Last week was quite remorseful in many ways with the loss of Mrs Bradley, our gorgeous ginger and white cat.  If you’ve been following my blogs, you’ll already know that she was quite a character with due respect given to her (and expected, I might add) by one and all (even us humans). Her arrival, as a youngish kitten on our doorstep, had been loudly announced by Archie’s insistent alarm barks in the garden. Naturally we all tramped outside to see what all the fuss was about – and there she was in the road, looking very lost and afraid. Naturally I couldn’t leave her there and brought her indoors; she became Queen Bee almost immediately.

Thus the week started on an all time low and remained so until Friday when it was Nigel’s birthday. Having saved a few euros in my piggy bank I decided to offer him a special birthday lunch and had booked a table at a local restaurant just round the corner from us. It was one we’d been meaning to try for ages (if not years) and felt that now was the perfect opportunity. Oh dear. For the first time in all my years in France I came away from a French restaurant bitterly disappointed.

To make up for this awful (and vastly over-priced) meal, Saturday and Sunday found us preparing (and eating) all our favourite comfort foods. Accompanied by a bottle of bubbly, our spirits rose somewhat. There is something to be said about vegging out on the settee, surrounded by an array of delicious, yummy comfort food, and watching a block-buster film.

This week has seen me fairing a little better but still feeling somewhat under the weather. On Tuesday I gave a short twenty minute talk about AMB Cote d’Azur at Adapt in France. They have a monthly coffee morning and Sylvie Kermin-Coffier had asked if I’d come round and chat to the members. Sylvie has done a sterling job at Adapt in France and you can read more about this non-profit association by clicking here.

Yesterday, research queries saw me down in Beaulieu-sur-Mer. This is a beautiful seaside resort and quite often overlooked as Cannes, St Tropez and Villefranche-sur-Mer claim the lime-light.  It was a gorgeous, sunny afternoon as Freddy and I strolled around the port and charming streets; yet one more very special place to write about next year for the website.

But today, all’s changed. As I write, snow-like sleet is falling from dark, heavy-laden skies.  We’ve had a couple of rolls of thunder and the day looks set to stay slate gray and cold. The kittens have never seen snow and have enjoyed chasing the white flakes as they tumble down. All the other furries, rather more sensibly, are inside where it’s warm and cosy; all except one that is, her absence marked by a lonely red cushion she’d made her own.