Jungle

We boycotted the village omelette pascale today because they insisted on having it at the terrain des fêtes in the village, and not in a country location (this is a step up from having it indoors as they did last year, I suppose). Instead we had our own in our garden, with S cooking the wild asparagus omelette in an old frying pan on the barbecue. Followed by chicken, tomatoes, cheese, and home-made strawberry tart, washed down with the first of the year's rosé.

Earlier I made some sourdough hot cross buns which turned out really well. So we had a couple of those as well. Then I lay in a sun lounger and finished listening to S-Town. Absolutely compelling, so well constructed by Brian Reed -- who also has a perfect radio voice. Without giving away any spoilers, some people have criticised it for being overly intrusive. Although Reed is very careful with asking for permission, I think the last episode does go a bit too far in its explorations. But overall, it is a touching portrait of a community and especially of one troubled man. However difficult and curmudgeonly he might seem, his friends all spoke of him with genuine love and respect. I highly recommend it for getting out of your "filter bubble", with the proviso that it deals explicitly with some difficult mental health issues.

Oh -- brief report on Sage-Femme: basically a star vehicle for Catherines Deneuve and Frot. Deneuve was the better served of the two with a flamboyant part tailor-made for her, but Catherine Frot, as the uptight midwife, was her usual subtle and understated self -- not nearly as well known, but she's one of my favourite actresses. Not a masterpiece, but we enjoyed it and it held our attention for two hours.