Amaryllis Hippeastrum

This flower is blooming, and developing well in our dining room. You can see plenty of information at the Wikipedia site.

We found a Garden Dormouse

We found this little chap hibernating in a plan chest in the cabin at Bas Etang 2. He was rather surprised to be woken, but soon regained his composure. His latin name is Eliomys Quercinus, but I guess he doesn't know it. Here is some information I have found on him at the Animal Diversity site:
It has a body length of 100 to 175 mm. The tail length is 90 to 135 mm, and the body mass is from 45 to 120 g. Eliomys quercinus has a long, bushy tail. The tails of European dormice have brown, black and white coloration on them. Asian and African specimens have black and white tails. Garden dormice have short fur except for the tail. The fur on the upper surface of dormice may be any color of gray or brown. The underside may show white or cream coloration. There are black markings on the face of garden dormice. This characteristic is used to distinguish this species from other species such as hazel dormice. The black stripe goes from the nose to behind the ear.

The rising waters

It has been raining steadily in Lavausseau for the last few days. Our stream, barely above the bottom, has risen to levels that transform the waters into a veritable river.

Our new Garden arrival

We bought this McCulloch lawnmower, Honda powered, today in a sale. It was reduced from 562.50 Euros to 399 Euros. So we think it is a super bargain. Our last mower was a Flymo hover version, with a Briggs & Stratton engine, which finally expired after 20 years of sterling service. Let's hope we are as lucky with this new one. Well, we still hope to outlive it, of course. Coincidentally, both Flymo and McCulloch are owned by Electrolux. We will use this mower for the verges mostly, as we still have the Tractor and trailer for the large grassy areas in the main field and surrounding lawns.

More damage at Bas Etang

Look at the damage caused by a local driver when his car smashed into our house recently. A badger was crossing the road at 4.30 one morning, when the driver was approaching. He swerved to avoid the badger, and struck the house. He should have swerved to avoid the house, and hit the badger! A week later the driver came round to see us, and exchange insurance details. The car he was driving was a write-off, though he was able to struggle a few hundred yards to a local garage where he left it. Fortunately for him, the car was hired from a garage while his own car was being repaired. We now have the tedium of arranging estimates for repair, submitting them to the insurance company, and then managing the repainting of the wall.
Last March, the day we arrived here, another local resident skidded on an icy patch, and also smashed into the wall further along.
Needless to say, we have applied to the local authorities for protection from car drivers in future - either a road barrier or bollards. Apparently, a decision will be taken this week on what should be done. I will report developments.

Sheila's Obituary in The Guardian - 27.2.06

Professor Sheila Wolfendale, who has died aged 66 of pneumonia following treatment for cancer, was unique among educational psychologists. She had the ability to influence policymakers based on knowledge of the real issues in children's education and the importance of the involvement of parents in this process. Her inimitable style, fearless humour and unsurpassable integrity afforded her a status that few achieve.

Sheila's research work focused on early identification of learning difficulties, parental participation in children's educational development and family involvement in literacy. Publications such as Parental Participation in Children's Development in Education (1983) and The Parental Contribution to Statutory Assessment (1988) were seminal, changing attitudes to parents' rights and responsibilities, helping to stimulate such innovations as the Parent Partnership initiatives throughout the UK.

Sheila was an adviser to the Department for Education, for example, on the Special Educational Needs (Sen) code of practice (1993-94) and on Involving Parents in Assessment (2003-04), which included contributing to subsequent national conferences. She was also an Ofsted inspector (1993) and, in 1998, a psychology subject reviewer for the Higher Education Funding Council for England/Quality Assurance Agency. Recently, in collaboration with her husband Trevor Bryans, she was evaluator of the Who Cares? Trust literacy project for children in public care in Kent, as well as mapping parent partnership provision in Wales, on behalf of the regional government and the National Association for Special Educational Needs.

Her prolific authorship was matched by worldwide presentations at conferences and seminars. She set up or evaluated projects in parental partnership and family literacy in Canada, Germany, Hong Kong, Gibraltar, Greece, Malta, Romania and Poland. In 1990, co-sponsored by the British Council and the Australian Reading Association, she gave presentations across Australia as part of International Literacy Year.

She had a longstanding involvement in education in the London borough of Newham. She was coorganiser of the local Portage scheme, a home teaching programme for pre-school children with special educational needs, a founding member of the Newham Parents' Centre and a governor of a local inclusive primary school. Her innovative and challenging approach to professional training, applied research and professional development will be remembered by a generation of educational psychologists.

Sheila was born in Watford, Hertfordshire, the daughter of a chief chemist for Texaco. Her first degree, in psychology, was from Hull University, and she later trained in child development, undertaking an MSc at the London University Institute of Education. She was awarded her PhD from Hull in 1995.

After starting as a primary schoolteacher, she worked as a lecturer in higher education before becoming an educational psychologist. In 1981, she was appointed course director of the educational psychology training course at what is now the University of East London, a post she held for 18 years. In 1996, she was among those who developed the first professional doctorate programme for educational psychologists in the UK. She was awarded her chair in 1988 and was elected a fellow of the British Psychological Society in 1989. She is survived by Trevor, her daughter Rachel and son Daniel.

· Sheila Wolfendale, educational psychologist, born November 25 1939; died January 31 2006

Funeral arrangements

Sheila's funeral is on Wednesday, 8th February, at the Honor Oak Cemetery, Lewisham. The service will be a Humanist version. We are going to England on the Monday, to return to France on Friday.

Professor Sheila Wolfendale 1939-2006

My dear sister died this morning from bronchial pneumonia, days afer finishing her chemotherapy sessions. She was diagnosed with cancer in November 05, so I am shocked that she should die so soon.
Sheila (BA MSc PhD CPsychol FBPsS) was due to retire on this very day. After completing her Psychology Degree at the University of Hull, Sheila became a teacher in a primary school and then worked as an Educational Psychologist in several Local Education Authorities. She also lectured in a College of Education and completed a Masters Degree in Child Development at London University. She became Programme Leader of Doctorate in Educational Psychology in 1981, and had a professorship conferred in 1988. Her PhD was awarded for the breadth and coherence of her published works. She has singly, co-authored, edited and co-edited a wide range of books, and is also the author of many chapters, articles, reports, booklets, manuals, in the areas of special educational needs, parental participation, assessment, early-years education and provision. Sheila acted as consultant on these topics in a number of other countries. Tomorrow was to be her first day of retirement! She would probably have remained just as busy in her retirement with her writing and keynote speeches. Just look her up on Google. There are 655 entries under her name. As you can imagine, I am so proud of her achievements, and very distressed at her death. Her funeral is next Wednesday, 8th February
Gosh, I'll miss my beloved sister.
I offer my love and support to her dear husband, Trevor, and her children, Daniel and Rachel.
I don't yet know what form of funeral there will be, or when it might take place, but Amanda and I will be back in England to attend it.

Snow has arrived at Lavausseau

Today, the snow fell for the first time since we arrived in Lavausseau last February. We are about to embark on a drive to our friends, Ranjith and Sigrid, for one of their scrumptious curries, for which they are renowned. They live 60 kilometres away, so we will be driving only on main roads, and with great trepidation.

Improvements at Bas Etang

We were shopping for a double gate in Poitiers, and were very disappointed to find that the only available 4.5 metre gates would cost about 1,700 Euros. That was mostly because the gap between our posts is 4.5 metres, whereas the standard size readily available is only 4 metres. So we had dismissed the idea completely. Until, that is, Amanda came across an agricultural supply company on the internet. Not only did they sell single sweep gates of just about any size, but they also had an outlet locally in Benassay, which is 2 miles away from Lavausseau. We visited their outlet, and were astonished to find that they could sell a gate 4.5 metres long for only 130 Euros. Furthermore, they agreed to deliver it to us for nothing! So, with the help of Jason (who happened to visit us for a few days last week) and Tony, we installed it into position. I know it looks rather industrial, so I am going to paint it dark brown with Hammerite paint (English of course) that is designed for metal gates. I started painting the top rail, but stopped when it got bitterly cold at -1 degrees.

The other project on the go at the moment is the fencing of the swimming pool. It was made mandatory as from the 1st January, with a penalty of 45,000 Euros if not installed. As can be seen in the accompanying picture, I now have it half completed. I was unable to finish it as the core drill I borrowed from the fencing vendor became totally blunt, and I am awaiting a replacement.

Scenes of Poitiers

Today I drove into Poitiers to get the Guardian and The Economist at the railway station. Remarkably the daily newspapers arrive on the day they are published in London - but only available at the Station. There is a TGV connection to the Mediterranean and Paris and beyond.
The middle picture shows a shop that sells everything for 2€. And the quality of the goods is excellent, with bargains galore.
The bottom photo is a panoramic view of the central square that contains the Hotel de Ville - the administrative centre of the city. Over Xmas the central section contained an ice skating rink, open to all, which was very popular.

The MG TF is back

I did a very silly thing the other day. I inadvertently clipped the edge of a middle island curbing on the road to Poitiers. When I stopped and looked at the tyres I could see that the front one had suffered damage, but was still inflated. I decided to immediately return to Lavausseau. On the way back I noticed there was some vibration in the steering, stopped the car, and saw that the rear tyre was flat. I checked my mobile phone and realised the battery was flat too. So there was no alternative but to walk home - a distance of 5 kilometres. It was 5.00pm, and getting dark. I set off as briskly as I could. There were no pavements on the road, so I had to take care to step onto the verge every time a car came past. Fortunately, the rain was holding off, so I didn't get soaked. When I got home I arranged for the insurers to organise a pickup truck to take the car to a local garage. On this car the tyres at the front and back are different in size. I was only able to get another Goodyear Eagle for the back, but not the front. This was because Goodyear have stopped manufacturing that size. So I had to buy 4 tyres of a different make to ensure they were all compatible. The cost ended up at 840€. I couldn't claim from the insurance as the excess is 300€, and my no claims discount of 15 years status would have dropped to zero. Just because of a momentary lapse in concentration.

The changing seasons

Well, the last post said Xmas is coming, and now it has gone, and we are into the runup to Spring. As this picture shows, Spring looks like coming sooner than expected. What a wonderful day. The stream is full, and running smoothly through the various tributaries. As can be seen in the garage photo, I've been using the chainsaw recently. We have a wood burning fire in the dining room, and, with many log piles in the garden, we have enough wood to last us for the rest of our lives. But they need to be reduced to sizes suitable for the grate.

Xmas is coming

Amanda has excelled herself, and made up a superb tree with all the trimmings. We are going to be here in Lavausseau over Christmas all on our own, but that is no reason not to make the best of it.

The weather is turning

The morning was very fresh, with a dusting of frost on the grass. Though the day became sunnier and warmer, it still benefits from a good log fire. We have an abundance of logs - we inherited a number of log piles, and have built a huge one from the 3 trees that were cut down last winter. However, log fires do need a lot of attention, as the fireplace has to be cleaned out thoroughly every morning. Also, there is a glass screen that has be scrupulously cleaned too, as the soot staining is very noticeable after each fire. But it is a real benefit to have the fire burning, even though the central heating deals quite adequately with the chilly temperatures. It is warming just to see the colour of the fire, and we feel snug as a bug in a rug!

Tony's office is painted

At last the office exterior walls have been painted. The drab concrete has been transformed into a gleaming white. That pretty much takes care of the exterior of Bas Etang 2 for now. The side will have roses climbing all over the wall in the summer. The photos show the before and after, so the transformation is clear to see.

The water is rising here

We were away in England for a week, returning a couple of days ago. It rained in Lavausseau incessantly, raising the water level by about 6 inches. It has cleared the detritus of fallen leaves and mosses that grew in the summer. What a pleasure it is to see it free flowing. All the tributaries are filled, and flowing well. The muskrats and coypu are still well embedded in their river bank emplacements, and can be seen swimming between the various points.

The electricity supply

One strange matter about the land we have just bought is that 30 years ago the previous owners gave permission to a local farmer to have an electrical supply made available on the land. The electricity utility constructed a small shed to house the meter and supply (it is about 1 metre cubed), and is sited next to a small spring. The purpose was to run an irrigation pipe onto his land nearby. It has not been used for 18 years, and we would prefer it to be dismantled. Apparently, that can only be done by the electricity utility if the farmer (still alive) agrees, as he paid for the construction work. The Notaire has agreed to speak to the farmer about it, but has warned us that he is a rather irascible gentleman.

Another decorating stage is finished

We finally managed to finish the painting of the wall under the balustrade on the terrace. As can be seen from the before and after photographs, the wall had a lot of plant growth that needed to be scrubbed off with a wire brush. Then, as the wall has a very pitted surface, the painting had to be done in two stages. Firstly, a roller was used, then followed by a round brush that could be poked into all the crevices - a slow and painstaking task. The house is beginning to take shape. The next task is the painting of the cabin, which will have to be done soon as creepers will start spreading over the walls when Spring begins.

Newly painted gate

Tony sanded the gate to strip away all vestiges of the varnish - an operation that took days to finish because of all the nooks and crannies. I then painted it with 2 coats of undercoat, and one topcoat, of a superb material that should keep it protected for our lifetime. The gate looks as good as new, and the remote controlled operation works smoothly.