mint

I have tried to get a link to put here but can't seem to do it.Plus de 3 milliards de mots de passe Gmail et Hotmail volés et partagés en ligne, êtes-vous concernés ?The best I can do is give you the headline.  It is from today's sudouest.fr.  Towards the end of the article, there is a link to check your email. I have checked mine but you might like to consider if it's safe to check yours[:-))]  I don't know where the scammers and thieves might be hanging out!

Yes, Weegie, I know except "they" is now widely used, even in learned articles and academic papers.  I use it in just the way I have demonstrated and, after all, there is no problem with understanding what is said. Expanding  on your grammar query a bit, I always use "no one" as singular and give it a singular verb but lots of people seem to use it in a plural sense. All these things seem to be "trending" although THAT is a word I NEVER use[:)]

[quote user="Weegie"]Had my first one yesterday.  Next one was already programmed for 11 March. Nearest centre was Nontron (30 minutes away).  They only had enough vaccines for 26 yesterday and the lady told me that they had a waiting list of 600!! OH still not eligible.  Whilst I was there, there was a couple of people who turned up on spec to see if they could get a vaccination - no chance. [/quote] Weegie, I read your first post about Nontron and, after reflection, I decided to try that site although it is a long way from us, over an hour and not on main roads.  Of course, as you have said, no slots at all. My husband will be celebrating his 90th birthday in a month or so's time and I don't think he'll be vaccinated until the summer, if then. While worried for myself, my attention is focused on keeping him safe. PS, Forgot to say that Dordorgne has an infection rate of over the national average, being one of 2 departments with worrying rates, Moselle being the other, where infections are galloping apace.  Moselle much in the news, not so much Dordogne.  Perhaps it's because we are not economically important enough to merit any mention on the national news on TV?

Cajal, don't bother answering my previous post.  Since writing that, I have read this: [url]https://www.sudouest.fr/sante/coronavirus/vaccin/covid-19-la-vaccination-avance-pas-de-nouveaux-rendez-vous-1283830.php[/url]  I think that leaves us unvaccinated for a good number of months yet

Cajal, how did you manage to book so far ahead? For our preferred centre, the calendar finishes on 15 Feb and then the usual notice that because of strong demand there are not more RVs and always that 496 doses will be available in the following 28 days.  I was wrong about 2 other things.  I shared a VSL with an elderly lady who'd had her first dose and that her GP (same as OH's) had arranged the RV for her.  So OH went to see the MT yesterday and was told that there was no more vaccines and that she herself hadn't had her jab.  Also, contrary to my confident prediction, she also refused to give him the high-dose Vit D. We really are not having a very good time, are we?

Yes, I did read the whole article[:)]  But there wasn't a great deal that was new, as such.  Towards the end of the article, it did mention the walled gardens of "les manoirs" of England and earlier on there was talk of fruit trees grown in espalier fashion. We grew our tomatoes and peppers against our sous sol wall.  I didn't mention glass.  It's well known that walls retain warmth.  Mind you, the plants did require large amounts of water and dried quickly with limp leaves if they weren't watered about 4 times daily. Don't know what we'll do this year.  It was quite a lot of work and the article did say that the skill and work that was required and the advent of railways meant fruit and veg could be easily transported from Mediterranean countries and therefore this type of agriculture became unviable.

I used to have one that I set out mainly to get on the ANTS site.  Sometimes I use it to see where parcels in transit might be. Recently, last December, I think, I kept getting emails asking that I renew the identity.  Am I correct in thinking that this "new way" can only be available if you have a smartphone?  As I don't have such a thing, I have ignored all their emails and now I am getting the mails again asking me why I don't upgrade? So, if anyone has this, I'd be keen to know whether it's a case of no smartphone, no identity?

Maybe she saw one of those PO adverts that say "Post early for Christmas"? I am forever being asked where exactly in our village we live.  As we are not on GPS, they do have a reason for asking.  I say we are mi-chemin entre l'eglise et le cimetière and that it is an address that is très practique, they always give a bit of a laugh or perhaps it's a snigger.

There is a place not far from us where there used to be a thriving cottage industry of peat collection.  I tried to look for some "images" on the internet to show you but I couldn't find any. They had special tools to get la tourbe from the marshy land and peculiar looking spades and rectangular shaped hods to carry the peat in.  There are a few places in the Dordogne where this industry was carried out. Of course, as well as the peat, there are many unusual species of birds and plants that thrive in these wetlands.  When our dog was still alive, we used to take her there now and again for a treat.  Her being a spaniel, she loved nothing better than water and she'd splash in the bog and, when she came out, she'd be black from top to tail. Then, there was another place we came across while we were house-hunting.  In the garden of a house  that we nearly bought, was a rectangular pool with regular sides so we knew it was man-made and not natural.  On doing some research looking at old maps and talking to an elderly would-be neighbour, we found out that the area had a connection with flax-growing.  The "pool" in what could easily have been our property in fact belonged to the parish and anyone in the parish could go and wash their flax there. 

Well, eric, last year we had un mur aux tomates et aux piments[:D] Had more tomatoes and peppers than we ever had in the past.  OH used to grow roses against the wall but the poor roses found the wall too warm. It is the wall of the sous-sol and it is quite long so we had maybe 6 plants against it. Well you can't be more locauvore than that, can you?

Had a charming postcard this morning from a French friend whom I haven't seen for a while as we are resisting being with people. It is a reproduction of an old photo and is of Paris, by the Seine under one of the bridges.  It is entitled la matelassière and shows a woman with a "hammock" held up by trestles at both ends and working on the materials in it. In the olden days, the explanation goes, this was one of the petits métiers of parisiens.  All the materials for the mattresses came via boats and were downloaded where the women worked.  Of course, the wools, feathers, horsehairs, stuffing materials could be washed easily in the river and transported by handcarts to where the women sort and arranged and stuffed them into mattress cases. The petite matelassière didn't look too petite to me; in fact she looked a bit matelassée herself[:)] I love learning about these long lost means of earning a living.  Makes doing whatever job you had/have or even housework looks like a walk in the park, doesn't it?

[quote user="Le martin-pêcheur"]Years ago in UK I used to drive an MGBGT, glad I don't now - who knows what it may suggest :-)[/quote] Man, Girl, Boy?  Google Thoroughly!

Oh Lori, what a time to have people, never mind complete strangers, coming into your house and walking through your rooms. Uggghhhh......certainly not the best idea of the water authrorities or whoever are sending them. I don't suppose there is a legitimate channel to say no, not now, thank you.......or you would have protested already?

Articles about the virus and measures to contain it abound in all media.  But here is an up-to-date overview that I think is particularly clear. Lori, your area is mentioned and you might find this interesting[:)] [url]https://www.sudouest.fr/sante/coronavirus/variants-1266515.php[/url]

Don't know when I last had a BLT sandwich.  The tomatoes taste rubbish at the moment.

Thank you, thank you, thank you.  Just wonderful, orchestra and choir......I am lost for words.....

These are difficult times for not treading on sensibilities when referring to someone as he or she. In English, it's easier because one can always use they.  As in "For everyone who has a problem with this, they can be reassured that there is a solution". For the French, however, when even inanimate objects can be masculine or feminine, things can get trickier.  I have read that there is a suggestion to use iel for he or she and no trans or bisexuals or anybody else could get offended. And, for goodness sake, do not say bonjour followed by monsieur or madame[:D]

Thank you to everybody for their replies with their links all of which I have read. Both OH and I were on the highest dose (like Norman's and Judith's).  I am certain that his doctor, who also used to be mine, will give him a prescription. As for my man, he's refused to have my blood tested for Vit D, never mind give me a prescription.  If this wasn't a pandemic and it were easy to change MT, I'd do it like a shot.  At the moment, I have no available alternative. Next time I go, I shall insist as forcibly as I can without holding a gun to his head, that I would like the prescription and also tell him that I had always had a prescription for it in the past.

[quote user="Lori"]I hope I am right about that.  I asked my pharmacist a couple of months ago when I picked up my own ampoule.  I had my own prescription and carte vitale, but I wanted to pick one up for OH too, but I didn't have his prescription or carte vitale.  That is when I asked if it was available without a prescription.  I was told yes, just not reimbursed without prescription / card.  At which time we both agreed it was so inexpensive, not a big deal for reimburse. [/quote] I asked at a pharmacie today and they told me that the Vit D ampoule was only available on prescription.  But that is just the one I was in today; I will ask at another one where I am friendly with the owner. I did buy a bottle of drops and, on comparing doses, the amount is exactly the same as the pills we have been taking.  But I have no idea if drops are more absorbable than pills.  In any case, OH won't want to take it as it contains lanolin. He will ask his MT next time he has to go and I will ask mine again with more determination and assertiveness this time.  I know many of our elderly French neighbours get their ampoules at least through the winter with some taking it summer and winter.  I can see the logic because, although there is plenty of sunshine here in summer, the heat sometimes makes being outdoors impossible and, also, elderly skin tends to be more fragile than young ones and can burn more easily. Thought I'd come back and reply to your post, lori, and then everyone will know, or they may have a different experience to mine.  For us, the cost is not a big deal as we use other supplements as well and it's just like part of the food bill to us.

Thanks for that, lori.  I will ask our friendly pharmacien on Monday.  The ampoules were great and indeed we would be happy to pay for it even if it were expensive. I thought it was prescription only.  Lovely that you know about this and now have told me[kiss]

My new MT told me that Vit D supplements are not necessary because "everybody's blood results show low Vit D levels".  He is also the person who told me that the covid virus is not airborne but is to be found on surfaces. What could I do?  When my previous no-nonsense, super efficient MT killed himself, we were in the midst of covid and no MT were to be had for love or money.  This new man came from nobody knows where but the new pôle de santé needs staffing and I needed a MT pronto.  Signed up without difficulty and I thought myself lucky[:'(] We have always taken Vit D supplements in winter but I think we will just double up on the dose from now.  I have had those ampoules and they gave me a real lift.  In fact, I wrote about these here on a thread I started to let others know about the benefits. Now I will have to investigate both Catalpa's and pomme's suggestions. BTW, Vit D defficiency is correlated with my type of aggresive cancer, no causal effects found but a strong correlation indicated. So, everyone, this is worth more than a passing glance[:)]

Doesn't it make you want to weep?  Certainly, it doesn't make me cheer, just more resigned and defeated. This, I am afraid, has been the sorry tale of lots of French inventions (engineering, medical) over decades.  Invent or find something wonderful and then have to hand it over to others to popularise and, often, commercialise. You'd think that in a health crisis, they'd have more than one string to their bow?

Hello, techies (with a wink and limp wrist greeting, smiling) Yes in the corbeille and have emptied it. Anything else I can or should be emptying? Thanks all, so good to have so many ready and willing helpers; sorry can't smile at you, back on Opera.

Thank you, so much, AnOther and Sue.  I have been deleting, got out all her emails and deleted them to 2018.  They do seem to still be around but perhaps, as Sue has said, after repeated deletes, they might eventually go away.[:-))] Sue is also right about the 3 GOs as indeed I think that's what it is.  Incidentally, on going through the suprimer, suprimer process, I even had an email from one of her children titled X and Y's hospital adventures.  Sigh.....I like a bit of a catch-up but perhaps not in such detail! When I say "friend", I perhaps meant someone I knew reasonably well over a number of years and they lived in our village. We were not in daily, weekly or even monthly contact but we have helped them in the past, loan of equipment etc and they also have reciprocally helped us.  It was a working relationship but, apart from that, we were not anything like "in each other's pockets".  She is a kindly person, if a bit bossy and fancies she could WRITE[:-))]  She can be a bit touchy so I wouldn't want to offend her or cause her any hurt.  I shall just keep deleting anything where the title looks like the body of the mail could be long and contain photos! BTW, the message about this person's mail taking up the 3 GO is still present.

Sue, thank goodness you are there[:)] Haven't actually looked at the email but, yes, inside the email, there is a link ending tumbl.com or something like that.  Opened the first page and read the first few lines so I can report back.  Photo of her and husband, holding what I presume was the grandchild they'd gone to see.  First sentence was about arriving, what they ate on the plane, where they went for the hire car.  Plus a board showing the in-flights in the airport , including theirs, I suppose but hell's bells, I didn't read further. So now Sue, help me to get rid of all this guff?  Imagine having that inflicted on you.  En plus, I don't know how many of these I have to endure.