To market, to market to buy a fat hen..

But not this one!  We wanted to replace our lovely grey hen, unfortunately killed by a trespassing dog, so we decided to re-visit Lezay market. This is a very large market about half-an-hour from us, noted for its livestock sales. This time, we learned from experience and got there at 9.30 to find the market in full swing. Last time, we turned up at 11 and found it largely packing up. Be warned if you want to visit it.
   And, by George, it`s worth the visit! There were every sort of fowl you could imagine, together with many you wouldn`t have. There were cocks and hens, ducks and geese, quails and peacocks, parrots and budgies and even, to our great surprise, a bird that only one person in Britain can legally own (and that person is the Queen)---a swan!

Apart from these avian offers, there were the animals.  Goats, rabbits of all varieties, lambs and guinea pigs and even something which caught the eye of Mrs Noah, a pygmy pig!! I had the greatest difficulty in persuading her not to add this creature to the Ark`s passenger list and she spent ages stroking the creature I am sure it would have spent cold evenings on her knee and what would Fatima, our Muslim friend have said.... Well, we avoided this scenario, and went to find our hen.
The vendor didn`t have any full-grown grey hens but did have some large chicks, so as these were only three Euros apiece, we had two to allow for wastage!

The vendor put our purchase in a special cardboard box and we left it with her while we browsed the rest of the market. There were flowers, vegetables, edible produce of all sorts, most produced locally. there were even eels, both raw ( and alive! ) and grilled, ready to nibble. We could have bought a couple of baguettes and enjoyed an unusual snack, oh, yuk, yuk, yuk, as Alyson would have said!

 Anyway, leaving behind this dubious gastronomic delight, we went on to buy a couple of tomato plants and a small penknife of Corsican type, doubtless made in China, though. Still, it was one I don`t have in my collection and I was very pleased with it. Collecting our hens, we returned home happy with our morning at the market!



 Bye for now, we are going to check that the existing fowls aren`t bullying the newcomers,

Lies, damned lies and........

An entire day of heavy rain, unusual for France, has turned my thoughts forcibly to the weather. Temperatures are very low for mid-May and the summer seems very far from imminent. The dire predictions of the Global Warming industry seem more and more to be unrealised, hell, we could DO with a little warming here!
  I read a couple of days ago, admittedly from a warming`denier` (shocking, this but they do exist) that global temperatures haven`t in fact increased for fifteen years and the opposing camp are getting increasingly desperate. They have, it appears, `adjusted` their predictions and graphs for the FOURTH time to try to fit the theory to the actual facts, most unscientific! Also, have you noticed that the term `global warming` is being quietly abandoned for the much more convenient term of `climate change` This can be made to fit ANY climatic oddity, even earthquakes, perhaps. You must just realise that it is ALL OUR FAULT.
  Years ago, I worked in the Personnel Dept of a Navy Department organisation. My immediate boss looked at the accident statistics, which he had already announced were lower for the year, and asked me to prepare a graph, illustrating this. I said I couldn`t as the figure had actually risen! Dismissing me with the remark that my attitude was not all that could be wished, he went into conclave with a former Army Major, a noted expert on graphs and statistics. By going back to earlier years when the figure was much higher (during the War, perhaps?), they produced a table where each year`s results are added to the next year. This produced the necessary descending graph line,despite the unacceptable, but true rise in the figures. Not actually a lie, then, but very far from the truth nevertheless....
  The trouble is that someone with an interest in `proving` a fact can twist statistics to prove what he wants. The interest concerned here is the fact that LOTS of money is being made in a generally vain attempt to reduce CO2 levels, which in themselves have not been proved to increase temperature as much as foretold. The largely ineffective windmill programme has put millions into various pockets, for example. How embarrassing if the `warming` proves non-existent?

Bye for now, going to keep warm by the gaz-fire!

The playing of the merry organ...

   Recently, Kim decided that it would be nice to replace our old church-type organ with a more modern and lighter electronic piano which would be easier to play and take up less room in our increasingly cluttered lounge. At first, her research on the Net, principally on Le Bon Coin, led her to a very posh machine in La Rochelle. We had almost closed the sale when two  things gave us pause. The first was the seller saying the foot pedal was at her mother`s house, could it be posted on later. This we did not want to get involved with. the other was a wise suggestion from our friend Christine that an instrument like her own Yamaha keyboard would perhaps be more amusing for Kim to play, offering more facilities than a straight piano.  We had a look at Christine`s keyboard and Kim agreed that it would be just the thing. Back to Le Bon Coin and Kim narrowed down her search to a keyboard in Poitiers which looked promising.A call to the vendor on Friday evening with a view to a visit the next day took a surprising turn. About to give us directions he asked which road we would be approaching Poitiers on, the N10 was the reply. Oh, where are you coming from? Near Loubillé, Chef Boutonne. Oh! was the surprised reply, The board is currently at my father`s house in Couture d`Argenson, do you know it? As it is almost the next village, it would be strange if we didn`t, we can be there in ten minutes! It turned out he was a student at Poitiers and had a flat there.
  Then it was just a case of turning the gas off under the tea and going to see the Yamaha. It turned out to be just what we wanted so we closed the bargain on the spot and carried it home in triumph. As Kim said, it would have been churlish to turn down such a case of being `led` into buying this item, to say nothing of saving over 100Eur from the price of the La Rochelle piano plus the time and money to go to Poitiers! The keyboard sounds great though Kim is a bit daunted at the knobs and buttons, it will take her a while to learn to fly it!

  Buy for now, Tea time!