And I’m Done

After nearly three years, I’ve only gone and deleted my “All Things Modica” page...

I’d had enough of spending one to two-plus hours each and every morning trolling through Facebook groups and pages, through newspaper websites, and various other online entities, all in an effort to try to discover what events were on in Modica.

After which I had to convert to English, rewrite, and then post. All because no other page seemed to directly cater to the English-speaking local and/or tourist.
Am I sad I had to finish with my page? Absolutely!
Then again, am I happy I finished with my page? Also, absolutely!
Unfortunately (fortunately) it’s been liberating.
I’m once again going on my early morning walks, in an effort to keep both my fitness and energy levels up. It’s f’sure been nice to walk in the cooler morning hours, before the scorching heat of the day kicks in.
More time has been devoted to restoring those old photos gathering (figurative) dust on my C drive. Something I’d been sadly neglecting, given I had no real time in the morning anymore.
The family tree has been fully updated with all the information I’d garnered in the last few years, but couldn’t ever seem to find the time to integrate.
And, I’ve started writing again! About my great-great grandmother Sarah Boatswain’s small-but-interesting life.
Regrets? Some, but not many, really. I felt I had to get my own life back, and I now have.
Onwards and upwards…

Fiscal Awareness

We did away with Netflix some time ago.
We found it wasn’t as entertaining as it once had been, plus we’d pretty much exhausted both the current and the back catalogue of movies and shows we wanted to watch. And, at €19.99 a month, we reckoned it was no longer worth the subscription fee.
We’ve now opted for NordVPN, using their two-year one-time payment option. So, am currently very much enjoying surfing other countries current and back catalogues. In 2028, we’ll again sit down and decide if’n we want to carry on after that two-year period.
Why bring this up?

It’s the sort of decision you have to make when you’re retired, when you find you can no longer just make decisions ‘on a whim’. Regardless of the cost. Especially when you’re no longer earning the big dollars or pounds.
Now, to be truthful, we’re doing okay, and can afford it. Nevertheless, why pay out when you find whatever you’re payin’ for isn’t fulfilling your needs anymore?
It’s f’sure a good habit to get into, and one we’ve fostered right from the off here in Modica.
I’m so very lucky that I married someone who’s much more ‘fiscally-aware’ than I’ll ever be! Alice keeps my spending-on-a-whim in check. Always has. Always will, I reckon.
Living being cheaper here was a huge plus for us when it came to shifting from the UK (and NZ), of course!
With age has to come some sort of wisdom, now don’t it?

It’s Been Warm

Being an analyst for much of my career, for summer 2026 (so far), I decided to record those days in Modica when the temperature reached 30°C.
Last month, I pointed out we got our first such day on the 5th June. And that, from then on, it only ramped up, with a total of 13 such days in June, and 29 in July. That’s 29 out of a possible 31 remember!

And it’s been over 30 every day since the 26th July. So, as at the 31st August, that’s a total of 37 days in a row!
Luckily, nothing like that hellish heatwave in late July, when the temperatures climbed to over 40°C for four days!
You know it’s bad when the locals complain of the heat … and they are complaining.
I have notes (of course!), last summer we had 30°C temperatures for a total of 71 days between the 6th June and the 17th September: A 103-day period. As a percentage, that’s nearly 70 percent of the time. Including two periods where this happened for 16 consecutive days.
This year, please remember only up to the end of August, it’s been 73 days out of 86: Or around 85 percent of the time.
The downside to summer 2025 was our drinking water supplies ran low. Thanks to a very wet winter, I’m happy to report we haven’t had one day without water this year.
Remember, I wanted a hot summer?
I f’sure got my wish!

More Soon...