in case an English version of said lovely book turns up for sale.

BLOG 8 / March 2015

1999 eclipse of the sun

This is a treasured photo of our family and friends on our beach plot in Selsey in 1999. We had gathered to see the eclipse of the sun which turned out to be a complete success and the party afterwards was one which is remembered in the family archives. When I heard that we were going to see another eclipse I looked at the weather and decided that despite the promised cloud cover I would not let the occasion pass me by.

 

So, in the damp and overcast morning of Friday 20^th March 2015 I dressed up warmly and plonked myself on the top patio so I could say ….I woz there…

 

Mike came out at the point of eclipse to see how I was fairing on my epic sit-in. He was wearing his welding helmet which just made me laugh till I cried. Mike is always there to support my wild ideas and to see the funny side of the situation is a plus and always appreciated but I am proud to say that ...I woz there

 

On the very next day we were out early to catch a very high tide which was locally billed as La Marees du siècle,  the tide of the century, so that had to be blogged and watched, so we made our way to the lock at Carentan and joined a little throng of people of all ages who had  heard it was rare and wanted to be there to say, Je  woz ici…….

There was very little left of the gate at the lock to stop the sea lapping over and the canal leading from the sea to the marina had swollen into the fields and water meadows for this two day high tide event.

There is normally a deep bank leading up to the lock so this really was an epic moment. Our Boat Beema’s recommended coef to get into Carentan Marina was 70 and this tide was 118 so there was an amazing difference and as seasoned sailors we could not let this go by without a cursory interested look of appreciation

 

 

We popped out to walk HOSS and see some friends and came across this little chapel in the middle of a field on the marais just outside Gorges not too far from Brevands.  A gravelled path leading to the door, an information panel with a bit of history tells you that this little chapel has pedigree, but nothing prepares you as the door creeks open and you walk in.

 

 

 

 

A beautiful stained glass window with statues and pews, an alter full of candles and candles sticks and nothing missing or damaged or vandalised. What a refreshing notion that buildings like this can still be left open all day with lighting and technical equipment just left there waiting for the next fete or pilgrimage. I am not the religious type but these little pockets of belief give me a warm feeling of respect and responsibility and for that I am humbled and very pleased it still exists in our little corner of France.

 

 

 

 

 

And then on the way home from our walk around la Chapelle st Anne we stopped off at the depot vends in Carentan to see what was new. We have been visiting the second hand shops ever since we came to Brevands and we have learned that you need to go every week to catch the bargains and over the years we have picked up things we need at a price we like to pay. It is fair to say that we also buy things we don’t need but quite like to own but our second hand approach to life has enriched our lives and we are well known to the owners who are always pleased to see us…che ching.

Mike had his nose in a lovely  old second hand book about vintage cars and was tempted to buy but I reminded him that a book in French is OK, but we really do not benefit from the authors extensive vocab and grammar as neither of us are that versatile with the language, so that day we came away empty handed and will go back again soon in a week or so just in case an English version of said lovely book turns up for sale. 

 

 

 

 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That front door has a lot of good memories to share.

 Blog 7 / March 2015
 

I finally finished my digital photos to print project and have just received an e-mail from Photobox France telling me that my order, which was sent this morning, is printed and with La Post for delivery in two days. I have gone through all the goings on in our lives since 2004 and it has been a really wonderful journey.  I have put this picture up on this Blog because our 60^th birthday party in July and the surprise family visit for my birthday in October last year are events I will never forget, so much love and happiness and I am peddling it all over again because we had such a good time and it gives purpose to everything we have achieved here in Brevands. I have chosen 1,581 photos from a stock of 14,000 which only goes to show that since the advent of the digital age we take 10 shots when one would have done the job. We are now able to flip through a great story book instead of clicking though a nightmare collection.

My Cockerel has shown no emotional upset and doesn’t even care but I cried onto my toast and marmalade over breakfast at the loss of one of my hens the other day. There she was keeled over and he just wanted to know where the grain was….blokes can really be thoughtless. Mike however, was very thoughtful and put my hen in a bag to hide her from me and stop the tears …..Farmers wife, me, I think not.





Sailing friends from the UK came to visit on their way to the Dordogne on a life changing reconnoitre trip so   we asked well-seasoned and experienced ex pat friends to come and share some experiences of living in France and making a living. It is great to hear how the other half manage and thrive and it always makes for an interesting and fun evening.

 

 

 

 

Then more friends arrived and for one evening only, we were all together for a supper around the table for a good old fashioned catch up

 

 

Our table has seen some happy moments and this time of year with the fire chugging away in our farmhouse kitchen we are reminded of the many times we have put bums on seats for any excuse for an evening supper, or two.

 

 

 

With John and Linda we were treated to two evenings of a wine tasting experience so they could decide what to take home. It is a simple process, a glass each and two bottles to compare. You pour a glass each of one bottle, you all drink it, then you pour from the other bottle and then you have an opinion and actually there is a difference. We all had another glass from each bottle and then we all started to laugh, I think I may have mentioned the wooden fruity bouquet with just a hint of grape and an over powering sensation of southern blue skies, but I don’t remember much else…….

A day out with friends doing the things we forget to do like a visit to the American cemetery in Coleville and a walk around Arromanche and a lunch of Moule frites in Port en Bessin. Mike and I really struggle with eating out but having experienced eater -outers with us the whole experience is fun and we now know of a great little resto overlooking the harbour. I did mention to Mike that I could live in Port en Bessin  watching the fishing boats coming and going, so that makes  two towns that I would seriously consider a move to but then we get home  I wonder why I have thoughts like that,  Brevands is so fab, why move…

 

And this is pure eye candy, spring has come as a fresh and positive bout of good will towards men and this morning I noticed that the willow in the pond area has actually burst through, so there is no turning back and we look  to the clocks springing forward in the next couple of weeks

The daffs are out, the ducks are laying eggs and the grass got a cut this week so life is good and continues to be French as I discussed the plan to get my potted geraniums out of the poly tunnel with my friend Genevieve who went pale, and recited the French rhyme about ice men coming in April and never trust the weather man especially if the moon is mooning, or even waning, so I am going to leave the plants in the warmth at least to the end of April.  I will however have a poly full of strawberries by then…….oh the complicated issues of gardening by the phases of the moon and French wives tales adding a tinge of doubt in every gardening decision we make. I once followed the example of a neighbour in Brevands. When he brought his trays of geraniums in I brought mine in. One year however, he left them out all winter and when I asked him what French rhyme covers that activity he just said he couldn’t be bothered to get them down…..mmmm

In stark contrast to our hand to mouth slow and comfortable life in France we got this picture sent to us to keep up to date with this building we watched being built in Bracknell when we were children, we watched it have a very useful existence and then become the most hated building in the UK and now we are watching it being demolished. Life is a full circle and it is best to accept it and appreciate it. Thank you to my bother in law Dick for keeping us informed……Nice blue sky for this time of year though……..

 

Breaking news….  

 

Our children Georgina and Alan in Canada have passed their written national citizenship test and will be sworn in soon. We are so very proud of them and Mike made a great comment that we now have Canadian family and not family in Canada.  This picture was taken in 2013 when they came to visit. That front door has a lot of good memories to share.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

requires a gentleman’s touch………

Blog 6 March 2015

There is a great philosopher somewhere who once said ‘when you are on a role, keep running’ so if you are not a petrol head by nature,  turn away now, because this blog will leave you wondering whether Mike and I  have totally lost our marbles.







Mike saw this 1958 Morris minor 1000 on le bon coin and asked if I would call the venders for more photos. They live 2 hour drive away so I did the call knowing that Mike would not normally travel so far and that would be that. The pictures came through on e-mail and when I came home from my visit to Genevieve on sewing Wednesday Mike asked me to PPPPlease call these people again and get more info because this looks like it may be a good buy and he really really wants it.  I know I have the knack of talking Mike out of unreasonable activities I don’t want to get involved in but I spoke to the seller and had taken his address down and made an appointment before I could take breath and we found ourselves on the road at 7:30 the next morning on our way to see this little gem.

Our GPS took us directly to the door of a very nice and chatty French couple who bought this car because it was built in the year he was born and they wanted to cruise around their little town of Janzs with their grandchildren on board.  They did not realise however that it is an all singing and dancing English car that they did not understand and lost interest when the French MOT came back with a list as long as your arm and when they could no longer get it to start , locked it away in the garage for a year. Mike looked the car over, he looked inside and out, then tinkered and poked and finally sat in the driving seat in a realm of nostalgia turned the ignition on and asked the vender if he could just turn it over to make sure the engine was not seized and to the utter amazement of our hosts their little moggie spluttered into action and coughed and spat on three cylinders. The very kind gentleman laughed out loud and asked how that was possible as the battery was flat and he had been unable to start their Morris  or even get close to starting it all year. I shot Mike a knowing look and explained in my proudest French that Mike has the knack and their little gem was now in good hands and will see another day on the road after a good seeing to, in English.

On a foreign drive with no tools Mike continued to  work  his magic and could see what needed doing  but decided that it might be better to push the car  into the road and winch it up onto our newly acquired car transporter trailer and bring it  home for a better inspection








The trailer was all part of the big plan and we were forced to make   the purchase quicker than anticipated just to get Moggie back to the garage which will be its home for the next year that we have allocated for the rebuild, and relaunch onto the roads









There is a bit of rust and Mike has polished up his welding kit to accommodate that aspect of the renovation, the seats will need a total rebuild but there is nothing too scary.  Mike has now spent the last three days going through the parts catalogue making costing and availability lists as this sort of project needs to fall into a budgetary plan and I for one will be paying attention to that aspect of the project.  I am excited at the prospect of Mike loosing himself in the garage and can see us off to the car shows to troll for spares and I can see this little part of our youth back on the road moggying along on French roads that we now call home

And what of Monty I hear you cry, Well Monty is good and well,  this is a relic of a past beyond our memory and is a vehicle we have to maintain and keep warm and dry whereas Moggie is to be striped and made good, for its own good, to arrest the deterioration for its future existence. It also means that when both cars are on the road I can drive Moggie and Mike can drive Monty and we can do the shows and rallies as a his and hers team. Besides which, Monty has a 1936 4 speed crash gear box that despite myself I know I will never master and requires a gentleman’s touch………





 

 

  

the joys of early daffs, on a cold and blustery day.

           Blog 5 / March 2015

Our dear friend Genevieve took a fall and has broken her ankle so I did my weekly Wednesday afternoon visit with her and walked our wheel chair up so she can at least get out and about.  I spend an hour a week with Genevieve and Jean-Marie chatting in French and it has given me an opportunity to relate to the everyday stuff of living here in France in French. Since I stopped going to choir I only talk to shopkeepers and online complaint centres so this friendly hour to catch up with the goings on in the village is something I look forward to every week.

 

 

 

 

 

Genevieve and Jean-Marie live in the old village bakery opposite La Colombiere Manoir, now a gite complex and run by Belgians and the little water outlet you can see on the right of the picture is our water level gauge. When the fields are water logged the water gushes out and when the fields are dry it becomes a trickle. We pass La Columbiere on our way to Carentan and often make a comment about the water levels and as we are gardeners in the water meadows it is quite important to have a handle on that sort of information albeit un-scientific.

In the big clear up to make space for Monty we got really brave and chucked out things we thought we needed to keep, but actually we don’t. We bought this leather sofa in 2000 for our move from family home to posh Marina home and 15 years later we still have it but have changed our seating arrangements in the lounge twice since, but it was still stored  in the barn, just in case. We finally threw it down the stairs and into the trailer and off to the decheterie before we could change our minds.

 

As a child growing up with two languages I remember reading the comic book version of Tintin, Asterix, luci luc and Hublot chien Matalo when we visited our cousins in Belgum. Mike and I then make our life here in   France and I am always attracted to the book shelf in the supermarket with these comic books on sale and realised that this style of book is more than just a cool way of getting a story over, it is a way of communicating to adults who do not read. I was shocked to see a serious comic book on how to make your tax returns, and the book that is open in this photo communicates in pictures and bubble speech, with  minimal words’  what the gendarme can fine you for if stopped in your vehicle….  I can’t decide if this is a good or bad thing. It undoubtedly  helps those who can’t read,  but should the education system ensure that this basic skill, is at least, past comic book level before the kids are let free from education……..!!

Then the day came for Monty to come home. I had been watching the weather forecast for a dry day, bit like our sailing days when we watched for wind directions and speed, and it was decided that Friday was the day. John got Monty out and parked him in front of his house so when Mike and I turned into their drive we both said, awww look at that. John and Lyn are sad to see him go but they know he is going to a good place.

 

 

I followed Mike home in Beryl at a hair trailing 40 miles an hour and we did turn heads and annoy lorry drivers but we made it home and then Monty promptly decided to have a little sulk and just stopped running before we could show him his new garage. Mike fell into master mechanic mode and got his fault finding head on and started by removing the petrol pump and looked at the plugs only to find the needle damper in the carburettor was stuck and here starts Mike’s hobby of keeping this perhaps temperamental old fella on the road and running sweet.

 

HOSS sat reluctantly in front of this upstart who is getting all the attention.  As Mike drove onto the drive I shouted NO JUMPING as HOSS  came forward as welcoming committee. I know at this early stage that a claw scratch on the door would not go down well…..!!!!!

 

 

 

And finally the combination of cut flowers and roaring fire in the back ground just makes me chuckle. I was boasting to Lyn and John, when they came over for afternoon tea, about my one daffodil showing its head at the front of the house. Later in the day  Mike took my hand and walked me into the court yard and behind the camper was a host of golden daffodils loving the shelter of the camper and the warmth of the sun in the mornings, out of sight, out of mind and therefore out of boasting range as well. I picked fifty percent of them and brought them in so we can at least enjoy, the joys of early daffs, on a cold and blustery day.