At Home in dordogneville

Hello All
Down here in the sleepy hollow of Dordogneville things have been quite agitated of late with elections and politics seeming to impact on everyones lives much more so than I remember it having done in the past. Even the children at school talked about the French elections, who they would vote for and what their lives would be like if X or Y got in. I would like to hope that the importance of voting is finally impacting on the thought processes of young people. I will not hold my breath, however, as until one is able to vote on that infernal piece of tech that seems to have become the embodiment of the new hand, and once politics has become slightly less, unpredictable, we may return to the monotony of  "what's the point of voting, my vote doesn't make any diference anyway".

So, moving swiftly on, it has been a while since I ventured onto my blogging page and quite a few things other than politics have happened. We have nearly finished lambing and we are nearly free of 3 of our pups who will shortly be off to their new homes in the Gironde chasing sheep and making other people happy. I will be happy again as I will be able to have a normalish structure to my sleep pattern, and not have to wake at some point around 5 in the morning to the dulcet tones of squeaking puppies wanting to play. Adorable though they are, trying to walk from one side of a room to another at 5 o'clock before one's first cup of tea, dodging the landmines that have been left throughout the night whilst minute holes are being pierced into your socks, slippers or bare legs now it is warmer, is not my ideal wake up scenario. We are off to the vets tomorrow for our first vaccinations. I wonder how many extra hands I will need to control all the wiggling legs and bitey teeth.

Emily, much to her relief, has completed her time at Bordeaux Uni and passed her year. She has found a job and is saving like mad to enable her first year at uni in Tilburg to be a little less stressful financially. I am lucky enough to have her assistance at the house inbetween times so that Gavin and I can get a few jobs done before she disappears off and leaves the three of us to fend for ourselves.

I have been trying to provide everyone with a more rounded educational experience and having visited Bordeaux to see Swan Lake during April, I dragged tham off to see The Pearl Fishers in May at The Opera House in Bordeaux. I enjoyed it very much and I think the rest of them did too. Although, Emily squeeled off with a sore head before we had even left the house and number 3 did a lot of fidgeting and received a blow by blow translation of what was happening in the story. Fortunately there was lots of activity on the stage, though I was a little perturbed that I may have checked in for the wrong kind of performance when the group of men at the back of the stage started to take their clothes off..... Phew! Thats a relief, they stopped at their underods and then started to pretend they were the fisherman diving for pearls. I guess they found some dancers for this role as though some time has pased since I watched an opera, I don't remember "abs" being part of the prerequisite for tenors, baritones and bases.

Gavin had a tussle with a Western Whip Snake the other day as it had invaded the shelves of his workshop. I discovered that my African husband really does not like snakes, at all unless he has a 12 bore shotgun in his hand. So when I suggested he take a photo for posterity as he crept across the garden with said snake clasped in my kitchen tongs, I was met with a rather irritated gaze and an exaperated "Why would I stop for a photo opportunity when the little b*****d is trying to bite me". At the time of course we did not know what kind of snake it was. It is in fact non venemous. Not sure that this would have changed his stance about the photo though.....
See you all soon
​Helenx

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