Much to do about nothing .....

You might wonder what I've been up to. I ponder that very question myself on a daily basis. Driving back from my intensive and exhaustive French lessons the daily grind is enlightened by the most beautiful journey to and fro, a never ending kaleidoscope of deep hues, the newly tarmacadam road reminding me of a scalextric track. I'm constantly envisaging capturing its beauty and eloquently describing the ever changing seasons but I'm also multi tasking and on the back burner there are always problems jostling for attention. I seem to have devoted a lot of time this week writing letters to people. Put simply, why do people ask if I have a vacancy and then proceed to inform me what their budget is ? Patience is a virtue, discretion is the key, and then I wonder where the hours go to, struggling to bend over backwards is the answer.

On Sunday His Lordship and I took the Grand Duchess out for a pootle around the lanes, gently meandering up hill and down dale. I had been of the opinion that the picture for the cards was simply not up to scratch, honesty is the best policy after all and His Lordship seems to value my opinion(sometimes). I spent hours screeching 'stop' or 'arret' and at one stage ran up a row of vines that changed abruptly from red to yellow and stopped at the piercing blue sky. Leaves scrunched and crackled underfoot as a keen wind whipped them off the vines. At the memorial service on Sunday I asked a grower what the variety of the grape was that gave the particularly beautiful deep red leaf this season and the answer was 'Alicante'.

It was one of those magical mornings when time is suspended as you float through the hours. Afterwards when I looked back at the photographs the Grand Duchess looked as though she belonged to another era, the photographs could well have been taken in the 50's.

Which is sometimes the appeal of Le Chateau,splendidly reminiscent of the past.