Troll and I have been married over 26 years now, and in that time I have never lived in a house we've finished renovating. Somehow, just as we almost get there, we find a new and enticing wreck into which to throw our time, effort, love and money; the old one gets a few finishing touches, I kiss goodbye to the remaining pie-in-the-sky ideas I had which would have made it absolutely perfect, and we pass it on to new people whilst we move on to another nightmare of mud, damp and dodgy electrics.
The place we have now in France is a case in point. It COULD be beautiful - indeed, it IS beautiful when the sun is shining and if you don't look too closely at the paintwork. However, as it's only been lived in for one month a year for at least the last four-five decades, you can imagine... What work was done on it during this time was done on the cheap and without regard to any aesthetic considerations, that is, when the work was done at all. So now, here we are, once again living in a barely habitable (albeit large) shack, dodging the bits of the electrical circuits which are likely to kill us, turning a blind eye to the various funghi and fauna which appear in various areas from time to time, and generally Making Do until the trusty builders are aimed at the place.
It's OK to live like this for a while. It's even quite pleasant in the summer. In the winter, however, it is NOT FUNNY. The big kitchen (there are three all together - but that's a long story) is laughingly (sic) known as Icebox Kitchen because that is what it most closely resembles. In fact, I could make some extra cash in the winter by hiring it out as a refrigerated storage facility, were I so inclined. Cooking with fingerless mittens, woolly hat and three jumpers quickly loses its appeal, let me tell you... And as it's suddenly turned cold in Burgundy over the last few days, I confess I am already gritting my teeth, pulling out the Blitz mentality and shaking it off, and generally preparing myself for another few months of ingenuity and endurance. We CAN do this... we can, we can...
But PLEASE.... pleasepleasepleaseplease... can this be the LAST winter without central heating, reliable electricity in all rooms and a water supply which doesn't immediately freeze when the external temperatures drop?? Or should I be offering myself as cook for the next Antarctic expedition NOW, 'coz I certainy have enough training!
Thank goodness I'm a quilter. My quilts more than earn their keep during the winter!
I am however tempted to knit this for myself....forget chic, even if I do live in France...
The place we have now in France is a case in point. It COULD be beautiful - indeed, it IS beautiful when the sun is shining and if you don't look too closely at the paintwork. However, as it's only been lived in for one month a year for at least the last four-five decades, you can imagine... What work was done on it during this time was done on the cheap and without regard to any aesthetic considerations, that is, when the work was done at all. So now, here we are, once again living in a barely habitable (albeit large) shack, dodging the bits of the electrical circuits which are likely to kill us, turning a blind eye to the various funghi and fauna which appear in various areas from time to time, and generally Making Do until the trusty builders are aimed at the place.
It's OK to live like this for a while. It's even quite pleasant in the summer. In the winter, however, it is NOT FUNNY. The big kitchen (there are three all together - but that's a long story) is laughingly (sic) known as Icebox Kitchen because that is what it most closely resembles. In fact, I could make some extra cash in the winter by hiring it out as a refrigerated storage facility, were I so inclined. Cooking with fingerless mittens, woolly hat and three jumpers quickly loses its appeal, let me tell you... And as it's suddenly turned cold in Burgundy over the last few days, I confess I am already gritting my teeth, pulling out the Blitz mentality and shaking it off, and generally preparing myself for another few months of ingenuity and endurance. We CAN do this... we can, we can...
But PLEASE.... pleasepleasepleaseplease... can this be the LAST winter without central heating, reliable electricity in all rooms and a water supply which doesn't immediately freeze when the external temperatures drop?? Or should I be offering myself as cook for the next Antarctic expedition NOW, 'coz I certainy have enough training!
Thank goodness I'm a quilter. My quilts more than earn their keep during the winter!
I am however tempted to knit this for myself....forget chic, even if I do live in France...
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