Another late one from me, but I’ve a good reason: we left yesterday afternoon for a night in beautiful Bordeaux. So, at the time I should have been writing my blog entry, I was instead sipping a rather fine 2010 St Emilion in Le Bar à Vin.
But I’m jumping ahead, so first on to the weekly recap. Well, actually I can’t really say anything else until I mention David Bowie. I wasn’t prepared for how much his death would upset me – and it was of course all the weirder for coming as a total surprise. Monday was a write-off from the moment I read the news. All week long I avoided all the tributes playing on the radio and on the TV as it only took a few bars of a song before I lost it again. I never met him, but he was a big part of my life all the same. What’s been lovely is all the messages I’ve had from family and from friends, old and new, all offering condolences. Apparently, my obsession with Bowie is well-known.
It was inspiring what he did with his final 18 months, in which despite knowing he was dying, he was more creative than some are in a lifetime. He saw to completion his Broadway show Lazarus, and at the same time recorded and released an album – and all while undergoing chemo. I’m grateful he decided to leave us such a wonderful parting gift.
Ok, so on to the week, which has been a bloody cold one! Well, actually it hasn’t really: it’s been normal for the time of year. But seeing as we haven’t had a traditional winter out here for 2 years now, it’s been a jolt. We’ve had hail storms, gales, flurries of snow and some unpleasantly low temps.
We had a meeting on Tuesday this week with Sylvie, our friend Morgan’s mother. She and her husband run a metalwork factory about 20 mins from here and she’s decided it was about time they got a website. We were given a tour of the place and at the same time, I took some photos of their (vast) workshop to go on the site. We also managed to talk her out of our budget website option so it should end up being be a decent project. I’ve another one to do before that too and just today we had a new enquiry, so I’m potentially looking at a busy few weeks.
On Friday we had our first Musique en Herbe rehearsal of the year. Neither of us really wanted to go and it was largely a waste of time, with over an hour of faffing around before we even got a single song practised. We’ve done our best to steer them towards dancey stuff for our 70s night in May but still fear the worst. We feel compelled to remain with them until the gig, but may reconsider after.
Saturday evening was far more enjoyable. We invited our friends Josiane and Cammi over for dinner, and with them their daughter Laeti who’s been here visiting them over Christmas. Matt did a repeat of his new asian-themed hit meal that went down very well. Afterwards we had a fun few hours chatting about this and that, and then Jo came out with a bit of a bomb-shell: she plans to step down as president of Milhac Loisirs, the group that runs Matt’s conversation class, and of which he is currently VP. She’s been running it largely by herself for the last seven years, so it’s understandble she wants a change. She will announce in September, and has already picked a successor. Can you guess who? Well, he’s still mulling it over as it could take up a lot of time and he is, after all, the only non-retired member of the association.
Ok, that’s more or less the week, so now to explain why we were in Bordeaux last night. Partly it was because I wanted a modification making to one of my electric guitars. I ordered the part over Christmas, but had to get a professional to fit it. There was nowhere local that could do it, but several places in Bordeaux. Incidentally, I’ve since given my modified guitar a go and am blown away by the difference, so am well pleased there. But I digress.
The main reason for the trip was because this morning, I had my interview at the Préfecture: the final stage in my citizenship application. Well, sort of. As it was at 10am, we went down the day before and stayed over. That evening was notable for being the tamest and most sober evening we’ve so far spent in Bordeaux. It was grey and rainy, but we had a little stroll on arrival nonetheless and took in a few shops as well as, of course, the afore-mentioned Bar à Vin. We had a chinese buffet for dinner, washed down with a beer. Afterwards, we saw the new Tarantino film, the Hateful 8, as it was showing in English at the cinema. We then turned in for an early night.
I’d planned to do more studying in the run-up to my interview and regret it a bit now, but I’ve found it hard to be motivated this week. In any event, it went largely well. It lasted a full hour, during which she officially declared my dossier complete, made me sign the ‘Declaration of the Rights of Man’ and then quizzed me on my knowledge of all things France. I know I made a couple silly mistakes but I think it went OK. I naively assumed this was the last step and that a result would be imminent, but all that ends now is my involvement. Now my dossier gets a preliminary decision from the Préfecture in Bordeaux and then it apparently will wing its way down to Nantes to be further scrutinised. Along with every other current application in the country, meaning a wait of between 12-18 months. In the meantime, she told me that ‘no news is good news’.
Ok, that’s about it. I’d like to end by saying a very special thanks to Matt, partly for coping with my blues this week but also for driving me there and back, and enduring a rainy January monday night in Bordeaux with me so I wouldn’t have to go alone.