To paint, twist, squeeze, pull and throw

Formentera, May 2022

After traveling across Europe and Germany for the past month, sitting around in plains, trains or taxis every ten days, I am so relieved to be back on Formentera to stay. At least for the next five weeks.

The book-reading tour was very interesting and new to me and those days in Berlin, squeezed in between, were blocked with various meetings a day, interviews, important errants to be solved and unsexy paperwork to be finished. Exhausting city life. No time for blogging at all, by the way. I know, it does sound super spoiled, but hadn’t I changed my life eliminating stress, responsibilities and duties? I suddenly found myself back in that rhythm of fast pace I led before. My body was gasping for attention as totally out of balance and in pain. No stretching or yoga, osteopath sessions nor swimming, not enough sleep nor appropriate nutrition had I been following.

Now, back on the island in full pre-summer mood, I am exercising again, twisting and bending my sore back, gaining more flexibility and feeling that sweetness of muscles aches. I have taken off some days from newspaper work and even dismiss reading the current news in order to disconnect. Prefer cleaning the house, doing gardening and pulling out weed between tomato plants, or getting rid of hundreds of fat and ugly cactus plants that have invaded the spaces on the ceilings, in stone walls, terraces and entrance doors like metastases of an aggressive cancer. The big cactus chunks are heavy and beautiful but need to be cut down too, unfortunately.
I feed myself from everything edible growing in the garden and in the greenhouse. Huge lettuces, cherry tomatoes, wild spinach, artichokes and lots of malva, salvia and fennel for infusions growing all over the place. Thanks to the sun tan I don't seam have gained a green skin from so much veggie food in my system.

I enjoy painting and help out Stefano to get the house prepared of one of his clients. But I especially like to chuck away unnecessary things. Getting totally excited by finding stuff in the garden to throw as my sweetheart likes to collect all kind in his garages, under the almond or fig trees, hidden behind the stone walls. They have been there for years and never used, rotting away in the rain or in the sun. Big clean up.

Actually, everyone is super busy preparing for the upcoming season as a hell a lot of tourists are expected after the two year pandemic. It is already amazingly full of people on the island and beaches start to get a little too crowded. I hide in secret spots on the rocks to go for my swims. Luxury yachts but also the beautiful sailing boats have arrived and the local kite surfers, that exercised during the entire winter and spring time, have been banned from the waters.

Les jeux sont fait, madames et messieurs les touristes. Allez, apprecier les vacances!