Already February

How time flies.  We are already in February and since last Spring, the weather has not been nice.  We rarely get a full day of sunshine.  The week of January 21, we had snow.  Now snow here is not like snow in Canada.  Here everything stops.  6 inches of snow could be 6 feet in Canada.  Of course, they are not used to it.  They don't have winter tires, they don't plow the roads but hey, if you very rarely have snow, no need for a shovel.  Here they use kind of a squeegy (ok don't know how to spell it, but it sounds like - squee -g) thingy to clear a path.  Pretty neat.  At least twice a day I would hear, eh madame la Canadienne, vous êtes pas dépaysé au moins.  They say, oh you are used to this, so it's not a big change for you.  Well, hello...where I come from, we clean our roads.   The shovels they use is what we use in our gardens.  This was my bedroom window full of snow.  Proof that they do get snow in France.

I learn things everyday here.  Which brings me to my next subject.  Last week as I was driving in front of the Vimy Monument ( I like to put a capital M on monument as not a day goes by that I don't think of the soldiers, so young whose names are on the Monument because they don't have any known grave.  It deserves a capital M).  So, I'm in the Canada car and a couple are walking on site.  I don't drive fast and I always wave to whoever is walking.  This couple stops so I stopped.  I put my window down and we start to talk.  Very nice couple.  The man says, vous êtes Canadienne, you are Canadian.  One of my proudest moment is when I can say YES I am.  Oui monsieur, je suis Canadienne, Yes I'm Canadian.  Ah vous êtes loin de chez vous.  You are far from home.  C'est une voiture du Canada, this is a Canada car....what was your first clue, the fact that it has CANADA written on it, I'm wearing a uniform that has Canada all over.  Et madame, l'avez-vous conduit du Canada.  Did you drive it from Canada.  WHAT... drive it from Canada.   I wanted to say:   Well..............not exactly.  The ocean doesn't freeze all the way, so when you get to the middle, you just can't go any further.  No monsieur, nous les achetons ici, no Sir, we buy them here.  In the 20 months that I've been here, this is a first.  I asked them where they were from and they said, ah pas loin, not far.  I thought for God sake, don't go any further.  Stay close to home.  It's not safe for you to travel and please don't go to Canada.  You'll never find your way back.  It was cute though.   Never a dull moment.

The snow kind of changed the training a bit for the new guides. Oh yes, they have arrived.  I continue to think how lucky they are and how brave to come all the way to France,  so far from home.  I know that at their age, I was still sticking to my mother.   They keep me young even though my body doesn't think so.  Talking about body.  I told Kevin that when I went back to Canada, I would join CrossFit.  If you've never seen people do CrossFit, you're in for a surprise.  A mother should never see her son do CrossFit.  I must say that people doing that are in shape.  I think that I'll stay in France forever just so I don't have to keep my word.  He won't forget that I said I would try it.  Do the first month he says, 3 times a week at 6:00 AM.  Like this body can handle that.  NOT...This body can't handle much.

I have company coming.  Allen and Tom (I don't know Tom but apparently he's coming with Allen), They work together and he's from Gaspé.  They are coming on March 28th.  Then Philippe and Becky are coming.  Yahoo.  Somebody to cook for me.  Life is good.  I want all my friends here to meet them.

Tomorrow is Mirjam's birthday.  There is a parcel in the mail for you.  I hope you get it on time for your birthday.  5 years on the 11th of February, Mirjam came to stay with me and 5 years on the 9th of February, Allen left for Fort McMurray.  Time really flies.

Big news.  I'm getting a fridge with a freezer.  I can buy ice-cream and Jessica said she would bring me to Picard and get some frozen food.  Then I can just come home from work, throw something in the oven.  Well not really because I don't know how my oven works.  Becky will figure it out.  Whenever I want to use the oven, it's always when I have company and they figure it out.  Oh well, I'm not here to learn how to bake although it would be the time to learn and I am in France where they make the best pastries.  Ah my bakery from across the street closed.  I went last week and said, hey, ça va.  Hey,  how are you.  Wrong thing to say.  The lady said, ah Louise non,  things are not good.  The landlord is kicking us out in a few days.  I felt so bad that I pretty well bought everything she had left in the store, plus I gave her a tip.  The next day, they were closed and have not opened since.  Damn.  It was so convenient.

Well my laptop is going to retire soon.  I am having lots of trouble with it.  It won't let me send anything so I'm debating whether to get a Mac or another ordinary laptop.  I know, once you go MAC, you don't want to come back but for what I use it, I'm not sure if I should invest in one.  I did a survey and only 3 people told me not to get a MAC. Allen being one of them.  Pure jealousy.  Kidding.  I do have my Ipad, well it's really his Ipad.  I can't download pictures from my camera anymore so it's time for my ACER to R.I.P.  I've had it for 6 years and it did serve me well.  I have to decide next week when Allen is home and he will bring it with him.  No use buying one here as the plugs are not the same.

Well another evening over.  Time for bed.  I'm leaving you with a few pictures that I thought spoke for themselves, especially with the snow.  Hope you enjoy.