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idun

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Everything posted by idun

  1. Wishing you all Bonne Annee et Bonne Sante! Maybe 2023 will be a year when I get some time for 'me' again and I can get around to posting, we'll see.🙂
  2. So as I said, 'Hello'. Not deserted the board, just life is still having priorities. I could do with things being otherwise, but helas, non! I look back and so many of the things we are still trying to deal with now and for the foreseeable future were already HUGE problems in our lives from well before I started posting all those many many years ago, which was in actual fact, twenty odd years ago, and I am simply weary. If we get a lull, I shall look in again. stay safe Idun
  3. Just to wish you all, all the best for 2022. We are well, but life has not been easy and still isn't....... c'est comme ca, and little I can do about it! So here is to 2022 and a good year.??
  4. Sadly, these problems will see me out, as nothing will be resolved, ever. And for all things could be worse, it's all wearing and so have to balance what I do. Is it possible to send messages on here to other members???
  5. I haven't been on here in an age. Life has got in the way and not in a good way really........ but that is life, ups and downs and absolutely nothing at all to do with us living in England now, not at all. Rather the residual and complex problems from life in France. OH and I are all jabbed, including a booster. We know the odd person who has tested positive after both jabs, but have not been ill........ and one who has been quite poorly, but doesn't believe in the vaccines, so no vaccinations. What an odd world we live in. And on that, I shall sign out.
  6. Well I have showed up! But only for this post. Unfortunately my life is rather 'difficult' at the moment. And I don't have much spare time.
  7. I have had endless computer problems and now mine is  supposed to be fixed, but I am unconvinced. I now have to go through all my files and save all the very important stuff to 'sticks' and discs and the cloud, well, no idea if I have access to that. So will not be on here for a while whilst I sort out, if the poor thing holds up. Great when they work, these things, but when they don't, NIGHTMARE[:'(]
  8. First thing, is have you got him to see someone yet? Or you have seen someone about him. If not, PLEASE DO IT! Personally I would hide the shears and as suggested sabotage the lawnmower........... AND why not have a word with the farmer, tell him that you husband is loosing his marbles and keeps ranting and raving about getting the farmer to do lots of things in your garden that you do not want doing. WHY are you putting up with this abusive man.............. I truly do not get it! I know we sign up to sickness and health, but we also sign up to love and honour, and that bit seems to being out of the window.
  9. I didn't watch this program. What I have watched is say the history of bakers and bread, including when flour was diluted with plaster of paris, etc........ yummy eh! Poor people have all too often had poor diets, especially the women, endless babies and they served  their own meals last. Truthfully, when I moved in with my boyfriend I bought everything from M&S, even all those years ago, one could get meals.The reason I did this was that our working hours were completely opposite and it was the quickest way for us to eat together. And he was very ill on them, literally would vomit after every meal, and then I started cooking everything, and he wasn't ill. Wasn't as if I couldn't cook, I could, it was just the timing so we could actually eat at the same time. My Dad says that his diet radically improved when WW11 rationing started as everyone ate everything on the list and it was in general a very healthy diet. Ofcourse most bought things have weird and wonderful stuff in them. I bake a tray of biscuits and they are soft very quickly, I have some bought ones  in my cupboard that are ok to mid 2022....... Yes, I am sure that some things affect kids brains, as well as adults. We use endless chemicals in the earth, and organis, well, is it 'really'? Also, I really do not want to live for ever. I might watch this program now mint, see what they say, but honestly I doubt I will be in any way surprised.
  10. And there is nothing wrong with that. Pork scratchings are very popular with some............. and crackling on a joint of pork, well, I know lots of people who LOVE that. As I was never able to buy pork joints with the skin on, I got out of the habit of making crackling and now these old teeth are no longer up to eating it.[:D] EDIT: Never even thought of buying a pork joint with the skin in France and in fact I like to sprinkle herbes de provence on the fat of a pork joint as I put it in the oven. The only herbes de provence with the 'right' taste in England is Schwartz, they put sarriette in, no idea if that makes the difference, but it does taste just right!
  11. I do not like a single one of them, if that is all I am offered will manage to eat a little, but not andouillette............... beurk! I don't mind saussise de strasbourg with a choucroute, every ten or so years I am as fussy with sausages in England. I do not like these butchers sausages full of meat and/or herbs etc either. Usually you could not get a fussier shopper than me, looking for quality, but I simply love some terrible things like the cheapest of cheddars and  a very basic banger..........who knows what is in a basic banger, I don't need to know, I just really enjoy them. I would never serve 'my' cheddar to guests and make sure  I buy excellent cheeses for turophiles, and I am very good at choosing, I just do not eat them and would often prefer not to smell them either.[Www]
  12. There are lots of varieties of french sausages, from Diots in the Alpes, to andouillettes and merguez, which are so popular on BBQ's. What are your favourites? And do you have regional specialities too?
  13. It seems incredible to me that it was not thoroughly checked prior to it being used again. A lesson for all the ski resorts,isn't it! When we first started skiing in the late 1970's we were always told via the dry ski slope rumour mill, that the lifts in Italy were usually second hand from say Germany, Switzerland or Austria. No idea if this was true. All I can say is that our first holidays were in Italy and, at least in the first two resorts we holidayed, everything was fine and very well organised.
  14. RE good fruit and veg in France. Well our two local markets sold very poor stuff, and expensive. The vans that came up from the Rhone Valley sold good fruits, but HORRIBLY EXPENSIVE! OK I didn't live amongst peach trees, or bushes or however they grow, but the dept did have soft fruit growing. Locally they grew peche de vigne those flat ones that look like donuts........... beurk, pink fleshed and did not taste nice at all. The local wines were excellent, as was the charcuterie and cheeses. The best ever fruits I have ever ever tasted was in Tivoli above Rome, every last thing we bought was sweet and dripping with juice, we had to eat leaning forward as the juice dripped down our chins and onto the ground..... divine! And I have had some lovely french fruits in the UK....... making me wonder if the best were for export? Would I have moved to a region with better markets, say SW France, never, is all I can say. 
  15. nomoss, I daresay that in the far east mangosteins are far from exotic, and the city where this remarkable shop with mainly chinese, but also far eastern goods were on sale, was a comprehensive selection, and  gave me a chance at least to try something new. Yes, I have bought plantains, the very first time I bought them they were delicious, the second lot I bought were awful, did not taste nice at all, and my OH said not to bother again, and I haven't. So maybe worth a try but look up when they are just right to cook, I have a feeling that the last lot were past their best.
  16. mint, I would drive for well over an hour to stock up on things that I wanted to try or needed. Now I know that this last year or so has been un-natural, but I do believe that driving to shop somewhere with a good and exotic selection is rather nice. In fact here in England, I drive for about an hour to one particular shop to stock up on some things. As I did in France, I just have to watch the dates. I remember after one of my long drives in France, I came home with some odd looking fruits, never seen them before, and they were delicious, mangosteins as well as some 'fresh' lemon grass, although frankly, I  later doubted just how fresh it really was.
  17. I had my second AZ yesterday, sore'ish arm again, but thus far, that is it. Hopefully it will stop the indian variant. There is some in the NE of England, but so far, not where I live, but these things literally 'spread' andfrom next week, toooooo much is opening up!
  18. Remember that I have a limited budget, but I have spent quite a lot of money on gold jewellery since the first lock down. I wear it too and no problems with gels. I also make sure that I work my way through my wardrobe and apart from things I would wear when getting really dressed up to go to a good restaurant, have worn everything, AND I have bought more clothes too. Thing is that I no longer live nulle part and going into town and being nicely dressed  is fine. My scruffy clothes are for home. Mint, re this Asam product, well, I have normal to dry skin and it goes on well and does not clump in my lines either. The only oily bit of my fact can be the nose area, but that is quite common with my complexion. I should go through my make up and rid myself of some of it that I never wear. Frankly, I look better with some make up on, might not have done when I was young, but now, well, it does help, if done lightly.
  19. When I said to our rotten horrible conseiller at the CM that I was une etrangere, he said I was not, I was anglaise! As we never had any intention of staying in France, my  mind was firmly set on the idea that as une etrangere and a guest in France, that I had to act as such. The idea of being other than that is very strange to me. Also, if that is what they want, just get on with it, you don't have endless fiche familiale and fiche d'etat- civil to deal with these days making life fastoche! And the idea that anyone is traumatised with not having the right paperwork, well, how pathetic is anyone even inferring that. Apparently the smallest of things these days traumatises....... [:(]shakes head in disgust.
  20. I bought this when it was on offer: https://www.amazon.fr/M-Asam-Magic-finish-teint/dp/B01N5QC1CL/ref=sr_1_5?__mk_fr_FR=%C3%85M%C3%85%C5%BD%C3%95%C3%91&dchild=1&keywords=m+asam&qid=1621013146&s=beauty&sr=1-5 The link should be live. When we first moved back I went into a big department store and had the Guerlain  full make up done. So I was still in my 50's then. It looked OK, all those layers including primeur, but frankly on the way home I felt like I was wearing a mask. I called into see my Dad on the way home and his first comment was to ask me if an undertaker had been at my face and I looked terrible. What  job getting the lot off, so I didn't buy anything they were hoping to sell. I have paid a little and a lot over the years, and now I find that my skin does not like too much on it, I look awful if I layer up. Sad and strange that young 'uns, layer make up, and yet most will have glorious skin which will never need covering. I bought this Asam stuff about a year go, two for the price of one, and apart from a tiny bit of cover up and some blusher, that is all I use on my face now. Supposed to be for any skin colour and I believe it, it looks quite dark in the tub, but isn't when it goes on. I am pale and it doesn't leave me looking like The Donald! and it smells lovely. It seems to neutralise some of the freckles/sun spots I have. I will continue using it, hopefully when I run out, will find another offer. Over the years I have used some primers, but frankly, I don't think that they make much difference. I have lines now, seem to be taking after my Aunty, and I won't try and get rid of them, they are  me and I actually do not believe creams really work...... because my oldest friend spend about £70 a pop on anti line cream and she has about as many as me. Some things may help briefly, but what the heck. This stuff on my face with some blusher and some eye make up.... lipstick.......... with a mask[:-))] well, probably not!!!!
  21. We could vote for 20 years and did. We eventually lost that right for our last 7 years, but we were on our final years in France. Why vote, well, we NEVER intended to stay in France for our dotage and if I had found myself on my own, I would have been out like a shot. As our intention was to move back to the UK,  we felt the need to have our little say in what was happening, even though our compatriots were obviously not on the same wave length as us for  a lot of the time. I felt fortunate that we could vote in UK elections for the period we could. Isn't it often hard as to know who to vote for, even when living in a country.
  22.  I am glad that they are sending this. But you need to know if all your trimestres from the UK are being counted. IF they are, that will be good news, sadly how they work it out is beyond me and everyone I know.
  23. We had a list of the trimestres sent to us by the CRAM. And I think that you should call them and ask them to send you the number of trimestres in total. They included all those paid in the UK too. Re the Agirc etc, every year you should have had a list of points accumulated for the previous year. I hope you were issued with them, and kept them. Then you can see how many points you had and look up on the Agirc etc websites and see how much each point is worth. Unlike the CRAM, it is a simple multiplication and that is your annual pension from them so divide it by 12. The complementaire is easy to work out. Usually the last points should be included, for us they were. You can call the assurance retraite on 3960 and ask for your trimestres, they should send them out.
  24. Just discussing nurses in France yesterday. I suspect that they are taught, ' this is going to hurt',  and not 'it might hurt just a little'. I have been seen by a few who were gentle and kind, but the majority have not been like that at all. Maybe these alpine folk are tougher than me?
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