I Had a Good Day
Home Again - 05
🇺🇦Independence Day🇺🇦
Saturday is 28 year anniversary of Ukraine's independence from the former Soviet Union. This day is our biggest national holiday, and we will be celebrating over three days.
I am up early, showered and dressed to help Mama with preparations for guests. Already, one couple arrived last night and they come down to breakfast shortly after me. I know them well and we chat over coffee, toasted buns with cinnamon, fruit. Husband is professor, not at my university, and wife is journalist - she writes mostly about social affairs. I tell them about my new plans agreed with Papa. Professor says he will help me if he can. As his specialism is IT and artificial intelligence, I am not sure how, but I thank him anyway. He may well be useful in future for some business projects.
After breakfast, I take them for a short walk. We go through the edge of the woods and then across the fields to the nearest barn. A family of cats live there, and it is amusing to observe how they live their lives. We watch for about fifteen minutes, then continue to skirt the fields until we complete the circle to home. This hour gives Mama, Papa some time together before the organised chaos of the weekend really starts.
I sit the professor and his wife (why do I not write "the journalist and her husband... "?) down by the pool, get them a pot of coffee, some iced water. Then I go to check the other guest bedrooms. Everything is done and ready. On weekends like this, we should be running hotel.
Next I go to kitchen, see if I can help cook with any preparations. She humours me, as she has done since I was very young, gives me some trivial and harmless tasks to carry out. I humour her by doing them.
The day is warming. I return to the guests, ask if they would like to swim before lunch. I tell them I am going to change and slip up to my room to put on bikini. I fetch some patio towels from sunroom and put then on the loungers. I dive into pool and swim a couple of brisk lengths, then a couple slow back stroke. The journalist arrives in her bikini. She is about Mama's age, a little fuller in figure. She climbs down into pool and starts some lazy strokes. Soon, the professor joins her. He is maybe a three or four years older, but paunchy. Once they are in pool, I have achieved objective. I climb out and lie on one of the loungers - I just want to get some sun.
Saturday lunch is an informal buffet, served on patio. I help cook bring up the trays of food - salads, cheeses, sausages and smoked meats, chicken, beetroot, various dressings, bread - plus drinks, beers, wine, juices, water, coffee. During lunch, the second guests arrive, and they too go straight for the food. This time, he is journalist, she is official in one of the government overseas trade agencies. Again, I have known them both for some time. He is ok, a bit of a bumbler, but she has an edge - I don't think she likes me and I'm pretty sure I don't trust her. Still, she is someone I must now work with, so we will be cordial.
The final couple for tonight arrive soon after lunch, in time for drinks and coffee. He is
member of Verkhovna Rada, our parliament, one of few left from Petro Poroshenko's European Solidarity party. His wife does not work now, but used to be model! She is second wife, of course, and even I can remember first. She is attractive, in a shiny new plastic sort of way, and there is an air of silicon about her. (Bitch! Bitch!) It is not long before she is in bikini and on lounger next to me. I am happy with this, the more the men look at her the less they look at me.
The afternoon passes without too much fuss -swimming, sunbathing, chatting with guests. The politician has nothing new to offer on the situation in government, with Zelenskiy and the new parliament. I think he is a bit shell shocked to find himself in a tiny and ineffective party, after being so close to power.
About 18:00 we all drift off to our rooms to prepare for dinner. I would much rather miss out on this, eat in kitchen or take tray to my room. But I must do it and make from it what I can.
I lie on my bed for about half an hour, then shower and get dressed. Dinner tonight is semi formal, so a pretty dress will do.
I go down just before 20:00 and mix with the guests until we go in. I am sitting between the professor and the trophy wife, who turns out to be very interesting if you want to discuss fashion, holidays and celebrities. All my favourite subjects. I go into political campaign mode, engage with her enough not to be rude, I hope, and have some fun trying to involve the professor in our conversation. He is even more at a loss than I am.
The food is excellent - roast pork and roast chicken, roasted vegetables with balsamic and garlic dressing, salads - and Papa has brought up a good selection of wines. As usual, I have a glass of my favourite pinot noir.
When we get to the coffee, I excuse myself. It has been a long day and I am tired. I leave them to their brandy and their chat. I retreat to my bedroom.
I undress, stand under the shower until the hot water has washed away all the bad energy of the day. Then wrap myself in a clean white robe and sit at my desk. The sky is darkening, I can see the lights from the dining room reflected in the pool.
It is good to be on my own again.
🇺🇦Independence Day🇺🇦
Saturday is 28 year anniversary of Ukraine's independence from the former Soviet Union. This day is our biggest national holiday, and we will be celebrating over three days.
I am up early, showered and dressed to help Mama with preparations for guests. Already, one couple arrived last night and they come down to breakfast shortly after me. I know them well and we chat over coffee, toasted buns with cinnamon, fruit. Husband is professor, not at my university, and wife is journalist - she writes mostly about social affairs. I tell them about my new plans agreed with Papa. Professor says he will help me if he can. As his specialism is IT and artificial intelligence, I am not sure how, but I thank him anyway. He may well be useful in future for some business projects.
After breakfast, I take them for a short walk. We go through the edge of the woods and then across the fields to the nearest barn. A family of cats live there, and it is amusing to observe how they live their lives. We watch for about fifteen minutes, then continue to skirt the fields until we complete the circle to home. This hour gives Mama, Papa some time together before the organised chaos of the weekend really starts.
I sit the professor and his wife (why do I not write "the journalist and her husband... "?) down by the pool, get them a pot of coffee, some iced water. Then I go to check the other guest bedrooms. Everything is done and ready. On weekends like this, we should be running hotel.
Next I go to kitchen, see if I can help cook with any preparations. She humours me, as she has done since I was very young, gives me some trivial and harmless tasks to carry out. I humour her by doing them.
The day is warming. I return to the guests, ask if they would like to swim before lunch. I tell them I am going to change and slip up to my room to put on bikini. I fetch some patio towels from sunroom and put then on the loungers. I dive into pool and swim a couple of brisk lengths, then a couple slow back stroke. The journalist arrives in her bikini. She is about Mama's age, a little fuller in figure. She climbs down into pool and starts some lazy strokes. Soon, the professor joins her. He is maybe a three or four years older, but paunchy. Once they are in pool, I have achieved objective. I climb out and lie on one of the loungers - I just want to get some sun.
Saturday lunch is an informal buffet, served on patio. I help cook bring up the trays of food - salads, cheeses, sausages and smoked meats, chicken, beetroot, various dressings, bread - plus drinks, beers, wine, juices, water, coffee. During lunch, the second guests arrive, and they too go straight for the food. This time, he is journalist, she is official in one of the government overseas trade agencies. Again, I have known them both for some time. He is ok, a bit of a bumbler, but she has an edge - I don't think she likes me and I'm pretty sure I don't trust her. Still, she is someone I must now work with, so we will be cordial.
The final couple for tonight arrive soon after lunch, in time for drinks and coffee. He is
member of Verkhovna Rada, our parliament, one of few left from Petro Poroshenko's European Solidarity party. His wife does not work now, but used to be model! She is second wife, of course, and even I can remember first. She is attractive, in a shiny new plastic sort of way, and there is an air of silicon about her. (Bitch! Bitch!) It is not long before she is in bikini and on lounger next to me. I am happy with this, the more the men look at her the less they look at me.
The afternoon passes without too much fuss -swimming, sunbathing, chatting with guests. The politician has nothing new to offer on the situation in government, with Zelenskiy and the new parliament. I think he is a bit shell shocked to find himself in a tiny and ineffective party, after being so close to power.
About 18:00 we all drift off to our rooms to prepare for dinner. I would much rather miss out on this, eat in kitchen or take tray to my room. But I must do it and make from it what I can.
I lie on my bed for about half an hour, then shower and get dressed. Dinner tonight is semi formal, so a pretty dress will do.
I go down just before 20:00 and mix with the guests until we go in. I am sitting between the professor and the trophy wife, who turns out to be very interesting if you want to discuss fashion, holidays and celebrities. All my favourite subjects. I go into political campaign mode, engage with her enough not to be rude, I hope, and have some fun trying to involve the professor in our conversation. He is even more at a loss than I am.
The food is excellent - roast pork and roast chicken, roasted vegetables with balsamic and garlic dressing, salads - and Papa has brought up a good selection of wines. As usual, I have a glass of my favourite pinot noir.
When we get to the coffee, I excuse myself. It has been a long day and I am tired. I leave them to their brandy and their chat. I retreat to my bedroom.
I undress, stand under the shower until the hot water has washed away all the bad energy of the day. Then wrap myself in a clean white robe and sit at my desk. The sky is darkening, I can see the lights from the dining room reflected in the pool.
It is good to be on my own again.
