Squeaking a second April post in

Yes, I admit it. This month has been beyond almost anything I've experienced in a long time, and I wish I could say it's been full of new sights, sounds and places, but I'm afraid not. My last post was two weeks ago already. I can't believe I still haven't sorted out my official license for the boating theory exam I took, but since then I've been immersed in some intensive work demands and I simply haven't had the time.

I won't go into details, as none of it is any more exciting or interesting than usual, but suffice to say it's kept my nose to the grindstone, so much so that I haven't been able to write or even read that much. Of course, being a freelancer, more work is good for my bank balance, and being in the famine and feast business, that's always a blessing; the problem is it just diverts me from other activities I might rather be doing.

Luckily, I enjoy my work and have no desire to stop yet. I love the interaction with my students; they keep my old grey cells working overtime with their constant enquiry and thirst for knowledge. Sometimes, it's a challenge that I wonder if I'm up to, and I always feel as if I learn more from them than they do from me, but I just wish I could live parallel lives. I would so like to spend more time on writing, for instance, but also on reading, working on my barge, visiting new places of interest, crocheting, painting and sewing. There simply aren't enough hours in the day to do everything I'd like to do, and still work. 

At the moment, Koos and I are in France, but I'll be returning to the Netherlands this weekend. When I haven't been working, we've been busy doing some renovations and sorting out the garden again. One issue we have in the CC Mark 2 is that there is a colony of bees living in one of the walls. As far as we can ascertain, they have been there for many years and none of our village neighbours appears to think there's anything strange in that. The problem is, though, that we'd like to paint the walls of the house and maybe even renovate the grenier the wall of which is currently very beezy (sorry). It's a bit of a dilemma really. While we don't want to upset the bees, their presence isn't condusive to either maintenance or repair. If anyone has any ideas on how to deal with these tenants of ours, suggestions will be gratefully received.

Once I'm back home in the Netherlands, there will be barge work on my agenda, which I will also enjoy, weather permitting, so watch this space for more news on that score. For now, here are a few photos of the glorious Haute-Marne during these beautiful spring days. It really is a stunning area at this lovely time of year.

A backstreet in Joinville. It doesn't look it
but this is on a very steep hill

And a little further up

Riverside bliss for residents and cyclists alike

Joinville water towers

Lovely common land in the village

The green swards behind the houses

A village backstreet. Note the table and chairs
outside. When you have no garden...

Zoe enjoying a walk along the canal towpath

Glorious chestnut trees in leaf again

The Marne back to its normal lazy flow after the raging torrent
it was six weeks ago.

Enjoy the lovely month of May, allemaal!