Milder this morning. A layer of cloud wrapping the ridge in warmth. Sophie and her master wander along the lane. We stop to greet the horses who look at us , unblinking, and hope we've brought carrots. Then it's onto the storm drain. Sophie sits next to me and leans in as I discuss the state of the world. She has her ears tickled and is told, as she's told every morning, that this is her home. Some days she acknowledges this with a quick lick of my cheek but not today. She's off at high speed in pursuit of a young deer that's popped out of the shelter of the walnut trees onto the lane. The family diva pauses to absorb the audacity of this behaviour then throws her head back, howls and chases after it. She goes all of twenty yards then stops. Sophie belatedly recognizes the deer has gone and that further pursuit is hopeless.
The village completely quiet. The local restaurants and bars once again closed. The schools on Halloween holidays. Another 42,000 cases reported yesterday.The unsmiling woman who owns the little restaurant near the power station is giving up the uneven struggle against the lockdown. She's closing for good despite it being the best restaurant in twenty miles. The curfew rules means she has to close by nine. Here that's the time most French are thinking of going out to eat. The man who has the shop that sells lawnmowers and garden implements kept going through the first bout of the virus but has now laid off his staff and opted to stay at home and excavate a swimming pool. This second 'autumn weather' wave will have a deeper economic impact than the first. In Scotland there are some signs that the spread of the virus is slowly starting to tail off.
Back at The Rickety Old Farmhouse I check the garden for fallen branches and discover that the deer have helped themselves to the recently planted cyclamen. The builder is due this morning. 'The Font' thinks it will be most unlikely he'll show up on a weekend. Sophie fixes me with that PONette stare which makes it quite plain that the garden can wait. Curly croissant ends are a more pressing priority.
4 comments:
So sad that a fine local restaurant is closing. If only your neighbours could be persuaded to adopt Aberdonian eating out habits. Here, dining at six pm or even earlier is quite normal.
Loved the chimpanzee article.
Hari OM
I agree, this second wave will have a deeper impact. Mainly because the first wave was not really managed so well and no resilience was built in from it. Yes, for Scotland, within the fact that hospital intakes are increasing here, is the fact that in the last three weeks those intakes have proportionately dropped back. Long may this continue! The numbers you quote for France are scary indeed. Stay safe and well yourselves, please! YAM xx
So sorry to hear that your restaurant is closing for good. Here the locals usually eat late too - a Mediterranean custom. No curly croissant ends either - that's terrible!
Spain has now had over a million cases, and it's difficult to see where this will end - no matter where you live. Our numbers dropped, but I read today that they are on the rise again - even in our little corner, which has the lowest numbers in the country. My feeling is that no matter how much the politicians feel they run a country, the virus is controlling us all!
If you can get the builder to get moving now, the pergola might be done by May. Better to keep him coming, installing the tiles, and maybe he'll get to the pergola sooner. Also, if you don't pay another centime until it's all done. It's crazy, because so many people are out of work, he certainly can find labor.
Post a Comment