I'm detecting a theme

A couple of weeks ago, when I came home with my friend's car late on a Friday night, the new gate to my "park" was locked. Lovely, I thought. I had to park on the sidewalk in front of the house. The following week, I went to the new offices of the Communauté des Communes which shares the property, re-introduced myself, reminded the receptionist that I lived there and expressed my concern about eventually being locked in rather than out. A lengthy yet very friendly conversation ensued, but they assured me that no one locked the gate. They suggested I pop into the villa to see if they were the culprits. Once again, I explained the situation, but the woman there said they don't even have a key to the gate. They too have requested one, knowing some day it will be locked. So I left both places empty-handed.

Fast forward to last weekend. Michael and I came back from Rambures late Friday evening and parked behind the house. Later, when we decided to take a long walk to compensate for the large cheese course at the end of our meal, we discovered the gate was locked. Flashback to when he was here in the winter and we were trapped in the Cathedral tower. This seems to be a recurring event with the two of us!

Because we had big plans to head to the coast the next morning, I arranged to borrow Alex's car in case we couldn't find a way out. Of course, this was precisely what I was trying to avoid by renting my own car! Saturday morning, I called the only person I know who is semi-responsible for the house (and I've only met him in passing). He called the town hall, and in half an hour the Communauté receptionist with whom I'd visited was there, accompanied by the (only) town police officer. (By the way, no one I've asked knows his name...we just call call him Monsieur le Garde Champêtre). They unlocked the gate, assured me I'd have a key eventuellement, and said they'd try to figure out who was locking it. In the mean time, I've been parking on the sidewalk just to be safe.