Some Random shots

Arghhghgh

Think I may have asked the bread man for some wood rather than a drink. Dear God can it not have the same alternative meaning as it does in the uk.

Aside from todays literary feux-pas I've made more head wind on the veg patch and tidied up. The kitchen now looks like our kitchen with all the pots and pans hanging off the tiles. The sitting room is now ready for Y.U's first couple of days. I really hope she likes it here and doesn't attack Mme Rond's baby chickens or the ducks. After a very confused conversation with her yesterday she seemed to imply that Dominique's cat never went after them... then again Destiny is built like a over-stuffed sofa and I suspect the chickens could out-run her. I also hope she leaves the swallows and the toads (who in my mind are easily remembered in French, "Crapaud"... sums up how I feel about them... "Oh Crap a toad!") alone.

Anyway P and Lorna are only a couple of hours away.... yippeeeeeee.

Mystery sheep

I came out of the front door last night and saw a car sitting just in sight on the road, where there is no need to stop. I ambled towards the road and there was a certain amount of shouting and then doors slammed and it reversed (again no need).

I wondered what was occurring but didn't think too much about it until the sound of about 1000 sheep moved closer.

A quick call to P and he told me that this has happened before. It seems that a collection of vaguely threatening looking travelers park their sheep (and on closer inspection several cows!) in someone's field or in this case under the poplars for 6 hrs or so and then move them on.

Gorilla grazing, who'd have thought?

Just as long as sheep don't like grapes we'll be ok.

Neanderthal arms.

I've been striming for days now and suspect, quietly, that my arms are now possibly several inches longer.

The strimer has a harness but being as I am pretty short I still need to support its weight, so on the plus side I'll have enourmous biceps on my extra-long-arms.

This week has been exhausting but I can now see the wood for the trees or rather the fruit trees for the weeds! Have discovered today, whilst strimming the chickens extensive collection of pens, that we also have an apple tree and some form of plum tree to go with the walnut tree, hazlenuts, peaches, nectarines, greengage and numerous cherry trees. How does one even spell strimmer, or strimming?

Tomorrow I plan to cycle to the Lac de Gurson to see if I can get a swim in.... not sure how the french are going to react to my swearing as I try to wrestle myself into my wetsuit, maybe I'll save that spectacle for a while...?

The journey! P-the-happy- trucker and C the not-so-happy trucker

Y.U asking to come too...

P the happy trucker....

C the not so happy trucker...

We're starting to get there slowly and some of the rooms have the correct furniture in them at least... others are still one big dumping ground!

P has cut all the vines and they now look amazing all straight and tidy looking. I'm now off to wrestle with the furniture in the spare room in time for Tigsy on Tues.

We're very lucky with our neighbours and this morning Mr Rond ambled round carrying a huge basket of veg for us, in return for the cherries that P gave him...

Right then more boxes, cardboard waits for no man and all that!

We're Here!

Well who'd have thought it all that time ago, we're actually here in the land of Vines.

It took a stupidly long time to get here and we are knackered and the vines are dictation our lives. The truck is still full of stuff but some of the floors are at least vaguely clean.

Annie and Dominique came round tonight and showed P how to use the scary cutting thingy. So tomorrow our vines will have a lovely new haircurt.

My french is STILL rubbish but find it is better after a gin or two, or at least I feel it is better.

P has been working like a train and it looks amazing.