Rural Life

Day 6 of Deconfinement Diary - getting back to the new normal

Saturday morning is market time in Baugé, and I've been faithful to local stall holders and producers as much as I can be during lockdown.  The market was given permission to expand to include all the usual stallholders although it remains in the Place de Europe in front of the Chateau, rather than up in the market place.  It was really nice to see old chums back.  The lady who sells crèpes and gallettes was there and delighted to be back - she seems to have found lockdown very hard, particularly as she is a very social soul, so not seeing anyone for days clearly affected her.  I was also delighted to find that the Moroccan lady who does wonderful savoury stuffed pancakes and delicious cakes was back, so I could stock up on all the yummy things we have missed over the last two months.

After lunch (mostly Moroccan yummy things) we went out to do stuff, with first stop at a Vide Maison.  A widowed friend managed to sell her house just before lockdown, and can now disperse her stuff, prior to final signatures and heading back to Réunion to be with her children and grandchildren.  We will be sad to see her go.

My husband is very special - he got me a present on Thursday - a trailer full of horse poo.  Today I got to spend a chunk of the afternoon transferring it to a wheelbarrow and then taking it down the hill to sit and mature near where it will be needed.  How kind!

Each time I went down the hill, I was able to admire these flowers that came from some random bulbs I bought at Aldi and planted last autumn.  As I've lost the packaging, I've no idea what they are, but I am really enjoying them.

Today's cat pin-up is Fergus, looking rather imperial.  Until a couple of seconds before I took this, his back paw was pointing at the sky, but it came down, so pretty perfect!

Day 4 of deconfinement diary - personal grooming

When lockdown was announced, a massive wail went up from ladies all over France - no hairdressers and no beauticians!  O M G!!!  What were we ladies to do?  Our hairdressers sent out dire warnings about trimming fringes, home colouring and DIY hair cuts - wait they said, it will all be OK, and we will have more to work with, to make you look beautiful.  The two tone hair look was accepted for once.  Similarly for beauticians - they sent out advice and a long list of DO NOT DO THIS AT HOME, as well as DO TRY THIS AT HOME strictures, and many started to get their products ordered on line and made available at Drive pick up points.

With deconfinement however, life can get back to normal - or sort of normal anyway.  In the interests of this blog, and more importantly for my own peace of mind, I had an appointment today at the beauticians.  The rules are strict - arrive on time, not early; wear a facemask; bring the minimum into the place with you; use the gel at the entrance on your hands on arrival.  Once installed in your treatment room, it was also clear that the nice soft coverings had been removed and paper towels cover the treatment bed.  When you have to remove your facemask, you have to remain silent until you put your mask back on.  When I booked my next appointment, Noemie said that I would need to follow the same rules again.  "It's sad," she said, "but I can't see it changing for a while."  In faultless French of course.

There is an option for a voluntary contribution to the extra costs of maintaining strict hygiene, as they try to avoid increasing prices - I added a few coins to the pot.  We are all in this together after all.

The outward face of the house is looking rather splendid at the moment, as I have tended that rather than my own façade.  The geraniums I got from Aldi last year made it through the winter, and a bit of TLC meant they are blooming fit to bust.

The canna lilies, lemon verbena and vine are also looking very lush just now, although it will be a few months before the cannas flower.

The climbing rose that John pruned a bit late now has flowers.

And I am very pleased with my semper vivum drainpipe planters.

Day 3 of Deconfinement Diary - well that's what my brother said I should call it!

Wednesday is market day in la Flèche in the Sarthe department, just over the border from us and a mere 18 kilometres on the roads (a bit less as the crow flies, but not much).  It is the best market for miles around and I have been using it every week for the last 15 years.  During confinement, that was actually a bit dodgy, and I was probably lucky I wasn't caught by the Evil Gendarme.  The ones that I met, who checked my attestation getting into the market, were always fine and charming.  But a friend knows people who were fined and sent home without getting their goodies, so yes, I reckon I was lucky.

With deconfinement, it wasn't totally clear how the market was going to work, but it was certainly going to happen.  When I got there this morning, the clothes, shoes, kitchen goods and live chicken stands were all set up facing le Loir.  If you wanted the good stuff - food, flowers, plants - you had to join the queue (again), as numbers in the inner square where that bit of the market was, were still tightly controlled.

The big difference going in this week, was that if you didn't have a face mask on or with you, you were given one (and possibly a sharp talking to).  Fortunately I had mine, so once numbers allowed, I was let in to shop until I dropped, or couldn't carry anything else.  I was able to get all that I wanted (or could remember - total fail on bananas) - butter, milk, yoghurts, rice puddings, cakes, cheese, fish, salads, vegetables, black pudding (the real French boudin type - yummy), paté, bacon, and gossip.  What bliss!

Some stall holders weren't finding it as easy as you might expect.  You would think that with an enclosed space and newly found freedom, people would take the time to look at all the stalls.  It appears not!  My friend Brigitte took the following two photos - she sells beautiful cut flowers, and this was her first week back at the market.  She found she was on the side of the square less visited, with few passing by.

As a contrast, she took a photo of the "main drag" through the centre of the square, with rather more people.  It is particularly sad for her as at each end of her row, there were big stands selling plants, but people went round the back of her to get to them.  Both fishmongers were on the main drag, as well as the coffee bean stand.

The bloke that sells yoghurts was on the other side of the main drag, and was also having a slow time of it - again his first day back.  I heard him discussing the challenges of positioning with either a journalist or local councillor, so there may be changes next week.  It is very hard for these small producers as the markets are their main route for selling to the public, and they really do need people to come back to them.  As the Yoghurt Man said, it was like trying to rebuild the business from scratch - the 10 years he had already spent on the markets seemed to be forgotten by many.

 

Day 36 of lockdown - I was only out for half an hour...

Yesterday's yoga seemed to help with the sleeplessness and weird nightmares - well, I woke up less often and the weird dream was much more pleasant and drifted around nice things, so a better experience.  So once I had done most of the work I wanted to do today, I decided to go for a walk.  As John is out working, I had to walk places where I knew I wouldn't be far from real life if I did anything silly.

I started out from our house and cut through the Pas de Mule park to the road past the plan d'eau - our little fishing lake and park.  Normally in mid-May I help out with a trout fishing day here, but it has been cancelled for 2020.  This is a shame, although as it would attract more than 50 people, it is a no-no.

I carried on up the other side of the valley, heading for the route de Beaufort, and before I got to the bridge over the Voie Verte I became very aware of the pungent smell of hawthorn blossom (or may flower) from the trees that line the path.  I think that is a good sign on a number of levels.

I carried on to the route de Beaufort and headed in the direction of Baugé.  The commune had been out and about cleaning the ditches with a digger - in my view there is little point in cleaning the bottom of the ditch if you spread broken plastic waste up the sides, but what do I know?

Once I got to the route de Pont de Godeau I turned back towards Vieil Baugé and went past one of the crossing points/access points for the Voie Verte - it is the route of an old railway line, so is ideal for cycling and joggers and for those that don't do hills.

I followed the road back into the village, past a bee keeper capturing a swarm, and up and round the church, stopped for a while at the Mairie to read the latest notices and then drifted back home again.  It was perhaps 2 kilometres and half an hour out of the house but I felt better for it.  I then released the feathered vandals and went back to the house to get a glass of squash, finish the work task for the day and write this blog.  Like I say, I was only out for half an hour, so where did the lettuce and tomato plants come from?  Goodness knows what I am going to do with the tomato plants as I've got 19 Gardeners Delight in pots anyway, while the feathered vandals will likely trash the lettuces as soon as I plant them, but someone really was very kind!

Day 30 of lockdown - another Wednesday

It is Wednesday, so it is market day at la Flèche - another anxious drive up the road and a surprising amount of traffic.  Normally there are quite a few lorries, but today there were a lot, or so it felt.  There were also quite a few cars, but no police checks on the way or while queueing to enter the market square.  I was earlier, and the queue was just as long as last week but seemed to move through more quickly.  The lady in front of me thought that 4 metres was a good distance for social isolation!

Anyway, I was able to stock up on cheese, milk and butter, and I bought nice fish and chicken wings and got a good dollop of vegetables, so I felt that small cakes were my rascal's reward for my efforts!  Today there were more cars parked in the town, so I was by the river.  Le Loir is the little brother of la Loire further south, and to my mind rather prettier.  When she is in full flood, la Loire is majestic and huge, but in the summer, the river bed is full of sandbanks and the water takes up perhaps a third of the space.  She is also treacherous and deadly.  Le Loir seems to have a more stable flow and has many small, pretty towns and villages along it, with the occasional chateau, and a few weirs.  Here is the view at la Flèche.

On the 4th April (day 19 of lockdown) I wrote about setting seeds for the new growing season.  Well, some are coming up - 17 butternut squashes, a similar number of sweet corn and lots of Moneymaker tomatoes.  With very limited window sill space indoors, we are getting them used to the great outdoors already!

John pruned back the rambling rose on the side of the house that is on the road, but he did it a bit late, so there were a number of buds in the prunings.  We put them in a vase and now one is out already, and very beautiful it is too!

 

Day 28 of lockdown - apparently it's a bank holiday

Today it really is quiet.  Normally on Easter Monday we would be able to hear the funfair in Baugé Place de l'Europe, and would discuss whether we were going to go in to see the crowds and the market, and most years deciding that we won't.  But this year there is no choice.  So quiet, that even though it is a day to feed the cats in the country, we haven't dared to go out to do that!

This morning I did go out on an abortive attempt to buy croissants and baguette, not realising that our bakers are now closed on a Monday.  Still it did mean I got out for a short walk this morning.  It was grey and dull but not cold and I never really tire of this particular view.

There should be a photo of the road leading down to the pub and the lake but it doesn't seem to want to load today!  O wait, I've got it sorted!

We did useful things in the garden in the morning and then in the afternoon I finished sewing all the pieces together of the new cover for the pergola.  Now I have to think about how it is going to be attached to the frame and where I can get any necessary supplies from!

And I want to put in a picture of the full donut of the cover - so far it hasn't worked...  sixth time lucky!

The quince is now in full bloom which looks rather lovely.

And I am now fed up with fighting technology.  Enjoy the rest of your bank holiday!

 

Day 26 of lockdown - waiting for the Easter Bunny

Although I doubt he will put in an appearance here this year but we do still have 2 Cadbury's Crème Eggs saved in the fridge for tomorrow!

Saturday is market day in Baugé en Anjou and each week the market gets a bit bigger in size as the stall holders work out what is possible in the current restrictions.  I have to go to one shop as well to pick up my vital order of loose leaf Earl Grey tea - left at a shop for me by the owner of the tea rooms that are closed for the moment.  As you can imagine, it is a struggle to walk to the top of this road to get my order!

It is also a bind standing in a queue when you can admire our 15th Century chateau, built by good King René d'Anjou.

The orchid has now opened, and it was worth the wait.

Finally, I managed to get all the cutting done, and then set to with the old faithful Singer hand cranked sewing machine and have got four lots of two segments, and one lot of four segments, which I laid out on the lawn to see what they looked like.

Day 25 of lockdown - trying to do crafts with a bit of "help"

Although not a bank holiday in France, Good Friday is not a day I work.  Normally I would spend the morning at the expat Hot Cross Bun party in aid of Children in Need, but this year we are all having to do it alone in our own homes.  Nibbles would like to demonstrate good practice in social distancing and isolation.

As the weather is stunning, I thought this afternoon would be a good time to make a start on the new fabric cover for the gazebo.  I made a new cover about 4 years ago now, but sun, bird poo, rutting ladybirds and rotting peaches have all taken their toll and it is probably a greater health hazard than Covid-19.  I use the outdoor dining table as my cutting and sewing table (hence needing nice weather) but others find the area useful as well.  While I was setting up, I had to avoid this.

Surprisingly, it isn't a bad accident between bantam and cats, but a prolonged dust bath in a human trap they have constructed near the table.  Bridie was not moving, so I had to work around her. 

I bought this fabulous material last year, and the turquoise piece is the pattern I made last time round, so I was able to start to pin out the 1m by 1.6m sections.

I'd got four sections done (I need 12) and was working on the next two, when Nibbles decided to help.

I had to give up and come in when Poirot joined in and Zola was making a nest in the fabric on the floor.  I'm hoping they are getting bored while I do this blog and I will be able to another few sections before apero time.

Day 20 of lockdown - the battle with the Asian hornet

Before we get onto that - just a reminder of how on edge people are.  A banal but heated discussion between someone with a right to park in the shared courtyard, and someone else whose right is pretty well non-existent escalated into a heated exchange between four neighbours yesterday evening.  One person with nothing to do with the conversation got right in there and started hurling accusations around in a very heated manner.  Now while I admit that the person in question would beat herself up if put in a paper bag on her own, it is evidence of the short fuse people are on, and when given the opportunity to get stuck into something that is non-Covid-19 related, will do just that.  Walk away people!  It ruined a lovely evening.

But on to more interesting things - the fight against the Asian hornet.  Before anyone says anything about "nature", these are an invasive non-native species that can eat their way through a hive of honey bees in about a week.  There is no up side to them.  We were recruited in February to be part of an "observatoire", made up of 56 sites across our district, to try to trap queens in the period up to mid-May when they are laying and nurturing the queens that will create the big nests of the summer.  Stopping one queen now prevents between 10 and 20 nests of hornets later in the summer, each of which can overwinter a further 5 queens.  Think of all those social distancing tree diagrams you've seen recently.

Anyway, we are hosts to 3 traps, one at home, one where the cats are and one with a client who has had trouble with hornets in the past.  The traps are designed to entice the queens in, but not let them out again (although their efficacy in that is also part of the test). 

In the trap you put a pot of bait with a lot of pebbles or similar, so that good insects don't drown in the bait which is made up of a third dark, sweet beer, a third fruit syrup ideally blackcurrant or grenadine (in our case out of date Ribena), and a third dry white wine, to keep bees away from it.

Today, John checked the one with the cats, as they needed feeding, and we think we have caught one!  The photo below has been sent to the main man running the observatoire for his views, so I will confirm if we have been successful properly when he gets back to me.  We are ever so excited though.

 

Day 12 of lockdown - market day

On Monday, our lovely and somewhat scary Prime Minister tightened the rules on lockdown, including open air markets - and I was devastated.  What he said was that in principle, all open air markets should be banned, but that Prefets could change that decree at the local level.  I believe that his reasoning was based on Paris and some of the other major cities, where there had been something of a scrum at the markets, and bizarrely it is easier to ban at national level and allow local exceptions than the other way round.  This is the case with bonfires for example.

So on Wednesday I was able to go to my principle market and get all sorts of good things, including raw milk and butter, as the Prefet of the Sarthe allowed la Flèche market to go ahead, strictly regulated of course (see day 9).  The Prefet of Maine et Loire was much less open to exceptions, and it was getting really rather nasty on social media.  The mayor of Baugé en Anjou, Philippe Chalopin, contacted the Prefet, told him about the measures that had already been put in place for a producers market to ensure security and access to local produce, and told him about the potential revolution, and was accorded the right to run the market today!  We found out yesterday.

The Saturday market is normally very vibrant, food only and vendors come in from around the department, but today it was restricted to local producers.  Nonetheless we had dry goods (pasta for example that is made down the road) and flour, eggs, vegetables and fruit, goat's cheeses, a butcher - 9 stands in all providing an excellent local service.  The stands were well spaced and those waiting were well disciplined and kept a good 2 to 3 metres between each other.  I was also able to pick up my order of loose Earl Grey tea (without which life becomes very harsh indeed) from a shop on the high street.

Thank you Mr Chalopin for perservering with the Prefet!