Muscovy Duck

Muscovy Duck
Roosting on the gate

2011 - My second year of blogging in Brittany

I felt I would like to share some of the photographs I have taken so far this year and some from other years. I live in a beautiful part of Brittany and just love being here. It's a lovely place to photograph and enjoy being in through all the seasons and hopefully this blog will show you where I live my life.



Sunday, January 22, 2012

Loose cattle, Sunset and Flowers

This afternoon I went walking along the lane and saw one of my neighbours in his garden raking up leaves. I mentioned to him that his two loose white cattle were in another neighbour's orchard again this morning and had visited the veggie bed with my newly sown onion seeds during the week and left huge footprints in the earth. 



He said he hoped to sell them within eight days and didn't seem unduly worried about them being loose. However, when I walked up the lane to put the animals to bed this evening he was in the field looking at the footprints in the veggie bed and then drove off, presumably looking to see where they had got to now. I hope something happens as I don't want cattle trampling my veggie beds once things start growing. He did say I could put a rope across my wide field entrance to deter them, but that's really inconvenient when I'm driving in and anyway, why should I have to take precautions against his loose beasts? Moan over!

Five days ago the sunset was truly spectacular.  I was on my way back from shopping and had to drive past the end of my lane to park with an open view.  I just love these winter sunsets, the colours are so intense.


On Thursday, a good friend came for a chat in the afternoon and she brought me flowers.  This is a photograph of  one of the sprays in my vase. 


I bought myself a begonia when I was coming back from lung specialist on Friday - what a red!


In a previous blog, I talked about a fire which had happened on Boxing Day night, and how badly damaged the house was.  By chance yesterday, I passed by the house concerned.  How lucky the owner was to be rescued by the pompiers, but what a terrible thing to happen in the early hours of the morning.


When I got home there was an email asking me to drinks with neighbours which was a nice surprise.  There were just five of us and it was a good evening catching up with each other's news and for me learning some more about the area around my village.

The weather has been so mild this winter and the birds haven't stripped the berries of the holly in my garden or on this tree in the lane.  I even have a rose in bud in the garden.

Petrol on the lane yesterday and moss on slates along the verge outside my immediate neighbour's abandoned house.

Here's a peek through my driveway window as I arrived back home after putting the animals safely away for the night.


I received my blood test results in the post last week and my parathormone levels are almost twice the maximum normal range and rising in spite of my calcium being within the normal range. This is worrying to both me and my doctor who I saw to discuss the results and who contacted my consultant endocrinologist to see if I could have an earlier appointment than the 21 February one I had with her. It seems that the most likely reason is that there is another tumour on one of the other remaining parathyroid glands.  I had a tumour and gland removed in June last year.  Almost more worrying is the bony growth which is evident on the right clavicle, directly under the original parathyroidectomy scar.  Unfortunately, my previous surgeon has now retired so I shall have to have a different surgeon if surgery is necessary.  The endocrinologist has brought forward my appointment to tomorrow, so I shall see her then and presumably then have to go for more tests.  I'm trying to think good thoughts, but am rather worried.

Three things I like:

1.   Beautiful winter sunsets.
2.   Having a long and happy 'phone conversation with my daughter today.
3.  Only two weeks before she, her lovely partner and my grandson arrive in Brittany.