In Front of La Chapelle du Mont St. Jean with the Renault
Tiles Delivery
This was a BIG deal. I have never, NEVER in my life, spent this much money at once… Especially on something I can’t use to make photographs!
These weren’t just any tiles, either.
The story goes: Once upon a time, there was a Chateau. This chateau was built a very long time ago in a town called Jarnages. So long ago actually, that the roof had begun to fall apart! So, the French government stepped in and put up a lot of money to put a beautiful new roof on the Chateau. And of course, a chateau certainly can’t be clothed with just any old tiles! NO, a chateau must have special tiles, approved by the bureaucratic powers-that-be to conform to standards of beauty appropriate for preserving the heritage and patrimony of France! But of couse… France being France, only half of the roof of the beautiful chateau was ever finished, while the owner awaiting his FEMA check to complete the other half. (In the mean time, a certain American came along who needed some very special tiles for his own chateau. And he wasn’t going to wait for government bail-outs…)
State of Affairs
Admittedly, the house was in pretty wicked shape when we got back- It’s been over a year since anyone has been inside, or cut the grass! This was what we were greeted by when we drove up… Not exactly the prettiest sight, but it’s more or less what I had expected. Looks like we’ll be spending the next few weeks chopping, and cutting, and burning- before we’ll even be able to begin the real work! (more…)
Le Vingaud Property Management Corp.
EXCLUSIVE LISTING
Listing # BLZ119
Price €149,900
Approx. Sq. Meters: 102
Bed/Bath: 2 / 1
Approx. Acreage: 3.29
-Nature’s beauty and end of the road privacy makes this 2/1 cottage with detached woodshed and three caves a special part of this enchanted forest. A dream great room to spend many happy moments, a patio area surrounded by stone wall and wooded privacy. Summer cottage or year round home, you choose. A sense of comfort and warmth will capture you as you enter this home – be prepared to enjoy! (more…)
We’re goin’ back, we’re gonna do it again…
When one time’s just not enough…
Winter gray and falling rain, we’ll see summer come again,
Darkness falls and seasons change (gonna happen every time).
Lena and I head back to La Creuse to start fresh… As if I hadn’t learned my lesson the first time around. March, 2010. (more…)
One Year in Le Vignaud
Intimacy with another country is ripened by pleasures but also by loneliness and error. It is nurtured through long wet winters as well as radiant days.
–Shirley Hazzard, Italian Hours
Le Vignaud, 2 November 2008
It’s been quite a while since I have had the time to write or share any photos on the website- things have been busy over the past few months. Needless to say, I have plenty of stories and photos to share! I should have regular internet access coming soon, so expect to have some new updates on the way…
. . . . .
One year has passed since I drove from Germany in a rickety old Renault truck, bound for my tiny village in France. It has been a wonderful ride- I have made life-long friends, followed a longstanding dream, overcome many obstacles, and fallen to others. But through all the cold, the rain, the sunshine, the good food, the up and the downs, I wouldn’t trade a day of the last year for anything else.
Le Vignaud on Fire
Last September Jason got an email from an old friend about a little stone house in France. Wearing his blue suit and with two suitcases he set off on an adventure. A year later, none of us really know what’s going to happen to that house. We usually don’t even know what’s happening with Jason…
Jason’s decision set off a series of events and adventures in my own life, which most recently took to me to the Black Rock Desert in northern Nevada. Burning Man was my own experience, but I still paid homage to its origin in my life.
On the base of the Man
One of the first things I did after arriving to Burning Man was walk over to the giant wooden effigy and leave my mark in Le Vignaud Blue. Nearly a week later, after the Man was just a pile of burning and smoldering ashes I threw in a 200 year old piece of oak, taken from an old roof beam in Le Vignaud.
At first I wasn’t sure why I put this memorial at the Man instead of the Temple. I think it’s because although Jason’s role in Le Vignaud may soon be at an end, the village itself and the few people living there will keep on truckin’. And who knows, maybe being burned with the Man as a symbol of rebirth will prove to be a bit of good luck for the little commune.
Izzy’s Le Vignaud
Yet another crazy collaborative effort that took a few months to complete! It’s worth the wait though… This is Izzy’s view of Le Vignaud from her visit back in June. I think it may be the most complete view of Le Vignaud yet available on the WWW. Of course nothing beats a visit in the real world, but this is about as close as it comes. She’s captured some great moments, and lots of nifty details about the place that have never been documented. This is one for the LV Historical Society Archives.
