theonlyD800inthehameau
Photography by theonlydeadheadinthehameau
Lambing Time
Posted on September 8, 2022
Out here in rural France, we’re surrounded by nature of course. That doesn’t mean it’s all idyllic, but it’s hard to take a walk during lambing time in spring and not feel, at least for a minute or two, that all’s well with the world.
March’s Last Photo
Posted on April 1, 2022
Spring is upon us, and in a field next to our local déchetterie (recycling point) here are the lambs to prove it.
Shear Hard Work
Posted on July 30, 2021
A sheep shearer shows off his skills at a village display in nearby Saint-Martial-sur-Isop.
Circulation Perturbée
Posted on March 6, 2020
Down here in la France profonde, the more common causes of circulation perturbée (traffic problems) – such as roadworks or a jack-knifed lorry – are just as likely to be supplemented by finding yourself on a country road behind a local farmer in the process of moving his flock of sheep from one field to another.
The ubiquitous white van is the modern-day sheepdog.
Tuesday Photo Challenge: Common
Posted on December 17, 2019
And the winner is….
Posted on June 5, 2019
Cee’s theme for her Fun Foto Challenge this week is ‘Smile’.
The nearby town of Le Dorat is hosting the World Sheep-shearing Championships next month and already the place is en fête in anticipation. An amusing feature of the preparations is the decoration of shop windows with paintings related to the theme, including this one.
As far as I know, the Mondial de Tonte, as it’s called, isn’t a sheep beauty competition, but the winner here is certainly smiling, even if the runners-up don’t look too happy.
Thursday Doors: Chez Durand
Posted on January 10, 2019
Only one door this week, I’m afraid, but it is a bit of a one-off.
If, like us, you spent many years living in Scotland, you couldn’t help but be very happy that, a mere twenty minutes drive away, there is a Scottish butchers shop, attached to a farm. They have cattle, pigs and sheep, all of which go into their exceptional products. How two people manage to run the farm and the shop pretty much on their own, I have no idea, but they do, even if sometimes the animals stray from their allotted locations into an old building with an eye-catching old door.
Thursday Doors 10 January 2019
Tuesday Photo Challenge: Our World
Posted on September 27, 2018
You may think that in this part of the world – deep in rural France – you’d never see a traffic jam.
Oh, but you do. Just wait until that big tractor pulls out right in front of you on a narrow road and proceeds to dawdle along at 15 miles an hour halfway to the next town.
Somehow, though, when it’s one of the local farmers moving some of his sheep from one field to another, it doesn’t seem so bad. There’s always time in our world.
Tuesday Photo Challenge: Our World
Portrait of a sheep about to be shorn
Posted on March 23, 2018
This sheep was patiently waiting its turn to be sheared when I spotted it at last year’s ‘Wool Fair’ in nearby Saint-Martial-sur-Isop.
Weekly Photo Challenge: Beware Of The ‘Sheep’
Posted on February 8, 2018
WordPress’ Photo Challenge for this week asks for an image of where we live.
The eponymous village at the centre of the commune where we live is called Mézières-sur-Issoire. With the best will in the world, you couldn’t describe it as a tourist destination. There are no buildings of particular historical interest (although it does have its fair share of interesting doors). In the summer, tourists are more likely to pass through than to stop, unless it’s to use the parking facilities for mobile homes.
However, it can boast a touch of whimsy, in the form of the concrete sheep that are dotted around along the main road. This is sheep country after all.
I well remember the first time we saw them, as we drove into the village that has now become our home. They are – at least if you’re in a moving car – quite realistic, and are positioned so that they appear to be about to cross the road. They’re at least as effective as a speed bump – the first time, at any rate.
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