It’s been another quiet week. Will had a client meeting on Tuesday with CNPV, the equestrian organisation in nearby St Jory de Chalais. He got the green light to build their site, due at the end of January. Because the site needs board approval, Will is going to do a presentation to their members, which we hope might lead to more business for us. It’s still very quiet for me on the work front. I don’t think that’s going to change before the end of the year, so I’m looking around for things to do in the meantime.
On Wednesday, we did our annual decheterie (dump) run. During the year, we use the garage for storage, but needed to clean it out so Lola has a place to stay during the winter. We also cleared out the log shed to make room for the new wood, and certain old items were too big to fit in our car. So Bryan kindly agreed to fill his trailer with the larger items, and between us, we got everything there.
It was Thanksgiving on Thursday, and we celebrated the following day. I went to the shop in the morning for supplies, and made cranberry sauce and sweet potato pie when I returned. I went to conversation club that night, and there were ten people, which is a lot these days. This included Gil, husband of Miriam, our new neighbours. She’s been attending for a few months, but this was the first time Gil joined her. Like her, he seems very nice and friendly, so it’s too bad about the chemin (path).
On that front, they’ve started work on creating the new chemin. It’s going to run between the two properties, so not too far from its current location, but still disruptive to move it. It means chopping down lots of trees, pulling out stumps and then packing down the new path. I imagine it will be finished in the coming few weeks, and hopefully, things will return to normal after that.
Friday was all about preparing for the feast that night. I even went as far as making a spreadsheet listing all the steps and how long each would take. In the end, I started cooking around 3:30 and finished just after 8:00, exactly as planned. The menu was typical: two turkey legs and a breast, coated in herb butter and roasted, stuffing, roast potatoes, mashed sweet potatoes and carrots, cranberry sauce and gravy. Our guests were Bryan and Carol, and Lee and Richard. The latter had a friend coming around the next morning to do some plastering, so they didn’t stay over. The two couples get along well, and they had a good time catching up.
We planned to be hung over on Saturday, so didn’t make any plans. We spent it like we would a Sunday, taking it easy and watching a few films. We were busier on Sunday. In the afternoon, Jenny invited us over for coffee and a catch-up. It was her birthday the day before, and Will got her a horse brooch from our Kiwi pewter people. She has a new man, Olivier, who lives in Bourges, mid-way between Limoges and Paris. He is also a horse person, and works at a military equestrian centre. They seem very good together, so here’s hoping that it continues to go well.
We ran into Lucien and Mauricette on the way, and got their review of the Soirée Britannique, which was very favourable. They are a good barometer of the local, old-school French contingent, and they thought most people enjoyed themselves, including the food. We had a similar review from our postman, Patrice and his lady friend, who we saw yesterday. We thought attendance might have been high for the first year, due to curiosity, and wouldn’t be next year, but not based on these reports.
Our second event yesterday was a 50th birthday party for Louis, husband of Hannah, our new friends that live near our old place. We met them through Alessandro, the mad Italian, who we know through Jenny. They have a small house, attached to a very large barn, which serves as Louis’ workshop. He is a carpenter, specialising in roofs, so much of the barn was taken up by huge wooden beams. Due to space limitations, they decided to have the party outdoors, and built a large bonfire in the garden. It was 17C when we drove over, but 4C when we left around 10:30, so the fire was a necessity.
There were about 40 people in all, most of whom live in the area, but a few from further afield like us. Hannah works for the Cafe Associatif, which is a bar that hosts various events including bands, artist exhibits etc., so many of the people were artsy types. This included a professional accordion player, who regaled the crowd with french classics around the bonfire. People brought various starters and desserts, and they served beef stew and a veggie curry for the main. We were surprised to run into our postman, who lives near us, but learned that his partner lives near there, which is how they know the cafe, and the hosts. We met a few new people, some english but mostly french and generally enjoyed ourselves.
We continued to have great weather all week, with temps as high as 18C, unseasonably warm for November. That has come crashing to halt today, with high temps around 5C under damp, grey skies. So it’s going to be fires all day for the foreseeable, including one I’m about to start now. That’s all the news from Mazeroux.