Friend in a sandstorm

Life with a family, job and horse is generally quite busy at the minute. Given that four point five sixths of that ensemble are highly dependent, it means that a lot of time is spent fixing flaming hoovers, transporting dirty nappies from the bathroom to the kitchen bin, and putting the same toys in the same toy box at roughly the same time every day. This has the unfortunate consequence of eating up a lot of time that could be spent doing much more useful and enjoyable things such as talking to friends. Despite our managing to see a lot of our friends in Biarritz this week, it was a phone call with an old work friend in Paris that really put a spring in my step. We used to spend hours talking each day, (or rather he was generous enough to listen to me ramble on for hours on end each day). It was only as a result of talking to him for 30 minutes the other day did I realize how much I missed his company on a daily basis. It was great to catch up with him and gave me new resolve to pick up the phone to catch up with those other friends who are strung out across Europe and further afield.