A BEAR IN BRITTANY

CHAPTER FORTY-SIX


I hope your Christmas treat is no longer playing the fool in your stomach, and that any possible headache has faded away and left you clear in your mind to read this new chapter.

The festive consumer frenzy is still in full swing for a few days : at the poulterer's, turkeys, crusts and Guinea fowls are performing an ultimate strip-tease for their farewell tour, at the pastry-maker's, Yule logs and Twelfth Night Cakes are having a fierce competition. Even chemists are rubbing their hands together, cause medicines against hangovers and overeating are selling like hot cakes !!
I must confess that, every year, that kind of spending spree puts me in a stay-at-home mood. Don't get me wrong : I am not a wet blanket, but entertaining myself on cue is not my thing.So, forget about getting any New Year's Eve Party tips !

No plot in this week's chapter, no twists and turns, no thrill, just a commonplace but topical issue : the weather !

Come on, don't turn your nose up, don't knock the weather : nine-tenths of the people couldn't start a conversation if it didn't change once in a while.Better yet, a lot of us rely on the weather forecast to know what to wear.Last but not least, whereas religion, politics and money matters can turn into bones of contention( especially during big family gatherings such as Christmas), the vagaries of the weather is a topic that calm things down in a wink and on which everyone agrees !
 A weather saying always keeps the conversation going.By the way, do you know any ?

Here is one I have got from my grand-mother :

"Birds flying low, expect rain and a blow".

Anyway, whilst this saying may sometimes be true, it is far from reliable..
Climate change and global warming often counter sayings and weather forecasters.
So, I have withdrawn my confidence in most of them ( except maybe some shipping forecast sites).

To know what the weather was(and would be) like, till November I used , when opening the shutters, to have a look at the ground to see if it was dry or wet ( Mrs Deer had already licked the dewdrops). Yet, just a glance around was not enough to know if it had drizzled or poured down during the night, and if I needed to water the newly-planted fruit trees.

Fortunately, a good friend of mine spoiled me with a bear rain gauge to make my recorded rainfall sharper, and as she added wittily," to keep 
Mrs Deer company ".
Since this cute little bear took up residence on our terrace, he had not done an outstanding job ! He has withstood sneaky gusts of wind, and even better, he has restored the image of Brittany !

I mean, from early December till Boxing Day his gauge has been chock-full just once !! Unless parched he has gulped down the gauge content, it means we have been enjoying a pretty fine weather, haven't we ?

So, drop the so-called weathermen, and dismiss rumours about rainy Brittany ! Next time you hear someone say :

" It only rains twice a year in Brittany : August through April and May through July ", 

IGNORE THEM !!


BRITTANY IS REALLY THE PLACE TO BE !!

BEAR'S HONOUR