We still continue to enjoy lovely weather unlike the UK which is experiencing more heavy rains.  I keep hoping it will rain every night as quite often dark clouds loom early evening which will save me from watering, but alas this has not been forthcoming.

I was the only one at French yesterday as Rick is away for a month, first in England and then to [tag-tec]Denmark to play some gigs[/tag-tec], Swedish Dennis has found himself a summer job and Peter has Julie over and is spending quality time with her.  As it was only me, the rule is that one student is allowed just a one hour lesson.  This was spent practising my conversational French, a lot of which I seem to have forgotten over the past month since my last lesson although Valerie said I was doing fine.  I recounted the story of my birth, adoption and subsequent meeting with my “mère naturelle”.   I learnt that an older sister is called “ma soeur ainée” (I have always used “ma soeur plus agée) and a younger sister is “ma soeur cadette”.

Valerie also asked about my trip back to the UK (a visit to see my birth mum prompted the above) and we discussed my trip to Nice, Valerie agreeing that I was not so “folle” to go there from England.

I also related the story of Chris with the snake after Valerie told me that two of Peter’s dogs had been bitten by an adder in his garden.  A phone call to Peter later confirmed that the dogs had been bitten a week apart and that he had finally caught the offending snake with a pair of chop sticks (it was either that he said or a 10 inch carving knife with which to lob its head off!) and taken it to the vets to be disposed of.  Adders are protected here so he had to then take it up the mountain and release it.  Apparently there has been an article in the local paper recently warning walkers to be on the look out for “vipers”, so perhaps they are extra prevalent this year.