The Weekly Smile: Food, Friends and Fun

This week we took the opportunity to take an unplanned relaxing lunch along the waterfront at Alvor, enjoy the view and people-watch (great fodder for my next novel). The lunch and idyllic location a welcome bonus sandwiched between a hospital appointment and our stressful weekly shopping foray.

In these times of the soaring cost of living prices, extreme heat, wildfires and political uncertainty to list just a few of the challenges we now face it’s more important than ever to dig deep and learn to stay positive. Appreciate things which make us smile or enjoy a good rumble belly laugh rather than allow ourselves to be dragged into the mire of doom and gloom.

A couple of days later, we met up for dinner with friends we’d not seen for ages at a newly opened restaurant called ‘Altura’ located just outside the small rustic town of Aljezur in the Western Algarve. I love this place. Our waitress had a great sense of humour, so when my husband asked in his best ‘broken’ Portuguese for ‘one serving’ of olives she took him at his word and served one olive on a plate. Mr. Piglet’s face was a picture and it made us all laugh!

Despite physical challenges, I started line-dancing classes a few weeks ago and while I have three left feet and always seem to be a beat behind the music or two steps in front of everyone else, I enjoy the craic and the small group accept my limitations. We started learning a new dance and this is my homework for this week!

Hmmm, I think I will need to improvise on the ‘twizzles’. Does anyone else go line dancing?

On Saturday night one of the ladies from line dancing organised a BBQ. Great fun! I think this is the most socially active week I’ve had for many years!

I also worked in the garden trying to resuscitate some plants struggling in the extreme heat and strong southerly desert winds.

AND… I also started a new upcycle project… more to follow as the project progresses.

I have just started writing Chapter Nine of my third collab novel …

 

For more smiles to cheer up your week pop over to Trent’s blog