Maberga Spring Retreat 2014

Which is a fancy way of saying that I'm home alone with nothing scheduled for 3 days and will  therefore not leave the mountain.  I bought all my favorite foods, got a new book, stocked up on magazines, yarn, paint and hair removal wax so, pretty much, I'm set.

Also in preparation, I made myself a little framework to organize my time.  Actually, it was an hour by hour schedule of what I'd be doing for 72 hours. I don't want to waste my time and, if you are not in the practice of relaxing, it's not easy.  Blogging wasn't actually on the schedule for today, but after dinner is "free time" so I'm using it to write. Yes, you should feel honored, and also a little concerned about my control issues...but I digress.

Day 1:

Got a good jump on the day (though I threw the schedule off before even getting out of bed) by waking at 6.15 before the alarm which was on the schedule for 7.  By 6.30 the dogs and I were off on a pre-sunrise walk.  We went

Obviously, by the time I got back to the house and took that photo, the sun had risen.

Next, baking a little banana bread for breakfast and my daily journalling.

After breakfast there was a rather messy and unsuccessful (and very painful) first try at waxing my legs.  Actually, I only got to about a quarter of one leg before I gave up. Um, yeah, no pictures of that.  

By 10.00 the dogs and I were off again, this time to the orto.  I find picking stones out of dirt very relaxing....more so than plucking hairs off my body.

Our rocky orto

The 2x3 meter plot I picked stones out of for 2 hours

I didn't have anything to plant in it, but it's ready now.

While I was picking stones, Ruffino decided his retreat included a mud bath treatment

And Q went, well, wherever Q goes to find shit like this

which of course is some kind of furry bloody mangled animal remains.  Q wasn't carrying it on the shovel.

By noon it was back to the garden for some sun and a little bit of crafty time including this

Which then made me want to do some of this

Which got interrupted by a visit from some of these

which are of course 3 Maberghine women...a few of the last to actually live up here full time...except for me.  We drank water and ate homemade cakes and canestrelli.  Then we all went up to the old village of Maberga. They told me stories of being children up there, stealing figs from neighbors for entertainment, and carrying food to the 3 young Maberga men who hid in the forest when the Germans came during the war. Even this control freak can recognize a lovely diversion of a schedule when it comes.

Half hour of Pilates (Pilates sucks)
Dog baths
Lynn Bath
Dinner

And here we are enjoying my "free time". This retreat is just so relaxing. I wonder what tomorrow will bring.  No, actually I don't wonder.  I've got it all written down and posted on the fridge.