Charly

Maybe ask your Doctor for some Clarityn or Piriton - not sure whether you can get Clarityn directly from the pharmacie without a prescription but this will work really well and is non soporific, though taking Piriton at bedtime might ensure that you get a good night's sleep as well as relief from the itching. Piriton definitely not the same as Prednisilone! An After Bite "pen" for topical use and immediate relief is brilliant. Not expensive and lasts a long time. Bought ours from Amazon, but easy to find on the net and from English pharmacies. Until then, maybe an ice pack wrapped in a teatowel (to avoid freezer burn) and applied to the offending area will take the heat out of it and reduce the inflammation, same applies to a pack of peas, or crushed ice in polythene bag or even very cold wet flannel. Hope you find the solution soon.

The odd bite is bearable if you live in the countryside or are outside a lot, but when it comes to aoutats/harvest mites/chiggers, that's when I get hysterical. No one wants to look like they have some terrible skin condition and be scratching like a monkey for weeks on end! Next year I aim to find something which will keep them away and when I do, I shall post on here. In the meantime, for mozzie bites, stings, biting flies etc., (as long as the skin isn't broken) we swear by After Bite in our house. It's a pen which dispenses smelly ammonia-type fluid and if you use it immediately on a bite it lessens the impact and stops the urge to scratch. It also works on nettle stings, wasps etc. Stings a bit when first applied but worth it for the relief. You can buy it on the Net or from English pharmacies. Not seen it on sale in France, but maybe? For a painful swollen bite, good idea to take an anti-histamine before bedtime. This reduces the swelling really well. Anything that doesn't respond probably needs medical treatment or assessment.

Think that's definitely game,set and match to Pachapappa. Just a thought .....don't think I've seen a simple "elle etait si peureuse" anywhere in these posts, or "elle avait une peur bleue (de)" She was SO afraid/fearful or "She was scared stiff (of)" something or other

And there I was thinking that I had made some very clear comments about the style of the programme - specifically the narrator - whose slightly bored, slightly "let's make a jokey comment about this" Grumpy voice made me feel uneasy as to where this might be leading. He's great doing his Grumpy Old series, particularly when we can all recognise and laugh at life's annoyances. I'd rather not watch any tv which aims to make fools out of individuals, whatever their nationalities. It makes me feel both sad and uncomfortable. Not attempting to explain any of this to Idun, who has totally failed to understand what I have written and whose attitude I freely admit baffles me completely. I am completely at a loss to understand why my posting the odd comment here should attract such animosity. It is well documented that I am not the only target of her missiles but they don't make sense to me. What is her criticism, given my post ? Some of you are simply being told what to eat, but I am instructed to read the papers and watch French t.v. - well yes, I do, and the point here is....? I consider myself well read, well educated and informed. I also know where my allegiances lie. I would no more post the following here than fly to the moon but Idun feels it's acceptable: "If I had had the need fo (sic) brits, or to be near brits, I would have stayed at home in the first place" "I couldn't imagine living abroad amoungst (sic) my own" "It starts in about 10 minutes and I am cringing already" "But there are so many brits there, how can you avoid them....?" And, apparently she lives in England now. So, now I'm even more confused. I can be lambasted for something I never said, however, she is able to say what she likes, whenever. Thank you anyway, Cooperlola, Will, Riff-Raff E., and Jay. Bless you, you understand English and it's a big relief to know that I am not, after all, going mad !

Before you comment and make wild guesses why not READ THE POST AGAIN? Your post blindly followed someone who either never read it properly or totally failed to understand what I said !

[quote user="idun"]Charly, give us a break, quit the sinking ship and all that poppy rot. Dear me, give me a penny for all the bitter expats who say that and I'd be considerably richer than I am now. Just start reading french newspapers and watching french tv and listening to what is happening in the cités in France, the banilieus and for working people and then would could have a proper conversation about sadly the bad things that happen in BOTH countries, instead of one liners that just leave me with thoughts I would not write on here. [/quote] "Give us a break Charly?!!!!!" Do try reading my post again Idun and maybe more carefully....believe it or not there are people other than yourself who are entitled to an opinion on some of these threads; and mine was hardly an opinion, more of an observation. Yours was based on what exactly? Wasn't it 10 minutes or so of t.v. overheard from another room and a failure to explain on here why you were flabbergasted? If you had read my post a little more carefully before your rant, you might have been able to see what I was saying after the word "unless"...and it was conjecture - about the possible slant of the programme and NOT my opinion on life in England, here, or anywhere else. Yet again - maybe due to the hazy view from your high horse, you missed the point completely. So, another total (and rude) overreaction to something you failed to understand !

We watched it - not impressed so far. Hopefully over 12 or so programmes we will be treated to more detail and interesting facts and topics relating to each "family" and how they came to settle there and see whether they have any misgivings, as well as seeing some part of their normal everyday lives. Having a few paltry facts - names, dates of arrival, what they do now, a few shots of the landscape and then moving on - is not my idea of entertainment, more of a survey or shopping list. And Geoffrey Palmer? Why him? The Grumpy Old voiceover doesn't work here because we are waiting for sarcasm, irony, p$*s-taking or just plain irritation to pop up. This doesn't sit well with the programme content in my view, unless of course it's wanting to aim a spiteful dig at those of us who seem to have deserted a fast- sinking ship and fled to pastures new. Maybe it will end with some drama and tears :as a salutary lesson to those currently fed up with England and living there in less picturesque areas with iffy weather - A "see what can happen if you decide not to stick it out in good old Blighty?" sort of thing! The Dordogne area is beautiful and we have many friends there, so even watching just to enjoy the scenery is tempting, but I hope that the voiceover doesn't make us switch it off in frustration. Not a great start, I feel.

[quote user="Val_2"]No. Will not watch as these cheap programmes just make me moan and cringe about how the french must perceive SOME of us, no wonder they get a bit funny at times. I've tried to understand why some of these brits bother to move to France and then try to export their previous life over too, what is the point of moving in the first place? My daughter has bought a lot of new DVD's over for us to watch and we will have the four episodes of Strike Back to catch up on as well, no contest really[/quote] Thanks for that hilarious comment, really made me laugh !

No actually, that describes the staff at the News of the World

Go for the scenery, the lovely beaches and the SMELL. The perfume which comes from all the wild mountainous herbs, plants and flowers in the scrubby maquis is the most wonderful I have ever experienced. It should be bottled and sold - it's better than the lemony piney smell in some of the Greek islands. I've been twice, liked it all but found the roads quite difficult especially in high season and did get quite fed up with the hot and gale force winds in the south west. Went from Nice both times with Corsica Ferries on a really good boat directly to Bastia. Unfortunately the second time because of quite strong winds (and Nice being a relatively small port) it was too difficult for the ferry to dock so within sight of the French the ferry changed direction and sailed towards Italy. It was a long time before anyone mentioned it to the passengers and we had a longer journey back through southern France from Italy to our hotel and we also missed our dinner !!

Our dogs have our names and address on their engraved tags - not their names. They are all chipped but we prefer to have something that's visible just in case. The telephone number on the tag states that it is the number for our Vet and we would prefer that to someone phoning us in an emergency and not being able to get hold of us. As we've just adopted another dog,a runner!!!! we're suddenly very aware that a tag with details might prove invaluable.

Well it couldn't have been Bugsy as you can see he lives in Vienne- THE NICE BIT! But speaking of vandalised windows and life's annoyances, is it you two who scream down our valley once a week masquerading as France's defence force - known in our house as "Air" & "Force" ? Last week we only saw "Force", but he was still enough to make the sheep rattle and shake up the fillings in our teeth. So, of you're the guilty party, please put those planes back where you found them and stick to rescuing damsels in distress !!!

Well, that explains it. If your Maire is called Strangley, his Wife would have to be awful.......

[quote user="nectarine"]For the last fortnight the air has been full of white fluffy seeds, a bit like broken-up dandelion clocks but I know it's not them. Sorry don't have a photo, but crops around here are maize and sunflowers, both not out, and just this year, for the first time, rapeseed. Coincidentally my husband - who suffered with hayfever in the UK - never had it since we came to France until this year ... perhaps the rapeseed. But is anyone else down southwest getting these clouds of floating seeds?[/quote] Oil seed rape fields can give you very bad hayfever. The fluffy white cotton stuff which attaches itself to everything in the garden can be from willows, especially cottonwoods, poplars, or, as is the case in my garden, birch trees. Have seen it before but never drifting like this, so assume that the very early hot weather has encouraged all of the catkins to burst open and disperse at once.

Think you may have struck gold, Rose. Just the right age, a 2-year old is perfect, the breed you want, and a chance to make a poor mistreated dog so very happy. Have had two dogs from Sheelagh and Rick and their team at Phoenix; and they are always tried and tested first so that you shouldn't have any nasty surprises and they are only interested in finding the most suitable dog for you. They are a wonderful Association. Hope you and your addi(c)tion will be extremely happy always. Well done you !!