LOOKS LIKE MAY IS FADING OUT

Hard to believe how quickly spring turns in to summer, but here we are now at the end of May with the prospect of hot weather showing itself with each passing day. That's one of the reasons that I've decided not to offer the writer's retreat space in July and August, as it is simply too hot here to think in any creative fashion.... Not to say that summer in the south of France is unpleasant -- not at all!  But it's a time for swimming and lounging and taking it easy, NOT a time for sitting at a laptop sweating over the perfect sentence...

And besides, I very much like spending those two central summer months in Ontario, my annual chance to catch up with family and friends. Of course, I get a chance to see those same people over here when they visit as well, and only recently had a fine visit with old Belleville chums who helped me with a lot of the outdoor work that is part of Mas Blanc life...

Now, if anyone looking at this blog can tell me HOW it is possible to re-figure photos correctly, after they've come in to the blog "sideways", I will be grateful unto death... This has now happened twice, and I can't see a way to prevent it happening OR to fix it once it has occurred!

MAS BLANC MAY TIME

Here we are sliding into May in fine fashion, with visitors from Hobart, Tasmania (the McQuilkins) followed by old friends from Belleville, Ontario -- the Miniellys, Hugh & Mary plus son Michael. Their stay was much appreciated as they continued the outdoor work begun by my nephew, mowing and digging and chopping and much else, so that the gardening season begins with me a little ahead of the game. We even got netting spread across the cherry tree to prevent the jay-birds from nibbling the cherries that are ripening beautifully...

Cherries follow strawberries in the garden...

Madame Sestini's fruit & vegetable stall, sideways...

It's a great time of year for "eating local" and so serving meals to guests is particularly easy, involving not much more than a quick run to the nearby fruit & vegetable stand run by Madame Sestini and her good-looking son. You can read more about how I present their asparagus and strawberries by turning to Kim Moritsugu's blog, (THE HUNGRY NOVELIST wordpress.com)... this is a terrific space for all food-lovers, whether you want recipes or recitals of marvellous restaurant dining experiences, complete with beautifully appealing photos.... you feel you've had a meal just by looking.

Another blog where you can read about LE MAS BLANC WRITER'S RETREAT -- and much else besides -- is a new blog begun by DEBRA MARTENS who is currently residing in London, England... she's named it CANADIANWRITERSABROAD and if you google that, you'll come up with this very interesting site which explores not only Debra's experiences in England, but provides interviews with many other Canadian Writers Abroad. Have a look!

Spring is in full swing

Now, the missing photos from the last blog entry... a quick trip back to the Netherlands...

Mesmerising, field after field of tulips in bloom

Before I chatter on about how lovely spring is now at Le Mas Blanc, here are a couple of photos missing from the earlier blog about my marvellous time in the Netherlands during my visit with Conny Steenman-Marcusse  (L) and Sheila McCook (R), my two dear friends who have now become friends together too.

And now, back to life at Le Mas Blanc.

In spite of temperatures that are lower than normal for this time of year, the greening of the countryside is going on apace here, and there's such a busy hum in the air of birds and bees that I swear I can hear the leaves on the trees unfolding and growing. We had a little rain recently -- the south of France, as many other parts of the country and of Europe and Britain as well, has been suffering drought for several months -- and that has made a grand difference. There's some water coming over the dam again, and the grass under the olive trees is bright green instead of dry and brown.  This means, of course, that it is time for the first mowing, and I was lucky to have my nephew Tom Howey (a  typographer- book designer in London, England) come for a brief visit, right at the moment whe he was needed for field work. Well, we had a pretty good time together besides the mowing... and went into Anduze one afternoon for a cuppa at TEAPOTES, where Tom, who is from Yorkshire, got on famously with Aline Rideau, who grew up in that part of England too. They were able to revert to their "local accent"  and understand each other!


here's Tom with the heavy mower

 While my nephew was mowing, I was busy with a few other chores, including the setting up of the orchard scarecrow, this year featuring a broom from the Philippines as his/her head. I'm quite pleased with my labours, I have to say, it is definitely a scary epouvantail...

here's the scarecrow, still nameless... any ideas?

you can see the result of his labours here, a view of the small olive grove and lilacs planted in memory of my goddaughter Carrie Newman whose birthday it would have been this month had she lived.  Sadly, the period of freezing temperatures in February seems to have been harmful for the olive trees -- as well as killing my lemon tree -- but local advice suggests that I just "wait and see", they should eventually recover...

freshly mown

back home from the Netherlands

Well, if you're in the habit of checking BLOGS frequently, you'll have seen that I am not yet a dedicated blogger, such as my good friend Beth Kaplan who did try to give me a few lessons while she was here at LE MAS BLANC WRITER'S RETREAT at the end of March... She's got the knack of the every-day discipline to observe and record... I'm still learning the ropes.

Here's Beth, while she was here, at the clothesline... As I say on my website, I don't have an electric clothes dryer but you know, no one ever seems to mind the smell of freshly dried clothes off the line!

WRITERS IN THE SUN

Well, here we are, Beth Kaplan from Toronto, my first writer-visitor here at the Mas Blanc. She has come to stay here for a few days, to work on a manuscript that is essentially finished, but needs some "quiet time" so that she can re-look and revise... We're longtime friends, and so her choice to come here to the Writer's Retreat has been a great way for me to start this new venture.... To see who Beth Kaplan is, if you don't already know, AND to see what she has written about her stay here, go to her website at  bethkaplan.ca.......

A BIENTOT!

oops

oops... at the end of that last message, there's a strange NO that has landed there from outer space. Ignore it, as my word of choice is always YES... positive attitude, all the way. And I am feeling quite positive now about the new website that is up and running for LE MAS BLANC WRITER'S RETREAT, thanks to my friend Rick Kitto in London, Ontario, who creates websites... Check out his website to see the kind of work he does (RICK KITTO WEB SITE DESIGN)  -- I think he's terrific, and am singing his praises to all who will listen... I am grateful for the way he's helped me put my idea "out there" where it is accessible ... my idea being to have a place where writers or artists or musicians can come to work alone, in an undisturbed fashion. (Although, insofar as writers might need editing or proofreading or mentoring help, I am available for these tasks.)

So here's the site -- http://www.isabelhuggan.com/

Have a look, and let me know what you think... Suggestions and questions will be welcomed.

back at my desk

Well, it has been a month since I was last here at my desk and my blog. I was lucky enough to spend two weeks out in Kenya, visiting good friends and re-visiting some of the places I grew to love when I lived in that country, 1987-90... Here are a couple of "classic shots", Mt. Kilimanjaro shining in the sunlight and a stray giraffe looking out as I passed by. NO