ali-cat

[quote user="Russethouse"] Frankly it is very interesting to see how many people who are genuine claimants get so quickly offended by others being tired of applicants who are not genuine, claiming. What is that about ? Surely if the non genuine claimants were weeded out there would be more in the pot for them and other genuine needs. Just FYI there is a  trade in 'blue badges' and they are sold for cash in many instances. [/quote] If I came on spouting about gite owners not filling in tax forms & taking "cash in hand" payments I suspect you would have a rather heated debate.  Generalisation is a very hard thing to take & incredibility insulting to those affected.

[quote user="tegwini"] Tony- it doesn't take any medical training, but rather common sense to be sceptical when someone supposedly too ill to work can extend & renovate his home; & another one I know of manages to garden for others, and do admin & etc for the church:   another one  with 'back problems' manages play golf daily with a golf handicap of  2;  an ex-employee of OH had a wife with a 'problem back' & was on IB for 15 years and fit & healthy managed many activities requiring a level of fitness not many have, and  even managed to have a new Volvo estate on IB funded by the state- a newer, better car than her husband's professionally qualified employer !   I also knew a rep on IB, he travelled extensively for Woods of Windsor - car also funded by IB. I suppose he was at least working,  perhaps paying tax,   but how illogical is this ?   He was even proud to show his IB parking badge- major advantage that,  for a rep.  The link below also of interest here. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7358878.stm Tegwini [/quote] What an absolutely perfect example of when somebody believe's that someone else is “fiddling” the system. Firstly, it is highly unlikely that someone working as a sales rep is in receipt of IB. You can not receive full IB if working more than 16 hours a week, so are you sure he is receiving it? Unless of course he was working for the sort of small business which “fiddles” it's tax returns & the Government has not spotted that the same NI number is recorded for a recipient of IB. The car has nothing to do with IB . They are for people who receive the High Rate Mobility Award of DLA, which is awarded regardless if you are working or not, who then have their payments paid directly to the mobility company. Neither are the cars free especially if you are driving something like a Volvo Estate, for your job. If you choose anything over a low priced, basic model car you have to pay the difference. Blue parking badges are issued to people on the high rate mobility award, by the Department of Transport – once again, nothing to do with IB. So thank you Tegwini for perfectly pointing out that a lot of people just “assume” that someone is on IB & fiddling the system. It makes me wonder how many other “fiddlers” mentioned here are also being unjustly accused.

[quote user="krusty"]Why not try Johnny Depp .....sissor hands...demon barber [;-)][/quote] Johnny actually lives at the end of our road!  Ok, so the road runs for over 300kms ....... it's what I tell everyone!!  [:D]

Twinkle, I am so glad to hear that your daughter is now fit & well & that something which has been hanging over you all, is finally over.  I can not even begin to imagine what a parent must go through if a child becomes sick or is in need of medical treatment & I think it sounds like you dealt with it incredibly well.   Basing you approach on the father from 'Life is Beautiful' was an excellent choice & I don't think anyone with kids could pick a better film in any sort of difficult situation.  [:)] [kiss]

If the chicken was fresh & not already frozen I can't see any reason not to freeze them raw, in their marinade.  I freeze lots of oil based vegetable dishes, with no problem. But why not just cook the lot, freeze what you don't have for lunch & then you'll just have to defrost & re-heat them next time you fancy a tasty lunch?!!  [:D]

[quote user="sweet 17"] The lump was easily the size of a golf ball but, fortunately, it didn't seem to be restricting her breathing or, indeed, her eating! [/quote] I was just re-reading these posts when Mr Cat noticed your comment above & reminded me about his own leg!  About 3 weeks ago he took an allergic reaction to a bite from a mosquito which developed into a lump “the size of a golf ball” (which is exactly how he described it) & his whole thigh was swollen to about twice the size.  It took over a week to return to normal with anti-histamines & cream. I wondered if this could be what the young vet meant by having an allergic reaction – rather than just a bite? So glad that she is improving so well!!

Haven't been on-line for a few days & just seen your post.  It must have been terrible to have suddenly seen him like that & I can imagine only too well what you must have been going through.  So glad to hear the little one is doing much better & on the mend.  [kiss] - from our 3 cats!!

Now that Wimbledon & the Euros are over I'll not be watching very much on the telly.  I love watching sport - tennis, footie, boxing, MotoGP, rugby, golf etc. etc. etc....... ) & personally find all the soaps, game shows, British dramas & “I'm a celebrity & I've got no talent” type programmes totally unwatchable. Sorry that some people have their essential viewing interrupted, but there are us out here who just can't wait for a decent bit of sport on TV. Roll on the Olympics!!  [:D]

Not quite "Puss 'n Boots" - more "Kitten 'n Socks"!!  She doesn't seem to mind wearing them & I really hope they are helping to protect her paw, until the proper 'cat shoes' we've ordered arrive.  No idea what she was doing in the plant pot - just had to rush a get the camera & then start to worry about what exactly goes through that childs head!! [blink] [IMG]http://i308.photobucket.com/albums/kk325/markatards/005.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i308.photobucket.com/albums/kk325/markatards/009.jpg[/IMG]

The vet in Rouillac, mentioned above, is excellent & I honestly can't recommend them enough for any pet treatment.  Dr Hersan also speaks excellent English & you can ask for either her or Dr Beau if you need to phone to make an appointment.  I discovered, while looking for a vet in the area, that very few actually have their own web-sites or are contactable by email. Clinique Vétérinaire, 1 Route de Genac, 16170, Rouillac.  Tel: 05 45 21 77 82  (they are very easy to find, beside Super U)

[quote user="Christine Animal"] You can give her plenty of ham then tonight!   [:D]   [kiss][/quote] So far she's has ham, crab-sticks & chicken!!  Spoilt rotten!! [:D]

Ellie has been given a 2 week reprieve!!  We had a long chat with the vet & when she got Ellie to walk around the room was surprised at how much improvement there was in her whole leg. So she gave her a long lasting anti-biotic injection, we have to bath her foot twice a day in iodine, continue her physio & ..... buy her baby shoes to protect her paw!!! We will probably order a 'cat-shoe' as so far we haven't been able to find anything suitable – except a pair of kiddies socks to keep it clean in the house!!  Photos will follow!!  [:D]

Don't worry Christine!!  She's not allowed anything from 8pm so she'll be on starvation diet from then onwards.  Not sure how I'll explain it to Mr Cat when he goes to make his lunch tomorrow & there's no ham left for his sandwich!!  [Www]

Thank you for all your kind words.  We feel as if we're in a real dialema now as we've spent all day looking up 'nerve damage in cats' on the internet & everyone says amputation should only be used as a last resort.  It can apparently take up to a year for the nerves to re-grow & for full mobility to return. I think a long chat with the vet in the morning should help us decide if it's for the best, but I think the infection in her poor wee paw may be the real problem at the moment.  Will let you know how everything goes.  I'm away to get some ham out of the fridge for her now - but don't tell Mr Cat, as it's his!!  

We have just returned from the vets where we were heartbroken to be told that tomorrow Ellie will have to have her left back leg amputated.  After 3 months she still has no feeling from half way down her leg & despite giving her physio & bandaging her foot daily, to try to stop her cutting it, she has developed an infection on the top of her paw.  The vet assures us that it is the best thing for her & I honestly know that it is - but it still didn't stop me from bursting into tears.  So by this time tomorrow will have a 3 legged, tail-less, half shaved cat ...... but we still love her & will be spoiling her rotten even more than usual - if that's possible. 

[quote user="sweet 17"] I have been somehow feeling very subdued recently.  I think it could be the weather or because I feel restless and unsettled on account of wanting to move house. [/quote] If the weather in Charente Maritime is adding to your restlessness & making you subdued heading to the Dordogne could make it worse.  The rainfall level is higher (hard to believe after the last month here!!) & the number of hours of sunshine are lower (not that I believe the "2nd sunniest region in France" statement anymore!).  It seems that nowhere is guaranteed sunshine anymore - but hopefully it's on it's way & with a lot of music festivals starting soon, it may help lift your spirits. [:)]  

So glad that you're both home, safe & well (well-ish!).  We've been off-line for a few days & only just read about the accident, which horrified us both.  Take it easy & look after yourselves.  

I had a badge for 8 years in NI which has just expired & have applied for a new French one.  I have also been told about the 18-24 month wait & I'm still not even sure if I'll even get it.  It's easy to do - once you send off the forms you just have to be patient & hope for the best. 

A belated thanks Coops[8-|] Mr Cat  

Many thanks for the help gosub. Now that the dreaded tax return is out of the way could you perhaps point me in the direction of how to reclaim UK tax in the 'usual way'.  Too many years of PAYE I'm afraid! Regards Mr Cat      

It might be worth buying the "moving house" pack from La Poste as it lists all the things that you will need to do & includes pre-printed letters & cards for some of the things you may have forgotten about!  [:)]

Is it possible to take the offending/broken "circlip" to a shop with you & just ask for a new one?  It's what I tend to do if I'm stuck.

[quote user="ams"] We live in 17 also, ours is 10x5 and is geothermically heated and has an abri, which is 2.5m high at one end and 2m high on the other.  Two doors and can be folded back in about 4 minutes. The maximum temp with the heating system is 28c.   The abri was a great investment, as being heated was cool but  when your head is out of the pool and the temp is -4C not a lot of point. Generally the pool hits 18c at the end of march and we turn off the heating, this year being the exception. Now the temp in the pool is 26C and has been for the past week. In summer it is necessary to take the cover off as the temp once hit 38c and algae grew at a huge pace. Normally about the second week in november the heat goes on again.   Heating the pool geothermically is not expensive.   ams [/quote] Sorry ams.  I not sure if you meant that the geothermal heating alone was cool as in 'pretty neat' or cool as in not warm.  Presumably also the installation costs of geothermal are pretty high? Regards Mr Cat    

Hi there. Many thanks for the response.  Our pool is in a very sunny and well sheltered patio area.  I assume that, while the roller cover does insulate against heat loss overnight, the fact that it is opaque means that there is no deep heating of the pool from sunlight when the pool isn't open - which is all the time at the moment. Could I ask if the bubble cover is safety compliant - and is actually safe for pets etc. Regards Mr Cat      

I'm now a little fed up with our Abri owning friends telling us that their pool water temperature is up to 28 degrees and they've been using it for over a month.  Our 10x5 pool with floating roller cover hasn't got above 17 degrees as yet (Dept 17). Admittedly we don't leave the pool open for safety reasons so the sun hasn't been heating the pool however even last year the pool temperature never exceeded 23 degrees even when open all day. Looking at the various options (electric, heat pup, solar - an abri is not an option as we recently installed the roller cover and an abri would dominate our patio area) it occured to me that you would need to use an awful lot of electicity to offset the captital costs of installing a heat pump or solar setup (which will also use electricity). I'd be very grateful for anyone's experiences with these options. Regards Mr Cat