The ongoing demolition and deconstruction of the main house over the past week has meant that Mumo has had to move in with me. Fortunately little big brother, Moth, has managed to keep Sappy and Gunner on the upper floor out of the way of the builders so I haven’t had to entertain another two dogs – there is only so much floor space here and I knew it would unsettle them even more than the constant drilling. I think Sappy would go to pieces if she had to share space with Arry who she considers an annoyance at the best of times. My woofers however, are delighted with their new guest and all bar a few, decided her bed is more comfortable than mine. Loyalty tested and failed me thinks.
Having just got used to (and enjoying) my own space, I was a little worried at the idea of having someone else share it but truthfully I love having Mumo here. The weather has been cold and windy all week, typical for this time of year here as the tramontane moves through. This is a seasonal wind that passes through the Pyrenees and the Massif Centrale rather noisily. Not exactly good gardening weather so Mumo and I have spent most of the days up-cycling old bits of furniture and talking. We can talk about anything and nothing for hours and yet we are both happy to just be in each others’ company doing our own thing. Neither of us like the cold so a good old gossip is best over a cup of tea indoors. Mumo is one of the few people who knows me better than I know myself most of the time (my bestie Irene is another blessed with such a ‘gift’). As someone who is naturally private about her innermost thoughts and conflicts, it is refreshing to be able to share them with another who not only knows where you are coming from (both of us being widows) but also listens without needing to offer unsolicited advice.
In one of our more recent conversations, we discussed my decision to have my teeth fixed. I have never had great teeth and the last decade or so has had dentists taking more of them out than putting back in and let’s not forget last year’s disaster when I knocked out my front tooth at the beginning of the first lockdown. Despite a desperate visit to the local dental surgery in Streatham just before I left, I managed to dislodge the same one not long after I arrived in France. Thanks to a request on a local Facebook group, I have found a wonderful dentiste in Carcassonne and it was she who suggested I got the whole top row remodelled. Anne is a firm believer that everyone should like their smile and since I have never, I’m going for it. Let’s face it, I have done so many things over the last year that I never thought I would do and each one has given me a little more confidence in myself.
I have much to be thankful for since moving down here. I am fitter than I have ever been in my life and, I think, found a sense of peace living in this little village. I have made new friends and have almost got to grip with the change in language. Of course I still miss my gal pals back in the UK but I know I would never have been happier there than I am here. I didn’t think it was very nice however for the NHS to tease me with a text earlier in the week telling me I could have my jab, especially as the local pharmacy here had just been told to suspend all stabbings until the Bureaucrats in Brussels had changed their minds again. There have been very few cases in this area of Aude so it is difficult to get frustrated by the lack of vaccine here. I am told that they are re-starting in the next couple of weeks so hopefully I can get my name on a list somewhere. It’ll give me something to smile about…..
“A smile is a curve that sets everything straight” (Phylis Diller)
Widow plus woofs 