We do things differently in Brittany…

As you can see from our local Ambulance service…

None of that silly saline solution for our IV drips!

We prefer the real stuff…

Works every time!

You know…

It’s nearly worth getting run over for!

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All the best

Of course, no day trip to the seaside would be complete without a little paddle…

And i can’t believe how therapeutic…

A little paddle can be!

The FifteenYearOld didn’t really want to join in…

But I suppose that he’s at that difficult age…

When a paddle in the sea isn’t so much fun?

After watching The Girlie paddling around…

And trying to persuade The FifteenyearOld to let me bury up to his neck in the sand…

Because that’s what people do when they go to the seaside!

I decided to have a little sit down and watch the world go by…

The more observant of you will have noticed that I am wearing my Lucky Mushrooming Hat!

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The Girlie kept a careful eye on me…

To make sure that I wasn’t looking at the topless sunbathers (there were two of them – or should that be four?)…

And I just closed my eyes and pretended not to look at the topless sunbathers…

And thought happy thoughts about what had been a wonderful day!

By the way – there is something wrong with my camera as it appears to have added curvature to certain photos?

If I tried to persuade you that my belly size in the last photo is some sort of optical illusion, would you believe me?

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All the best

Obviously, one of the reasons that The Girlie, The FifteenYearOld and I went to St Malo on a day trip was…

So that I could enter the Biggest Belly in Brittany Competition!

And, in the picture above…

You’ll see me limbering up for it!

You also see me having a paddle for the first time in…

Eight years!

Why did I wait so long?…

In order to prepare for the competition…

We needed to have a light lunch

Strangely enough we chose the restaurant that wasn’t across the road from the sex shop…

And had a really nice meal for not a lot of money!

My Moules Provencal was really quite special!

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The Girlie had steak…

And The FifteenYearOld had a warm goat’s cheese on toast salad.

For anyone every in St. Malo, the restaurant is an Italian one in the road with all thee other outdoor restaurants – the owner gave us a free digestive after the meal!

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Over the last year or so, The FifteenYearOld seems to have lost his bottom!

he doesn’t know where he lost it so there is no point in sending out search parties!.

He’ll probably hate me for bringing this to your attention…

What a terrible stepfather I am!

The Girlie is seen here deep in contemplation…

Trying to work out where The FifteenYearOld’s bottom might have gone?

I put it all down to the slight lack of Pig’s Trotter Sandwiches in the poor boy’s diet!

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All the best

So, the Girlie, the FifteenYearOld and I decided to pop up to St Malo for a quiet day of culture!

No one told us about the Catamaran races which meant that…

There were no parking spaces for miles!

Still, it was a nice drive round searching for one…

For three hours!

We had a wander round and soon…

It was time for lunch.

But not before The FifteenYearOld had found the sex shop!

Oh, I do hope his grandparents aren’t reading this!

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For some reason this street sign seemed to be funny…

I think you had to be there?

And quite why I photographed this gull…

I’m not really sure?

It seemed important at the time…

If I remember why, I’ll let you know.

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We sent The FifteenYearOld into a sweet shop with a pile of loose change…

Four hours later he exited the shop having spent most of the time being confused by the range of sweets on offer!

You can see that Dazed and Confused look in his eyes…

Can’t you?

This was taken just before…

He dropped his Sherbet Walking Stick that he had only so recently purchased!

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But this was only the start of the day!

I have a horrible feeling that…

I may just have some more stuff to show you tomorrow!

All the best

Well…

Personally I don’t know what’s wrong with the kiddies walking miles and miles to school but…

Apparently others think differently!

So, everyone has chipped in a few centimes…

And bought the little buggers…

A new school bus!

Personally, I think we’re spoiling them…

Back in my day us kids walked for miles in snow and rain…

The kids of today…

Just don’t know they’re born!

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All the best

At long last…

We have got a local supermarket…

Delivery service!

Now, some of you…

With real supermarkets…

Might laugh at us…

But, this is rural (and slightly backward) Brittany, you know…

And…

It took a long hard fought battle…

To convince the local council that…

We have the right to buy fresh local produce…

And have it delivered…

To our homes!

One local council member was observed to comment…

It weren’t like that back in the 1770′s!

The people of today…

Just don’t know they’re born!

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All the best

At long last…

The local council have agreed to fund a local bus service…

In La Gacilly…

Obviously, the Bus has yet to be invented in my little part of rural Brittany..

But we’re getting close!

The height of luxury, if you ask me!

A far change from what we used to have!

The kids of today…

Don’t know they’re born!

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All the best

Well, we are a bit behind the times here in rural (and slightly backward) Brittany…

But I think it sort of works?

It seems to fit into the slow pace of life round here…

And if it shows that our local time is about 120 years too slow…

What could be wrong with that?

Ask me what the time is…

I’ll answer….

Time enough to slow down and take time to enjoy the really important things in life!

You got time for a Ricard?

All the best

I wonder where we have gone so terribly wrong?

Things certainly have changed since I were a lad…

But then, those were simpler days….

And, instead of rioting in the streets and looting our local Argos Store…

We made our own fun.

And…

I have been striving to understand where we…

Where society…

Has gone so horribly wrong?

Of course, I blame much of the decline in the moral standards of modern society directly on the introduction of the skateboard…

That, in my humble opinion, was the beginning of the end!

But, also, a change in fashion accompanied our desperate descent…

And that is what I’m trying to put right here.

Ladies and Gentlemen, it’s not too late…

We still have time to change things…

Back to how they were before…

When children played with skipping ropes and conkers….

Rather than…

Violent Games on their Computers and XBox 360s!

And all we need to do is….

Bring back the Duffle Doat!

Do these two young children strike fear into your heart?

If you saw them coming down the street towards you would you automatically assume that they’re going mug you for your iPhone (fat chance with me!) so that they can sell it to buy some more Crack Cocaine?

No, of course not!

They’re more likely to invite you to the local choir concert at the vicarage…

Or, if you look a bit elderly or infirm (or look like you one day may be elderly or infirm), ask you if you need a hand crossing the street!

We wouldn’t have won the war if we’d all been wearing Hoodies and Trainers….

When David Niven single-handedly won the war in The Guns of Navarone, was he wearing a Hoodie?

No, of course not…

He had far too much class and style!

And I bet he was never caught rioting in the street and nicking wide screen TVs from Currys!

No, he was brought up properly…

He learned…

At an early age…

To wear a Duffle Coat!

So, Ladies and Gentlemen…

I give you the solution to all of society’s ills!

Ban the Hoodie and….

Bring back the Duffle Coat!

I shall be creating an Facebook page for this worthy cause and…

I shall be setting up a petition at DirectGov.uk

We only need to get 100,000 electronic signatures for the subject to be discussed by Government.

And that shouldn’t be too difficult….

I know people who have almost that many aliases on Life in France forums!

Watch this space for further details and…

Please tell all your friends and ask them to support this worthy cause.

All the best