Citoyens; aux Barricades!

Seeing this cartoon (below) reminded of my own student days.

Around 1969/70 certain of the UK's Art colleges were up in arms over some pointless complaint, and we were all invited to go up to London for the day to 'Protest'. A coach was ordered and we all went up to Town for a jolly day of marching, chanting, and moaning.

The coach dropped us quite near Trafalgar Square (where the 'March' was to begin), and as Lady M and I got off the coach we noticed some man was handing out placards for us all to carry. It didn't take much inspection to see that the placards were from The Communist Party, complaining about democracy or some-such other nonsense; they were nothing to do with our petty cause.

As you can imagine, we declined the offer of a placard (whilst others eagerly accepted them) and, seeing that the march had been hijacked, we decided to give it a miss, and visit some galleries instead.

I'm sure that if one asked most of the the current lot of young international hooligans rioters and looters what they are demonstrating about, they wouldn't have a clue. The hoody-wearing, masked, Hamas supporting idiots who set light to cars and smash windows are only there to cause mayhem. And that mayhem allows them to steal trainers, vapes, and tracksuits with only a small chance of being caught. There's safety in numbers.

And so it continues. Make no mistake, these young criminals are NOT there for any social reason. They are there to 'let off steam', to riot, and steal. The original French schoolchildren who started the protests presumably had no idea that it would lead to a mass hysterical international shoplifting frenzy. I quite expect those pupils are now staying at home with Mummy and Daddy.

I did notice, whilst scanning the photos, that there were plenty of Anarchist, and Communist Party, flags being waved. Are we surprised?

Check Ebay or Vinted for bargain priced stolen goods; they should be awash with them by now! 

 

Grow your own!

I really miss my little veg garden, called Haddock's.

It is surprising how little space one needs to grow a few fruits or vegs.

In front of our row of four 'bijou homes' are about 4 square metres of tiny gardens, where there are plenty of herbs, tomatoes, soft fruits, and two apple trees. We may not be able to feed ourselves 100%, but we do our bit.

My late father always claimed that a person with 10 acres could be self-sufficient. Personally I think it could be done with far less. As a child we never had more than about an acre of garden, but we grew a lot. That's where my love of 'self-sufficiency' comes from.

At my first farmhouse in France, I had just One Hectare of partly sloping land, with a small patch of old grafted Chestnut trees. I grew Wheat and Maize. I also had a large Vegetable patch, a run-full of Chickens, and a few Fruit trees. We weren't self-sufficient, but we were close.

At our present cottage, I grew even more, on far less land. Haddock's (above) was better organised, and I planted a lot more fruit trees, and soft fruits. I also 'perfected' the art of preservation. The actual growing area at Haddock's covered an area of about 50 square metres, which supplied an extraordinary amount of food; enough even to give a lot away.

Our store cupboards were always filled with preserves, the freezer held even more, and wooden boxes were filled with onions, squashes, and fruit. There were always plenty of eggs. I suppose we were classic Smallholders/Homesteaders. It was a way of life that I loved, without depriving ourselves of the little luxuries that we all enjoyed as well.

Such a lifestyle is not to everyone's taste, but given the chance I would do it all again. But I would also love to do it all off grid.

 

Hotel breakfasts.

Unless you are staying in a 5 star hotel, their breakfasts (and other meals) are best avoided. Much better to take a short walk down the road, and find a pukka restaurant.

Kimbo was staying in a rather 'posh' hotel in Istanbul over the weekend, and was horrified by the extensive breakfast buffet on offer. He said it was the worst he'd ever seen. Dozens of unidentifiable, or unwholesome looking dishes, that made him turn-tail, and even immediately change hotels.

Would you eat this pink sliced 'product', that obviously came direct from a can? Turkish Spam???

The restaurant at the hotel we used to stay at in Orléans, was dreadful. The last time I (reluctantly) ate there, my choice of meal even had a label still stuck to the bottom of the dish. Their breakfasts always contained one or two edible bits, but otherwise I think they were employing the same kitchen staff as Kimbo's hotel in Istanbul. 

A nice pile of warm locally made Croissants, some good butter, and plenty of quality Apricot jam, is easy enough for any hotel 'chef' to offer. Coffee, Tea, and fruit juice, should also be plentiful. Does it really take a genius to understand that? Not only would their customers be happy, but it would also save the hotel kitchen a lot of time and money.

OK, Kimbo is something of a gourmet, but looking at those slices of pink, round, 'meat products' makes my stomach turn. I would also have found another hotel in disgust.

p.s. As requested, Kimbo brought me some Fruit Leathers from the Istanbul market. I haven't tasted Apricot Fruit Leather since I was about 14, when a school friend brought some back from Persia. I love it. Thanks K.

He's off to Slovakia in a week or so, then to France for a short stay at the cottage. His two boys (my UK Grandsons) are presently in Rome. As they are both university students (Oxford & Nottingham) they tend to sleep a lot, and they missed their flight. Anyway, they managed to get there!

I'm staying at home.

 

Slave trade reparations

 

As everyone knows, Britain did more than any other country to stop 'Slavery', with the Slave Trade Act of 1807, and The (more universal) Slavery Abolition Act of 1833.

But the topic of slavery is never far away. With King Charles currently out in The Caribbean, several countries are predictably demanding reparation for what happened many generations ago.

However, no-one in the British government seems to be demanding reparations for the taking of our own White Christian European slaves. WHY? Do they not see their own citizens as being important?

Over 1.25 Million white slaves were taken between the early 16th C and the mid 18th C.

This trade of slaves from England, Ireland, and other European countries, was carried out by The Muslim Barbary Coast Slave Traders of Tunis, Algiers, Tripoli, and elsewhere.

Serious compensation must now be paid to the UK.

So, as our government seems reluctant to demand reparation, I NOW wish to make my own formal demand to ALL those North African countries who took part in this appalling trade to make reparations to the UK 'AT ONCE'. The sums involved are yet to be negotiated (contact me), and the relevant £Billions must be paid into my bank account before the end of 2026.  

Failure to make reparations will be 'ignored'; as I hope will be the puerile demands on the UK from other countries.

The 'Old Crocks Race'

Firstly I should say that this isn't a 'race', it's simply a day out, driving down to Brighton in veteran motor cars.

They start in London, and drive the 60-or-so miles down to Brighton, hopefully without any serious breakdowns. Both photos were taken here in Brighton.

Officially it's called the 'Annual London to Brighton Veteran Car Run', and has been taking place since 1896 (130 years).

The cars start at London's Hyde Park, and finish on the seafront here in Brighton. It's all good fun, and the old cars are magnificent. This year's run took place yesterday on Sunday 1st November.

As you can see by the photos, there was plenty of smoke and steam, and Autumn leaves are now lining the roads.

The cars taking part all need to be pre-1905. It was a grand day out for all concerned.

Take on Me

This A-ha song from 1985 is an all-round perfectly crafted, and produced, piece of music. The accompanying video was also 'groundbreaking'. I believe it's one of the most viewed videos of all time.

Norwegian band A-ha were fronted by 'heartthrob' singer Morten Harket. Both the song and the video are as good today as they were 40 years ago. I'm sure you'll enjoy both.

65 year old Harket has recently been diagnosed with Parkinson's. I send him my very best wishes.

Swimming

I really miss my daily swims. This last Summer there was hardly a day when we didn't swim two or three times. The weather was very kind to us, and daytime temperatures were high; staying near 40 C for several weeks.

I often used to find myself concentrating on how I felt whilst swimming; trying to fix the sensation in my mind to recall later. It does work to an extent, and I can still remember exact occasions when life seemed just about perfect. The combination of hot sunshine, swimming, and perfectly tranquil countryside, is my idea of heaven.

Our little 300 year old home has all mod-cons, but it sits amidst the age-old peace of French wilderness; a landscape that can hardly have changed for centuries. The contrast between ancient and modern couldn't be more pronounced.

France is in Turmoil at the moment, but our little bolt-hole remains calm. The pool is beneath its Winter coat, and our gardener makes sure that the lawns are as English-looking as possible. The cottage is at rest, awaiting pre-Christmas visits from family members; but not by us. We shall return with the warmer weather next May/June, when we will open the pool, light the BBQ, and enjoy, once again, all that rural France can offer.

However, it's the swimming that I really look forward to.