More April Flowers

We had some rain yesterday morning and I went for a short walk just after it stopped. It was lovely, everything glistening in the sunshine and smelling fresh. It actually rained quite a lot last night.... which is all welcome water.



This first is my lovely mystery flower.



I first saw it (single specimen) when I was on one of my trial walks... still very wobbly and dizzy. When I went back to get a photograph of it - it had disappeared. I was seriously thinking I had dreamed (or hallucinated) it - but then I realised that someone had grazed a herd of goats over the land and they had eaten everything apart from the prickly stuff. Anyway on Thursday I finally spotted another plant.
From above it looks like not very much, the original plant I saw was not so yellow but the actual flowers are really pretty.



Also found what looks like a young plant just growing.



This is another pretty flower that grows in quite large clumps, just tiny little pink petals showing among the grey....

... and some more.....





On Thursday I saw one of these seedheads, with 5 bees arranged on it as if they were mimicking petals - of course I didn't have my camera that day! It must have some really sweet stuff.



and here is Trot.



She comes with us for most of our walks and I give her breakfast most days. I call her Trot because I was reading David Copperfield when she first turned up, and because she moves in trot all the time.... and tells us to "hurrrrrahhurrah hurry" all the way home.

April Flowers

There was so many of these yellow flowers that the bottoms of my trousers turned yellow.

On the hill beside the house there is still a lot of greenness though the longer grasses have all seeded. Elsewhere the green has been scorched dry again for another year.



This strange flowering bulb came and went very quickly, if I had been a week longer incapacitated I might have missed it. It is one of the many bulbs that do well here, and an amazing colour. If anyone can put a name to it I would love to know.  (Update: I have since found out that it is a Tassel Hyacinth)

April

Still working away at my recovery.... doing my exercises everyday (though maybe not as often as I should during the day) and feeling much better, though a niggling pain in my hip, knee and ankle.

I am starting to get further afield in my walks, and as we have daylight saving at the moment I am able to get out a little later in the evening and enjoy a bit of coolness.

The day before yesterday I was late setting off and Ruby and I just went along the hillside - which was just as well as I looked behind us and found not only Trot and Snitch following but also one of Snitch's puppies! We are getting to be quite a procession - especially when Marmela comes.

What other news..... I know I did promise you some.

Well I finally got my new carte de sejour and it is valid for 3 years (though only just over 2 years are remaining since it took 9 months to arrive!)

We have taken the first, crucial steps to getting the land at Ouled Said titled. We managed to avoid the inconvenience of my name being on the papers (ie a foreigner therefore not allowed to do anything with the land without the Minister of Foreign Affairs approval) and so now we have to go through the process. I think it takes a bit of time but hopefully no more snags. ... and then we will sell it. Although we originally intended to go back there, I really love it here and don't want to move, and it is much better for Mohamed to be near Agadir - especially now he is doing his university course.

We are also working on getting a license to build the house, Mohamed is in town today with the architect who is drawing the plans. I am hopeful that this will mean we can get building in a couple of weeks (but that might be a Moroccan couple of weeks - ie a few months).

The villagers have managed to get the aqueduct cleared of earth and stones washed down by the rain this spring and we have water running as far as and into the river. The pipes that crossed the river were swept away so will need to be replaced before we have the water running all the way into the village. I think this year they should build a suspension bridge - input from any civil engineers (or budding civil engineers) would be welcome.

There has, despite rumours, been no progress on getting the mains water running in the village... no progress on the building of the water tower and no prog.... and electricity has just cut for the second time today... so bye for now

Catching Up

Well it has been a week of ups and downs. I was feeling much better, I had finished my pack of Lyrica and though the doctor had said I should keep taking it for a month (which meant buying more) I decided I had had enough. OK so it says on the packet don't stop taking suddenly and without your doctors advice. So the week ended with me feeling really unwell, very dizzy and nauseous and I am now (unwillingly) back on the Lyrica and admittedly feeling better. My right hip and leg still has some pain and my ankle is very weak, but on the upside my stomach muscles have stopped hurting with the push up or extension exercises.

The end of the week also coincided with a visit from Mohamed's sister Aicha and her husband and children. Always nice to see them though they are a bit of a rowdy crowd. I dread to think what it would have been like if I didn't have the train set and building blocks for the boys to play with.

Snitch has had 5 puppies, though there are only two around just now. I am trying not to get too involved..... and Mohamed's sister managed to get back home without one of the boys smuggling a puppy into the car.

Ruby is just lovely, she passed the Nutella test with flying colours and sat patiently while a 2 year manipulated her jowls and ears.

All the cats are well except for Marmela who has some unfortunate diarrhoea .... sometimes very unfortunate. If it doesn't get better she will have to have a trip to the vet.

All this lying and sleeping has actually had some good results - being really up to date with the news, when there was a lot of real news is one, but the best being that I managed to work out a recipe for the chicken with sauce that is served at weddings etc and in the chicken restaurants in Agadir. I am going to post the recipe on the Morocco Gateway to Dreams blog - if the internet will permit.

On the subject of news... so far things are fairly calm in Morocco though there have been some demonstrations and probably more trouble than has actually been reported in the Moroccan news. The King has taken some pre-emptive steps and promised a review of the constitution giving more power to the democratically elected assembly and also devolving more power to the provinces, more action to reduce unemployment, improved rights for women... all good things but - I am holding my breathe a little. On TV there seems to be a lot of heated discussion about Berber or Amirzigh rights with a big push for it to be recognised as one of the official languages.

I have more news... but need to go and stand up or lie down. Back soon.

back again!

and a double entendre as well....

Yes I have had a horrible month totally incapacitated by back pain! I don't think it was any one thing but just built up since last year when I hurt it pulling water from the well. Anyway after some really horrendous pain I went to see the doctor I saw a few years ago. He pronounced it serious ... no reflex all the way down my right leg ... and said that I might need surgery to get the disc back in place. Sent me off with a prescription for a range of drugs and asked to see me again in a week... or was it two??

Anyway the pain was less with the drugs but they made me very dizzy and drowsy and still unable to sit. So I spent a few weeks lying and sleeping interrupted only by some back exercises... oh and watching daytime tv and news... what a month of news!

The doctor is happy with my progress and surgery is no longer required. We have a new, very firm, mattress and I have a dustpan with a long handle that I can use to pick up and put down things like cat food bowls. This week I started back working and also walking Ruby again - just short walks.

It is great to be getting back to normality - but I can't overdo the sitting and must keep up the exercise.

I will post some more soon but just thought I should let you know that I hadn't fallen off the edge of the world.