Wednesday, June 8, 2016

Envy.


Our postal votes for the referendum arrive. Thank heavens there are only two weeks of the campaign left to run. Pity the poor Americans who have another five months of politicking ahead of them. 

Listening to some of the outright falsehoods being peddled as fact Angus is reminded of that most political of all observations ' What profits a man if he gains the whole world but lose his soul ? '. 'The Font' thinks this is a very Calvinist view .


Bob and Sophie join me for an early morning run to the Post Office. The man behind the counter sticks an extra stamp on each of our ballot envelopes '' Just to make sure they get there in time ".


Ten thirty and its time to go for the meeting to discuss the wallpaper for the church porch. The mayor, the deputy mayor, the man with the Yorkie, the man in the day-glo jacket and the farmer with the red nose are waiting. An all male gathering.


Each of the wallpaper samples is held up and discussed. Finally, one is chosen to blend in with the painted columns that separate the frescoes. One of the columns sports the timeless phrase ' Glory to Saint Jean d'Arc who by the order of God threw the English out of France ". For the briefest of moments Angus wonders why, after you've just fought a bloody war in which millions were killed or injured, you would wish to commemorate it with a rant against your chief ally ? He quickly dismisses this cynical thought .


There are six of us in the church porch. Angus is the one without a beret.


The meeting takes an hour and a half. Measurements are taken. Then taken again. Because no one has remembered to bring a pencil they are taken a third time. The little man with the Yorkie tries to enter the details into his mobile phone. He has never done this before. 

Much mental arithmetic has to be used to determine how many rolls are needed. Allowance, I'm told, has to be made for aligning the bees correctly. The mayor suggests forty rolls. Angus points out the tiny error in the mayors calculations. Four will be sufficient if the decimal point is moved to the right place.


We then move onto the question of paint. Undercoat, paint for the wood dado rail and emulsion for the plasterwork and arches are exhaustively debated. By this stage Bob has fallen asleep. How his master envies him.

So passes a morning in deepest, deepest France profonde.

Seems that even USA Today has discovered there's a referendum in the UK :http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2016/06/07/why-brexit-make-germany-big-loser/85180498/



10 comments:

WFT Nobby said...

And Bob and Sophie's views on Calvinism are?

Kittypup said...

That pesky decimal point - just gets everywhere doesn't it!
Yet again, there's Bob showing us how to get through the most difficult of situations.

Emm said...

Glad you chose the color I preferred.
If it would get me out of having to listen to another five months of this endless campaign, I'd even do the wallpapering for you.

Coppa's girl said...

Oh Angus, what a hoot the "choosing of the wallpaper" meeting turned out to be ! Forty rolls? Methinks the mayor has it in mind to repaper his parlour at your expense.
Bob definitely had the right idea, but you'll both need to get yourselves a beret if you are to blend in !

Bella Roxy & Macdui said...

We're in the middle of a particularly boring election, too. And we have nearly another month to go.

Heda said...

Perfect choice. Love the gold bees on the antique white background (if that is indeed what it is internet colours being what they are). Mind you, I'm sure the other options were equally as acceptable. What's more important is that the berets were happy.

BaileyBobSouthernDog said...

I Love seeing pictures of your church, it is breath takingly beautiful. I, too, was hoping for that wallpaper sample. So glad Bob was at the meeting, to help keep order!

Unknown said...

An excellent choice of wallpaper and all wonderfully described.

MrsDuncanMahogany said...

I laughed out loud at 40 rolls. That's quite a bit isn't it? I can't wait to see the final outcome!

Kari said...

I would not have expected the selection of wallpaper to be an all male decision. I'm sure it will be lovely when hung. I suppose Jean d'Arc is far enough out from the lingering pain of the war when so many were lost.