keep those drives weed free ……we will be back.xxx

Although life in France is all about, life in France, I really wanted to share our UK Road Trip in the camper. We set off for a ferry crossing in Calais and to get the best price, a night crossing, only 2 hours to  cross the channel  and for that we are delighted as the thought of the 7 hour winter slow boat from Caen just leaves us cold and disinterested.  We took the opportunity to go and visit the place we started our life in France, where all our hopes and ambitions were moulded and dashed. During those  few months in Watten we battled with French bureaucracy and our naive belief that because we have been in business and we are bright and enthusiastic that we could manage a French business of gites, boat pontoons and a bar,  cook, clean and be nice to customers. It was not long before we identified our limitations and pulled out.  Needless to say, at the time, we felt we had failed and were destined, to, just be retired, but  8 years later no one has taken on this site or even tried. The wine glasses  I left in a row on the bar are still there and the curtains at the windows have not moved,  the ‘Private’ sign in my own hand writing is still stuck to the bar door. Sadly this place was never going to be a roaring success and we are glad we saw that early enough not to have thrown too much at it. I still love the place and would love to live there without the commitment of being in business and having sat in our camper and discussed the possibilities we drove out and I whispered to myself …..moving on…..

 

8 years ago my sister sent me bulbs saying that we will see the same flowers at the same time, we were missing each other so much and when we moved out I dug up the bulbs….I thought….because here they are after all those years still showing their miniature daffodil heads and I was touched and amazed to see them still flowering.

 

 

The Camper let us down on the way to catch the ferry and the back lights refused to function again, so we got on the ferry and drove all the way from Dover to Reading on intensity rear lights and as it is daylight at midnight in the UK with the amount of road lighting we made it with no one needing to flash us until he hit reading and the road lighting stopped. We pulled over and wild camped in the services until dawn then hit the road to Worcester to spend two nights on Gig and Neil’s drive, joined by Mim and Dick in their camper. We then set off to Bill and Linda Puffet’s drive for one night, down to our son Chris and Sam’s drive for a night and then to John and linda Hoadley on their drive, next was Ron and Pauline and lastly a night on Mim and Dick’s drive and every time we pulled up to use a drive we were welcomed, fed and watered and thoroughly entertained and cared for,  We spent one night in the car park of an Indian restaurant who were happy to have us stay as long as we  ate  in the Restaurant, and that was novel

 

 

 

 

 

We visited Canterbury, Salisbury Tewkesbury, Dover and just had a great 10 days on our home territory reminding us of its beauty and variety.

 

We parked our camper waiting for our ferry home looking over the ferry port and up to the castle. We made a visit to the castle for free using our John Lewis cards and for the first time since we have been retired have we taken advantage of the pro’s of being a jlp partner…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gig and Neil  in Hanley Swan

 

 

Bill in Bishopstone

 

Chris in Rownhams
 

John and Linda in Bracklesham bay

Mim and Dick in Bracknell

 

 

Sorry to Ron and Pauline in Porchester we forgot to take your picture so we will have to came back to you

Thank you for Lunch with Ian and Sandra in port Solent and a fab evening with Billy and Maxine in Bracknell  and coffee with Tina and Brian

 

 

In all the excitement….what of HOSS, who dutifully follows us around, and gets in and out of the camper when we ask him to, waits in the camper garage for us to return from our visits,  who waits  crossed legged because we have not been able to give him the runs he needs. Who eats lying down because he is on holiday as well …. he is just happy to be  with us and to join in or out as much as we need him to, but at the end of the trip  he is the most delighted to get home to his 3 acres of grass, he is happy to get away from the  tarmac and concrete and deep down, so are we glad to be home, with our acres of grass with only the noise of the birds and the cows and the sheep but it was good to get away and this trip has given us the energy to get up and get out more often so keep those drives weed free ……we will be back.xxx

 

 

 

puts a great big smile on your face, every time…..

bog 9 March

 

 

 

I am very excited to be starting the car boot season with a focus because I am collecting handmade tapestry pieces that mean nothing to their owners anymore.  These lovely hand stitched pictures take forever to make and I know that because I am coming to the end of my own that Mim bought me and I realise the time and effort taken..  I saw this one on Sunday and walked past it twice but knew I just had to ask combien ??….the little French lady who I hoped had stitched it said with a shrug, cinq Euro, so  I shrugged back, will you take three and she said mais oui, so I walked away feeling very content

 

 

And this is what I do with all this wonderful handmade magic….I make cushions and I love every one of them, Mike is just as interested and keeps an eye out, we are browsing the depot vends one day and he saw a very wide framed tapestry and suggested I could cut it in half and I have made a matching pair.  I am now waiting for a rainy day as I have five cushions to make and I am looking forward to setting up my little cottage industry just for me…..

 

 

 

 

 

Mike went for his bit of treatment for his stiff neck and headaches and we were quite surprised when a prescription came through the post from the clinic. We went to the pharmacy and came out with a complete kit including the rubber gloves injections and swabs.  Mike suggested we could bypass the clinic and do a bit of DIY but I just said NO…seriously NO. We turned up dutifully at the clinic in Coutance kit in hand and were in and out in less than an hour. Mike had the treatment lying   in a scanner and we have a lovely set of pictures of the procedure.  Mike  can’t wait for our next dinner party where he can get his pictures out and discuss the procedure with our  guests….I don’t think so….

 

 

The allotment is getting an overhaul after 2 years of neglect.   I have managed to grow veg on this difficult area we call the  veg patch but the weeds takeover and chaos developes and I have become  over whelmed  and  swore never to grow another veg if mike did not help me . A few years ago we halved the grow area to help me out and now mike has come up with a cunning plan to build raised beds so that the weeds can be given the short sharp shock about leaving my veg alone but more importantly we can clearly see what is grow land, what is cut land, and what is  the sit down and have a glass of wine land

 

So there you have it, one mould good for 8 beds set in place filled with concrete and a day later a raised bed…..simples

 

The row of stones on the gate represent the amount of barrow loads of concrete we needed to fill one bed and as they started to mount up we started to wonder if we had not bitten off more than we could chew but as the job came together and the plan started to progress we decided it was within our capabilities and 14 barrows, 2.5 bags of cement and 70 shovels of sand and gravel later we had our first bed complete and ready to strike in two days’ time.  The next problem is where to find the soil to fill 7 raised beds but we have mounds of waist soil  that I have been trying to plant manage and now I can just un mound them and get down to normal and average gardening.

 

 

 

 

 

 

And finally we got Beryl sorted. We found a man selling a set of old alloy wheels and tyres at the right price on the bon coin and we can now finally drop the top and get out in the good weather, so we put our sunnies, jumpers, scarves and gloves on and set off to the sea side for a little blatt in the fresh bright Spring sunshine …..Does you good and just puts a great big smile on your face, every time…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

both stall holders did well today.

blog 8 March

 

 

 

It is totally shocking when you walk past a calendar one day and the very next day it is a month later, Georgina treated us to this fantastic calendar with our Canadian twins looking in on our kitchen and putting a smile on our faces every time we pass…..except on the day you realise that a whole 30 days has past and you're onto the next picture.  You can see that despite this being the quiet time we have things going on and as age catches up it is sooooo important that the event is logged…..or forgotten.

 

 

 

It is Sunday and we are really pleased that the vide grenier season is slowly getting under way. Today we took a trip out to Torigny sur vire. Torigny is a bit of a trek for a boot sale but Mike and I have our best discussions and decision making moments in the car, probably from the days when we each of us drove for miles in our working lives making decisions and running our businesses on the go, and to this day, we feel comfortable putting the world to rights dashing off, somewhere.  I have been practicing my vide grenier NO NO NO with Mike, but today I failed with all guns blazing. Here he is laden with remote controlled helicopters and stuff, and then he was looking at an ancient sit on scooter and I just shock my head and said NO, but I needed to capture the moment as I feel sure he might have shown keen interest had I not put my foot down. Mike has a lifelong need to own a violin but has no idea how to play, and even today, he saw his heart’s desire and had to ask how much? …..and I said…..how much….enough said

 

I wish my blog   could give you the sound that was coming out of this old gramophone. To make people stop and look, this stall holder was playing old French traditional Eiffel Tower music, the sort that just says France and I could not resist a picture just to remind me of how lovely it was.  I overheard the stall holder on the other side of the ally say how great the atmosphere was today and he was selling shabby chic French brick a brac and I  for one wanted to get stuck in and take an old French trinket home with me and then Mike bend over me and whispered in my ear….NO …. But  I do hope both stall holders did well today.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

so role on wood fire expert, and role on Summer

blog 7 February

It is quite plain to see by the congestion in the court yard that Mike and I have too many vehicles for our own good without a mention of the soft top in the garage and the motor bike and tractors and mowers and I need not go on.  Yesterday morning we had a board meeting over breakfast to discuss the madness of being just us two and having so much transportation at our disposal, so we decided the Mondeo should go.  She failed her MOT for a few little bits but it is time for a change of Cam Belt and tyres and a silencer and bla dee bla dee bla. I stole the words from other French advertisers selling their cars and launched our sales pitch then sat back for about 15 minutes and the phone rang, so, Yesterday afternoon I had one guy coming the next day, another saying cancel him I’ll come now, 5 e-mails and 3 messages on the answer phone so we knew we were going to sell. The man came from Caen via the moon and called to say he was lost I asked him what he could see so I might try to figure out where he was and he said there is a farm some houses with red tiled roofs, there is a fence and sheep in the field.  I needed to be pleasant but wanted to shout…. doh, this is the country and you are describing every corner of Normandy but we got there the end  and  an hour later he arrived. He kicked the tyres started the car several times then made us an offer we had to  refuse but met  him half way .  He paid and we locked the gate as he left giving ourselves a nice tall high five.

 

 

 

 

 

I sometimes feel that Mike and I start a project just because we like having Lorries on the drive making deliveries with the promise of a new beginning. Mike loves the ordering of material and the planning and this is no exception.  We popped into Big Mat, a real workman’s DIY store with the thought of pricing up our next build but ended up making the order as we were there and in the mood. We have decided that I want raised beds in the allotment so we can keep the area in control of weed and pestilent  and I  want mike to see the garden as a hobby and not a chore so we came up with a plan to make concrete boxes and create the Monty Don of all raised bed allotments. 

 

 

This is the wood to make the moulds and as soon as mike has had his treatment for his headache and that happens next Thursday then we will begin. Through March and April we will create a concrete box every three days and that way within a month the job should be done…..well that is the theory and the delivery is the starting point.

 

HOSS is very relaxed and happy to be just him and is here sat in front of the switched off fire , I seriously struggle with this black cold hole in my kitchen so I light candles inside and it just takes the edge off the chilled anxiety of not having this  cosy focal point doing it’s job.  I had my new boss come visit today and she kept her coat on and mentioned that she was looking forward to going back to her nice warm fire ....

so role on wood fire expert, and role on Summer

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

in our camper with HOSS just because we can......

blog 6 February

Mike started to feel better with a diagnosis of arthritis in the neck and knowing is half the problem solved so I talked him into letting me light a fire again as it makes me feel so much more relaxed, and happy, and for a few days all went well.  I thought we had cracked it and then on the fourth day we both came down with blinding headaches and were both very sleepy.  We have decided to shut the fire down again and have arranged for a wood burner expert to come in and look at our installation as Mike is now convinced we are being poisoned by carbon monoxide leaking in from the chimney. I will ke­­­ep you informed as I feel an epic in the making

We had another challenge to face this week and went to the private hospital in Caen for a consultation with a neurological surgeon our GP had referred Mike to. We arrived at this very shiny and muffled marble monument of a building with more open space and running water than Versailles and as we took the middle of the atrium bottle on a stick lift to the consulting room level I wondered just what we were letting ourselves in for. Our white haired consultant was very pleasant and although he laughed us back out of the office saying there is nothing wrong that a good massage couldn’t put right his gold dollar bed manner made him take the time to explain why Mike was OK but why he has headache, and was totally bemused as to why Mike had put up with it since 2009.  Mike is now referred  to a neurologist to try a cortisone treatment and then 6 weeks of massage and physio and as we had been bothering our GP for the past 5 years the consultant suggested that we need not go back to the GP and stick with a specialist and get it sorted. We came away believing we had been in the company of a medical god and then his secretary wrapped the paperwork up and took payment from as ordinarily as buying a baguette ...costing a cool 90 Euro …..well worth every penny…….

Our faithful van did it again when in a fit of pique with the weather and Mike feeling so rubbish we went to Cherbourg looking to buy a new wood burner and a therapeutic walk around Brico Depot the best DIY store in the area. We did not find a fire or any DIY to make us drawl so before going off to find a sandwich for a day out picnic we popped into one of  our most favourite depot vents and found this most fab sofa  for 120 Euro. It was 10 minutes to midday and when I asked the staff if we could get it off the staging to give it a try I could sense the panic of a transaction so near to lunch time but then relief when Mike sat in the bigger than normal chair and looked so right and comfortable I just said hooorah  in a French accent and it was out and in the van and paid for before lunch could be disrupted.

 

I have been a good recycler this week again and have continued to make wood chippings from  our winter pruning. I love the smell of fresh wood and the motion of chipping wood, it is noisy and I wear my ear plugs to protect myself so I am in a little bubble of comfort and neither Mike or HOSS can get in it…. It’s all mind.

 

 
 
What a joy to have flowers showing and I have started my front of the house display ,I brought out my primrose wheel barrow that gave me such a treat in the poly tunnel in the deepest winter and I thought I could risk putting them out on display on the drive and all of a sudden I can sense warm and long days ahead.

And finally our little pals say good bye. Cass stayed with us for 2 weeks and was just starting to make firm attachments to us and our life style and it was time to pressure a change to get him in a place for his next home. We met his original owners in a car park to make the transfer and he recognised them and they were resigned that actually he was destined to go home to them and then he would be taken to their daughter in Cornwall to live on a farm. The timing for all this was perfect as Cass was starting to get comfortable and both boys were wanting to put their paw down as to who was boss. If I was keeping Cass and HOSS I would have dealt with this but 2 hours before transfer time they had a barking growly set to  on the field over a bit of rope I had been paying tug with. HOSS is now very happy to be in charge again and to celebrate we have booked ourselves a trip to the UK in our camper with HOSS just because we can......

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If only our poor old bodies were that efficient…….

blog 5 February

 

 

I am sadly a week late with this blog as I took this picture last weekend with every intention of sharing it with you all but here it is anyway as I still think I have the first daffs for 2014. The last of the storms have past and we are assured that we will now get a few days of dry and for that I am grateful as I have been wading about in the field coming in with wet dogs and wet me and damp motivation, I say dogs, because this week we had to rescue our friend Ann’s newly acquired sheep dog after she fell and broke her shoulder and Cass the dog was in danger of being left home alone , so we dogsnatched him and told HOSS to deal with it….OK

 

 

So for the time being we are an extended family but having spoken to Ann it seems that she will need to give Cass up as she rescued him herself and does not see how she is going to manage, and that makes me very  sad as I am starting to love this meek and intelligent dog but I know in my heart of hearts that Mike and I are really not able to take on another mouth to feed and have the complications of camper holidays and kennel stops.  I am therefore looking for a home for Cass unless we can talk Ann around but I think she  has realised that Cass is too strong and big for her little cottage and her slight frame.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is Chateaux Beaulieu just outside St Saveur le Vicomte  and luckily for us we have got to know the owners of this lovely home and on a social outing just mentioned that we were off  to  buy a couple of chestnut tree  for our garden and both Sharon and Eddy said…. NO… we have a wood full of seedlings just come over and take what you need……so we did.

Luckily for me this all happened before Mike came down with shoulder ache and an explosive head ache   so I had trees lifted transported and planted before rain stopped play and mike became bed ridden in a darkened room.  We got mike in to see the doctor and he sent us straight to Coutance for a head scan. The appointment was at 4:30 and we were out of there at 5:10 having had an MRI scan of his neck and a regular scan of his shoulder, all the scan pictures and letters put in a folder and we were sent home to see the  GP again on Monday to look for solutions. .......If only our poor old bodies were that efficient…….

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

good value, good food and good fun…..

 

4 blog February

A jolly start to this blog with us lot turning up in silly hats to wish William a very happy 90^th   Birthday. I am pretty sure I have a photo of us surrounding William for every birthday he has had since we met six years ago.  We bought corn on the cob dishes off Anna and William's car boot stall in Blossville six years ago and have not looked back,  so happy 91^st year and let’s hope it stops raining so you can properly enjoy it.

 

 

 

And on the subject of rain we have not started or finished a conversation with anyone without bringing up the issue of rain.  It is also at this time that you thank whatever governs these things, that we bought our home here in Brevands on the high side of our little back end of the village

After days of excuses about not walking HOSS I finally donned my sailing jacket and we hit the road.  For days now there has always been something going on and yesterday it was Hilary and Michel in for lunch that stopped me taking HOSS out for a proper walk but Hilary who understands dogs mentioned that HOSS had a sad and troubled look about him so I made a point of taking him out for his 30 minute walk no matter what today. This road is the bottom side of our one way system and you can see that the gardener has dug out trenches double sized and that is why I am so relieved we live on the top end where our rainwater drains off into the ditches that empty into the low end and with the relentless downpour we look to thank our lucky stars for just about anything we can thank.

 

 

Mike has been at it again on le bon coin and in his committed dedication found us the deal of the year. It is a brand new glass door canopy to go over our winter door to the house.  We have been looking for many years for something we could afford and these babies cost 500 Euro from the shops and we paid 50 Euro and met a nice man in the back end of Quettehou on a windy wet evening to add to the occasion,  Once again while we are thanking our lucky stars we managed to fit yet another odd shaped object in the van and bring it home without a logistic challenge so, good van, good buy and just good all around.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And finally here we are with Graham and Ann on a date day. Georgina in Canada tells us how she goes out on a date with Al or the kids on their own, so we have decided to go out to lunch  once a month, all the other weeks we picnic and get out to do something together.

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This week it is a games night but last Sunday it was a walk around a garden centre and a lunch in Le Moulin Restaurant, good value, good food and good fun…..