Where has this year gone?

I don't know about you but I can't believe it's almost October already. I mean, where on earth has 2024 gone?? Maybe I should make an effort to do more one-off things during the year as just maintaining the same routine day in, day out, seems to make time just fly by, don't you think!

Anyhoo, since I wasn't particularly busy the other day I decided to sit down and apply for my French passport. In reality it wasn't too difficult but it is a real faff having to set up an account for this (to get my appointment at the Mairie in La Roche to hand in my application) and make an account for that (to obtain an administrative number for .... goodness know what, I can't remember now). Then I had to buy what they call a timbre fiscal in the amount of €86, which I guess is just a way of paying the cost of the passport directly to the State. So I'm online filling out the form for a first time applicant and when I get to the end they ask me for my credit card number to pay the €120 fee! Say what, it costs €86 and I'd already paid it! But when I looked into it I realized the site, while looking like an official government site, was in fact just one of those promotional sites that "will do the work for you for a fee". But I'd already done all the work hadn't I! It's a bit like when you apply for a visa to visit a foreign country and up pops the "for profit" sites rather than the official government site. I'm pretty sure they're mostly legit, but I was damned if I was going to pay them €40 to just forward my paperwork for me! That being said, I'm so glad I got my citizenship before they see my photo - oh my word, it wouldn't look out of place on a wanted poster! Anyway, when I fetched the mail the other day I see that I have also received an invitation to a "citizenship ceremony" at the local Préfecture for 12 October. I don't have to go but feel I should anyway as it's the right thing to do!

September 24th was my birthday and I got a FB message from Karon, who I met in St. Lucia eight years ago. Honestly we chatted like it was just yesterday First thing she mentioned was the bloody hair nets that we had to wear when we went ziplining (she signed me up without my knowledge). Honestly we looked like a bunch of dinner ladies but we had to wear them in order to prevent us being scalped in the event of an accident(!!!)! 

Then we got on to the older lady who sampled every one of the 19 varieties of rum when we visited the rum factory. To be honest, the tasters were really tiny, but 19??? And then of course she mentioned the four of us sitting in the sea with our rum punches in our hand and going wheeeeee every time a wave came in and threatened to spill our drinks!!! The locals got a real kick out of us apparently. Happy days indeed, and it's so nice to think that after all these years we can still have a laugh together!

On Wednesday this week we set off for our latest, overnight trip to the Fortress of Guédelon. The fort has been built using the methods used in the 13th century and is very impressive. Stick me in an art gallery and I'll be nodding off at the coffee shop within 10 minutes, but anything like this I absolutely adore! The very big down side was the bloody awful weather but since we were expecting it everyone was well equipped. I'd bought a sturdy poncho to take with me to Thailand (I forgot it), but it certainly came in handy this week. At one point my friend was trying to take a photo of a bunch of geese wandering round the village when one of the males took umbrage and started running towards her. My first thought was to start flapping my poncho at him but thankfully it didn't come to that 'cos as soon as he'd scared her off he went back to his lady friends.

In the internal courtyard there was a little kid of about four years old having an absolute blast jumping in the puddles. Thankfully he was totally dressed for it and he was an absolute joy to watch. Then at lunch when one of the older men in our party heard us speaking English he started telling us that the only time he had ever visited England was many years ago when his school won a free trip to London and as he was one of he younger teachers he was asked to accompany them. Problem was, when they went to board the bus back to the airport they were six kids short!!! Turns out they'd started chatting up a young English girl and she ended up giving them a lift to the airport. Of course in those days there were no cell phones so I can't even begin to imagine the panic they must have been in trying to find them!

While we were wandering round my friend was telling me about a former colleague of ours (who went back to England many years ago). She might just be 60 at this point and as my friend was due to meet up with her and her husband the next day, the husband had sent her a message to say that P (the former colleague) was not doing well at all and would seem to be suffering from pretty fast developing Alzheimers/dementia (I don't know the difference). So they all met up for lunch and my friend was telling me that P was quite obviously not well, very unsure of herself and stressed out just at the idea of having to find the ladies' bathrooms. I know 60 might not be considered "early onset", but I am totally shocked and saddened to hear of her decline at what, after all, is still a pretty young age!

A google picture of the fortress (the
weather was too bad for me to get a
decent picture of the whole fort)!

The archers would shoot through
these gaps at the invading hordes!

On the way back we went "through" the most stunning rainbow I have ever seen. It was a complete arch (double arch actually) and the colours were spectacular. I couldn't do it justice but I have honestly never seen such a beautiful rainbow in my life!

Then the other day when I picked André up from the Ford garage he was telling me how stressed he was because one of their computer systems had screwed up and they had a massive job to complete for their upcoming conference. He told me that they use Teams to communicate and he has a colleague who is very nice, but who can never "just send a message". It goes something like this: "ping, hi André", so André says hi. Then "ping, all ok?" - André yep! "Ping, can I ask you a favour?" and so it goes on and on. He doesn't seem to get the idea that he can put his entire message into one "ping" and they would get a lot more done a lot faster! The ping is driving him mad! That made me laugh because I remember reading one time that a man (in the US I think) came home from work one evening and, as ever, called out "hi honey, I'm home" - and she shot him!!! My ex used to walk in every night (when he wasn't at the bar) and say "so, what's the game plan?", but luckily for him I don't own a gun!

And finally André has been telling me for some time now that when he goes to the local pub in Geneva he has become friendly with a man from my work called Juan. Well I went through all the Juans I could think of but we could never figure out who it was. Eventually he sent me a photo of Juan and another former colleague, Carlos (who I remember very well), so now it turns out we're all going out for a drink and to a concert together at some date to be arranged by André. Just hope nobody uses Teams (ping)!