covering themselves, as is the UK Government from what I understand, and shuffling up to be in poll position to be able to say, ‘We did warn you,’ if anything untoward happens to a white family from Godalming if they have a bad experience with a hotel owner in Kalodosalopolos where they had to pay for a drink when they thought they were getting all inclusive – as some of the UK ‘Press’ do. You know how it is. We’re living in interesting times – and if the blog suddenly goes ‘dark’ you will know that we’ve run out of fuel for the power station, but let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.

Images from Symi Greece by Neil Gosling and James Collins
Keep flying the flag

So, in the meantime, eyes on the government and the situation, yes, but also on life and getting on with the day to day because you can’t change the fact that each day comes one at a time, until they don’t; and in that case it will cease to matter. So, I have things to do other than worry about ‘what if.’ There’s a book to be writing and a book to be promoting, there’s cat fur over everything to be picked up and stuck back on (see how he likes it), there’s a courtyard to be swept, a Sunday lunch to plan, for Sunday obviously, a soiree tonight to attend, a mountain to walk up tomorrow morning and all kinds of fun to be had. So, I’m off to get on.