French Escape

  We are constantly compromising with those around us, to make sure that our world runs smoothly. Some situations require more effort than others. Walking on a busy street, we all have to make minor corrections in order to prevent ourselves crashing into each other. Imagine if we all continued to walk on our chosen path, without adjusting for the presence of others, it would be chaos. Sharing a space with someone requires a different sort of adjustment, especially when that space is limited.  In England, there was a three bedroomed house with many rooms and two people, one of whom worked. Those two people now share a small apartment and both are retired.  A new routine needed to be established, space for each negotiated.  It is especially difficult when both parties are trying to make it easier for the other, trying to anticipate needs, trying to read thoughts, This can lead to misunderstandings, misinterpretations and missed opportunities. When both are trying too hard not to tread on

I admit that I have meandered through life since I arrived in Menton, been very lazy really.  There have been a few niggles but nothing that bothered me while I was on my own.  The hot water  in the apartment  was merely a trickle  but when there's a heat wave, who needs hot water?  There isn't a TV, but I have books and there's always Netflix on my laptop.   I had meant to make an appointment to register with a doctor...  And then, there was an annoying rattle on the Jag (as if I had a playing card in the spokes). It didnt bother me, I couldn't hear it if I turned the radio up. However since Stuart has arrived, the car has been through the car wash, filled up with fuel and is  booked in for new bearings on a wheel .  I have braved the phone and made an appointment with the GP whose details a friend had given me, weeks ago.  There have been visits to various shops, televisions have been studied and comparisons made. But most importantly, now the weather is cooler and

  It's the beginning of September. The end of the summer. The life guards have disappeared from the beach, schools have gone back and the tourists have changed from families with children to a much older crowd..  The weather doesn't seem aware that summer is over though. During  a couple of days of intermittent rain and a night of amazing thunderstorms, the temperatures fell to the low twenties.  Now we are heading back up towards 30℃. I'm not complaining, the rain softened the ground enough for me to dig a big hole for my lemon tree and now the sun is shining again. On Saturday I was woken by the sound of a distorted voice through a loud hailer. I was unable to distinguish any words. It crossed my mind that perhaps we were   being invaded (I have been very lax about looking at the news since arriving here). I also wondered if there was a demonstration against the closure of the beach restaurants. There was only one way to find out so I donned my bikini, grabbed a towel and