It rained heavily, most of the night and for much of the day. I occupied myself during the morning with sacristy chores, left un-done since Christmas Day, as key regulars who look after things were away. It was only reasonable to get things straight before they returned for this Sunday's service.
I'd just started braving myself up to walk to the shops in Montreux when Joy popped into church on an errand and knocked on the door in search of a spare sacristy key. The secure key box in church housing everything needed for access, would not open. The battery operated code number pad had stopped functioning, presumably its battery died without warning in the default 'locked' position.
Somewhere a physical key for releasing the bolt mechanism was concealed, but nobody approached so far knew were. But, there was a spare sacristy key, which enabled me earlier to enter and do all that was required, except for putting the Communion vessels in the church safe. Getting a specialist locksmith to attend a non-emergency over the holidays, until there was a priest next door to let him into church was unlikely. That's a job for next week. It's possible to manage for the moment.
When she heard that I was about to go food shopping, Joy offered to drive me, as she was headed to the Coop hypermarket the other side of Villeneuve where she could get a piece of wood cut to size for a DIY project at home. Her errand took only moments, so she guided me around the vast retail floor to pick up all I needed, in just ten minutes. Alone it would have taken me an hour! The only thing that defeated me was buying wine. There was such a huge variety of local and foreign wines on offer at such a range of prices, it would have taken me an hour to decide, limiting myself to the inexpensive end of the market. There must have been thirty metres of four tier shelving given to wine. Why so much? The answer is in the location.
The hypermarket is in a retail park adjacent to an autoroute junction, uniquely situated for passing trade. France is 20km away, on the south side of the lake, also 70km to the north, and the way across France to the UK. It's also 100km to Italy through the Mont Blanc tunnel, so it's an ideal place to stop off and stock up after an alpine holiday, before the long drive home. I imagine it'll be very busy after the New Year bank holiday, and the roads everywhere will be congested daily until schools return. Considering the weather conditions, the road network copes well with such high demand, if there's no accidents, then chaos ensues, and the coast roads are as congested as the autoroute. I am none to sorry not to have a car this time around, and obliged to use the regional train if not buses.
Anyway, mission accomplished, I was soon back in Church House cooking lunch, and afterwards finishing a sermon for tomorrow. Only after it began to get dark did I remember that I still needed to go out and buy some wine. It meant walking into Montreux in the rain, but so be it. I arrived in the town centre at five, just as the supermarkets closed down until after the New Year. So, I had to walk further, along the rue de la Gare, and investigate a succession of 'open all hours' convenience stores run by non-Swiss entrepreneurs. Yes, they have them here, run by Arabs, Asians, Portuguese, tightly packed retail spaces offering most things you could need, from eight 'til late. So, I got wetter but returned with a modest supply that'll last me until midweek.
Exceptionally, sometimes big retail stores open in the evenings, but Sunday closing is still the norm and nobody seems to be in much of a hurry to change it. Evidently the Swiss economy is doing well with things the way they are. Bravo, I say, even if it's occasionally inconvenient for some.
On BBC Four this evening, the first double episode of the sixth series of the French crimmie 'Engrenages', entitled Spiral in English was broadcasted. So superior to the last French offering, in which Audrey Fleurot, one of the key actors in Spiral also appeared. The story lines are complex and require attention, but they are woven together with precision. The way in which characters from previous series are re-introduced with allusions to their back stories is understated and well crafted, as good as crime move drama series can get. Yet, a newcomer can start here and now, knowing little and quickly engage.
Or, am I fooling myself? The relationship between police and judiciary, and the governance of the two is so very different from the British legal system. We tend to be more aware of how the American system works differently from ours, and the French is different again. To be honest, this took me several sets of episodes of Spiral watching to get to grips with. Unlike many crimmies, the interplay between police, judiciary and politicians is as much a part of the drama as following the police investigative procedures and forensic trail. A welcome return to Saturday night viewing, one of the few things that's not boring that I bother with on telly these days.
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