happy and satified ... ding dong

Blog 5 May 2017

May is always a busy month for us and we do very little else but prepare for the summer. Putting up the Pool has become an annual event that once up sets off a to do list  to achieve a perfect  outdoor space.

When the garden furniture comes out we find ourselves eating drinking and sleeping up there …and swimming…….and entertaining… so cross fingers for good weather and long days.

Monty is still up on ramps. As Mike takes it apart faults appear and the reason for the breakdown are apparent and we are happy with that.

When the clutch finally came out, of the 56 corks required on the friction plate there were only 15 left and then we both went.. ahhh that’s why the clutch was slipping…. Sadly cork clutches are the thing of the past and our 1936 plate has had to go back to the UK and this all takes time and a huge amount of patients and a nice fat cheque book !!

The simplest solutions can transform a daily chore from frustration to fun… Mike bought me a golf bag so I can easily transport  my gardening tools, we have lost his old trolley in the past 15 years of moving and clearing out, so  a little post on facebook put us in touch with the lovely Coombes family who had one spare. So here I am on my way with all the gadgets, tools and things that a gardener doesn’t know she needs until she finds it in a deep pocket of her trusty golf bag…

The garden is coming on brilliantly. I had so many plants left over from a hugely successful seed time that I gave given hundreds away. I left a note at the gate asking my neighbours to help themselves and then they rang the bell at the gate to ask for more… I put my courgettes in the  soil, asked them nicely to pull themselves together and grow and just a few days later they all put out a bright yellow flower to say thank you, we have our roots down……as my Mum used to say, courgettes are obligatory on the menu when the crop starts…. How very true as I have 6 plants and 2 would have been more than enough.

HOSS is having a lot of trouble with his poor paws. He is unable to get across the gravel without showing a huge amount of discomfort and has to stop to take breath just to get to the garden.  He stands on the concrete around the house and is reluctant to launch himself on the gravel drive so we bought him a set of boots to help him get into the garden.  At first he was unsure and did nip me a couple of times as I put them on but soon learned that he could come and go as he pleased and now lays down with his paws out in front of him so I can get them on…..we are so happy and amazed that these simple little boots can make so much difference..but HOSS is a little concerned  about  his street cred but that is the compromise of getting old….we know about that.....

Mike had a birthday this month so we set off in our newly converted camper for a Brocante and a walk on the beach. Mike has lowered the bed in the camper giving us a more comfortable day lounge so we have reinstalled the table which we inaugurated with two ridiculously creamy cakes from a very posh patisserie.

We were over on the Atlantic coast where the beaches are huge and really smell of the seaside. HOSS had a well-deserved run which these days only lasts a couple of minutes but he remembers he is supposed to be joyous and bouncy on the beach and still makes a sterling effort.

We walked HOSS around a vide grenier and saw some German Sheppard mugs that we quite liked and when the stall owners met HOSS they got all enthusiastic and gave him a medal for being a good boy. They were breeders and showers and they were selling off the trappings of their past occupation. Nice..

We have a new museum in our next village, Catz, so we took a drive out with Elaine and Pat to see what all the fuss was about.  The Normandy Victory Museum is about local events during WW2 and was full of everyday 1940 memorabilia, both military and domestic and was interesting from all angles  for that time in history.

Monty  has been off the road all May so when it was time to show at the Perier car show John and Lynn Webb kindly lent us their 1936  Peugeot  whilst they took their mid-60’s Vanden plas.

We had a lovely time catching up with friends visiting and  showing and as the weather was fabulous we girls sat in a bar and watched the men talk car….. Perfect.

The atrocity in Manchester this month meant that we had our flag at half-mast for a week. It is a really effective way of feeling connected to the UK keeping up flag day traditions of St Georges day and the Queen’s birthday but a half mast is just a reminder that despite our lovely life here there are people in trouble and in pain.

All my efforts in growing petunia from seed are paying off and my tubs, troughs and hanging baskets are starting to look quite lovely. Cat is still well, never coming in the house but always somewhere around the house looking lovely and keeping the mice well under her management.

Gill and Eric came through again on their way to the UK. This time we had lots to talk about as they are now in the last throws of purchasing their very own bit of paradise in France. We had lots of good times around the table and a walk on the beach had both HOSS and Mike reaching for sticks as Gill and Eric love a good brisk walk and my boys don’t.  We did get a little way down the beach and then HOSS turned back in protest.

Good luck to these good friends who sincerely appreciate what we are doing here and want a bit for themselves ….lovely ….

I made Facebook friends with the man who runs a car club in a local village called Baupt. I liked his page just so we could see what his car club were doing, and to understand when they did it. What a surprise when Alaine, the head honcho, advertised an evening with the Marins de Cotentin. We have seen this bunch of 50 chantey singers a couple of times before and could not resist getting a gang together to support and enjoy such a special local event. A great night was had by all. The one most amazing thing was that Alaine actually recognised Mike and I from when we showed Monty at the Baupt  car show last year and made us feel welcome by name, and made us feel very special by nature,….i wish I had a head for names to that extent ….merci Alaine.

Grass cutting has started with a vengeance and that sounds like it’s not a nice thing but for me cutting grass is a delight. I keep a close eye on the rate of growth and then I watch the weather forecasts and I decide when I will commit.  Mike has given this chore over to me as a couple of years ago he said… I’ve been cutting this grass for eight years now and I hate it….. so we bought me a super dooper mower and I start the ball rolling at my pace and my decision and then Mike picks one of his many mowers and comes out to support my single minded approach to the task…..which is… cut and lift it all , or not at all

And every week I get the total satisfaction of a beautiful lawn a ton of grass clippings to compost down and the therapeutic smell of new grass for at least a day …..What more could you ask for in life.

And finally, Mike has a good reputation for finding great bargains on the French free ads site, Le Bon Coin and often browses on behalf of our friends. We were chatting to Elaine and Pat on one of  our French supper nights and they asked whilst out at the vide grenier and depot vends,  if we see a good bell for their front door and  for 20 euros then buy it. Blow me down if we were out at the Carentan vide grenier three days later and found this great sounding bell, in budget and so perfect for their front door. Isn’t it great when a plan comes to fruition and everyone is happy and satisfied……ding dong.