Global Climate Change ..... ?

Walking Monday: 3.8km

Cycling Tuesday: 9.2km

Swimming Tuesday: 1.55km (62 lengths, new PB)

Walking Wednesday: 3.8km

Swimming Thursday: 0.9km

Walking Saturday: 2.6km

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Crossing back to the UK in December before Christmas often means enduring some extreme (at least for us) weather; snow as in 2009 and 2010, rain in 2013 and a force 10 gale in 2012. The 2015 edition of the crossing also provided extreme, albeit in a different way, weather as we sat on the deck of the Pont Aven in the sun watching the Channel Islands slip by. December 18 yet sunny and 15 degrees, not normal.

We've still led a largely charmed life this Autumn as weather system after weather system has slipped by to the north of us and dumped rain on various parts of the U.K. 

But in anticipation that this can't last for ever Gérard and his guys finished the roof on the Grange before we left:

In the increasingly fair city of Newcastle Upon Tyne

Walking Monday: 2.2km

Swimming Monday: 1.3km

Walking Wednesday: 2.3km

Swimming Wednesday: 1.15km

Walking Thursday: 4.9km

Swimming Thursday: 1.00km

Walking Friday: 5.0km (actually running - whose bright idea was that on Christmas Day?)

Walking Saturday: 16.8km (New Forest and into town to watch Saints beat Arsenal)

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It's The Gaumont, Southampton, sometime in 1980. 

Mark Knopfler, frontman to Dire Straits is on stage just at the point when they became successful and moved from playing small theatres like the Gaumont (now rebranded The Mayflower) to their future in playing mega-stadiums.

"Good evening, we're Dire Straits and we are from God's own town, the fair city of Newcastle on Tyne"

I hadn't been to Newcastle then, I've been several times since and I'm back here again, this afternoon on a guided walk around the old quayside area. First time I came here it was a derelict quay area, not somewhere you'd want to be after dark. Today it's a revitalised waterfront area where everyone goes for the nightlife and there are spectacular additions to the waterline including the Gateshead Millenium Bridge and the refurbished Baltic Centre. 

In September we were in the South of France at the Millau viaduct, designed by Foster Architects. Today we saw another Foster design, the magnificent Sage centre in Gateshead. Like all great designs it's simple, reputedly based on a tray of apples wrapped in cling film, and it's transformed the Gateshead area. 

The iconic Tyne Bridge built in 1928 frames the equally iconic Sage Centre built in 2004.

Roofing the Grange

Walking Monday: 3.8km

Cycling Tuesday: 9.2km

Swimming Tuesday: 0.95km

Walking Wednesday: 3.8km

Cycling Thursday: 9.2km

Walking Friday: 3.8km

Swimming Friday: 1.20km

Moles caught this week: Pip 1

Moles caught this year: Pip 8, Tim 5

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This may be the last major building activity we undertake at La Basse Cour. The stone outbuilding, colloquially called Walnut Grange, is getting a new roof. We repaired, patched and re-pointed the stone walls last year and now Gérard and his team have arrived to rebuild the timbers and put on a new roof. We are having a steel roof in the same grey as the hanger roof and house window frames - RAL7016 colour shade to be precise. The front will be built in with timber cladding and custom built-to-measure wooden doors - I managed to find a wood stain that was available in a RAL7016 tint as well. Next we'll be setting up a RAL 7016 fan club ......

Gérard came round on Sunday to check out the delivery and - in between rushing off to Lauzach to sweep a chimney - cut back a few major overhanging branches on the old walnut. (I once asked Gérard his views on the 35 hour week, "It's OK if people don't want to work very hard"). The trainers on my chainsaw course would have had kittens if they had seen him free climbing the tree with his chainsaw in one hand, no helmet and no protective gear. The result has opened up the tree though:

The neighbours here still talk about the ten days in 2012 that Gérard spent re-roofing our barn in consistent sub-zero temperatures, Gérard, Aurelian and Sébastian arrived back here working at the same furious pace as when we last saw them - although they have two speeds they only seem to be frenetic and even more frenetic. 

First off was the old steel roof on the main building so that the new pannes (purlins) and roof structure could be fitted:

Next the steel panels on the lean-to came off, the whole roof structure here is being replaced as the previous one was a seemingly random collection of bits of rotten timber nailed together:

At the end of the first day the rest of the roof is off and the first new panels are in place:

Confused seasons

Walking Monday: 3.8km

Swimming Tuesday: 1.00km

Walking Wednesday: 3.8km

Cycling Thursday: 9.2km

Walking Friday: 3.8km

Swimming Friday: 1.20km

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The warm autumn weather has confused some of our plants. So in December we still have perfect roses, this one is "Aloha":

The Autumn leaves haven't been a great show this year (I think it needs a sharper cold spell to develop the colours) but our ornamental cherries are looking bright:

Just next to the pond we have another cherry already in flower: 

This is Prunus Subhirtella Autumnalis - another import we brought over from the UK and the third garden we've grown this variety in. It is the first tree in flower - or maybe as it starts flowering in November it's the last tree to flower - and apart from very cold spells it will flower through until March. 

It also grows next to where we buried Smudge, our 18 year old cat, in 2013. When she was moved to France Smudge got a complete new lease of life in our rural environment. I took Jess, our senior cat of 11 years, to see Ludovic the vet this week for her annual injections, "Nice fur, good teeth. She's in great condition for her age". Must be something to do with the air - or the ready supply of mice.