The Canary Dave

Meanwhile 5G Satellite connection on the roof of the planet.... mmmmm ..... no need to wonder why......

 

Wishing her well, ofh.

 

Morning all. Phew, I remembered, it is our wedding anniversary today. It will be a day of excitement as I go to find a loaf of bread and later take Mme. out for a fun session with the physio. Not complaining when I think of my sister in law who had a stroke 18 months ago and hasn't made much progress with her speech or mobility. Yesterday was her birthday, that would have come to a rapid end as she was helped back to bed at 7.00 pm. Last time I was with her husband I noticed he was suffering signs of strain. And now my son in law has covid and is quite poorly. Think I will stay this side of the Channel. Have a good day everyone.

 

Greetings from the spectacular fjords and wastelands of Svalbard....

We have just 'seen' a polar bear from the ship........ well the dot has been confirmed a one..... and two beluga whales have swum past... or at least their tails have..

But it is an enchanting place filled with snow, mountains, silence, reindeer and fjords...and of course the setting for Philip Pullman's fantasy

 

A wonderful place. Stayed with the head of the climate research station there. So many interesting things we saw...including a notice in shops saying "Leave your gun at the door" and a cupboard full of abandoned piano accordions in Pyramiden!

 

Morning all. Overcast, but dry and not very warm. Quite a big day for Mme. she is going to drive her own car again. I wanted her to have a trip out with me before going solo, but she can get in and out without a problem, and has done a neat three point turn, so being an independent soul is off. My daughter has now tested positive for covid, caught from her husband, so no clinic for her mainly elderly patients this week. My internet connection seems reasonably stable at the moment, so I can do a few things without interruption I hope. Have a good day everyone.

 

Morning all. As I predicted, the cut back in sales has brought the cost of everyday plonk right down. €5.20 for a 5 litre box of Merlot, which is not what you might offer dinner guests, but is good enough to wash your dinner down. The cost of bread however is rising driven by the increased cost of flour. This means also that the little strawberry tartlets I like have gone up by €0.10 for two. Life is hard. Have a good day everyone.

 

Hope your daughter is OK. Chuffed for Mme ofh.

 

Morning all. Dry now after some quite heavy rain overnight. It often amazes me just how much we live in a twenty four hour economy. As an example yesterday evening I ordered something, and by the time I made a cup of tea first thing I had an e-mail from the delivery company with a tracking number for the parcel. With France being such a large country parcels can take routes that seem quite illogical. They head south, then back north and sometimes to the west. Orleans which is at the junction of many routes is a mass of distribution warehouses, and if you go past them in the middle of the night they are just as active as during the daylight. How things have changed over the years. Have a good day everyone.

 

As much as I dislike Amazon for their dubious HR practices and apparent unwillingness to pay tax, they have certainly revolutionised parcel delivery services.
Something that happens a lot for me - early on Monday I ordered an item from them and was given the usual delivery options - ie next day delivery for £4.99 or free delivery today. Not being urgent, I chose the free delivery option - my parcel arrived on Monday evening.
I'm wondering if it will ever reach the stage where my parcels will be delivered before I press the 'Buy' button...

 

Yes a unique one eh..... it is illegal not to take a gun with you when you go out of town!

Just done some great fjord cruising and spotted a polar bear..everyone was sky high about it... paradoxically we went ashore at a nearby glacier...and if one had got near it could have been shot..... to protect the very people who want to see them,,,,,

 

Only if you let Alexa do it for you

 

My daughter tells me I'm a misogynist as I won't let either Alexa or Siri into the house...

 

Morning all. A proper autumnal morning with mist shrouding the countryside. It seems that my package from Amazon is likely to arrive today rather than the forecast tomorrow. I am told that it should be here before 8.00 pm which is quite a large time scale. It doesn't help when you plan to do the weekly shop, but now find yourself waiting. More coffee I suppose. Have a good day everyone.

 

Morning all. Wet and windy without any sign of a let up all day. I watched a game from Le Mans last night, 3rd tier French football, and some of the Championship game from Hull. I was amazed at how the French standard was only just below the English one as there used to be a large difference. Still trying to work out how the balance has changed. Have a good day everyone.

 

Afternoon all from an Island on the Arctic Circle as we journey back south.... We have had several nights of stunning Northern Lights.... I just wish i had not dropped the lens.....

Have a good one and enjoy the game tomorrow

 

And such novel ideas of ‘delivery’ - thrown over the fence, left out in the rain without ringing the doorbell, rifled through for any goodies…

 

I must live in a civilised part of the world - delivery drivers just open the door, place deliveries inside, take a quick photo of them then close the door and leave. All without rifling through them for any goodies...

 

Morning all. My English part timers from Ludlow are back for two months to continue the work on extending their house. It ground to a halt because of covid and they left the place locked up for nearly three years. That created lots of damp problems and their last visit was spent trying to dry it out. They have two dogs that they have somehow managed to get French animal passports for, saving them £200 per trip in UK vet fees. I suspect that the local vets have supplied them as they do like to see the dogs back for a jab before they return to England. Why the passport scheme wasn't allowed to continue in the UK is a mystery. Have a good day everyone.

 

You must. Sometimes I think goods would arrive more safely via catapult.