The "two weeks" are up! Off to Paris once again, cats in tow, so fun! I do so hate the awful airline reservation search engines and the damned airlines for making the whole stinking project such a drag. The sites and there are many are all hopelessly alike, enter the to and from dates, enter the city, enter how many people (nowhere for special things like cats and the charges for bags, cargo, food and water) preferences...of course I want NON-stop, what's wrong with you!? Days of boring sameness with lies for prices, prices PLUS taxes and licenses, fees, baggage costs, a damned baloney sandwich and a bottle of water! All lies, either they the sites or the damnable airlines need to be honest at least so one could select one's total costs without the sticker shock when you click on the tiny grey out "taxes / fees" box. Awful! I spent hours hunting knowing full well I didn't want to fly into Dulles...it's DULL alright, huge distances to walk, up, down "just follow the signs"
all over the damned place but not ever past a restroom to pee! No watering stations either! What a way to treat 2 paying passengers and their cats! Never again if I can at all help it! A POX on the place! Leave it to the Senators and Congressmen and their consorts and pages.
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There are few airlines that allow pets or don't have flying regulations that virtually prohibit them ( Cats and Dogs must weigh under 4.5 kilograms total including carrier with plastic liner, food and water...what's that a cat skeleton? Or a gerbil? Gads. That's Air France's answer to the problem. Some carry them but only in the hold with the horses and cattle (you think I'm joking!)
Here's a headline for you...CBBC Newsround | ANIMALS | Crocodiles found in aircraft hold_ Yes, not one but 10! Horses! Cows! Rhinoceroses! But cats in the cabin! Impossible! Neighhhh! Here's an article about which I speak: http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=8012
So United Airlines gets the nod AGAIN, so many years, so many flights and still never an upgrade or free flight and though we travel together always and always have...our Frequent Flier mileage is not equal...I have thousands more miles (useless as they are) than Kelly does! Thanks United, thanks! Just normal in airline travel, nothing surprising. The cats are booked now...200 USD per cat ONE WAY! Highway robbery! They weigh less apiece, in their bags than 4 quarts of Perrier's best. I pee more than they weigh for chrisakes! Our two cats are quiet as church mice, not a whimper after they get out of whatever conveyance brought them there. No pee, no poop, not hunger and Kelly's bottle of drinking water is used to wet their little faces periodically during the flight(s...how many stopovers sir? 5, oh good) which they promptly lick off thus get some water...almost a force feed I think, nice trick for cat travellers. Thus they fly well and have for the last three plus years.
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Awwww heck...who cares, we're back in France soon enough and ready to work our asses to stumps for the next 6 months. Huge Iron gate to hang, walls to repair, roof estimates to cry over, painting by the gallons inside and out, many yards of cloth to sew and hang as curtains and wall coverings (Kelly's favorite!). Dinners with our friends, our favorite activity of all and new people to meet and get to know, it is all such an adventure! It's the BEST thing we ever did for ourselves outside of getting married to each other. I may bitch and complain about the difficulties but down deep in there is a world of satisfaction and pleasure that goes far beyond and complaining I (we) may do time to time. The French treat us exceptionally well and we get along in the language better every time and never has any language difficulty kept us from getting anything we needed or wanted. It's lovely, we like it. Next time...
Monday, February 23, 2009
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Le Tour De California...Yippee! and Brrrrrr
Well we ventured out this morning at about 1130 to travel some 24 miles thru the driving winds, rain, hail and sleet...yes sleet to witness the passing of the peloton once again, this time on California soil...er pavement near Lake Berryessa.
We arrived at high noon, the time the riders had left Davis about 25 miles away in pouring rain. How nice. We drove to the junction of highways 121 and 128 to the General Store there amid firemen, policemen, California Highway Patrol and many other brave, frozen souls to see the bikers pass some hour and a half from then.
We parked in a lot adjacent to Highway 128 and ventured out to find just the right spot to photo this great event. The wind nearly blew us off our feet and the rain, sleet and hail poured down. Waiting seemed an eternity, first the police cars to clear the roadway, the CHP directing traffic off of 128 and back towards either the parking lots or Highway 121 towards Napa and Fairfield. Brrrrr, Audrey and I shivered as we huddled against an oak tree and tried to stay warm and unfrozen. Time went by in small increments of shaking and pulling one's self further into the ever soaking clothing. This was NOT Le Tour in Chateauroux last July...this was California's own tour in Mid February! I wonder how the Spaniards and Italians are taking it? Brrrrrrr. 12:30 and then 12:45, weather actually worsened, now the sleet was continuous and actually forming little mounds in the middle of the roadway.
Brrrrr. 1:00 came and went without a glimpse of our expected valiant riders, many cars began to show, their windshields covered with sleet and hail. We trod back over to the Prius with the ever wise and courageous Kelly inside keeping the fires of warmth alive for us her idiot brood. We armed ourselves for about 10 minutes and then ventured back to the roadway, I readied the ever trusty Nikon for the velo shot of the century, in RAW mode no less, a money shot coming up! I'm ready! Then a roar from the frozen mouths of the crowd and three riders sped into view, pedalling with great fury as they sped by, I pushed the buttons though I couldn't feel them at all to see what I shot then take another and another in hurried succession. At then end the Peloton was some 12 minutes behind the leaders, we moved the car closer as our interest subsided. I check the Nikon...now it says low battery and the @#$##!@ counter shows I only took 2 images! Oh shit! Merde! My god, all of this for that? Then the screen said FOR...which means that the memory card needs formatting! Oh no...NOTHING?! Who knows, I changed the battery and the error message remained, oh grrrrrr. Then I reseated the card and found that the FOR message was gone and the count showed I had taken exactly two images of something...I wonder what? Here's the miserable results!
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We arrived at high noon, the time the riders had left Davis about 25 miles away in pouring rain. How nice. We drove to the junction of highways 121 and 128 to the General Store there amid firemen, policemen, California Highway Patrol and many other brave, frozen souls to see the bikers pass some hour and a half from then.
We parked in a lot adjacent to Highway 128 and ventured out to find just the right spot to photo this great event. The wind nearly blew us off our feet and the rain, sleet and hail poured down. Waiting seemed an eternity, first the police cars to clear the roadway, the CHP directing traffic off of 128 and back towards either the parking lots or Highway 121 towards Napa and Fairfield. Brrrrr, Audrey and I shivered as we huddled against an oak tree and tried to stay warm and unfrozen. Time went by in small increments of shaking and pulling one's self further into the ever soaking clothing. This was NOT Le Tour in Chateauroux last July...this was California's own tour in Mid February! I wonder how the Spaniards and Italians are taking it? Brrrrrrr. 12:30 and then 12:45, weather actually worsened, now the sleet was continuous and actually forming little mounds in the middle of the roadway.
Brrrrr. 1:00 came and went without a glimpse of our expected valiant riders, many cars began to show, their windshields covered with sleet and hail. We trod back over to the Prius with the ever wise and courageous Kelly inside keeping the fires of warmth alive for us her idiot brood. We armed ourselves for about 10 minutes and then ventured back to the roadway, I readied the ever trusty Nikon for the velo shot of the century, in RAW mode no less, a money shot coming up! I'm ready! Then a roar from the frozen mouths of the crowd and three riders sped into view, pedalling with great fury as they sped by, I pushed the buttons though I couldn't feel them at all to see what I shot then take another and another in hurried succession. At then end the Peloton was some 12 minutes behind the leaders, we moved the car closer as our interest subsided. I check the Nikon...now it says low battery and the @#$##!@ counter shows I only took 2 images! Oh shit! Merde! My god, all of this for that? Then the screen said FOR...which means that the memory card needs formatting! Oh no...NOTHING?! Who knows, I changed the battery and the error message remained, oh grrrrrr. Then I reseated the card and found that the FOR message was gone and the count showed I had taken exactly two images of something...I wonder what? Here's the miserable results!
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