Hors de Combat! Why February is low on posts

 .... Well, it has in fact been worse!

Bet there are fleas and other pests in there, too!

There has been little to amuse or intrigue, We have been almost nowhere interesting and life has been a round of cleaning, with a fortune spent on pharmaceuticals. Poor fare for a jolly "happy retirement" blog! And much of this is self-inflicted! So a single report from the Slough of Despond this month, and we hope that normal service will soon be resumed!

So first those aspects of the month that all living or holidaying here have experienced: weather and Covid! 

Greyrocks has long considered February to be the worst month for Canarian weather; but this one has had everything. Winds and high seas have led to ferry cancellations, the calima has been so drastic on occasions that flights were delayed, and - whilst there have been quite a few sunny afternoons - the evenings have been bitter:- relatively, of course! There was one week which led to remarks that if this was the week chosen by tourists for some winter sun there would be great disappointment, and probably no return! But tourism has been substantial. There was until now an absence of British kids, owing to the vaccination rules, but they are here now for half-term. Down at the marina water-based leisure is booming, and the surfer numbers are huge, so the economy is doing well.

That is a double-edged sword! Some of the "tribes" that abound are those least likely to comply with the health norms! This month has seen staggering Covid data.

Since the festive season it has been normal to see a number of new daily cases over 100. Admittedly the number of recoveries has frequently exceeded it, but at one stage the number of active cases was near 1500, which with a population of 123 000 led to us being the "dirty island" of the archipelago. February also saw both the best and the worst days for hospitalisation, and the number of deaths reaching 30. We both felt that -at last - we were over the filthy colds we had harboured since November, and felt our fairly cautious approach to going out/out had been wise in that we were still clear of Covid. 

What we did suffer, however, was in some ways worse, and is ongoing as we approach March. It all revolves around what could be called a "rash purchase"! Steering clear of naming, blaming and shaming, and of excessive detail, we report that we have been infested and forced into a run of urgent expenses because the apartment we bought just before Christmas in preparation for our very old age and will be letting out in the interim was left in a state of chaos and hidden nasties. In clearing it out we have both been attacked on two pest fronts and in both properties! At one stage we were waiting for new mattresses for own home and had to spend a run of nights in the emergent new place. As icing on the cake our own cooker - twenty tears old - gave up the ghost so we were also coping with the wait for that too be replaced.

 A grim period! We still have to undergo messy skin treatments, and uncomfortable nights. with no certainty as to when we may be clear! Watch this space for news of a more upbeat Greyrocks!