Long Hot Summer in Ireland

We are in the middle of a heatwave in Ireland. We have hardly had a drop of rain since the beginning of June. This might be a normal state of affairs for wherever you live, dear reader, but in Ireland it is the top news. Here on the Emerald Isle we expect patchy summers, a day or two of rain, a day or two of sunshine and then back to damp and wet again. But weeks and weeks where we wake up to sunny mornings and blue skies? Now that is a novelty.

I went shopping this morning and everyone I met had a word to say about the weather - most of it very positive. We had a festival here in town and it was so wonderful to be able to stay out late and listen to the band without shivering under an umbrella (and truth to tell, being almost the only person out there ....). And that wonderful night sky promising yet another fine day.

It's very hard to get down to writing - I am still working on my Christmas novella but who can concentrate on frosty mornings on days like these?
The weather has a very positive aspect - it is too hot to eat much so I am making salads of all varieties and drinking lots of water which makes me feel very virtuous! Yes, it is all sunshine and happiness here and I am going to enjoy every minute of it as long as it lasts.

Summertime and the living is pretty easy

Summer. Sunshine. Sea breezes. Watching the sailing boats. Walking on the sand. How I love it all!
It would be nice if we could keep memories stored in a bottle and be able to let them out whenever we liked. The feel of sunshine on your skin in the middle of a cold, grey November day would be something, wouldn't it?
We have a mini heatwave here in Ireland two weeks ago. At the weekend everyone took off for the beach. People had barbecues in their gardens. We all walked around in shorts and t-shirts and summer dresses. It was wonderful while it lasted!
I'm not a dedicated hot weather fan. I'm inclined to wilt if the mercury gets above 24C here in Ireland where it is humid or 27C on the continent. I will be off to Germany later on this summer to look after my grandchildren. Currently the temperature there is around the 37C mark, falling to 32C or so after a thunderstorm. It is a dry heat, which makes it slightly more bearable, but when you have thundery weather it does get humid. So I'll be travelling light. It always seems strange to me that a short journey by airplane takes you into a completely different atmosphere both from a weather and a current affairs point of view..
To everyone who's looking forward to their annual summer holiday:  Have fun, don't get sunburned, and come back fit and relaxed!
If you want a feel-good family romance to read, try my novels:

A Sunny Morning

It rained all day yesterday and most of the night so it was a pleasant surprise to wake up to a sunny morning.  I went for a walk to the beach as soon as I had done my shopping - 6x apples, 6x pears and a small bag of potatoes all for €2 on the SuperValu 3 for 2 offer, I added unsmoked bacon and a head of fresh cabbage - that's Sunday dinner and my fruit for most of the week sorted. 

The sky had that it's-going-to-be-showery-later blue look and there was a brisk wind so it was ideal for my half hour walk to the beach. As I passed the quays I noticed that Rebecca was gone from her moorings, no doubt off on one of her deep sea fishing expeditions. A few boat owners were pottering around either getting ready to go out or just coming in, a group of young men were readying their sailing boat, the sails cracking in the wind.  It was all pretty exhilarating and made me wish I could be off somewhere too. When I reached the beach the tide was coming in, the sun glittered on the water and I thought of Shelley's description and how aptly he described it all:

I see the waves upon the shore,
like light dissolved in star showers, thrown

Isn't that just beautiful?  OK, OK I'm getting carried away.  The poem was written in dejection near Naples and I have often wondered how you could ever feel dejected when you sit and watch the sea and write such beautiful poetry.

I watched a sea-gull strutting around in the shallows all on his lonesome.  Every time a wave engulfed his feet he moved back further apparently not wishing to be drawn into the ocean.  Eventually he got bored and flew away.  I envy the sea-gulls, the way they ride the waves or simply take off over the water.  A few families with children and dogs were taking advantage of the small strip of sand left before the tide reached it.  It could have been high summer except that everyone wore jackets and no one ventured into the waves.

That walk has set me up for the day.  I come here nearly every day and every day I find something new to discover.  I hope the sun is shining where you are!  Happy weekend everyone.

Sunny Haze

I didn't get around to writing a post last week because, to be honest, I was too malafoostered by the warm sunny weather we are having!   We've had well over a week of blue skies and temperatures warm enough to melt an ice cream - well, okay not exactly the tropics but it is possible to walk around in shorts, a t-shirt and flip-flops (unless you're Victoria Beckham when you'd be in something more stunningly elegant). It is just too amazing.  Yes, that yellow disc up there in the cloudless sky really is the sun and not some strange visitation from outer space.  And doesn't it make everything look different?  People are different.  They've dug deep in their wardrobes to find summery clothes and go about with smiles on their faces.  We all know of course that this is not going to last.  Already the weather forecaster is murmuring something about rain coming in from the west.  But that's not until the start of the coming week.  So we'll do as the farmers are doing and make hay/silage while the sun shines.  I am in the country house and dog-sitting at the moment.  Everything looks wonderful, even the grass seems to sparkle under the sun's rays. The birds are whizzing around singing at the tops of their little voices and leaving their calling cards all over the car and the windows, bless them!  Tea in the garden is an everyday thing at the moment.  Who needs the Med.?

Going Viral

I've come down with a virus.  It happens to us all but I can't help moaning that of all the bodies in all the world why this virus should walk into mine (with apologies to Humphrey Bogart).  And at a time like this.  You see, I am going to Spain for three weeks next weekend.  Hooray.  Sunshine and warmth to give me a boost for the winter.  And now this - sore throat, dry cough, and streaming eyes and nose. Worse still, the doc. says there's nothing much he can do to help, it will have to take its course which is on a scale of ten to fourteen days.  That means I could be viewing the blue Mediterranean through very bloodshot eyes or poking about in my paella with a paper tissue poised near my nose.  I suppose I'll have to sneeze and bear it.

Last night I gave up the unequal battle of breathing through my right nostril while mopping up my left one and fielding the constant flow from my left eye at the same time.  I turned on the radio and found a station which plays music all night.  Relaxing, beautiful music for the most part.  Music to doze off to and wake again thinking "oh, this is nice."  I sent several cyber-telepathic messages to the DJ in the hope he would intercept my request for Andy Williams singing Moon River which would have just about made my extremely long and sleepless night. Alas we were not on the same cyber wave length. Pity but there you go.

My blog will not be updated until the end of October when I hope to tell you all about my time in Spain. 
Until then, here's looking at you!