Le Bidet

Bidets (bee-day) are interesting and controversial fixtures. If you've traveled in France, you've no doubt encountered one. Or two.

Our very own bidet.

When I first came to France, back in 1981, I remember some of my fellow Americans remarking that bidets were disgusting, horrible things, and that they didn't want to so much as look upon one, let alone use one. And I wondered, use it for what? I had no experience with this thing.

Over the years I've come to understand the bidet, and have used it both for its intended purpose and for other things. For example, it's a great place to wash out underwear and socks when traveling. A bidet also comes in handy for chilling a bottle of wine, if you have access to ice in your hotel, and you don't need to block up the bathroom sink. At home, it's a great place to pre-soak certain laundry items before they go into the machine.

As it turns out, our house in France is equipped with a bidet. Ken and I have talked about it. He once suggested that we get rid of it and perhaps replace it with a toilet, so that we can have two in the house.

I'd prefer to keep it. I like the fact that we have a bidet. It says "France" to me. I use it, not only for washing out things, but, from time to time, for its intended purpose. And I am not ashamed.

I am posting a poll today about bidets. You'll find it in the side bar on the right. Answer truthfully, if you dare.

Haricots Verts

These are the first of this year's harvest. There should be many more in the coming weeks.

Garden fresh green beans.

It's chilly this morning. Just under fourteen degrees - that's mid-50s F. It's supposed to warm up as the day progresses. I've got to get outside and weed the vegetable garden and pick up apples and cut the grass. So that's my plan.

Periodic Puppy Pics

A dog in the grass. She looks happy, doesn't she?

I'm posing, take the darned picture!

Today we are going out to lunch at our local ferme auberge to meet someone that Ken knows through one of the France/travel forums he frequents on line.

I went out to the garden right after my dog walk this morning to check things out, and I picked two zucchini and a good bunch of green beans. There are at least five more zucs out there and nearly a dozen yellow squash that will be ready over the weekend. Yikes! And now that the beans have started, there should be a steady stream of them for a while.

Mûres, Part 2

Last night's impromptu dinner chez les voisins was very nice. We started out with some apéros of which there was a choice of whiskey, bubbly rosé, and kir. I had the bubbly, which was served with three kinds of sliced saucisson (sausage).

M had made broiled fish with a light cheese sauce that tasted much better than it sounds. Next up was a platter of buttered green beans and boiled potatoes sprinkled with parsley. Salad and cheese came next, of course, and dessert was a pear tart.

Big, juicy blackberries, grown right across town from us!

We enjoyed all this out on the neighbors' patio. Another friend of ours from across town joined us for dinner. She brought us a bowl of mûres (blackberries) that she grew in her yard. They're incredible! When we mentioned that we didn't know that those grew around here, she looked at us like the foreigners we are and said, but of course they do! I'll bring you a cutting if you want. They don't have thorns and they're easy to grow.

Well, bust my buttons!* The wild ones that grow at woods edge around here are some variety, while the good eatin' berries are another variety. Who knew?

*Turn your sound on, but not too loud if you're at work!

Mûres

The mûres (blackberries) out in the vineyard are beginning to ripen, but they're not very big. I don't think our summers are hot enough long enough to produce big juicy blackberries.

A blackberry stem arches away from the main bramble.

But still, depending on the year, we can actually pick enough to make a pie. The closest patch to us was recently mowed down by the town, so we have to venture out around the edges of the vineyard to find some. There are some brambles in the woods next to our house, but getting in there to pick berries is a bit difficult.

I remember a few summers, years ago in California, when we would drive up to the Sierra Foothills to our friend Sue's house for the weekend. Her long dirt driveway (it's since been paved) is lined with blackberry brambles, and so are some of the edges around her rather large property. She has to fight with them every year to keep them from taking over, and it's a chore.

But in mid summer the berries ripen and Sue spends many hours out there picking. She freezes a lot of the berries and has them at hand all through winter.

On the days that we were there to help, we wore long sleeves and jeans to protect our skin from the thorns while picking, and often the temperature flirted with 100ºF (nearly 40ºC). But the berries were worth every discomfort, in pies, in jam, or just by the handful.

Vineyard Views

Another set of photos from out in the vineyard in recent days. Summer days, that is!

A view of our little hamlet from out among the vines, looking northeast.

Walking in the vineyard is nearly always pleasant, no matter what season it is. Each season has its good points and a few bad points. For instance, in winter, the starkness of everything is strikingly beautiful seen in the glow of a low sun. But it can be cold and wet.

Transition between vines and grass.

In summer, the woods and vines are lush with green and the wildflowers abound. But it can be hot and sticky, and there are gnats and midges orbiting your head.

A freshly mowed patch between vineyards.

Fall and spring are great, as well, watching the transitions, the pruning or the harvesting.

Gathering clouds.

And the skies can be pretty dramatic, too. The best part is having the time to walk around and soak it all in.

Volcano !

Okay, it's just a little ant hill. There's a certain place out in the vineyard where there are about fifteen or twenty of these little hills all together. They look like a miniature range of volcanoes.

What's funny is that whenever I'm out there and take a look, I never see any ants! Could they be nocturnal? Maybe they're away on vacation...