It’s always me that ends up getting wet

It’s late, I know. I’m sorry. Here’s The Police with Every Little Thing She Does

I need a little bit of a burst to get me through the week. I usually write my Monday posts on Sunday night (as well as some other things) but because it was the Dames de FER foire yesterday, that took up most of the day. By the time I got home to deliver a couple of lessons at 7pm, I was virtually good for nothing. Bed by 9.30. That was all I was fit for.

Still, it was a really good day. It’s funny how you go from knowing only a handful of people to knowing an entire community. Three years ago, when I moved over here, I spent the first year or so not really knowing anybody. I met a few people through my work as a teacher and I put out a few feelers, but even when I started blogging for Anglo Info, writing for Living Magazine and doing everything I could to make new friends and acquaintances, it still took a long time. Work trickled in. And I mean trickled. It took eighteen months before I was working fully in France, and it was good fortune that I had ‘brought’ a few virtual clients with me, or else I think I’d have packed up and gone home.

That was one of the things I enjoyed most about yesterday. I might have had bar shifts and car park shifts and tombola shifts, but I got to chat to lots and lots of my new lovely friends. Though I had to dash off early to get back to the dogs and to my clients, I wouldn’t have minded at all staying longer and helping tidy up as well. That’s what it feels like now – like a community that you want to protect and care for, as well as something you enjoy. It doesn’t matter if you’re mopping up spilt coffee, selling raffle tickets (or sub-letting the raffle book to a very bavardeuse friend who is better at selling than you are) as it all feels like marvellous fun. I hitched a ride up the hill with a lovely lady who does upholstery, managed to have a quick chat with the bacon butty lady, raced around picking up forms and moving cars, cut quiche and cake, sold a few tombola tickets, had a big lot of fun over the walkie-talkies (including developing a walkie-talkie voice) did my car parking duties in the style of an air hostess, met a lady who sets up work placements in the Phillipines and has a farm, put the world to rights with a crazy friend, previewed a new article, ate a slice of delicious carrot cake, then had a gorgeous second course pudding of rocky road, had a hit of the fizzy stuff to keep me going and then managed to head on home by six.

What a day!

You can understand why I feel a little tired today, I guess.

Usual doggie Monday walk ended up being this afternoon, since it was raining this morning and I put it to use making endless telephone calls and watching the second-to-last-ever episode of Dexter. If you are a fan – oh my word! Will Deb die? Will Dexter make it out of Miami? Will he end up behind bars? This time next Monday, you may find me a very different woman depending on how good the ending was!

Anyway, it is now time for bed. It’s been a foul day today. Let’s hope tomorrow is brighter.