A Little Life

the view from the house we're staying in

four crates of potatoes we dug this morning

making flour packets for beignets de oignons 

market at night

I know. They're boring.

We work outside a lot and whether I be in the earth or the flour, my hands are never clean enough to carry a camera so a lot is lost. Also, my brother refuses to be in photos anymore or take any of me so there's not much to see but soil and rotten tomatoes. 

This morning was the first morning in three weeks I've woken up to....sunshine! The sun rises late and makes a short walk between the mountains, shortening the days here. 

I asked for more toilet paper this evening (after holding it a while!) and was handed a flashlight. "Oh," I said lifting the flashlight from his hand. Paul replied, "We thought we'd make all our WWOOFers read the book How to **** in the Woods". Lovely. I took the flashlight and the van key, in my head thinking, "Agh, Tanzania. This is perfectly fine in Tanzania; not South France. I could be there by tomorrow." All I had to do was dodge the feral cats in the garbage cans and get the toilet paper out of the car, not actually find some leaves and a clear spot in the woods. We've seen badgers on our walk back to our house and I'd rather not meet them under such circumstances. 

We ate cold sea snails yesterday for lunch. They look like fancy sea snail shells you'd pull out of a tide pool except they're on your plate waiting to be slurped out with a sharp, two-pronged fork. After thoroughly inspecting them and trying a couple, they suddenly became an abomination in my mouth and nostrils. Add that to the list of things I don't like to eat. #1 pig skin #2 pickled beets in vinegar #3 sea snails. Now you know what I will politely refuse. 

P.S. I took my third shower in almost two weeks last night and discovered I am no longer disappointed by what I have to bring to the table of No-Shave-November.