Living on the Frontier

 Here`s a conundrum for Star Trek devotees... How many ears does Mr. Spock have?  The answer is, of course, three-- a left ear, a right ear and a final front ear!  All right it is an old joke and not all that hilarious, but it does introduce the theme I want to talk about today.
  We live in south Deux Sevres very near to where the frontiers of the Charente, Charente Maritime and Deux Sevres meet. In fact there is a post marking the spot near the village of Les Gours, 10 minutes away from here, where they hold a biennial fete. That`s one set of frontiers.
  We live about 70 km east of La Rochelle on the edge of the area where the Atlantic coastal weather gives way to the drier harsher inland climate another frontier region. Our region is also where the more temperate climate of Bretagne gives way to the mediterranean climate further south. We are sort of betwixt and between, on the frontier again.

There is another dividing line, more temporary this time that often shows up on the Météo . The dividing line between two sorts of weather often cuts our region in two, south to north. Will we be in the rainy area north of the line or the sunny region to the south, or vice versa?  Difficult at times to guess what our day will hold.
  Well, I`ll let you into a little secret. Our region is movable! It`s true, often if the good weather is to the south we will drift in that direction and become a South-West Départment. If, on the other hand the northern weather is more favourable, we`ll up-sticks and become a North-West addition. I know it`s unfair to the people who have to grin and bear with the weather they are issued with but this is often how we beat the statistics. I wouldn`t want to live anywhere else!

        Bye for now, I`m off to lie in the sun.