Continuing with the seasonal titles, we did get some more wintery weather last week, including some snow that didn’t stick. This was mainly on Monday of last week, the day the stove was to be delivered to Anne & Andrew’s. The guy who’s doing the work called early that morning to ask if it was snowing near us, which it was. Milhac itself didn’t get any, just us in the heights, and it had mostly melted by mid-morning. So they decided to deliver the stove after all, and came to get Will and Paul who offered to help, for which my back is grateful. They got the stove into the fireplace, but with the snow and rain, the guy didn’t fancy spending the day on the roof, so the installation will take place this week instead.
I don’t need to tell you about the weather where you are, but for the record, you’ve had it much worse than we have. Minnesota takes the prize with snow, followed by temps of -33C from the polar vortex. The UK caught the tail end and they’ve also had cold temps and snow. In fact, Andrew made the local news, showing off his shovelling skills. We’ve had a few cold nights but no lower than -4C with lots of rain, mixed with sleet and snow, like it’s doing right now. We’re due for 14C on Saturday although it’s still going to rain. I’ve got loads of winter gardening to do, mainly pruning trees, and I hope the weather permits it.
It was a very quiet week in terms of work and activities. Will completed his design for the winery and is waiting for them to sign it off. I’ve had lots of small bits for existing clients, and am waiting to start a redesign. I’ve got a few other things in the pipeline including two sites for Abby, so it should pick up very soon. We haven’t had band practice for the last two weeks since Christian has been unavailable. They’re mainly busy with family problems and will be spending time visiting / helping out. I went to choir last week and will go again tonight. We’ve got a concert at the end of March and there still a few songs that need help, so we’ve got our work cut out for us.
Our only social activity for the weekend was having Francoise to dinner on Saturday night. It was the AGM for the wind farm association on Sat afternoon, and Will and I attended. There was hardly anyone there and the news was mainly depressing. Along with the rain/sleet during the drive, it wasn’t a great way to spend the afternoon. The evening, however, made up for it. Francoise arrived around 7:30 and we had the usual nibbles / cocktails for the apero. I made a spicy veggie chili with cornbread for dinner, and she made an apple/banana/chocolate crumble for dessert. We played cards and drank until midnight when she left. She’s now working full time at the chateaux, and had to work the next day. Philippe is still living at her house although there has been some progress on his place, so hopefully not for too much longer. There is no movement on selling her place and she’s still waiting for the buyers to secure a loan.
The most exciting news of the week is that we bought a new sofa for the mezzanine. We decided to go to Limoges, hoping to find a bigger selection. We first stopped at a place along the way but they didn’t have much. The next place we tried was on the outskirts of town, called the Cuir Center. We found a three-seater leather sofa, which will be made in Italy. This amuses me because the song “Italian Leather Sofa” by the band Cake keeps going through my head. We selected dark grey leather with light grey trim and firm cushions. It’s meant to be delivered in mid to late April, so we’ll make do with the current pile of crap in the meantime.