Tony F Dordogne

We live about 4km south of the Dordogne river and have our own little micro climate because we're in a valley, hillside , surrounded by trees etc. We moved from SE England - two winters now, both much colder, summers much hotter and longer but as has already been said, we need the rain for the crops etc.  When it rains it usually pours down but when its hot, longer days, much hotter pm etc.  Grey water system a necessity.

There are several magazines available in France (usually in the bricolage section at the local Maison de Presse) which specialise in building houses in wood, suppliers details in fract just about everything you would ever want to know about building wooden framed or wholly wooden homes.

We're using copper tape to ward off slugs at the moment, bought in the UK from the Centre for Alternative Technology.  Working on the hosta and cut/come again pot a treat. Only down side is that it's cut through for ease of tearing, teeth like and it's razor sharp - probably slash any passing slugs or snails to death.

My parents (long dead now) had two opportunities to move abroad to work in the 1960s and didn't take them because my grandparents were still alive, mother regretted not making the move. My MIL is in a nursing home, has dementia and we moved here regardless - she is well looked after J's siblings who told us we had our lives to lead and MIL doesn't  know who we are anyway. When I worked for Age Concern and people asked about this sort of lifestyle change my answer was always the same - you have YOUR lives to lead and harsh though it may sound, will you end your days regretting not making the move/change in your life? It's a really difficult one this but my advice would be will you regret not moving after your parents are no longer around?  They have their lives, you will only be a couple of hours away by plane and you are entitled to your life.  A couple we know here had her mother, well into her 80s, here with them for a year with a view to all living here together - mother hated it, went back to her home in the UK they stayed here but mother still comes out for holidays, one of the couple goes back fairly regulary to see mother and things seem good for them.

If you want to take a good bottle of Cognac as a gift, I'd buy Delamain Cognac - it's superb and great for a special present.

Spoke to a cousin in Cornwall today who usually holidays in the Dordogne - Cornwall (his bit anyway) cold, grey and miserable ...... Ho hum ...............

Well aimed jet from a hose always worked in East London - don't see cats here, had one feral cat a few months ago but that seems to have disappeared. Now as for the other things that carp in the garden ..........

Welcome back indeed - and as Hoddy is just along the road from us, the weather today is seriously hot, 33 plus on our terrace. Definately no gardening this pm, catch up on UK tax forms I think.

My understanding from local apiarists in 24 is the les pompiers no longer are responsible for clearing bees and thast they will pass you on to a local apiarist to clear the hive. If the hive is so difficult to reach I'd just leave it for the time being, speak to your local apiarist at the end of the summer then clear it - although  the honey may be quite strong, maybe do a deal on getting the honey from the hive? 

What's this about?  Which we? And a bizarre post for the first one!!!!!!!!

We had a similar problem with an acer we bought with us last year. Repotted with new compost (ericacious) and now it's superbe.  And hopefully I'm going to get some of the seeds that it's currently setting to see whether I can grow them on.

I sent a parcel (Colissimo) to a client in the USA in February - Priorite, paid through the nose for it, had to be signed for etc etc. On 18 March he contacted me, parcel hadn't arrived.  Went off to the local La Poste, registered the parcel as 'lost', guarantees that the loss will be looked into, blah blah.  No contact from them AT ALL, 5 visits to the PO, just repeating that it is being dealt with at the next level - in another part of the Dordogne. Last week, little note in the post box, parcel for you at the PO - and voila, there it was, covered in stickers, been to the USA, ended up at the right PO - my client was away and didn't pick it up, he lives in a rural area (2 miles to post box he says) and didn't get the little note telling him to pick it up until he returned home. Problem was it got air mailed there and sea mailed back, hence time taken en route.  Real problem was that the French system seemed TOTALLY unable to deal with the parcel/enquiry even though it was supposed to be tracked throughout the delivery process. Anybody know whether there is Fed Ex in France?

If you like the literary scene in Paris in the early 20th century, try Shakespeare and Co by Sylvia Beach, about the ex-pat community in the Montparnasse area - she was the first publisher of Ulysses by James Joyce, in Paris. More academic book about the whole group is Women of the Left Bank by Shari Benstock, my old and battered copy is from Virago Press.

Round here they're just called rouget - love them, two mins max each side.

If you mini-rant is aimed at me, I do live here full time, work for a living and don't mind paying at all, just want to understand how you artisans work out your prices, that's all.

The guy who removes our ceiling tiles has found several types of glue holding the tiles on - he uses a low energy hair dryer to get the more stubborn stuff off but you could use a low energy paint stripper also.

If it makes things easier you can order a copy of your marriage certificate online from the UK's ONS, think it's 1837.com. It will be dated the day that the copy is made, costs £6.50, will arrive within a week and I think that should help you out with your predicament.  

Old enough to retire (almost, still have a business in UK but don't work March to October), young enough to enjoy it seems to sum it all up for us.  Bought a house and garden we would never be able to afford in the UK with money left in the bank. Lifestyle change after working in London/environs for all our lives, room to think and to move around, less traffic, less pollution. Not all roses, flooding after 8 weeks saw to that but that's all sorted now but took a year, huge garden to work in/on, new kitchen almost installed, different challenges. Lots of new friends of all nationalities. And there's always tomorrow if we don't do something today, another lunch to eat in a resto we haven't tried yet. All we really miss is the London arts scene, NFT, theatre (long drive for anything like that where we are) but apart from that, life changes worth every day spent at work.  

I love oysters and found a great recipe at Xmas for cooked oysters topped with finely chopped lardons, echalotes and tomato, with just a hint of smoked paprika. Went down well with the champagne.

And happy to admit so Dick.

Is it just me or do Diplomat (not)'s postings remind you of somebody else who used to post on here?  

Sorry, should have been 1789 and then through to 1815.

Time of Henri IV after he abjured. 1798 and the Commune, just as an observer. Paris, 20th century, part of the Sylvia Beach/Shakespeare and Co/Gertrude Stein crowd.

This is my first year trying to grow seeds here, all sorts of sources, UK and French. I'm amazed at how well they have all done - was at a BBQ yesterday trying to give them away.  I've just put the seeds in trays and root trainers, some veg in small coir pots to plant them straight out and so far have had to put in three more raised beds. Probably the best seeds so far are the Heritage Seed Library (part of HDRA), Seeds of Distinction and the French pea and bean seeds.  But have two large trays of capucines and more species sunflowers and cosmos than I know what to do with - if only I can get the Passion Flowers of the World seeds to germinate, now that would be good. Interesting how many people aren't interested in growing from seed themselves - suits me fine, think giving stuff away/swapping are still two of the joys of gardening. 

You can even buy seeds for the damned things in many of the garden sheds!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!