Swanning around

 

We visited a friend near Saumur today. She has a large river next to the house, and this swan was seen flying nearer to us to get food. We had some scraps of bread for it.

Bastille Day

 

We had a lunch celebration in Lavausseau, held in the communal hall grounds. Then in the evening we went to Parthenay to see the most amazing firework display.

Wild Boar festival

Our village of Lavausseau had a lunch of boar a few weeks ago. About 80 people attended, and a good time was had by all.

Exterior repaint

Our very good friend Dennis Hallas kindly offered to paint our house. He is an Englishman living in Lavausseau. It took him 6 days to finish painting and varnishing the window frames and shutters. Once that was completed he moved onto Bas Etang 2 and did the same there. The finish is superb, and will last for many years.

Vandal in the night

A few nights ago we woke up to find that a car had smashed into our wall. The driver had fled the scene minus his front bumper, and many smaller parts of the car. The wall was not cracked, fortunately, and the application of the paint we used the last time this happened has concealed the effects of the impact. This is the third time this has happened since we have been here.

Our first visit of the season

Amanda's brother, Paul, and his daughter, Rebecca, visited from Sweden, and stayed for a week. They hired a Peugeot 1007 for a few days. On the first day the car was struck in the back by an Audi A6 while stationary. Fortunately, Paul had fully insured the hire, and it was the other driver's fault anyway, and so he didn't have to pay anything.

But, then a problem

I found that the John Deere tractor was unable to cut waist-height grass. I had to then buy this Pubert machine which specialises in clearing tall grass. Though it is motor driven, it is still hard work walking behind it, and steering round objects. However, it functioned perfectly, and, so long as I keep up regular mowing with the John Deere, I shouldn't need to use it until next year.

A new addition to the stable

Having missed the beginning of the grass growing season, I returned from Spain to find the grass at waist-height. Coupled with that, I found that the existing Westwood mower tractor's starter motor had packed up. As the Westwood was probably 20 years old, and beginning to be unreliable, we decided to get a replacement. We settled on the John Deere, which can Mulch, Eject or Bag. It was bought locally from a dealer we have done business with before. Unfortunately, it seems to be twice the price it would have been in the USA.