The Chinese tree peonies are wrapped in gauze to prevent the threatened snow from damaging their new buds . Despite the cold weather the peonies have started to throw of shoots in unseasonal abundance. The rose garden is also about to come into full bloom. Sophie spends her morning watching Angus wrap the gauze around the peonies. She also does some gardening of her own. It shows.
In the local paper an article about how this years truffle auctions are continuing despite the pandemic and lockdown. Bob, Sophie's brother, was an exceptionally good truffle hunter although he tended to find and then eat them .
Almost front page news is a story that the first vaccine has arrived and been dispensed to the residents of the old folks home in the next village. A veritable metropolis with a population of 800 or so souls. The matron is a next door neighbour so we can now claim to know someone who's has had the Pfizer shot. Why a village in the depths of France profonde should have been singled out to get 82 shots out of the 5500 administered in the whole of the country is a surprise.
The accompanying text tells us in breathless prose that the vaccine came from Perpignan, was stored overnight in an armoire at the pharmacy and was taken to the old folks home the following morning. Snow flakes threatened. 82 injections were planned but there was sufficient vaccine for 3 more members of staff to be vaccinated. 90 year old Madeleine said it was no more uncomfortable than 'a small sting by a bee.' We are very fortunate in having a new medical centre with a full complement of staff. Many rural parts of France find it difficult to recruit and retain GP's.
16 comments:
Kind of entertaining to watch the world poking fun at the US after yesterday's disaster in DC (and maybe reassuring as it suggests they think we'll get past it?). Living overseas for 30 years makes one aware that we Americans can seem just a little immodest at times. The truffle dealers somehow remind me of the diamond market in NYC - I guess there are probably groups of guys like this everywhere, with only the goods they are haggling over changing from place to place. I'm glad to know the vaccine reached the old folks home so quickly. We are not expecting the vaccines to hit Japan until late March or April, for reasons that make no sense to me. In the meantime, we are having a spike that was quite predictable once the government launched it's "Go Travel" program, and Tokyo is back in a state of emergency. Ok by me, working from home makes it easier to spend time with young Charlie. I have read that poodles can be trained as truffle hunters, but at the moment his focus is on socks.
Truffle markets are exciting. The sellers are lined up at tables, and the crowd is held behind a rope. The mayor shoots a gun, the rope drops and everybody scrambles to the sellers. The best truffles go fast. I know a guy (as one does), on the edge of the village and buy directly from him. In my early-pandemic hikes (off-road because I went farther and for longer than was allowed), I discovered some vineyards had been replanted with truffle oaks, well-hidden from any roads, encircled by electrified fences and video cameras. Truffles are 800€/kilo this year.
Excellent news that the vaccine has reached your corner of France.
Both Bertie and I would love to visit a truffle market. Bertie's 'enemy', Hemp the border collie, is being trained to hunt truffles, which I was surprised to learn can be found in the forests of Perthshire.
At this time of pandemic, and with the world facing disaster, and now the recent appalling events in Washington, the lure of truffles and their hunting is a good antidote to the world's ills. Personally, having tried said fungus, I'm not sure what all the fuss is about - but what do I know?
Good to hear that people near to you are having the vaccine - perhaps it won't be too long before it comes to your little village of 67 souls.
Hari OM
I'm afraid the denizens of Dunoon appear not to have received the memo; traffic and tet'a'tets as per normal beneath the Hutch's window this week. Sigh... YAM xx
Sophie, it's wonderful to see you this morning wearing your 'gardening gloves.'
Sophie isn't afraid to join Angus and get her paws dirty. Darling Bob; I think of him so often.
My blog post today was about my getting the Moderna vaccine on Wednesday - and it is just a small/quick sting and my arm is hardly sore today. Its been a bit of a slow roll out in Loudoun county. But even with the vaccine, the reality hasn’t changed, and we’ve still got months more to go -- but even if we aren’t quite there yet, it’s a reason to hope.
Congratulations on getting the jab. It may not be the answer to everything but at least it's a good start. Everyone is criticising the US and the UK governments for their ineptitude in the roll out but they're positively electric in comparison with the Europeans. Here in France at this rate of roll out we'll need to wait 25 years for our visit to the doctor.
Guess the Japanese government never thought they'd have to get in line to order the vaccine. For the first time Tokyo men in dark suits discussed the likelihood of the Olympics being cancelled last week In the UK, after an inept if not disastrous , start they seem to be recognizing the seriousness of the situation. The political ramifications of running out of ICU beds is a great way of focusing the mind. Nearly 2 million vaccinations in the UK, 25,000 in France.
The man with anger management issues is a great truffle hunter. He sells them to us. I shan't tell him they're 800 Euros a kilo.
Don't wish to pour cold water on Perthshire truffles but you have to wonder if they bear any relationship in taste to their Italian or Provencal counterparts ?
When and if it gets to our little corner of paradise remains a great unknown.
Whereas out on the islands the passengers on the daily CalMac are closely observed.
The nose has remained mud free. That's unusual.
The 5.55am wet nose in the ear wake up is missed here .
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