I still have photos of the Château de Chambord that I took in June and haven't yet posted. Here are a few of them. That visit seems like it happened an age ago. It was four weeks ago today.
Since then, Callie the collie died suddenly and unexpectedly. Tasha the new puppy learned how to walk down all the stairs in the house as well as to walk up them, so she's independent now and has the run of the house. She's really growing up. We had Callie's body cremated and now we have received the ashes from the vet's. We are trying to plan a time to go out and scatter them in Callie's favorite wooded area on the edge of the vineyard.
Then the clutch went out on the Peugeot. We almost decided to sell the car, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. It's the car we bought in 2003, the year we came to live here. I guess the car has too much sentimental value for me to be willing to part with it. Sometimes the pace of change gets to be too fast and you have to try to slow it down.
Finally, the weather has become bearable again. It was blazing hot for much of June. Then it turned uncomfortably chilly for a week or so. In early July, it turned hot again. Right now the mornings are slightly brisk, but the afternoons are warm and sunny. High temperatures are in the mid-70s to 80 in ºF (mid-20s in ºC). It's the way it's supposed to be.
July 4 and July 14 — our 15th of each in France — are now history for another year. Summer is on cruise control. The garden is growing. I'll get the Peugeot back from the mechanic's in three or four days and we'll put the Citroën back in the garage, taking it out only for longer drives. We'll putt-putt around the area in the old Peugeot, from supermarket to bakery and back, the way we've been putt-putting around for the last 14 summers. Vive la France !
As Walt reported on his blog, we caught the mouse in the house last night. Poor thing. It got caught by the snap trap.
ReplyDeleteFor mice, cheese is irresistible!
DeleteThat happened to me once ... seeing that poor dead little thing finished me off. I cried and cried over what I did.
DeleteWe tried using the stupid glue paper or whatever it is ... of course they get their faces stuck to it and die in agony.
I am lately of the mind to either let the cats deal with it or leave the mice alone. In my old age, I have become kind.
sometimes.
I meant to say that those photos you posted yesterday were just beautiful, Ken! And, these Chambord photos are a nice memory! What a lovely time we had with you that day, and that evening, on your terrace :)
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you felt good about keeping the Peugeot!
Judy
We had a family of mice in our walk-in eaves about 20 years ago when our daughter was about 10. We caught them on successive days with a non-harming trap and noted that they got smaller and smaller day by day. The daughter volunteered to walk the trap to the end of the lane daily and let the mice go and I stressed it should be a long way away from the house. One day - about 5 mice into the progression - I saw her empty the trap right by our fence - much too close. When I challenged her she said," Oh sorry, Mum, but I didn't want to split up a family". !!
ReplyDelete