been a while

we were sort of busy... a month at Grandads, few trips to Budakeszi, few days at lake Balaton... we loved Balatonfenyves and promised ourselves a couple of weeks there every June. the free beaches are fabulous with grass and trees and all the facilities. The water was great until the weather turned on us. Seemed like we were half way to Badacsony, and the water still hardly come up mid-drift. somehow had no time for anything, such as the blog. I thought I made tons of photos, but not that many. All is well, sort of, managed to kick off a big-toe-nail as per my habit, we put on extra weight, another habit. We managed to play quite a bit of tennis in the free anytime Ujpetre court (except when used by the football team for trainings) but all that sport doesn't count when we eat too much. Doing some Futurelearn (psychology intro) at the moment, overdoing my crosswords, including now English Codewords book, so much more difficult than the Hungarian version which gives you too many clues. And reading, and some catching on telly (Goliath, The Good fight, and hmmm Downton Abbey). Alan is doing a lot out there even when hot. Sorting the tons of tools he inherited from János. There'll be no fruit this year - except the raspberries already pickable - as the frost got to the apricots, plums - can't see any. The other Erzsi - Erzsike, with her two sons who have learning difficulties but were previously accepted to közmunka in the village and are very diligent and enthusiastic workers, when their mum is there to boss them about, anyway, they help us to keep the place a bit tidy, especially when we are not here. They are doing a very good job. The grapes are going berserk, they were not thinned out and the amount of the fruit growing is frightening - in case all of it falls on us and kills us. Killed by grapes!Erzsi is in high stress as Zsuzsi is marrying Csaba on the 20th - considering it will be a small affair, so many things so far can go and did go wrong. Nobody wants our geese still, even though they would go free to a good home... but Alan's proviso, that they cannot be chopped as "he promised them" somehow stops any adoption strangely. Lots of political arguments, too of course, I do a bit on Quora these days, meeting the incredibly under-informed USians - mostly explaining that democracy is not the problem - the system that cannot make it functional is the problem... and stuff like that. Yes, the world is still unfathomably mad and sad but it seem to allow us for the time being having fun. Martin and Sharon nearly bought a house in Toronto, but wisely decided against it. Grandad is doing fine, the main problem is that he is still reluctant to use the help available, and often he ends up doing the things he should not be doing, but as per the lesson with Lois - the balance between independence and using available help is delicate. But he -is- 93 and well, and with it, but a bit instable/wobbly on the feet. So gathering in the bedding from the dyer in the back patio is not easy, whatever he says... anyways, we off seeing him again at the end of July. he is getting a bit lonely at times, though the neighbours are marvelous, as is Marlene and Steve. And now back to the football, Spain against Portugal... again you have to guess which photo which country and where... on the way back from the lake we stopped at this weird large archaeological and memorial place for king Saint László at Somogyvár, never heard about it. very posh and monumental from the outside. Didn't go round the site itself, weather was bad, just looked at the museum-exhibition and got the weird book in English about it - including tidbits how the Hungarians are related to the huns - which is an old urban legend...