Back in France

So.  Arrived yesterday afternoon and already feels like home again. After unpacking, shopping and generally settling in, I went for a walk in the evening to check that "my" village was intact and bumped into Jean-Claude who pressed me to join him on his usual spot on the wall where he chats most evenings with the Zocharato's. They are a lovely old couple, old-school, very involved in village affairs. They bring a couple of chairs outside their house and chew over the day with anyone who cares to join them. We passed a very pleasant hour or so and I learned about various village affairs.  We admired the stars and the moon and Mr Zocharato told me how they used to tie the growing season to the pahases of the moon - sowing, reaping etc., finishing by forecasting the next day's wind to be the Marin (which comes from the mediterranean, and is humid).

Well, it's been humid today, and showery, but I dare think that the wind was from the west, whatever the moon said.
This evening was interesting.  While on the phone to Jon, I heard a cat miawing very loudly.  The kitchen door was open and it sounded as though the cat might be in the courtyard, so I went to the door and "shushed".  It stopped, but next thing I had a young man on the doorstep with a cat basket asking if he could look for his cat in the yard. It seems that it had already got into our courtyard twice over the summer and "Uncle" (our neighbour to the rear of the house) had let him in to our yard to retrieve it! Goodness knows how, as the courtyard is completely enclosed. All was quiet and I doubted the cat was still here but eventually it answered (to the name Darwin!) and was coerced into the basket. It's a beautiful grey British short-hair, with a huge round face and a very loud voice. Now I remember being woken in the night by a noisy cat.

Dave and Ann, my brother and sister-in-law are coming from Pont-du-Gard to visit tomorrow so no doubt we'll be pretty busy for the next few days. There's a village meal on Saturday night, so I hope they're up for it.