Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Buzzing like a bee.





Up bright and early for a break of day walk with Wilf. Turned on the shower and nothing happened. Well, that's not quite true - there was a momentary hiss and then nothing. The plumbing, or what passes for it, in the rickety old farmhouse has chosen this morning to show its age. A six o'clock message on the plumbers answer machine - tried not to sound desperate.

After our walk around the light industrial park Wilf and yours truly headed to the cafe in the square for our morning constitutional. Noted that the restaurant next door is all set up for the World Cup with large French, Italian , Argentine and English flags suspended from the ceiling. Wilf settled down under the table with a bowl of water brought to him by the waitress - receiving his first hair tousle of the day in the process. " Bonjour Veelfee". I sat there unshaved and stubly wearing a baseball cap to hide my 'celtic' hair - the grunge look blending in perfectly with the pre-breakfast beer and absinthe drinkers. Is this how one takes the first step on the slippery slope ?

Past the early beret wearing baguette buyers to the hardware store for some insect repellant. Madame Bay has discovered that we have an infestation of ants in the downstairs corrdior. They compliment the infestation of strange wood munching insects that have zestfully started work on the terrace and the large swarm of bees that have taken up residence in the gutter outside the bedroom window. At seven in the morning my French is simply not up to describing the various plagues and pestilences that have descended on us so I revert to gesturing and making bee like sounds. The woman behind the counter just looks at this unwashed figure flapping his arms and buzzing and weighs up whether to call the gendarmes.

A lot of you have written to say your comments aren't appearing on the blog. Apologies but it's nothing to do with us. I've noticed that some of my comments on other blogs seem to disappear. Must be one of those google gremlins.

15 comments:

  1. Hope the big pantomime was rewarded with appropriate spray.

    XXXOOO Daisy, kendra & Bella

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  2. So apparently it is easier to find an England flag in Southern France than it is in Aberdeen....(see Bertie's blog today)
    And at least you don't have to contend with the highland midge....
    Cheers, Gail.

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  3. Isn't it perfectly acceptable to bathe in the piscine in France?

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  4. Oh, plumbing problems and infestations! Not most humans favorite way to start a day. I hope that you have everything under control soon.

    wags, Lola

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  5. We had a day yesterday that was later termed by my co-workers as "bizarro world." I should have known when I woke up to a large flock of crows carrying on that it was an omen--It looks like we were not the only ones who were not spared "unusual" events and the need to perhaps just stay in bed! Hope your day gets better and there are no more plagues and pestilences for either of us!!

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  6. Just hope Wilf doesn't get in the cherries again - at least until you have water.

    Living in an old farmhouse (by American standards) I totally understand your plight. When we first got here, I constantly yelled at the upstairs water-pipes.

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  7. Not a great way to start your day, I do hope that tomorrow is better.

    Woofs and Licks,
    Maggie Mae

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  8. I'm not sure which image is more amusing! The thought of you sans shower at the cafe for breakfast or the thought of you miming bees! You're destined to become a French celebrity, I believe!

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  9. Now we Americans have always been lead to believe that bathing in France was strictly optional..perhaps a bi-weekly occurence. You and the font might be putting too much strain on the water pipes with your insistence on daily showers. And a note of warning, it's a quick descent from baseball caps to wearing sweatpants in lieu of regular trousers....just saying!

    I'd tell you the time I had to find an anti-diarrhea medication for a non-French speaking friend at a Paris pharmacy. Put it this way, the word "merde" and the phrase "trop vite" were used in the same sentence, much to my chagrin...

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  10. As for the missing comments, I'm not sure everyone reads that "your comment will be visible after approval" message and just thinks their comments disappear into the ether. (that said, don't know if you ever saw our post honoring Digby?)

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  11. No water - I've been there as a result of pipes freezing during one of our frigid Michigan winters. Not fun at all! Nope, not fun!

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  12. Just do like Lucy and say 'Le crayon est sur la table!'
    It seemed to work for her :)

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  13. Glad to see that SWC spirit has descended on you too....hope you get your shower soon!
    MAXMOM IN SA

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  14. here's to a speedy return of water at your farmhouse!

    the booker man and asa's mama

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  15. I hope you get your water fixed. My parents have had some issues with plumbing lately too.

    One nice thing about dogs is that they don't care if you've had a shower or not! :)

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