Sophie starts 'singing' at five fifty. A series of ever louder modulating whines. Nothing quite like Sophie's singing to get Angus out of bed. She doesn't sing that often but when she does neither man nor beast is going to sleep through it. We use to think that she sang because she was in pain or frightened. Now we know Sophie sings because she can. As soon as I come downstairs she stops and falls into a deep sleep. Meanwhile, Bob has helpfully started barking to let me know that his sisters awake.
After breakfast Loic the gardener shows up on his 50cc Honda. He blew all the leaves into piles when he was here earlier in the week. This morning he turns his hand to weeding. He informs me that his mother uses white vinegar to kill weeds. ' Much cheaper than weedkiller but don't mix it with water, If it's too weak it won't work '. I thank him for this handy gardening hint.
After Loic it's the turn of Aude, the bipolar decaratrice, to show up. Aude is accompanied by a friend of hers from the Womens Cooperative who does wallpapering. The wallpapering lady, who has a buzz cut and is very tall and thin, wears cargo shorts, a tee shirt with the slogan '' JUST DO IT !!! " and black lace up military boots. Aude has one of those laser measuring instruments which she has some difficulty operating. The wallpapering lady is no better. There is some confusion between metres and centimetres. The little red dot appears in unusual places. Aude writes measurements in a little book or would if she had a pen that worked. '' I only bought it this week and its run out of ink already " . The wallpapering lady tells me she needs 30 rolls of paper for the small bedroom . I check the measurements with her. Angus calculates 6 will be enough. '' I was never good at arithmetic " she says. Angus doesn't disagree.
The curtains in the dining room are taken down and a coat of grey paint applied to the dark brown window frames. After an hour the furniture is moved back into place and Aude and the lady in cargo pants leave. '' We'll be back when the wallpapers delivered " they say with that cheery imprecision that is the trademark of life in France.
Sophie, having napped in the kitchen now transfers outside for a nap en plein air.
14 comments:
Angus, I have to tell you I live in rural Australia and went to a farm dog trial today. The trials involved herding sheep through various obstacles, Couldn't believe my eyes when I saw a small, hairy, beautiful, grey and white dog with short tail and long fluffy ears herding sheep. Absolutely convinced I had seen, in the flesh, my very first Pon. Talked to the fellow who owned her and turns out she was a rare Australian breed called a Tasmanian Smithfield. This breed has been bred from dogs that came on the ship with Captain Cook. Google Tasmanian Smithfield images.
I still like to think I have seen a Pon.
Hari OM
30 rolls??!!! They could do the entire ROF with that! Well nearly. My arith is a bit (asth)matic too... nice job on the windows though. Worth noting my mother was also a fan of the white-vinegar eradication method. I guess if yer roots are pickled, yez are jus' not gonna get up in the morning. YAM xx
Thank you. Had never heard of a Tasmanian Smithfield. Perhaps just a tiny bit leggier and leaner than a PON. Looks just as mischevious though.
I am very interested in Sophie's singing. Is it a variety of tones? One long tone? A mixture of the other two tones, with added grumbling and whining? I went to the mail box yesterday, and half way back I heard howling coming from inside the house. At first I thought the house was possessed. Upon getting closer I realized it was Bailey Bob HOWLING! In all his days I have never heard him howl. When I opened the door he was sitting there looking very pleased with himself! Does this mean he has learned a new vocal sound which may continue in the future?
My late Siberian husky almost never barked, but the neighborhood owl or a passing fire engine could set her off: Arooooooo! Up and down the tonal scale.
I, too, have used white vinegar against weeds. Cheaper, and non-toxic to animal but not vegetable.
Sophie's singing is atonal but with bits of tonality thrown in. Some tones are major, most minor. Some long, some short. Sometimes she starts low and glides higher. Other times she starts high and slides down. She is as pleased as punch with her early morning performances. The canine start your day with a song approach. Howling and barking are two entirely different skill sets. Good luck with Bailey Bob - once they've discovered howling they never forget. Bob is a howler - particularly at the moon which seems to bring out the wolf in him.
Sophie’s singing reminds me of the old hymn His Eye is on the Sparrow: “I sing because I’m happy, I sing because I’m free.”
I always enjoy a look inside the ROF but don’t recall seeing this view of the dining room before. It is a beautiful room.
Vinegar is excellent for killing weeds, grass too! We have a plant that creeps underground and pokes itself up through our rock patio, so we now have great success at killing it as soon as it appears. I am still laughing about the bats. Cheers
Not sure I'd want a dawn serenade, no matter how pretty the singer !
Thank you for the tip on killing weeds - I have a new bottle of white vinegar, which is usually used in household cleaning by the more traditional of Spanish housewives. I always worry about wild animals and the dog, if I use the more lethal chemical killers.
Thank you for elaborating on Sophie's singing abilities. I did not acknowledge BB's howling performance. Since he is a traveling dog, I do hope howling is something he will forget he ever did !!!
Let's hope the maths deficit doesn't affect the paperhanging...
We use a mixture of vinegar, salt and soapy water (dishwashing liquid will do) for killing everything that pops up in the gravel. Works quickly and doesn't bother the dog.
Neither man nor beast can sleep through Sophie's singing...but did the Font and Bob manage?
Bob, no. The Font, yes.
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