MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE

Santa at work

It’s already over a month since I posted the last update, where does the time go – more worrying still is that it’s picking up speed at an alarming rate. We’ve had some very very cold snaps with temperatures dropping to –6 at night and not thawing until around 11am – not very inviting for working in an unheated barn with no door. Still, Ian prefers to freeze than be idle so with wooly hat on and the Gaz heater next to him he’s installed the shower, WC, water heater and plumbing for the basin in the downstairs bathroom as well as erecting the dividing wall with door and a with small cupboard facing the stairs. He’s also walled off the water heater and boxed in the plumbing. Just for a divertion he washed off the downstairs beams and I’ve just finished giving them their 2nd scouring and wash – I wonder how many they’d need before the water runs clear. More than I’m prepared to do, it’s a vast improvement as it is and after all they are old so better with a bit of character making muck on them than pristine.

He’s also run all the wiring in for the downstairs sockets and lighting and and being the perfectionist he is, declined to put in a switch in the stud wall by the stairs prefering to chase it into the stonework at the foot of the stairwell. As money is getting ever tighter, and bookings aren’t exactly flooding in yet we’re trying to work with what materials I’ve already bought so we’re now cleaning all the stonework prior to regrouting and laying down the new floor. As we’re off to Vienna for Christmas shortly we’re not really killing ourselves with the workload, more just keeping occupied.

Thursday I went to my last French class in Redon until next year, quite sad as most of the people there have already been going for a year and their free funding has run out. I’m still good until next June – I just hope I make some better progress than I feel I’ve made so far. It’s very daunting and although the tutor is lovely and very helpful the fact that there is no English spoken at all is a mixed blessing – sometimes you are just desperate for some clarification even if it’s just with the admin side of things. There’s also a lot of importance placed on written work and we tend to do a lot while I feel I need to speak more, perhaps the class might get a revamp next term – I do hope so.

Today, I joined the ladies at my patchwork club in Bains sur Oust for a patchday and everyone brought a dish, what a spread - we started at 12noon with aperos, pate de foie gras and greek style puff pastries (thank you Lidl), went on to roast gammon hocks, mixed rice salad, beetroot salad, tart l'onion, then 4 different cheeses and the grand finale to the blow out consisted of Mousse au chocolat, creme caramel, apple cake, trifle and of course - I had to bring home made mince pies - went down a treat. With a liberal dose of Cointreau in our coffee we finally staggered back to our various projects at 3pm. They're lovely people and have all gone out of their way to make me feel so welcome and are so patient with my mangling of their language. But then I've found that with whoever I've had dealings with here.

All that remains for me is to wish everyone reading this a very wonderful Christmas and a glorious new year and ....... don't leave it too late to book your holiday with us.