Journal Weds 3rd September 2025

Morning all. It’s an early one today, although was awake anyway at 5am or so, as seems to be the way. For once our alarm got to wake the bulldog, see how you like it boy! It turns out he doesn’t remotely mind it because he’s already had his breakfast and is fast asleep. We’re up early today because my lovely MIL stayed here last night and as we speak is on the way to the airport in Limoges for an early flight to visit our new baby niece in Cornwall. I’m hoping that the hubs will return with a pastry.

I also have 2 alarms set on my phone for later this morning. I am in possession of a pre-sale code, and tickets for Florence and the Machine go on sale at 10.00am. After much discussion, (morning Kelly), we’re aiming for Paris tickets. We have logistics planned, and a hotel (cancellable if needed), already booked 300m from the Accor Arena. Now there is just the heart thumping terror of trying to secure tickets when they go on sale. I find it really quite stressful, and my Ticketmaster account hates me, so I’m hoping that it’s not going to be a prick this morning. But, we have 2 of us trying our best to get tickets so fingers crossed. I will update later, but you’ll probably hear the shriek either way.

It might actually not rain today, so time to wash some bedding and hang it out to dry. I also need to think about cleaning next door ready for a considerable amount of house guests in a couple of weeks time, and I want to refresh the bedding in there in readiness. Clothes are much easier to hang up inside than bedding so I think I’ll focus on that while it’s dry out.

The garden is greatly in need of some weeding and general maintenance so it’ll be nice to get outside in the sun and have a little play with my new Japanese Hori-hori gardening knife.

I also want to re-organise the woodshed ahead of our wood delivery coming next week. I want to move all the older wood to be stacked together so we can burn it first. That’s more easily done if I can pull the ride-on lawnmower out of the way on a dry day. Of course the wood delivery is due on the 10th September, the same day as France’s planned general strike so I don’t know whether it’ll happen then or not. We’ll just have to see.

TTFN,

V x

“Create a highly detailed and sharp-focused image capturing the essence of an early morning scene. The main subject should be a cozy kitchen with sunlight streaming through the window, illuminating a freshly baked pastry on the table alongside a smartphone displaying a ticket sale notification. Include a sleeping bulldog in the background, with a warm ambiance that reflects a sense of anticipation and excitement. The style should be inviting and homey, evoking the calming yet bustling morning routine of preparing for an important event. Ensure high resolution for clarity and detail.”