Saturday 27 May 2023

What could be more perfect?


Take a sunny spring morning in Sussex, add a lovely ancient flint-built church, sit for a while on a bench under a huge spreading Elm tree, and listen to the bell ringers as they practice their rounds.

Birds are singing, there are the remnants of spring flowers, and people are out tending to their patios and window boxes. A few acquaintances say a cheery 'good morning' as they pass by. 

The beach is just a 10 minute leisurely walk away, M & S food hall is just 5 minutes away (very important), and the peace and quiet of the fabulous South Downs is a 15 minute drive inland.

On a different subject, my car has just been to the garage for a service and MOT. I'm pleased to say that everything was perfect, other than one small bulb that needed replacing. This was the first time I'd had to go through the procedure for decades. Hooray.

We're leaving for France next week. I hope the weather's as good there as it is here.


28 comments:

  1. Maybe you should spend a little longer in Brighton. It doesn't sound at all bad there.
    On the other hand, good to hear your car has had a good look over. Hopefully you'll have a smooth journey back

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    1. The car has had a good overall service so should be trouble free (fingers crossed). It's also the type of car that gives me confidence.

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  2. There's a certain wistfulness about your post this morning Cro. Perhaps you're thinking that you should stay in Brighton and sell your home in France?

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    1. Not really, we love our home in France; but not necessarily the journey. It makes a nice contrast to our home here.

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  3. That looks like a lovely place to sit. I don't think I'd enjoy the bell ringing for too long.

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    1. I love the sound of church bells, and ours are particularly good. I could sit and listen for hours.

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  4. You have all you need , right there. Probably a hospital near as well. Very important to me and my husband. Have a safe journey and enjoy your first dip in your pool.

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    1. The pool was a tiny bit green around the edges when we closed-up last year, so it'll be interesting to see how it is when we open up again. I'm hoping it would have died over winter; the lack of light usually does the job.

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  5. Forget France. Stay in Brighton!

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    1. And deprive myself of Snails, and Confit, and cheap wine? No, never!

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  6. Contentment with simple things seems like something from Buddhist teachings. Oh to be in England when May dons her summer dress.

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    1. Occasionally it's as good as it gets! It felt like that yesterday

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  7. Most places are lovely when the sun shines :-)

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  8. Let someone else take the strain, sell up and rent a gite with a pool for a month.

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    1. We have been discussing it. It would also allow us to see more of the world. We've limited ourselves for a long while.

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  9. Enjoy France, I look forward to hearing about life in paradise.

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  10. Please let us know the Hoops and Costs of getting Billy to and from France for his holiday

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    1. Gosh. We just add him to our tickets, hotel room, etc, and he moans for a while.
      I think he's used to it now, he's done the trip 3 times already. I don't think it costs too much.

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  11. Nice peaceful scene Cro - is that an Elm? If so it is a fairly young tree so perhaps planted after Dutch Elm decimated our trees, We lost three old elms from our garen then - a sad day.

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    1. I believe that our little area was almost free of Elm disease. There are several very big old trees that have survived.

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  12. Living in Brighton has many conveniences with everything nearby. Your churchyard is always beautiful and especially lovely on a warm sunny day. You will be soon walking, swimming and gardening in France soon.

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    1. At the moment it feels a bit like moving house.

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  13. It sounds as if you have the best of both worlds. Enjoy.

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    1. It's just the journey I don't like. We shall stay in our usual hotel half way down, but it's still a 700 Km drive.

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  14. We regularly drive 645 km from our home in Cheshire to our cottage just north of Inverness!
    We don't spend any of our journey relaxing on a ferry either!!! X

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    1. I drive from Edmonton to Vancouver at least once a year. The only stops are for fuel and leg stretching. The European concept of a long distance is so strange to me. Not long ago, I did Edmonton to Victoria and that did involve a ferry crossing

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