Beauty & the Beast

I'm still eagerly awaiting Spring. The trees remain leafless and the temperatures are not consistently climbing yet. Four degrees in the morning are still happening but we don't seem to get the frosts such as you'd get in NZ whenever temperatures are that low. I don't know why- maybe things are simply drier.

Next month I'd like to buy and organise some window boxes for my studio - to pretend I have a little garden and to soften the hard lines of the building. As Spring gets closer I miss my garden more and more; the ability to grow my own food, have a natural haven away from work, outdoor living.I don't have the opportunity to get much sunshine when it arrives without my outdoor hobbies so I will need to make a special effort to find places to visit in the warmer months.

On Saturday Jean-Claude and I went to see a "Version Originale" movie "127 hours", maybe you've seen it. A true story of survival but very hard to watch. About once a month the cinema at Cafeolait has a VO movie (in English with French subtitles)but I'm fairly choosy. JC is a very kind, gentle and generous person and it's lovely to spend some time with him. His village is very small and located in the Eure et Loir area; 500 inhabitants, I think he said, with a medieval church. The weather has been very dull and cool so getting out and about hasn't really happened this past weekend and I've been a bit preoccupied with keeping up with news covering the Christchurch and Japanese earthquakes.

Thank goodness we don't have any nuclear reactors in NZ but France has 58. It's the second most 'nuclear-powered' country in the world and the french people I've talked to either shrug their shoulders and say they simply need to have a decent electricity supply or say there's no risk and that nuclear power is 'cleaner' than any other. What planet are they on?

I can't imagine a more horrifically toxic material than the byproducts of nuclear anything. Not only for humans but for every living thing for hundreds of thousands of years. There are a few stations south of where I live. Doing a spot of research, they HAVE had some safety issues but maybe not much negative publicity because France is so dependent on them.

It's not comfortable for me knowing my electricity is produced this way. The Germans seem to be uncomfortable with the idea too and have officially planned to phase out all nuclear power stations by 2020. Not far away.

On a lighter note, and certainly a more beautiful and natural one, I've included a photo of the gorgeous roses JC gave me yesterday. How thoughtful. They are enormous and of a very delicate pink blush. One day, I'd like to be able to grow my own roses again.

Photos of a french nuclear power complex, my roses and a 12th Century church which is near Gallardon.