Caleeforneyeay

Two more Workawayer girls aged 19/20 arrived.  Lovely personalities. I learned before they arrived that one had had her ID and bank cards stolen in Paris just before they were to visit the Eiffel Tower.  What a terrible experience!  They were confused by my English vehicle with French number plates having thought I would be French!  Also in California they have left hand drive vehicles!!
A late evening arrival after Cakes Fest meant soup followed by potato and onion quiche. They declined soup! They were quite discombobulated by being in a safe place! Next day, we started to sort unsorted hard copy photos.  As I thought I would cry buckets of tears,  it was a surprise to be happy, discovering wonderful memories and events that defined who I am or who I was, photos of my lovely children in their teens, and school creative arts work that was a dissertation for year one of an Arts degree!  I never did any more for that degree. Shame!  The two girls having listened to my stories as each photo or event revealed itself said they hope that when they get to my age they will treasure such memories and have their own treasures.
The weather was against us but then the sun shone. They had no garden footwear or work clothes!!!!!  One wore my Keen open sandals and one wore plastic bags tied with blue garden string over her plimsoll like shoes. We mowed one lawn and took a trailer of weeding and pruning debris to the déchetterie as it was too wet to burn.  There was carrot and coriander soup, rice and veggies plus apple crumble which continued at breakfast time. We did 4½ hours work.
The following day, as the weather was wetter, we went to a large market, a medieval town, frescoes in an abbey, to see something of French history and French life! After a courgette soup lunch we tackled the sweeping of a dusty attic, moving work tables and a few other things but I let them us retire by 6pm. We did 3½ hours work.  In the evening one said it was the best beef she had ever tasted.... collar of French reared beef with onions, shallots, mushrooms, wine as a kind of boeuf bourgouignon.   It was served with creamy, buttery mashed potatoes and steamed broccoli followed by Pear Tarte Tatin fait a main!  During the day they were given full permission to eat the contents of the CCC box as soon as possible!  Fortunately for my budget they do not drink alcohol and prefer to be vegetarian. They rarely eat American beef but told me to please not mention burgers 'cos they don't count as beef!  I think this was irony! Evidently, they have a sweet tooth - there is a challenge to provide desserts!
Sunday was a late start. The clocks had fallen back too!  I could have stayed in bed easily until midday but I arose dutifully to a silent household and walked for almost an hour. Then épautre toast and marmalade breakfast, whilst clementines (oronules) and grapes were disappeared fast! We agreed to do personal tasks then go to an Autumn Fruits fête, but were disappointed when we couldn't find it in the advertised village. So glad not to have cycled! Butternut squash and Fennel soup, roquefort cheese and rocket plus the second half of the pear tarte tatin was enjoyed in hot, hot sunshine in the back garden - a very rare event this year! They mentioned that they hadn't had ice cream for all their weeks in France and looked surprised that 'as a host with the mostest' I produced caramel ice cream.  However, I was told quite firmly that it's not the same as Californian ice cream!  Oh well!  We cycled to the Roc-aux-sorciers centre, (my third visit using my pass), followed by an hour on the road on two wheels. Back home I was surprised that it could be chilly with full sunshine before six pm. It was humid outdoors and the washing which was almost dry was more wet than when it was hung out! In fact, it was a clear night with stars quite visible! I disturbed a toad trying to hibernate in the small logs! We ate Linguine with Walnuts:  Sauté garlic and shallots in olive oil,  add roughly chopped walnuts and freshly chopped parsley, basil or rocket (dried if you must!) and a few breadcrumbs. Cook linguine in boiling salted water. Drain. Mix and serve with with freshly grated parmesan type cheese. We were big on fruit salad with wonderful fresh citrus fruits from Spain! 
Monday: They moved a trestle table which sounds easy but it wasn't because we had to dismantle it, and find the screw bits and screws etc to put it back together! It took ages as we rifled through my friend's toolbox. Fortunately one knew how to use MY electric drill but it still took three of us to remove the battery pack!!!!! Ggggggrrrrrr!!!!  Meanwhile, I started to clear more space in my attic and they brought all the photo boxes downstairs. I sorted them into people and assigned a box to each of son, daughter, cousins, family, me, my life with former partner and his house and my house before that! The girls helped  to find plastic boxes, clean and label, fetch and carry and although each box is ready for the second sort they do look neat in the attic!  I had to clear by 4pm, the incentive being that my cousin was arriving possibly at about five and there was evening supper to make....what madness is it to think that roast chicken and veg is easy?... but with three women to peel and prep vegetables and make a fruit salad we were done in no time. The chicken started to be roasted at 2pm!  It was lovely to have company enjoying slightly burnt roasted root veg and Mediterranean veg ... the chicken had been deboned and served in a 'fresh from the garden' tarragon sauce! 
Tuesday:  After a shared breakfast my workawayers were set to weed courtyard and rockery without supervision but when I noticed them sitting on wet ground to pull out every blade of grass, I realised they needed to be shown how to hoe and rake grassy gravel! I set my cousins to walk down through oak woodland to the river, mill and bridge, but I double backed at top speed jogging and fast-walking through the chemins, my walk curtailed  to get a Roquefort and Walnut quiche in the oven as they wished to leave at one pm! What a rush when we only got up at 8h15!  Then I ordered, yes, ordered the girls to go walking the same walk for three reasons: a) they hadn't been for a walk, b) they need to explore my village, c) I needed space to go to sleep!!!!!!! They were happy with the reasons! There followed a food fest.  I had started a deep squishy bread based pizza! They made French Macarons which took a lot of time and required me to scuttle about to find a sugar thermometer?... yes, I do have one... an icing bag and nozzles? ... yes, I have those too!  We had already checked that we had the ingredients!

We agreed to make up hours on Wednesday so we worked from nine until five with half an hour for lunch and cleared a lovely space in the attic! I started to sort various boxes but there is so much more to do!!!!!!! I have two people giving me deadlines. One says Easter and I say the end of the year!  I need to be monitored!   We also mowed a lawn and weeded ivy etc of the wall! We ate Tartiflette made with good quality Reblochon cheese. and also a red-kidney-bean casserole with a mashed celeriac topping.  They wanted beans!
Thursday, they caught the train to Cannes via Paris.  Their next hosts are very accommodating and kind! They are very brave to be travelling without a homeward bound ticket. They plan to go to Switzerland, Germany, England. They know not after February!
When I asked what had they learned they observed that they can do a lot in a short space of time and had learned how to cook... and when I asked what had they enjoyed they said FOOD! They were starbright gems!