Tag Archives: daily life in France

Absorbing Change

It certainly wasn’t where we expected to be in our lives, living with limitations that were thrust upon us and didn’t originate from any lack of vigilance on our part.

Mark has Long Covid and is now fully retired as a tradesman. He plans to shift his focus towards creating works of art. And for me? I’m still doing writing, research, and editing for my clients, thank heavens.

The ongoing work-in-progress 3-story house (and the list of 1,000+ to-do items!) that we purchased just as France went into lockdown in early 2020 is now having its top floor transformed. We already have one ground floor art studio devoted to messy and noisy things involving machines and tools and wood shavings.

But the new space will be something completely different. It’s going to be a light and airy art studio for quietly creating works of art on canvas, paper, and other materials. The picture below is the under-construction room at the end of this past week, and hopefully after more plaster is applied to the walls and sanded, it will be ready for paint, the new easy-to-clean linoleum floor, and the mini-kitchen and powder room. Finishing touches will be cabinet doors under the skylight and a few other items.

I’ll try to get back into the groove of posting more often. Bye for now!

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©Deborah Harmes 2007-2023 and ©Mark Harmes 2007-2023
©A Wanderful Life 2007-2023
Please respect the words and images on this page.
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Future art studio at the top of the house.
The wibble-wobble floors from the early 1700s are now covered over after Mark leveled everything from side-to-side and installed new rigid underlay.

Vibrantly Beautiful Vannes

After one of the longest, coldest, wettest, and gloomiest winters I have ever endured, I was feeling frankly tired of northern France. But that turned around when we took a much-needed 3-day getaway in Vannes.

I was unprepared for just how pretty the medieval town would be and was quite pleased that we had chosen to visit just before the hoards of summer tourists arrive in France.

For anyone who is not in a tip-top state of fitness, be warned that the hills and cobblestone streets can wear you out rather quickly. Now, having said that, enjoy this little slice of Vannes and do make an effort to see this charming small city for yourself.

A pretty street full of historic houses alongside the port in Vannes, Brittany, France.

People walking and sitting along the rampart walls in Vannes, Brittany, France,

The Derriere bar, cafe, and restaurant at the back of Les Halles, the food halls in Vannes, Brittany, France.

Walking uphill through the square in the mostly medieval heart of Vannes in Brittany, France.

COPYRIGHT
©Deborah Harmes 2007-2018 and
©A Wanderful Life 2007-2018
Please respect the words and images on this page.
All rights reserved.