Quit your day job. Go on. I dare you.

May Day Bank holiday

Friday, May 2nd, 2008

This is where it all ends. It’s May Day bank holiday and is now officially- at last- Spring. At least after the weekend, when it’s the grande montets freeride day. Loads of fun, and probably quite drunken. Plus the after parties that night. Wicked.

In France, on MayDay (aside from not a shred of work getting done, natch), the traditional thing to do is to buy a posy of spring flowers from one of the many people selling them in the streets. I think you enjoy them for a day and then plant them outside to start off your garden for the spring. Here’s mine.

Posted in france, environment, green issues | Comments Off

Feeling calm and centred

Monday, December 17th, 2007

I’ve been out of the UK couple of weeks, and notice that I’m feeling much more myself. Calm and happy I’ve got the time and inclination to think, to work and to spend time with other people. I think it’s got a lot to do with being away from the constant bombardment of advertising and commercialism I felt in London. That constant demand to evaluate my life, am I rich/happy enough? have I got all the material goods I’m entitled to? Am I living my life as fully as I should be? Living in a small mountain town in a foreign country where the language is not my own gives me freedom from that and allows me to concentrate on being myself. Things like growing a beard and wearing a silly flat cap.

l etranger

I’m even starting to read in French little. Albert Camus’ L’Étranger. It’s interesting that etranger is translated as ‘Outsider’ in English. The French use the word to mean foreigner or foreign. It’s a project of mine to start to properly learn French so that even though I can always masquerade as an outsider, a foreigner, I can also be a real part of the community when it suits me.

Posted in life's a bit like that sometimes, france | No Comments »

Getting ready to leave

Friday, September 7th, 2007

The day I have to leave the valley has rolled around. It’s a beautiful, crisp, clear, cold blue-sky day. Chamonix at it’s best. I’m glad, I want to keep this picture of the place in my head while I’m gone and come back here with fresh eyes and the energy to enjoy it to the full again. I went to Le Delice last night to say cheerio to everyone and was amazed by how many folks stopped by to say hello. It was lovely.

Luckily, getting my stuff together to leave hasn’t been too stressful. Many aspects of the trip have fallen into place easily, the job, living with my mate in Brighton, the fact that I already had a flight booked for my mum’s birthday - right down to the fact that martin is doing a lot of work for a transfer company and there’s a lift to the airport leaving at almost perfect o’clock. I even got a last minute reprieve from the stressful situation of leaving town without paying my rent for the office this month. I didn’t quite have enough money, but in an amazing twist of fate my French bank reinstated my overdraft facility without me asking them and I was able to settle all my bills in town before leaving.

I love France. I love living here. I’m looking forward to being back in the UK for a couple of months to get some perspective on it, to get some routine, and basically to reboot the whole situation, but I’m going to be equally happy to be making my way back here in a few months time.

Posted in the mountains, france | No Comments »

Quit your day job. Go on. I dare you.

Archive for the ‘france’ Category

May Day Bank holiday

Feeling calm and centred

Getting ready to leave

Pages

Archives

Categories