I know I've fallen off the 'blog wagon, and I heartily apologize to anyone who has been sweet enough to regularly check if I've written anything. Sorry, but this will be another whirlwind catching up entry. Just the facts to get everyone up to date. Stories will have to come later....

I had a fantastic time in Azerbaijan, with many funny little happenings to tell you all about (later when I don't need to get back to the castle.) From Azerbaijan, I flew straight to Paris, where I had a 12-hour layover before catching an overnight train to Esperaza, a small town near the southern coast of France. It's about 45 minutes outside of Carcassone, which is the closest place that might show up on any maps (in case anyone wants to get an idea of where I am.) The region is known alternatively as the Midi-Pyrenees, the Aude (for the river that runs through it), and Languedoc.

I came here to stay with an English couple who are renovating a 16th century chateau. Two friends of mine have also spent time here, and they highly recommended a stay with James and Sophie. They have 4 not-very-well-trained but very spoiled standard poodles who love to eat things that aren't food, like my left flip-flop. I no longer consent to take them for walks in the village where we live (Saint Ferriol, named after the patron saint of sick chickens... I kid you not.)

There's always a nice fire roaring away in the main hearth to keep out the cold and wet. It's definitely springtime. Last weekend, I drove out with two friends to Andorra, a region on the Spanish border, to go skiing for the first time in 15 years. What a hoot! After an hour or so, I felt like I had gotten the feel of it back, and I took on the black trails by the second afternoon. Swoosh! Swoosh! No broken bones or twisted knees or anything, and I only fell twice. I even taught my friend Paul how to parallel ski (it was his first time, and he reports that it's nothing like grass skiing in Perth, where he's from.) Snow dumped on us for both days, and there was almost two feet of beautiful nearly-virgin powder. Yum. Virgin powder. I'm hooked. Anyone up for Tahoe next winter?

So what the hell am I spending my time doing in Saint Ferriol? Working. I get room and board in exchange for helping out with renovations and gardening. I've done a lot of digging and pickaxing, and upgraded to making posts and lintels out of oak beams that had been salvaged from one of the ruins. Chisels and elcetric planers and sanders are fun. I've enjoyed doing the woodworking. Alas, I've fucked my wrists digging through debris, so Sophie and James have asked me to do a mosaic in one of the bathrooms. A large sweeping spiral done in pebbles, with an iris blossom in the center made out of broken blue plates and bowls. If I can get the knack of working with pebbles, I think it'll come out really nicely.

That's most of the news. I'll backtrack to do a part deux entry on Azerbaijan soon. I'm delighted to read everyone's comments. It makes being on my own a bit less lonely than it otherwise could get. For those who've been asking, I'm heading back to Connecticut in mid-May to see family and hopefully meet my nephew (due in June), and then heading back to SF a month later.

X's and O's to all!

A bientot, mes amis!