mint

patf thank you, yes, i did get a pension forecast.  it wasn't that good, mainly because a lot of the "non-payment" years were yonks ago and are now past the date for making additional voluntary contributions.  also, it actually does not pay me to make up the years because of factors such as my husband's age (advanced, by the stats!) should still be ok as we have one or two other things up our sleeve.  i think it was more a matter of a pension being "comforting" at this time of huge change.  however, i had accepted long ago that it wasn't anything that i could change at this stage and i only put out the original post as information for those women who might have found it useful.  for myself, i am not unduly worried as we have been looking forward to france for over 2 years now and we feel it will be a great adventure for us. i love the thought of having to face new challenges now that i have finished work and my days of going off on charity bike rides and long-distance walks are probably over (not so much because of the physical effort, but because i shall find it very hard to raise the money nowadays)!

forgive me, chief, what is a crack?  it's not an expression i have come across.  pardon my sheltered upbringing. i MAY well be on board; but sadly, that depends on whether edf will have given us a date for connecting us up to the grid

don't get me wrong; i don't feel aggrieved in any way.  i won't go into all the circumstances here but they were such that i was unable to clock up the relevant number of years.  i did say i wasn't banking on the money; but is there anything wrong in being a bit wistful? of course i don't grudge anyone who benefits.  that's life, isn't it, the luck of the draw in many ways.  we can plan all we like but, as one american sage says, "life gets in the way!" i also realise that if, for example, they had moved the date a few months and i would have benefited, then there would still be hordes out there who would miss by a margin.  wherever you draw a line, there are going to be people on both sides of it. i don't like people assuming that i somehow am unhappy with my lot or that i grudge other people their good fortune.  far from it, i am most happy to be in my relatively fortunate position and i am looking forward greatly this year to moving to france

i think your £500 was a very good price indeed, especially as your solicitor seems to have done a good job and served you well.  your last sentence makes me think of the exact same remark made by a fellow-househunter (got to know her through the net househunting, never met her before), "we wouldn't do it here so why do it in a foreign country."  we were just unlucky with our so-called expert solicitor, that's all. now that we know the ropes, i really don't think we'll have our own solicitor again although it would depend on the purchase.  if it's straightforward, i would now have the confidence to go it alone but if there are complications, i would still like to have recourse to some good legal advice.  after all, understanding the actual language in the document is one thing but understanding all the legal implications is quite another. the one question we did ask ourselves was, if it all went pear-shaped, how much of the money could we afford to lose?  just the deposit, all of it?  with the answer to that in mind, we then proceeded knowing that we had done all we could to minimise the risks; at least the risks as we perceived them to be.  

thanks to those posters who have clarified that we are talking about WOMEN and not men.  i was a bit careless; no real excuse, just a bit cross to have missed out! as it happens, i wasn't banking on it.  who would do that with pensions?  my poor husband had the bulk of his pension funds wth Equitable (the mutual company) and lost approximately 35% of his pension.  there again, we hear about others even more unfortunate whose companies have lost all of their pension funds and some are now having to go back to work perhaps we should start another thread about whether pensions are deemed to be a good way of saving for your old age or not?

this is information that i read in the sunday times today.  i and others have posted here re the white paper of last may proposing that you only need 30 years to qualify for a full uk pension i feel a bit dejected today because the times article says that only people born on or after 06 april 1950 will qualify, even if the white paper becomes law.  i will miss out by a matter of months.  c'est la vie! thought i'd alert others who may be affected.  oh well, back to the drawing board to think about what i should be doing about providing for my old age

dottyanne be VERY VERY careful.  we too bought from an individual.  the mistakes we made included being too eager to please the seller and going along with their choice of notaire and "so-called" interpreter. we did engage a specialist solicitor back in the uk.  he was less than useless although he advertises frequently and designates himself an "expert" in french property purchase.  we probably did need a solicitor from the uk (just not our solicitor) as we were not too sure of things like what we could put into the clauses suspensives.  the next time around, we would definitely dispense with our own solicitor.  incidentally, i posted here recently in reply to someone else and, if you do go down the route of a uk person, you can expect to pay £1000 to £1500 (no VAT applicable) we didn't need a surveyor as my husband is a chartered building surveyor and town planner.  that meant we bought the house fully aware of its defects and we took a detailed look around the surrounding area.  also, we spoke to some local landowners and looked at the development plan for our commune.  on balance, if you are not too sure of what you are buying, i would say that it's probably better procedure to have a surveyor rather than a solicitor; that is if you are having to watch the buying costs as someone has already said, you could always engage your own notaire and this is one thing that we didn't do that we deeply regret.  we will be buying some extra land soon and THIS time, we will definitely choose our own notaire (one that speaks english and has been recommended to me on this very forum).  it's not that we don't speak french but we definitely do not understand legalese (in french or english or any other language!) anyway good luck.  please feel free to pm or email if you wish me to tell you more about our particular experience

more thanks in order for everyone who has posted since my last post.  jon, i have made a note of hydrocholoric acid. i believe that my neighbour gave me eparcyl; i just wish it is not that horrible black colour which makes the loos look dirtier than ever! will try pads' sepclean as it's a white powder (if a bit expensive) and will probably resort to bleach once in a while. i have what almost amounts to a fetish with loos (and ovens); they have to be spotless though everything else in the house can go hang!  i think the loo thing started when my son was young and i was afraid that he would flush the loo or hold on to the sides and not wash his hands properly!  therefore, the loos had to be disinfected nightly and given a thorough cleaning at least once a week.

thanks for the advice, everyone.  i do appreciate how you have all rushed to help.  pads, that's a brilliant site and i think the products sound very good indeed.

jc thanks for the prompt reply.  when i am next over, will read all labels carefully.  cheers.

please forgive me, gite owners, for posting here.  i don't quite know where else to put my question.  it's about cleaning our loos. we have a newly-installed fosse; all-singing, all-dancing variety.  never having had such a thing in my entire life, i am nervous about cleaning our loos.  my neighbour kindly came over and gave me a packet of the black powdered stuff to put down the loos.  now, that's all very well, but what do i actually use to clean the loos with?  i am told that bleach is a definite no-no.  so, how do you all keep your loos sparkling clean (as i am sure all your loos are) just tell me what i can safely use that will not interfere with the bacterial action in the fosse, PLEASE! 

i agree with blanche neige.  portsmouth - st malo is, for us, the nicest and most pleasant route.  it's one of the most expensive but certainly most straightforward for scooting straight down to bordeaux. the start point does depend on where you are leaving from in the uk.  we live in south wales, therefore, driving to dover would be one long, exhausting trek. from st malo, you go rennes, nantes and then all the way to bordeaux on the motorway.  there will be some tolls to pay but you can get off the ferry first thing in the morning (if you use the overnight crossing) and you can either have lunch en route or, if you don't stop, you could be in bordeaux for lunch 

what i have found a bit strange with cats is that they only seem to visit houses that already have cats!  having said that, our first cat, timmy, came to us out of the blue and decided to stay.  several weeks later, we found out that he had a home only a few doors away!  we went to see the owner and explained about timmy and how we didn't know where he had come from.  the owner wasn't a bit perturbed or vexed or anything; merely said, "oh, you can hang on to him if you like because we have another cat!" fascinated and horrified at the same time, i said, " but won't your little boy be upset?"  the reply, as you might have guessed was, "oh no, he won't be a bit bothered"!!! our second cat, thomas, also came to us but i think he was genuinely a stray.  he turned out eventually to be the most beautiful and good-natured cat you could ever hope to find.  but, dotty, he did take MONTHS before he would sit on my lap or come within stroking distance.  so, you'll need to adopt a softly softly approach. anyway, coming back to what i said at the beginning of this post about visiting cats, the oddest thing is that once our cats had gone to the five-star cattery in the sky, NO cat has come within yards of our house.  the cat flap is still in place and still left on "open" so i am not sure what does attract cats to pick our houses of one thing i am certain, you are truly blessed if a cat decides to come to stay with you.  after all, cats are known for their discernment and they would know which is a good home and which isn't!

Twinkle I think your children may well have a point.  Would be a shame though, wouldn't it if they couldn't speak English?  After all there is so much in the way of literature that they would miss out on, don't you think? Dick, I don't quite know what to say.  Welsh is massively expensive and though, grammatically, it is not actually a very difficult language, I do have some sympathy with people who think it needs subsidy in order for the Welsh people to learn and use it.  The "language of heaven" they call it and I do have a sneaking admiration for people who go against all the odds.  I suppose it's my tendency to side with the underdog.  At the end of the day, I think it's OK if people want to learn a language for the sake of learning it and for no other reason (like the chap who wants to climb Everest, because it's there)!  However, you would think that there are many more calls on public funds than to subsidise a language that the majority of the population have no use for and have no particular reason to learn?

renaud i couldn't agree with you more.  personally, i do consider a lot of these people who lay down the law as nonentities.  it's all very well making children learn defunct languages instead of languages which are really alive and active.  but and it's a big BUT, i am not the bureaucrat responsible and i would certainly NOT make my own children do something so needless!

Cassis RECEIVING you loud and clear, thanks!  Regards

Ah, Latin, dream on!  When I was doing PGCE and indeed TESOL later, I never met anyone on my course who knew what a gerund was!  And I speak as one whose first language is NOT English!

Dick I wasn't taking the Mickey!  Believe me, I respect your opinion.  In fact, if I was teaching kids like you were, I would insist on the correct forms as well. I do think, however, that if you know the correct thing to do and then choose NOT to conform, it's your individual choice.  Nothing makes me cringe more than when people say things like "less" when they mean "fewer" and "laying down" when they mean "lying down". I wasn't cocking a snook; perhaps having a bit of a joke with you but I certainly do think that the standard of both written and spoken English is very often appalling! Forgiven?

[quote user="Renaud"]Jon Said "If children are to learn language in the context of culture, perhaps learning Welsh or Gaelic (for those who don't already have one of these as a native language) would be a better idea for British school children. These languages could certainly benefit from an elevated profile." Sorry to disagree. One of my friends, educated in Dublin was made to learn Gaelic at school, a language which he says neither himself nor his friends have ever used since. Doubtless this was to give the language an "elevated profile." What a crap reason. If people want to elevate the profile of a language they can take to an evening class but do not force children to learn something useless for sad ideas of national esteem. To be bi-lingual in a living european language is a fantastic gift on the employment market. Please give schoolchilden the chance to start.[/quote] renaud it's not as simple as that.  take welsh, for example.  the vast majority of the population here do not speak welsh; in fact, people often remark how i, as a foreigner, can speak welsh when they can't.  i don't speak much welsh as a matter of fact, just know quite a bit of it and understand a lot of it.  yet, all road signs, official communication, etc are bilingual.  also, there is s4c, welsh tv, which is the most subsidised tv in the world when you take into consideration the cost per capita of the people who do watch it and can understand it. nevertheless, many, many parents (non welsh speakers themselves) send their children to schools teaching in the welsh medium.  there is a cachet in some circles attached to the ability to communicate in welsh.  also, some government posts specify ability to communicate in welsh. there is no "crap" reason to learn a language AS LONG AS THERE IS A FINANCIAL ADVANTAGE attached.  by financial advantage, i mean political advantage as well, of course.

Dear Dick There, is that better?  I didn't mean to be disrespectful, honest, Sir!

dick (will put capital D if you wish) i don't use caps these days because a very good friend, a senior judge no less, tells me categorically that using caps makes no difference to the meaning.  i do use them for normal correspondence, however; i mean not electronic correspondence.  it took a while for me to be convinced so perhaps i should go back to upper and lower cases.  i agree it looks neater and more conventional altogether if you use caps, as prescribed. i also agree about not bothering to get to know margaret beckett though i have always thought she was one of the better members of the present cabinet. at least, she always keeps a sense of humour when she is asked awkward questions on radio and on tv and she doesn't just try to pull rank or simply ignore questions she doesn't want to answer

be honest, turnip.  would YOU kiss margaret beckett?

ali-cat when you have sobered up (no rush) please email or pm me as we will be looking for something like your car! will find out all about it meanwhile.  ok, so we are boring old f****s, but hey, we need something reliable!

looked up the site and found that the average income per household in our area is under 10 thousand euros.  blimey, at that level, even our modest income will push up that average.  oh la la, c'est tres bizarre, n'est pas?

ali-cat what do you have now and are you happy with it?  i suppose selling the cars are a no-brainer.  just one of those things.  don't like it one bit, but sometimes in life, you need to choose and i am really a coward when it comes to choice regards