Our neighbours have a hectare or so of land on which they grow organic vegetables. They do other amazing things but their most pressing task in this hot and dry summer is finding water. Every household in France is metered so you can imagine how much it costs to water all those veg. Another source was needed or they wouldn’t be making any profit. They invited un sourcier (water diviner) to search for somewhere they could make a borehole. He arrived on Thursday afternoon and sure enough, walking over their property and somehow sensing the water, he found them a suitable source. Our neighbour remembered how we had discovered an underground tank or citerne in our garden. I’ll publish the story again if I can find it. He brought the water diviner round so he could mark out where the tank was. He methodically quartered the ground holding a small cone shaped piece of metal in front of him. When it started turning, he placed a stone on the ground to note the spot. We eventually had the tank all marked out. It’s an impressive piece of work as it is not only lined with beautifully finished stonework but it also has a vaulted ceiling. Quite common around here no doubt but would be practically impossible to build today. That evening, we went over to Blanzay for Roger’s monthly open mike night which he hosts alongside his friend Den. Some new faces brought a few surprises and one or two magical musical moments notably a saxophonist from Lille, who invited Steve, a piano player who he’d never even met before to back him on Girl from Ipanema- stunning.
Back to Blanzay last night where singer songwriter Angie Palmer was performing. It was a warm summers evening so we were outside and Angie was set up in the barn. As the light fell the atmosphere warmed, Rog joined Angie on stage for the second half and with songs like Michael Angelo and Deep Blue Sea, the audience were spellbound. See Angie’s MySpace page for forthcoming gigs in the UK and France.
French Leave 