Electronic publishing.

Off to the rugby with Wilf. A typical wet January afternoon in South West France. By the time we get to the stadium the rain and the mist are melding seamlessly together. The visiting team, from the Cote d'Azur, in a comment generating canary yellow strip with pink highlights. Our local boys in their rather more conservative red, white and blue. The crowd full of thirty something farmers with a six and a four year old son in tow. Maybe two dozen dogs, the smaller of them sitting on their owners laps. The sheepdogs, like Wilf, nestled under the bleechers, emerging briefly on the rare occasions a try is scored. At half time the car park full of beret wearing fans exercising their tyre christening charges. The family fellow is in his element.

Wilf remains the perfect companion. Even tempered, affable and content. Over the last week his eyesight has weakened. His night vision is now almost certainly gone. He is having to learn to navigate around the house by scent. A process that involves much confused bumping into things and unexpected, and sometimes lengthy, diversions. Laughter, patience and understanding all thrown into one big pot.

We've been trying to find the right balance for his insulin . His glucose levels have been high. Probably from the stress of having a house and garden full of strangers. Last night, another accident. His second. Instead of turning right to go outside, he turned left into the drawing room. An event which clearly upset him. A devastated ' I didn't mean to ' look on his face. Ten minutes of serious, and I mean serious, tickles from 'the font' before his male pride was restored. Who would believe that dogs can be embarassed ?

In the lunchtime post a hard copy of the old, pre-France, 'Life in Italy' blog. 'The font' had arranged for it to be printed up and shipped over by a firm in the US. The photos are a bit small and the page breaks leave something to be desired. Despite that it's really good to have a record of our journey that can go onto the library shelves. When the time comes we'll have them print and bind this blog.