Despite my high hopes for a sunny August, which I foolishly expressed in last month’s blog, it has not really materialised. We really have had the most dismal summer here in the North West of England with an awful lot of rain, high winds and very poor temperatures. Needless to say, all the reports of high temperatures in France and the rest of Europe have not lifted our spirits much and we are crossing off the days now with vigour until we fly out to St Aygulf next week. Because of all the horrible weather, we have not really ventured very far this month or done a lot of outdoor activities, choosing instead to vegetate doing some reading, knitting in my case, and completing jigsaws most days, just trying to stay warm and dry. How tedious is that?
We did have a great weekend in Silloth with our grandchildren though, despite the weather. The holiday park (Solway) proved to be a good choice and our accommodation was lovely. There was enough on the site to keep the kids happy – swimming, craft activities for Hadley (expensive!) and the cafes were good too. Hazel, Phil and the little one joined us on both of the days and we all went along to Allonby one afternoon with Xena, to play on the beach…but not in the sea as it was a bit chilly! We also witnessed something that Geoff and I have never seen before, when we watched the Silloth lifeboat being launched – only for a practice drill – but exciting never the less! I think we were more impressed than the children mind you! The only downside of the weekend was me losing my lovely French spectacles (which I loved dearly) on the Saturday, and which despite thorough searches everywhere, remain totally lost. These glasses were the ones I got after my cataract operations were done and the only really chic French glasses I ever got in all our years in France! They were varifocals with transition tinted lenses too. Fortunately, I did have a spare pair with me and we have now replaced them with a much more boring pair, but I am still in mourning for the lost fancy ones!
We have managed to go out for lunch most Wednesdays as usual, and particularly enjoyed visiting Levens Hall Gardens with Linda and Mike one week. We have been wanting to go there for ages and we both loved seeing all the wonderful topiary trees and flower borders. We met up with our old friend Dave for lunch one Wednesday, in Hexham. It was the first time we had seen him for ages and also the first time we had seen him without his wife Ann, who died very suddenly last year. The four of us were very close friends when we first got married – we were all in Rotaract for many years and did many things together, had our kids at the same times and were really close for many years. In fact, Ann and Dave were our very first visitors when we moved to France, arriving in their caravan just in time to help us move in and shift lots of furniture around. It was great to see him again and we have realised how stupid it is to leave things, such as get togethers, so long. We missed seeing Ann very much. Other Wednesday expeditions have been to favourite places such as Talkin and Dalston…not so exciting but sensible due to the weather really!
One of the things I really enjoy now that we are back in the UK is going to country & agricultural shows in the summer months. Living in Cumbria, we have a lot of those to choose from! Last month we went to the Skelton show and this month we were lucky enough to have a really great time at nearby Dalston Show…on a warm sunny day for a change. I love these events. Geoff likes to see all the animals and viewing all the vintage tractors (going back to his farming roots!) and I love all the stalls, craft tents and watching some of the horsey events! This show is quite big considering that Dalston is a relatively small village. And as an extra bonus I won a raffle prize in the main show raffle. No, not the cash prize, or the food hamper etc but a huge bag of dried dog food donated by the local vet practice! Wonderful…if you have a dog…which we don’t! However, our old dog Xena, now residing with our daughter was delighted! Other country shows have not been so lucky this summer as many of them have had to be cancelled, as have many other outdoor events. The persistent rain and winds we have had, has flattened marquees and turned showgrounds into quagmires. It is such a shame as so much work goes into organising these events. We were going to go to another outdoor theatre show this week but have decided it just isn’t worth getting wet and cold. We did however go to our little local theatre here in Carlisle one evening (inside I hasten to add) to watch w very clever play…which doubled up as a quiz too. It was very good.
All our usual activities have continued this month. I’m pleased to report that the frenzy in the OP shop after last month’s appeal for donations has calmed down a bit. We are still trying to clear a lot of the excess stock but things are a lot better now. Geoff has been playing pickleball as usual and thinks he has found a new place to continue playing while we are in France this time. It will be a lot nearer to the flat if it all works out. I have been swimming again a bit more regularly with Linda. I am soooo looking forward to some dips in the warm sea though next week
We really enjoyed watching the Paris Olympics and felt quite bereft when it finished. The coverage here was very good and we loved being able to watch all sorts of events we would not normally see such as the kayaking, rowing horsey stuff and some of the cycling events. I still don’t understand these cycling races though…does anyone?? We have been looking forward to the Paralympics and how the French will cover them. We have vivid memories of zero coverage of the London Paralympics in 2012, when we were still in France. We also remember some TV high up, who was asked why there was no coverage and said that “no-one in France was interested is watching disabled people play sport!” I bet he regrets that quote now! I hope that there is good TV coverage this time, whilst we are in St Aygulf…we will see!
We had a nice trip out to Ambleside this week to meet up with my nephew Jonathon and his family and to introduce them to our little one. She kept telling me in the car driving there, that Oliver and Joseph were her best friends…which I’m sure the 18 year old and 13 year old who she had never met before were totally unaware of! The real significance of this meet up is that last November, Jonathon suffered a massive heart attack which has catastrophically damaged his heart. He was not expected to survive…several times Helen was told to say goodbye to him at the hospital and he was put into an induced coma for weeks. However, he now is very much alive and looking very well, albeit courtesy of an implanted machine which is doing the work of his heart. He is constantly “plugged in” to batteries and mains electricity. He is a walking miracle thanks to the Freeman Hospital in Newcastle and a lot of wonderful NHS care and technology. He is due to have an assessment soon to see if he can go on to the heart transplant list. It was so good to see him and Helen and we were totally in awe of the fact that a) he is still here and b) how well he and all the family were coping. Long may it continue.
And so here we are heading into September…on yet another wet and windy day. It actually feels quite Autumnal here now…way too early really. I have been knitting poppies for a display which will be displayed in Carlisle for Remembrance Day…again a reminder that this year is zooming past now. So far, I have resisted making any Christmas things but I’m not sure how long that will last! However, to cheer us all up…well us anyway, we are now in the final countdown to our trip to la belle France. We fly out to Nice on Tuesday…and boy are we looking forward to it. My shorts and sun tops are coming with me as they haven’t had much wear here this year! If I close my eyes, I can visualise blue sky and blue sea…Bring it on!
A bientot mes amis