L'Echiquier, Seth's Blog

09h00 – What a concert, part of the Val de jazz series, last night – didn’t get back until about 01h00.   The first part with the Gospel Singers was really not very good, apart from the fact that it’s not my scene.   They were often off-key and off-beat.  The accompaniment didn’t seem to have any sparkle, it was quite bland.  I had expected it at least to be rousing and joyous.

During the interval I was really pleased to find some decent beer at the bar, some La Drôlesse from the Brasseie Sancerroise (an artisanale / real ale brewery from Sancerre), there was also home-made savouries and cakes for sale all at very reasonable prices.

The second part was very different a Hommage to Django Reinhardt, it’s 100 yeasr since he was born in 1910.  The band was Les Doigts De L’Homme [The Fingers of Man] (Links — Wiki — Amazon — YouTube), a french jazz manouche (Gypsy Swing) group formed in 2002 by Olivier Kikteff solo guitarist.
WOW what a show, what a perfomance, really well done, very professional, also very humorus (apparently, I’m afraid my French was not up to it).  Unfortunately we were unable to buy their CD post show as there was an medical emergency with one a person from the audience the emergency services had commandeered the vestible. But it’s on Amazon.  This was their intro piece Blue Skies.

09h30 – What now, after browsing the net for Les Doigts De L’Homme it’s back to the garage.  Maybe we can get to the Toucy apero-concert tonight, they are free.

11h00 – Just bought the whole CD – Les Doigts De L’Homme, 1910 – from Amazon.

12h00 – Took a short video clip on the Nikon 5200 of a mini digger in Eric’s pond cleaning it apparently!  All sheets on roof, just cutting angles and securing with special fixings, nails with a large plastic coloured head to match the corrugated sheets. I bought 300 but I’ll need more, Onduline the manufacturer suggests 20 per sheet.

16h30 – No apero-concert at Toucy, P’s just reminded me that she’s singing tonight in Joigny.   Roof all on, fascias up, guttering nearly completed, bit of a fudge around the angle, it’ll need some mastic in there I suspect.

18h00 – Eric and Albane came to see the new structure and I borrowed a short length of guttering from Eric to finish the job and paid him for the railways I took from his stack.

19h15 – P off to Joingny, I had strict instruction to test the bread that was in the oven in 40 mins.  This I did.   The guttering from the house now flows onto the garage and then into the garage guttering and subsequently into the lake.   I intend to put a 1000l (1 tonne) reservoir tank in the garage for the back garden, the rainwater will then flow via that.

L’Echiquier web-site.

14h00 – Temperature 27°C, sunny, little cloud, no wind.   Spent the morning in Briare at the Friday market got loads of fruit for juices and some cheese and salmon for me.

The gardener’s have been very busy next door, the whole of Eric’s house is now visible, I hope they don’t over do it.

17h00 – Eric the neighbour arrived, we had some discussion about his garden improvements and he wanted to come and look at my garage, after all it was him who gave it to me.  He was surprised I had not put tiles on the roof.

19h00 – Right now we are off to a concert, part of the Val De Jazz series near the river Loire.   An evening in Bonny sur loire about a 20 minute drive from where we live. Two parts the first some Gospel Singers (not really my scene) and then a hommage to Django Reinhardt it’s 100 years since he was born 1910 – 2010.

L’Echiquier web-site.

08h00 – Fine and sunny, little cooler, strong wind, 18°C, very low cumulus clouds.

Woke up abruptly this morning with cramp in my right calf, really, really painful.  I take extract of horse chestnut regularly but working on the roof has put additional  strain on my calf and thigh muscles and the extract has not worked.

Cats need feeding.  Target for the day – get the majority of sheets on the garage roof, problem is the wind is getting stronger.

23h00 – Wind dropped mid morning, but temperature remains low.  Completed second row of sheets on garage roof.   Rafters cut to length and fascias fitted (not normally seen in France).  Edge of roof chamfered up to allow easy flow of water to guttering, it’s called a chant-latte (edge-batten) in French.   I’m not totally sure why this is done, but I’ve done it.

The neighbours gardeners did some heavy tree felling this afternoon, his shed is now clearly visible, but it does let more light in.

Had a couple of glasses of local Coulanges (red wine Burgundy pinot noir).  Will take an extra chestnut oil extract tonight to try and ward off a camp attack.  P says I should do some muscle stretching to alleviate the problem.  I’ll get her to show me what I should do.   Cats all fed and sleeping.

L’Echiquier web-site.

08h00 – Today is a national holiday.  There are events taking place at the lake in the village one of which will be a very meaty BBQ.   I am not a vegan or even vegetarian but it’s still over meaty for me.   Weather is sunny and fine.

Did a bit more work on with roof with P’s help.  Then off to the village.

15h00 – Back from the village lake and soaked to the skin.  Everything was going well and then just after 14h00 the storm clouds rolled in, the wind got really strong, the BBQ was abandoned and then the lightning, thunder and rain arrived and oh boy did it rain.  We had ridden our bicycles to the lake and there was no shelter, the large tent had been abandoned for fear of blowing over.   Even the large the trees offered no shelter at all as the rain was driving sideways.  Worse still the rain turned to hail.  We waited about 15 to 20 minutes for some sign of abatement then rode our bikes home to warm up and dry off.    Calico was so warm and dry.

The good bit was this was the first trip out on my old Claud Butler Majestic Tourer Gold (Reynolds 531 plain gauge tubing and butted forks) and I managed all the hills with no or little effort.  That’s the first time I had achieved that since we arrived here in 2002.  My Raleigh Twenty Shopper Yellow and Brompton Folder Black just can’t make it happen.

Indian potatoes or chips for tea!  Time to watch Le Tour on ITV4 and TF2 simultaneously, the wonders of technology.

21h30 – Late finish on the roof but it was cool and really nice working.  Got the last of the foil up, the new stuff is not as strong as the first lot.  Started the second row of corrugated sheets.  Legs getting tied so decided to stop.  Went in for welcome Indian potatoes and an Orval Beer.  I got it out of the fridge to let it warm up for about 20 minutes to about 10°-12°C while I typed this and had a wash.

L’Echiquier web-site.

08h00 – P’s gone for a run, Jeton and Calico woke me up, it’s great to see Jeton back in the house without having to call him.  There’s something on in St Fargeau tonight I must look it up now.  Weather is calm and fine.

11h00 – Spent most of the morning putting photos of my recent flight over Norfolk (UK) up onto my Picasa Web album, ought to have been outside whilst it’s still a bit cool getting on with the garage.  Ho hum.

14h00 – Successfully moved the main electricity cable that feeds the whole house this morning.  This was preventing completion of the new garage roof, I can now finish that end.  The sun has just come onto the roof so it’s time for a break.   Cats are nowhere to be seen.

19h30 – Got to stop , need to think about how to attach the last row of sheets safely, the edge runs at at angle and is up to the neighbouring boundary.

Cats all in and Jetty came through the front door.  It would appear we have a stable team again.

Put some more pics on the web ….

• Le Tour
• The Garage
• Flight Over Norfolk – Fritton

We are off to the Old Station at St Fargeau to see what entertianment they can offer, it proports to be folk-rock (?).  Just hope it’s not Daniel O’Donnell or Nashville.

L’Echiquier web-site.