David_Janet

I once told a waiter, when offered more cheese that I was "pleine" - meaning full up.  I knew you said "la pleine" when you wanted a garage to fill your car with petrol so I naturally thought I was on safe ground.  Imagine my horror when it appeared I had announced to nearby diners and to the waiter that I was pregnant (used for animals only!).  It was even more amusing considering I was obviously well past child bearing age.

Has anyone any experience of Medion computers (specifically laptops)? They are regularly promo'd by Aldi (and, I believe, Sainsbury's in uk) and they are also available through their own website. They seem to be very well specced and reasonably priced, and they are not cluttered up with junk software like Dell, but I wonder about reliability and day-to-day useability. Regards David

Sun is shining so I wandered down to the shed to have a look at my packet of foodsticks .... Algoflash.  They do a whole range of sticks for various uses and the ones I bought are specifically for flowers. The alternative, if you can't find these, is to water every couple of weeks or so with a solution of tomato feed.  Alan Titchmarsh (my gardening God!) reckons this is pretty good for everything.  My trouble is, if I need to measure something out, put it in a watering can etc it all becomes too much bother so the sticks are great for lazy gardeners like me!  Janet

Try 2/3 terreau to 1/3 sandy soil with some gravel and the end result should be just as good.  Your sandy soil will make for good drainage.  I keep my summer containers sitting in big saucers to help retain water but remove these as soon as the autumn rains arrive.  Don't know if this is practical for you? I always try and put something interesting in the pots when the summer bedding's finished, just to have something to brighten things up over winter.  This is the time I take the saucers away and stand the pots on stout wooden blocks to prevent waterlogging. As for the make of foodsticks ..... it's raining so hard at the moment so please don't ask me to go out to my shed to check!  I'll let you know tomorrow! Janet

Here's my recipe which seems to work well. Roughly half garden soil (we're lucky in that our soil is loamy, good stuff), half cheap terreau universel and a good few spadefuls of cheap gravel to aid drainage.  I also buy some foodsticks and pop 4 or 5 into each large container just to keep everything well nourished. Bon jardinage! Janet  

Thanks very much for your reply.  Pretty much as I thought, and as long as probate is sorted by September we are within the 6 year limit so no need to declare.  Only problem now is finding the most cost-efficient way of moving £ to €!! Janet

We are soon to inherit some money from my late father-in-law's estate.  He was UK resident and the money will come from the sale of his house.  We live in France and want to use this money to carry out various home improvements such as double glazing, central heating etc.  I know we will have to pay tax on any interest earned if the money sits in the bank, but if the money comes in and more or less goes straight out again what is the position then?   Any comments or advice gratefully received. Janet

When we bought our present house (privately) we were most embarrassed to find ourselves sitting in the notaire's office on the great day of signing l'acte (ie completion) only to discover that Lloyds in UK had not transferred the money in time!  We were given two options: sign but not date the paperwork or go away and make another appointment when the funds arrived.  We all signed and then went home with red faces - and no keys!!!  It was a further couple of days before the money arrived and we just had to go back and pick up the keys and copies of the attestation (proof of ownership).  So these things happen and as someone else said, things in France seems to work out right in the end.  Janet

Hey, Bugbear! Don't you go wearing that bike out! Just keep it in the garage 'til I'm ready, eh? Seriously, though, glad you had a good day out. Profitez.... Cheers David

I shall (I hope) be in the market for a new bike this year. In view of the current state of the euro against the pound, would it be cheaper for me to buy in the UK and re-register it here? Alternatively, are bikes cheaper in Belgium (or Germany or Spain) than they are here? I'm finding it extremely difficult to get price/country comparisons. Thanks for any thoughts Regards David

When I bought a French condolence card it had a whole list of suggested phrases on a seperate sheet inside.  They ranged from the fairly familiar to the very formal so you could choose to write whichever you thought appropriate, depending on how well you knew the person. Janet  

Thank you Nick and Deby. I will check out the link.   Deby, can you give me any idea of the cost? (I know it will depend on lots of variables, but maybe a ballpark figure?)   Thanks again   David

How about saumonette?  It's very like (if not the same as) rock salmon and fries really well in batter.  Although the name is a bit confusing it is a white fish - nothing like salmon.  It seems to be readily available in supermarkets and fishmongers and is reasonably priced.   Janet

I am resident in France but I am likely to have to fly back to UK to visit my elderly father who has just broken his hip.  I don't know how long I'm going to stay and don't want the expense of hiring a car.  I am thinking about paying my sister the extra premium to go on her insurance so I can drive her car.  Will the fact that I only have a French driving licence cause me problems?  Do UK insurance companies accept French driving licences?  Any advice gratefully received. David  

Castorama will cut stove glass to size for you. It is quite expensive - I think we paid 105 euro for the glass for our Franco-belge poele. Regards David

Soreze. This mornings walk. [IMG]http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd24/hoggies-photos/cfb9eb6b.jpg[/IMG] David

Weedon, Another excellent site for all things GPS is this one (Pocket GPS World - the link takes you directly to the TomTom Go forum:) http://www.pocketgpsworld.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewforum&f=93 Regards David

How about this for a Shellsuit... [IMG]http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd24/hoggies-photos/9533d559.jpg[/IMG] David

Isn't he handsome? He was only the size of my little fingernail. [IMG]http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd24/hoggies-photos/2a231ea4.jpg[/IMG] David

Sunrise in the Aveyron [IMG]http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd24/hoggies-photos/IMG_0550.jpg[/IMG] David

Terrific pics, Choccie! Where were they taken? David

Recent Pyreneean sunset taken near Saissac, looking across about 100k of plain. [IMG]http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd24/hoggies-photos/IMG_0898.jpg[/IMG] LL, I've think that you need to do your sizing in Photobucket first, before inserting the pic in your post. I have found that if I realise I have used the wrong sizing - the edit function doesn't allow you to change it. Resizing to 640 x 480 seems to be about right. Regards David

Thank you Christine. Another for you. Taken on an Autumn early morning walk with the dog. [IMG]http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd24/hoggies-photos/IMG_0578.jpg[/IMG] Happy Christmas, everyone. David

Not taken this morning..... but a cold one. Pont Neuf Toulouse [IMG]http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd24/hoggies-photos/IMG_3358.jpg[/IMG] David

Panda, I wonder how many people who don't live here, appreciate just how cold it can get in the winter in 'the sunny south of France'.... These were taken in the south of the Tarn: [IMG]http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd24/hoggies-photos/IMG_3343.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd24/hoggies-photos/IMG_3340.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd24/hoggies-photos/IMG_3393.jpg[/IMG] David