Ups and Downs of Daily Life

 28.9.20 - 30.9.20:

Monday I took the bus to the local clinic for my pre op visit with the anaethestist and the administration. As luck would have it, someone from the village was controlling entries so she let me in and saw me right so well that I was dealt with and out 10 minutes before my scheduled appointment! Enough time to scoot around the supermarket and get the bus back without delay. Oh, could it have been the same for my trip to Perpignan for a routine check up with a specialist. Bus times have changed and there are now only 3 buses direct to Perpignan. There is the possibility of  a seamless pick up about 4 miles out of the village but my bus was a little late; the connecting bus was still at the stop but blow me, didn't the driver pull off before my bus had come to a stop!!! Luckily I'd planned for such an eventuality and left earlier than need be and the sun was shining. Nothing else to do but find a rock to sit on and wait the hour out before the next bus came along. Thank goodness for a phone well stocked with reading material. Not sure that protest letters will make any difference but getting about without a car is going to be so much more difficult for me and others like me. The icing on the cake was that the specialist, who is new, wasn't up to speed with my file. During the 15 minute appointment I had to challenge him a couple of times. He'll maybe get another chance next year but if I hear that others don't rate him, I'll change to someone else.

Thank goodness there were some pleasurable moments along the way. Some music ♫ ♫ at the café on Monday evening, coffee with Nicole and Françoise on Tuesday morning and on my way home Jacques invited me in for an impromptu lunch. Then on Wednesday night JJ and I went over to Jean and Françoise's for take-away pizza.

Weather:

After the cold weekend, temperatures rose steadily, reaching a very pleasnt 25° on Wednesday

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Autumn is a coming!

 21.9.20 - 27.9.20: Equinox came and went

Did some entertaining chez moi this week. An apéritif for Jean and Françoise (23rd) and tea for Jeanne, the American who is immersed in the complications of buying a house in the village (25th). Involving rather more work was a farewell dinner for David and Laura. On the menu was Lemon Cinammon Pork served with couscous and toasted almonds followed by a seriously good "Torte Royale"; chocolate laced with strong coffee and Tia Maria. An adult cake that's rich and dark so, if that's your thing you won't be disappointed. Went even farther on the over-indulgence scale by serving it with marscapone pepped up with Tia Maria. If that's a step too far for you, no worries, the torte is very moist and doesn't actually need anything else. https://www.thatslife.com.au/torte-royal  Even though we were joined by Jacques and JJ (Michel couldn't come) I'm not ashamed to say that I was delighted that there was some left for me to have with my afternoon cuppa during the week!

Other coffee breaks were taken at the café with the folk who no

longer go to the Language exchange (24rd), Françoise on 25th and 26th and with Michel and his visitors, Claude and Françoise (27th). It became progressively windier and colder, so by the Sunday we were the only ones to brave the terrace. Sweaters, jackets and shoes have replaced tee shirts and sandals; smiles replaced by gritted teeth and hunched shoulders!

There was an escape from the village on 23rd with a trip down to Argeles with Lynne and though quite breezy, the sun was warm and a walk around the marina and along the sea front was enjoyable. Of course, there was a lunch stop overlooking the sea. We went with "Les Planches" where Lynne had already eaten. Shame the waiter was somewhat offhand. Even with a mask on, the feeling came through. https://www.les-planches-argeles.com/carte-restaurant-les-planches/

 Lunch at the village restaurant the next day with Hortense was so much better and cheaper. She was impressed with the  quality and ceativity of the food, the service and the relaxed atmosphere which lent itself to our long conversations.

The market on Saturday was less jovial than usual due to the strong wind and fewer folk going about their shopping. Still, the weekend was not without its pleasurable moments in the company of others. After - lunch coffee at Michel's and Sunday lunch of roast chicken back there meant that I had a break from organising my photos and watching tv. An added bonus was that there was no need to cook anything. A boiled egg sufficed.

Weather: Temperatures dropped from 25° on Monday to 16° on Sunday; the sky became more and more cloudy bringing some rain showers which even 3 days of very strong winds didn't blow away.

Making the most of the sunny days

 11.9.20 - 17.9.20: Making up for "lost time"

Luckily, my test came back negative as the next morning there was a trip to the Opthalmologist in preparation for my cataract operation. Jacques was kind enough to take me which was just as well as the bus times have changed and not for the better. Getting to Perpignan is going to be more of a hassle than usual.

Time drifts by at a leisurely pace with a few islands of activity along the way. The market on Saturday was lively as village Associations were also on the square recruiting new members accompanied by some music. Lunch time Jacques came to the rescue once again by treating Nicole and I to tapas at the restaurant. Back to the café on Sunday to meet Martine for coffee and later Jacques joined us for an apéro before giving us lunch at his place. Only just had enough time to knock up some flapjacks to take to my neighbour, Françoise's. She'd invited her neighbours for an apéritif dinatoir before her return to the North of France. Lots of nice things to eat and drink. The photo doesn't show all as 6 more adults and two children joined us. There's no rule of 6 here! 

My next trip past the front door was on Wednesday when I went for a routine blood test (all fine) and to meet Hortense for a catch up. Hadn't see her since the beginning of February so throats were dry by the end. Also managed to have a good chat with Henri on my way past another café so I'm back in the good books for not having been in touch. Out again this morning for a coffee with Nicole and was later joined by the Thursday group. Was busily tapping away updating Chitchat this afternoon when Françoise invited me to join her and Jean for an apéro down in Argelès. 20 minutes later we were on our way! See, I can do impromptu.

The rest of the time, I've kept up my treadmill sessions and am now up to an incline of 6 at a speed of 5.8 km/hr. Just imagine the smug smile. Less palatable as I can't watch an episode of my latest series fix while I work, was getting the middle cave cleared for David to take all the rubbish to the tip. Don't recognise myself!

Weather: Warm sunny days of 31°

18.9.20 -20.9.20: More like old times

A warm sunny weekend with plenty going on.  There was a vernissage on Friday with some easy on the eye paintings; watercolours , charcoal and oils by two different artists. Nicole, Martine, Carmen and I didn't linger too long, prefering to go down to the café for an apéritif. After a while we went off in search of something to eat and ended up in a pleasant square with a fountain. 

Saturday, there was music at the market which meant that more people lingered at the café to soak up the atmosphere. Well, all except JJ who'd invited some of us (Jean, Françoise, Martine and Carmen) for a fish dinner that evening.

An early start on Sunday meant that there wasn't any time to get on the treadmill but I well and truly bypassed the recommended 10,000 steps with all the walking during the day. Jacques had invited David, Laura and myself to Guissan where he has a chalet (on stilts) by the sea. En route we stopped off at the picturesque village of Peyriac for a coffee, some exploration and to see the flamingoes which disappointingly weren't pink but white. From there we carried on along the coast to Bages, another

pretty place with medieval streets and a view over the sea. By the time we arrived in Guissan, we could only look in at the house and set off for lunch at "Le Sarment". Spent a good part of the afternoon wandering through the village where there was a craft fair on and climbing up to Red Beard's tower. Back at the chalet Laura and I opted for deck chairs on the terrace while the blokes went off to swim. The only other thing to do before pointing the car in the direction of home was to stop off at the salt flats and contribute to the local eceonomy in the shop where salt came in a variety of flavours and packaging. Home with no need to eat and no need to feel guilty about flopping in front of the tv having had our fair share of fresh sea air and exercise. Good feelings all round. 

Weather: 27°, sunny

The Cost of a Glass of Rosé!

3rd  - 10th September 2020: 

Well, what a difference an email makes! One from Roger popped into my inbox informing me that the previous Saturday he and his son had been in contact with someone whose girlfriend had tested positive near Barcelona, where there are a number of Covid hotspots, . They'd also made several other stops in the area. If you've read the last post, you'll know that I had spent time with him and his son at the bar the other night. Dilemma .... what to do? Although the risk was probably minimal, I decided to take a test  and confine myself to barracks just in case. Wasn't worried overly but felt that I should be responsible viz-à-vis others. I got the impression though that most people thought I was a bit OTT. 

There was enough food in the house to see me through so there was no need to take up any of the offers of shopping that came my way. Time passed without any difficulty; did some of those domestic chores that have been in abeyance since I don't know when, read the papers and even cooked myself some food. Surprisingly, I did less tv watching and more listening to music, both cds and vinyl. Also took care to keep up my pre breakfast hour on the treadmill and to eat my meals on the terrace while reading "Killing Eve" to get a good dose of vitamin D from the sunshine. Had regular calls from friends to see that I was ok which gave me another human being to talk to. One from Maggie was to tell me that she'd just received the card I'd sent from UK postmarked 4th April!

Of course there were things that I missed out on; an appointment with the opthomologist, a concert at the bar, the Saturday market, Sunday morning coffee, a trip to the coast with Jean and Françoise, lunch at Lone's and helping out at a Cancer Support day. 

France doesn't claim to have a world beating testing service but I was able to have a test just 3 miles from here as soon as the 7 day wait was up. It was quick; didn't hurt, just a bit uncomfortable. Results were available online within 24 hours a    nd expected, was negative. In all honesty, the week's wait for the test was no hardship at all and I didn't even succumb to opening a bottle of cava or bar of chocolate!

Weather: Hot and sunny, 28° - 30° until Tuesday, 7th when it rained all day and for
the next morning made temperatures drop to 24°.

Rolling into Autumn

 1.9.20: Gosh, isn't the year going quickly? Here we are entering the last quarter with the sun lower in the sky, shorter days and the fledgling swallows getting ready to head off. Storks have been sighted making their way south. Life certainly doesn't stand still.

Another trip to Perpignan for another routine appointment and again, it was all clear. Ann kindly took me there so this time I didn't have to rely on public transport. It's always a relief to get an "all clear" which was all the excuse I needed, to join Lone, my Danish friend, at the bar for a glass of rosé. On arrival, she was there already in the company of Roger and 3 of his family. We stayed on for a couple more glasses after they had left to make the most of the time Lone has left here. Given the Danish Government had just brought in the need to quarantine, her husband had decided not to come and join her so she was cutting short her stay. Shame but that's the way that holiday plans are going for lots of people at the moment.

2.9.20: Back again to Perpignan; this time for pleasure and another exhibition. The anuual Visa exhibition of photo journalism despite the Covid restrictions, was taking place, albeit in a much reduced form. There were several live exhibitions, of course the "Off" in commercial pemises and a lot of online content.  https://www.visapourlimage.com/en https://www.visapourlimage.com/en   Needless to say there was a lot of walking involved and a head full of hard to see images and hard to read stories. The photo is from an exhibition about the Mohara people from the Indus Valley where their river based way of life is fast disappearing due to pollution destroying the ecosystem. We did, however, have a welcome and much needed break for lunch sitting in a small square where thankfully there was some shade. The little dining room was very kitch and retro. More like someone's front room. Food tasty, too. Will definitely return https://www.facebook.com/MartineCuisinePerpignan/

Weather: Very warm and sunny 28°