Tuesday, September 1, 2020

School starts


School starts today. Sophie passes a cluster of unhappy faces around the war memorial as the village children wait for the school bus. The two tikes look as though they're on their way to the guillotine. Their elder sister stares at the screen on her phone and ignores them. They sit at the back of the bus. She sits at the front.



We watch the bus head off along the lane. Sophie, is told, as I've told PONs for decades past, that a day of high adventure awaits. The PONs may change, the routine doesn't, nor, come to that, the sentiment.



Perfect weather. Like an English summers day. 20 degrees, no humidity and the faintest of breezes that could charm you for hours. Up here on the ridge the sunflowers are well past their prime. Sophie barges her way through them. Every so often she reappears on the track to make sure I'm still there. There is minnow fishing.


Back home after a trip for the morning croissant she makes it quite plain that today is a ' I'm up for anything' day.


While Angus cleans the pool his shaggy companion out stares butterflies.


Just another quiet morning in deepest, deepest France profonde. The wisteria around the front door is starting to flower for the fourth time this year. All is well with the world.

The social mine field that is Covid. : https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2020/08/31/colleges-want-professors-stay-mum-student-covid-19-cases



Music for the times : https://twitter.com/AlistairGriffin/status/1300009256817766400



11 comments:

Anonymous said...

ANGUS: last into the pool here........with a television series recommendation that is made for you and the FONT. Surprised that no one spoke of it. FRASIER. Sharply written, witty to a fault, perfectly cast, many seasons to keep you both chuckling for hours during your pre-dinner cocktail hour. In our minds (here on the Westcoast of Canada) - the best series ever! Hope you agree. Starring Kelsey Grammer and Company. Enjoy.

Lisa in France said...

Interesting link - covid and the privacy laws intersect and exacerbate the confusion. Good to see Sophie's happy face as an antidote. We've just come back from the vet's with Cherry. She suddenly took a downturn late last week and we were afraid it was her post-surgical infection come back. It wasn't that, luckily, but she didn't really improve and the vet finally figured out this morning it is a herniated disk in her neck that is causing her pain. The vet prescribed some pain relievers and assures us she'll be good to go in a week or two. It's always something with our girl - if only I'd paid more attention to those pet insurance ads back in the very beginning . . .

Angus said...

Poor Cherry. That sounds really painful. There again our PONette with titanium knees shows that adversity is taken in its stride.

Angus said...

Thank you. Now, if only I can nurse the village internet connection to talk to Netflix.

WFT Nobby said...

I'm looking forward to seeing your gorgeous wisteria flowering again. And wondering exactly how many generations of PONs there have been?

Yamini MacLean said...

Hari OM
Further to the viewing suggestions, I forgot to point you towards a purely Scottish production on the tubular...Scenes For Survival from the National Theatre. Excellent shorts. YAM xx

Coppa's girl said...

Mmmm....I wonder what the butterflies make of Sophie?

Poppy Q said...

Ohh it looks nice by the pool. Good that the kids are off to school again, life returning to normal for families.

Sheila said...

I'll second that suggestion. Perfect for you and The Font.

rottrover said...

LOVED the music video!

The Life of Riley said...

Frasier is a great show! Well written, and the theme song will make you wonder why "tossed salads and scrambled eggs" until you figure it out.