Meg

 I though it was bricodepot??? And i think castorama as well. Oh yes here it is http://www.kingfisher.co.uk/index.cfm?section=English&area=About_us Louise

Thanks Andy, You've saved me from my moment of denseness! [:$] I think I'll give both a try! ( I have the sugar and lemons now!!) Louise

[quote user="andyh4"]Peel core and slice.  Pack into sterilised glass jars and pour over with hot sugar syrup with the juice of 1 lemon per pint added.  Seal immediately and they should keep at least one year.     [/quote] Does this come out like a 'normal' apple sauce, or do you need to cook it for that??? I wan't to make some this afternooon,oops no perhaps tomorrow as i forgot to buy lemons and sugar while out shopping! What is the quantities for the syrup? Louise

 Has anyone else been having problems with their connection, yesterday in particular. Our didn't work for most of the day, our neighbours was the same. So the fault was at their end. Have they been doing something?? Louise

[quote user="Jonzjob"]We have a few cones from about 18 pines in the garden. When they are damp and closed they are quite heavy and quiet when thrown. When they are dry and open they make like a whisteling noise in the air. I tend not to use the big ones, bigger than my fist, 'cause they are harder to throw. The smaller ones just fit the bill [Www] ... Have you ever noticed how a cat can accelerate from a standstill. Quite impressive [:D] ![/quote] Have you too much spare time on your hands??!!! [:D] Louise

 As far as i am aware, wine is dodgy territory. I'd take a pot plant (not chrysanthemums though.) or choccies. Good luck Louise

 Ahhhhh your all cat haters on this thread! They don't do nearly as much damage to wildlife as humans with their poisons! I love birds too ( even though our cats occasionally catch them) and dogs, (even though one killed one of our cats, she wasn't wearing a collar). I even like mice!! It's all nature though i guess, no matter how barbaric it seems to us humans. Jonzjob, pine cones though, you big meany!! [:P] Louise ps, the fact still remains cats are darn good at catching mice!

Good innit! And i haven't even been watching home make over shows Careful JK i may copyright that design! For anymore interior design tips, such as these, please ask.  (it'll cost you though)  [;-)] Louise

 And yes she also has a rain gauge!

 My neighbour found 3 this morning (cepes that is). There must be something in the waiting however long after rain business. Also we had some mushrooms growing in our field last week which she told me to eat. I was a bit wary but she knows her stuff ( I hope), but they were delicious. She called them 'Nez de Chat' or something like that. They all look the same to me, even looking in my book baffles me! Louise

 Pun / Alcazar You do realise that all this junk could be dealt with easily at your local Vide Grenier. Don't forget to stick an unreasonably high price on first though! Pun, next time wife is out fill fireplace with all glass, the more the merrier. Stick a candle on top. When wife returns await the praise for your artistic endeavors. Hey presto.........no more problems with glass! Alternatively flog it all on eBay as 'Authentic French Glass'.........See above for pricing. Louise

[quote user="Alan Zoff"]Frankly, I'd rather have mice than a cat. The neighbour's cat seems far more effective at catching birds than mice - and I rather like having birds around the garden. [/quote] I have both! They don't catch very many birds.......... they have a knack of flying off. Whereas mice run into a corner, for example, and the cats just sit and wait for it.

  Here she is with her very own website! http://www.kimappleby.com/ So she's still about. 10 quid say's she'll be on celeb big brother or something in the next year! Louise

Could you get a cat?? They make purrfect little mice catching machines [:D] And there are always loads of strays looking for homes. Louise

  NRJ is i think the only one where the credit doesn't run out. www.nrjmobile.com, has all the details and you can buy a sim card and top up online. I think it's part of SFR so you'll have to look for coverage. Louise

Alcazar Sounds like perfectly reasonable things to find in a garden!! You never know when a white enamel cooker side or bonnet may come in handy. Who said gardening was dull!! Louise

Interesting what you said about the holes in the walls Pun, I also assumed they were where old beams went. Our walls etc are mainly full of walnut shells and dried maize.........the dormouse at work i believe! We did have one huge pile of mostly empty bottles in a small 1 roomed old cottage, attached to our outbuildings, (plus a mountain of walnut shells). I guess it was used at a wine store at some point. But it did look a bit like somewhere to sneak off to for a quick drink! Perhaps old bottles were always non returnable in France??! Louise

What do they look like Pun?? I have found a little tiny brown one, plus some bits and bobs of glass. It seemed at bit odd as it was in the field though. Also i haven't been digging that much, as we have only been here a year, and the veggie patch got a rather late and not very deep forking over after stripping off the grass, so there could be loads down there! I guess I'll find out in the autumn! Louise

Tony,  Maybe the researchers have a 'mole' working for them! [:D] Louise

Yep, I'm keeping my little mole chums! I found this on english nature website:   Ultrasonic deterrents do not scare moles away and neither does the noise made by the wind blowing over the top of a bottle sunk into a mole tunnel – a commonly cited homespun deterrent! The live-trapping and removal of moles is also unlikely to be effective as other moles will probably move into the empty tunnels and may even extend them.  It is better to live with the problem and remove molehills as they appear, generally in the autumn and winter when it is damp and easy to dig. Why not use the soil for potting plants? Leaving moles undisturbed means that they are less likely to dig new tunnels. Moles can actually benefit the garden by eating harmful insect larvae like leatherjackets and helping to drain and aerate heavy soils.

They have been annoying me too this year. They just love coming up in the middle of the veggie patch! I don't have the heart to kill them though. I think next year i will just make my plot a bit bigger and expect some things to get disturbed by them. It just seems like an impossible battle to win, so I'm not even going to try, especially as they are in the adjoining fields so they would just come back! (Although if anyone comes up with a dead cert, i may be tempted.........) Also if you scrape up the earth on top of the mole hills, it is lovely stuff to go on seed beds etc. Louise

 AHHH Here he is again,  http://expatforum.digitaldevelopment.com/read.cfm?msgid=56234&thread=56234&channel=18&offset=200 I just searched for dave hume and expat! I wonder how many more there are. Louise

Interesting bit of detective work Cassis. I quite like that feature to see other posts, shame it's not on here. I am just too trusting to think anyone is ever being a bit sneaky. [:$] I need some of your cynicism Cassis! Louise

Thanks anyway Christine! They are still there though, so is the cat, completely unaware of the commotion going on above him! Lovely little birdies, they've made my afternoon. Louise

Just been searching and i think it is a goldfinch! Found this picture on the Internet. [img]http://www.birdfood.co.uk/images/fact_files/goldfinch_01.jpg[/img] Louise