The French Renovation

We built (I say 'we', but Kevin did more or less everything) the first dormer window last year to accommodate the bathroom basin, but, with other projects taking urgent priority, we left it unfinished on the outside; it was watertight, but 'raw'. We decided to make a 'push' on it before the Autumn rains and chills sneaked up on us. So, up went the tower again, and up went Kevin. We found a very cheap plastic pale plank-effect cladding material, which I think we just about get away with. The beautiful fish-scale slates, however, are originals. Our 'terrace' may be a mess, but, look, we have a drawbridge! I don't know why we both thought we would have completed the terrace by this week. I guess we're both optimists/rose-tinted spec-wearers/dreamers.  Our surreal world now includes levitating geranium petals! Okay, now back to the normal world. Cracking on with the guttering... And then the metal top ridge cap...

Our farm is very remote; there are very few people around. But there is a wealth of animal life! Our woodpecker explores the top lawn. We worry about his wood-pecking method- it's usually just a series of taps delivered at a slow rate of around one tap per three seconds. He needs to go to woodpecker school.   There are several wild cats in the area who look just like this one. They have ringed tails, like raccoons. We called our wild barn cat Ringtail, but our son chooses to call it Ringworm. Ringworm now has an identical friend. We call the new one Shingles. Ringworm and Shingles sounds like a nineteenth century firm of solicitors. Limousin cattle spend a lot of time licking their salt blocks; I find this disturbing to witness on hot days. As regular readers will know, we have visited nearby Gimel les Cascades many times, but, this time, we found a new path that eventually leads to an ancient church deep in a magical green gully... There is a charge for visiting