Up in Smoke

This is the cheminée in our house - imported stone by stone, tile by tile, from a château, and installed here by the previous owner. We put in the wood-burning stove - which is a lot more efficient than the open fire. In spite of it being warm outside, the ground floor of our house stays cool because of the 3-foot thick stone walls. It doesn't really heat up until full summer, hence the need to light a fire.

In other news, the storyline for the new book is nearly finished. I expect to complete the first draft tomorrow. Just in time, because we head off on a 3-day drive to the south of Spain on Sunday after a speaking event here in France tomorrow night.