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| Behind the peloton |
Some days are cycling days and
some days are not. Yesterday was a non-cycling day, despite our best plans.
Saturday morning was a flurry of
activity; I baked a cake, sorted the washing and ironing, Adrian walked the dog
and planned our cycle route, we had morning coffee in the garden, Ed had a lie
in and after a quick-cook pasta lunch we were ready to set off. It is not a
given these days that Ed will want to come with us, but it was our lucky day,
or so we thought, and we were all looking forward to a forty kilometre family
bike ride.
The first spanner in the works
was having driven 7km towards our start point Adrian realised he had left his
clever gadget-thingy at home. His Garmin not only has all the route information
on it, but also records all our data whilst out on the bikes, enabling us to
see how far, how fast, how many calories etc. It is impossible to cycle without
one (so I have been told), so we turned around and went back for it. The next
issue found us when we turned off the main road to cut across to the village of
Sainte Soline, but found ourselves stuck behind the peloton of a local cycling
club, as it seemed we weren’t the only ones who’d thought about heading out on
our bikes. On a small road, where overtaking would be impossible, we crawled
along behind them for a few kilometres but eventually arrived, unpacked the
bikes and were ready to go.
The weather was pretty good with
plenty of sun, although cool when the wind blew, but we were happy to be out in
the sunshine. Unfortunately less than four kilometres later and with a creak
and a clunk as he changed gear to cycle up the first hill, the chain on
Adrian’s bike snapped and fell to the ground. If it had been a puncture he
could have fixed it, but without the necessary tool it was the end of the road
for his bike. I selflessly volunteered to sit on a bench, which when the wind
dropped was almost warm, while he valiantly hopped on my bike to return to the
car with Ed. I wish I had taken a picture of him on my bike as it was quite
funny to see to his knees hitting the handlebars and it did look rather like he
was riding a child’s bike. At least it isn’t bright pink!
The Garmin data proudly told us
we had burned off a meagre 124 calories, so when we got home it was all hands
on deck (except Ed) to mow the lawns and carry on with the cutting back,
pruning and shredding. It was a disappointment, but if we had have completed
our route the garden wouldn’t look quite as nice as it does and we would also
have missed seeing our neighbour who has small plot of land next to ours. She
is in her late sixties and only comes to the village about ten times a year to
spend time in the garden where she grew up. It is her little souvenir and all
that is left as her family home was demolished many years ago. This was her
first visit this year and she needed Adrian’s help to fix a gate that was
damaged in the recent winds, so I have a feeling we were meant to be at home
after all.
Adrian also managed to fix his
chain, so we’re hoping to get some cycling done this week; unfortunately it has
been rather too windy today. We both have quite ambitious projects planned with our bikes this year, so we do need to get some practice in very soon.
is available in ebook format from Amazon, link below.
Kathleen C. Perrin
holds bachelors degrees in French and Humanities
from Brigham Young University
and is a certified French translator.
Besides being the author of The Watchmen Saga,
she has published several non-fiction articles, academic papers,
and a religious history about Tahiti.
Kathleen has lived in Utah, New York City, France, and French Polynesia.
She and her French husband have spent years
investigating the mysteries and beauties of his native country where they have a cottage and have taken tourist groups to France.
The Perrins have three children and currently reside in Utah.
cookbook, which is delicious with ground hazelnuts or almonds, but with a large number of butternut squash to use this winter, I had to have a play.
by Jean Gill. An historical novel by an author whose memoir 
by J S Malpas, a novel set during the Hundred Years' War between England and France.
by Andy Frazier, a very funny look at the author's life in rural France. Read my review 
the second book from Andy Frazier's life in France.
by Andy Frazier. Another humorous instalment of his life.
by Pres Maxson. A mystery set in a Parisian bar. I've not read this yet, but I've downloaded it.
by Joanne Harris. I am a big fan of all of Joanne's books, especially this one. The film is great, the book better.
the first memoir by Tottie Limejuice that takes us through her reasons for moving to France and house hunting with her Mother and Brother. You can read my review 
by Ros Rendle.
- a murder mystery set in the Averyon, France. This is a new release by Steve Goldenburg who contacted me direct to let me know of this promotion. I will be reviewing this book in the coming weeks.
- the first novel in the series A French Summer by Laurette Long. Laurette is an active member of the 
by Marie Laval. I really enjoyed this mysterious romance, set in Provence. Read my review 
by Jan Moran. This is a beautifully written novel of loss, love, war and perfume. Read my review 
seems to have more than just secrets that are waiting
to be uncovered. I was gripped from the first mysterious chapter and then we
met Jacques Forêt, Gendarme, originally from Paris, with a past and currently
not really sure where he belongs. I liked him straight away. He was just the
person to unravel the seemingly unrelated events that have been reported in the
area and keep an eye on the odd goings on of some of the village residents. He
has his own way of working, that doesn’t always tie in with his boss, but his
independent rebellious streak just added to his appeal. Someone who tries her
best to ignore his appeal is Beth, past love interest of Jacques (lucky lady),
back in the village to tie up loose ends before moving on. However, as she tries
to sell the chalet she has inherited, it seems to open up her own personal
mysteries that need to be solved before she can work out her future. Knowing who to trust is the key.
Angela Wren
Having followed a career
in Project and Business Change Management,
I now work as an Actor and Director at a local theatre.
Iíve been writing, in a serious way, for about 5 years.
My work in project management has always involved drafting,
so writing, in its various forms,
has been a significant feature throughout my adult life.
I particularly enjoy the challenge of plotting
and planning different genres of work.
My short stories vary between contemporary romance, memoir,
mystery and historical.
I also write comic flash-fiction and have drafted two one-act plays
that have been recorded for local radio.
The majority of my stories are set in France
where I like to spend as much time as possible each year.
