Finally, some time to enjoy the good life

Since Monday, my life has consisted of daytime appointments, shopping and gathering missions and meetings with members of my team. Today was the first day I didn't have to set my alarm to get dressed and ready before the painters showed up. I actually took myself down to La Terrasse for a proper lunch and now I am in total bliss, sitting on my balcony under the clocktower on my new aqua bisto set, with a glass of rose' and a bowl of mixed nuts. I think this might be one of the best moments of my life as I sit here celebrating my accomplishments of the week on a beautiful evening.

If you want to meet French people, this is really a great place to sit. As the balcony is just above street level, and next to a historic monument, a lot of people walk by. The young people pass with just a nod, but the older folks are very curious about the new resident of the Clocktower Cottage. One very old woman with a walker passed by and asked me a dozen questions about myself. Luckily I knew enough French to exchange pleasantries and explain that I am Americaine and this will be a "maison secondairre." 

I got a lot of work done today, including putting on the new slipcovers, adding the new pillows, made by Luisa, and putting a coat of wax on the cabinet in the dining area. I hung some pictures in the livingroom too. There's plenty left to do, but most of it is of a fun, creative nature, rather than the kind of work that requires Aleve to finish.

The livingroom looks good, but I still need one or two side chairs to complete the room. I think after my chores tomorrow, I will poke around a couple of furniture stores to see what I can find.

Shopping day: the good and the bad

This afternoon I set out for a trip to Bordeaux, which is where the closest Ikea is to Duras. It's about an hour and 20 minute ride, but very pretty with vineyards on both sides of the highway. My GPS took me right through the center of Bordeaux and I could see the boardwalks along the Gironde, the massive stone buildings, fountains. It's really a very impressive city and I look forward to going back for some leisure time.

My Ikea trip was fruitful and I got TONS of stuff for the Clocktower Cottage--new bedding, towels, dishes, glasses, kitchen gadgets, etc. I literally filled my cart and when I could not shoe horn one more thing in there, I said "fini, " and headed for the cashier.

While my Ikea expedition was a success, I had a total failure with Maisons du Monde this morning. The order I made online on May 20 was scheduled to be shipped on June 2, which is the day I arrived in Duras. On my order confirmation it said that the shipping company would contact me to schedule a delivery, but I didn't hear anything from them until I received an actual letter in my mail slot yesterday informing me that I must call them to set up the delivery. So after being on hold several times and repeating my information time and time again to a series of disinterested employees, I was told that it was impossible to deliver my order before  June 13, which is 3 days after I leave the country.

My painter, Jasmine, stepped in to vigorously make the case in French, but, alors, she didn't have any luck either. Even when we told them we would have to cancel the order, worth more than 1,000 euros, they would not budge. I cancelled the order. Now my plan for the living room is in complete disarray. Needless to say I am totally pissed off about all of this.

On a good note, I had a meeting this afternoon with my new housekeeper, Sue O'Neil, who is an absolute gem. Retired and living about 5 km from Duras, Sue is efficient, cheerful, enthusiastic and is exactly the kind of person I need on the ground to make the Clocktower Cottage a successful rental.

Alors! Quel bordel!

Let's just call this a work in progress, although I am doing an awful lot of work and feeling like I am making little progress . . .

Here, I have the table legs, the upper cabinet and the little shelf all coated in Annie Sloan Old White. My plan is to get them waxed tomorrow so I can move on to something more fun. Notice the new lighting fixture in the dining room--Ludovic was here today to install all 5 of my new lights and they look great. He is laughing because we all agreed that this old fixture, which came from an ancient pub in Liverpool, England, is among the ugliest fixtures we've ever seen. It's gone now!

Julie and Jasmine are nearly done with the wall painting. They will return in the morning to finish up and then the house is all mine. Wonderful! The last two days I have waited till 6:30-7 p.m. to begin my painting projects because I tried to stay out of their way. So I have been doing my work from early evening till after 10. I am getting too old for this merde! Let's just say the Aleve bottle is emptying quickly.

I was out running errands this afternoon and came home to find this vineyard delivery van parked in front of the house. I got all excited thinking maybe it was something for moi. I walked in and mentioned the truck to Jasmine (a very plucky, sarcastic 20-year-old) and she said "Oh, yes, didn't you know that's how new people are welcomed in Duras"? "They send 'round the winemaker to deliver a case." I almost bought it for a second, then realized she was pulling the laine over my eyes. Merde!

I have always wanted one of these giant blocks of French olive oil soaps from Provence and they were selling them at the market on Monday morning. Now it's on the little shelf in my shower--just as it should be. It weighs about a pound and a half. I think I will still be using the same block five years from now.

Mardi en Duras

First thing this morning Didier, the technician from France Telecom came to install my telephone line so I can have wi-fi. Tony, the guy from Internet Aquitaine, who I paid to make all the arrangements  for the wi-fi installation, showed up shortly afterwards with my Livebox modem, programmed it and VOILA, I had wi-fi. As all this was going on, the painting crew--mother and daughter Julie and Jasmine, showed up on schedule to begin their work. They were here all day and got a good jump on the project, which will likely be done on Thursday.

Here's the back of Jasmine putting the first coat of my blue/green/gray color, which they had mixed using a chip I got from the Sherwin Williams in Beaufort. The SW color is called Tidewater and it changes color depending on the room, the time of day, etc. Now that the livingroom has a full coat, I can see I made a great choice.

After lunch, I drove over to Eymet, about 20 minutes from here, because they have a lot of cute shops--lots of antiques--and one of the shops sells all the Annie Sloan chalk paint products. I called ahead to be sure they had my colors in stock. In addition to the paint, I found a great cream-colored enamel coffee pot and a funky, big green tassel, which looks great at the bottom of the stairs.

After the painters were done for the day, I made myself a quick dinner, then got out my tools and took all the doors off the cabinets above the kitchen sink. 

I have one coat of Aubusson blue on the insides and will try to get the second coat on later tonight. I already feel the kitchen is lighter and less stodgy with the doors removed. The plan is to paint the insides blue, the outsides a creamy white, then display all white dishes in the cabinets. I brought some beautiful crocheted cotton lace here with me that I bought in Italy a few years ago and will use that to edge the shelves.

Tomorrow, the painters return for day two, and Ludovic comes in the afternoon to hang all the light fixtures I ordered. The final ones were delivered to Rosalind's office today.

The Clocktower Cottage is mine!

Here I am signing the contract that makes the Clocktower Cottage "chez moi." The experience at the Notaire's office was delightful and simple and quick. The notaire, Madame Caroline Jeanson was kind, helpful, and spoke very good English. The whole thing took about 40 minutes.

After this photo was taken, I headed back to my house, with a handful of keys. I picked up a broom and a box of garbage bags and started my work.

Market day in Duras

Most folks who know me well know how I feel about French outdoor markets. To me they are the primary thing that separates the French from much of the world. Happy, lively affairs, they make each village feel like a big party with great food smells, colorful stalls, lots of chatter and catching up with friends. 

Here are the stalls I can see from my door:

I was delighted to see how big the market is in the warmer months. In March, it filled the market square and there were small tributaries jutting into streets a bit. Today, the market stretched from the chateau, at one end of town, to the Place de la Resistance, which is past my clocktower. In addition to beautiful foods, there were table linens, jewelry, lots of flowers, the chicken guy (!), and so on.

The former owners of the house left me a nice, straw market basket with leather handles and I felt very French filling it up with little bits of things as I strolled along. 

Here's what I bought:

At one point I visited the stall with the nice linen table goods and was tempted by the pretty linen pillow covers for the bedroom, but I didn't get them because I didn't know the size of the existing pillows on the bed. So, after I put my groceries away, I walked the 30 seconds back to the stall with one of the pillow forms and tried them out before I bought them. Everything is just so convenient to the house! I love it!

Je suis ici! I am here!

It was a more-or-less uneventful night and day of travel that eventually ended in Duras. I am extrememly tired from the long haul, but took a long after-lunch nap to recharge the batteries a bit, then did some yoga stretching on my bed at the hotel to work out the kinks. I'll be okay by tomorrow.

It was exciting to approach Duras on the drive and to see my clocktower from the distance, holding up one end of the town. At my hotel, when I opened the window, the clocktower stands out above the other clay roofs--always there, always a solid form on the horizon. I find that very comforting, not to mention very convenient when giving directions to future visitors.

After my nap, I took a long walk around the perimeter of the town, noticing the views in each direction, the colorful flowers tumbling out of every window box and planter. I noticed a sign for a book festival today at the chateau and see that there are lots of people milling around there.

Now I am sitting in the Cafe de la Paix, same spot where I wore out a couple of chairs on my last visit here. I am enjoying a glass of rose' and a Perrier, and the free wi-fi,  and the sounds of happy people talking and smoking and squinting into the sunlight that's tracing an arc above and beyond the chateau.

On my stroll around town, I came upon my house from all possible directions. The prior owners have left me a garden in pots on the sidewalk. There are pansies, begonias and geraniums to help color the town--my begonias, my pansies, my geraniums! 

Today I am a tourist and I can be wistful and enjoy my strolls and flowers and rose' and the views. But then there is tomorrow and the helpers, the bank, the appointments. I think I shall have another rose' on this near perfect day, then prepare myself for a week of work.