Ford Anglia

Avoid the Campanile at Evreux, it gets full of CRS at weekends, and yes, they ARE on duty. Apparently, Evreux is a rough place. Just have a look at the leclerc at the N end of town. 10 foot security fences, anyone?[Www]

Re: electrical items not working. Can't comment on the GF grill, I've never had one, but I HAVE had several CHEAP and cheerful electrical tools, including a 9" angle grinder, a 24V rechargeable drill, and a belt sander. ALL have now been replaced by the same item made by Bosch, DeWalt, even Wickes Pro. Cheap tools= waste of money. Having said that, I also have a Wickes wallpaper steamer, been used here relentlessly, leant out and never missed a spurt. It's 15 years old. FA

Depends which route you are taking, but I've used a Climat at Abbeville, A couple of nice chain hotels south of Rouen, near where the A154 branches off, a Camapanile near where the cows are on the roundabout, and a decent one south of Evreux, IIRC it was a Comfort, it's on your right as you bypass Evreux on the N154, and can be seen from the road. All are decent, all do food.

[quote user="Quillan"]What I really detest about the 'pro' lobby is that they can't stand anyone who disagrees. If you disagree and stick your head up over the parapet they jump on you either in a most venomous way and give you a 'good kicking' verbally or just call you an idiot. They can't stand people asking questions and in particular for proof.. [/quote] And in the same vein, HM government are arranging for teaching in secondary schools to include Al Gore's fil about so-called Global Warming, but ARE NOT incuding reference to ANY evidence to the contrary[:@]

Coming to an industrial town YOU know, some time after 2020! So says Phillippe Varin, CEO of Corus (UK), in an interview in the local rag last night. Apparently, the EC are rushing through legislation that will require industry to cut carbon dioxide emmisions by 20% by that date. The UK government, (of whichever party), will, as it has always done, enforce this to the letter of the law, while the rest of Europe ignores it, as usual. According to Varin, it will mean large comapnies like his own transferring their work to countries with lower targets, like the USA[:@], Russia, China and India. Then WE would have to IMPORT all our steel etc. So no less emissions, in fact MORE due to extra movements of steel stock across the globe. In my home town, the net effect would be 20,000 job losses. This would be the same in Teesside, South Wales and Sheffield. For someone brought up in the industrial north of England, I find this VERY scary. Your thoughts?

The one in the water will be either a grass snake (couloevre) or a viperine snake, (couloevre viperine), neither of which are venomous. Sorry for the spellings, I can NEVER remember how to spell it. The first can grow to 2m, and can give  nasty bite if cornered, but is more likely to move off once it hears/senses you coming. A Frenchman once told me: if you see a snake IN the water, it's more than likely harmless. If it's lying on the banks, steer clear unless you KNOW what it is. Also, WHEN did you see this snake? It's very early for snakes yet, esp in water...........

[quote user="Mutiara"][quote user="Ford Anglia"]I'm confused. You start off saying you want to source a King-sized bed in France, then go on to talk about Salisbury? Last time I looked, Salisbury was in England, and costs to ship a KS bed to France would be pretty high. Have you tried any decent furniture dealers near your French property? Try www.pagesjaunes.fr Our KS bed came from one in St Junien, 87, had to be ordered, it's carved oak foot and head, hardwood sides, a sommier and a memory foam mattress. Cost quite a bit, but nowhere near what shipping from the UK would[;-)] [/quote] Not need to get confused. You assume too much my dear friend (remember assume makes an ass out of u and me!) Sometimes I wonder if posters set out deliberately to atagonise/patronise . I travel regularly to the Uk and so delivery is no problem - I have a big van.I've lived in France for13 years so am well aware on what is available here and at what price, so I know my market. [/quote] Well sorreeeeeeeeeeeeee. Remind me not to post in any more of YOUR threads. How to win friends and influence people, by Mutiara[;-)]

Ron, if using the two-part self levelling stuff to finish off:  mix it thinner, rather than thicker than the instructions. Once it's hard, use a straight edge to remove any obvious tiny humps, there almost always are some.(Easier to find and remove them now than when your tile won't lay flat[;-)]) Apply PVA or similar to the surface to seal it BEFORE tiling. FA

I'm confused. You start off saying you want to source a King-sized bed in France, then go on to talk about Salisbury? Last time I looked, Salisbury was in England, and costs to ship a KS bed to France would be pretty high. Have you tried any decent furniture dealers near your French property? Try www.pagesjaunes.fr Our KS bed came from one in St Junien, 87, had to be ordered, it's carved oak foot and head, hardwood sides, a sommier and a memory foam mattress. Cost quite a bit, but nowhere near what shipping from the UK would[;-)]

FA is waiting for the usual "Greek Chorus" to come on and parrot the "speed kills" mantra, tell you that you shouldn't do the crime etc, and basically vilify you.

I actually e-mailed the UK metoffice in a rage when they forecast bright intervals, no rain, one day, but it turned out rainy. What really moved me to anger was that in the meantime they had changed the forecast to match what was happening! Their response: basically, it boiled down to: "weather changes, so do we". Theives, I say, theives............[:@]

Hint: if you read the instructions carefully, you'll see that it adheres to, and expands better when in contact with, a damp surface. Also, you can't OVERdo the shaking before use[;-)]

I sincerely hope the French meteo is better than the met-office UK. On Friday last week I checked the weather between North Lincs and Chorley in Lancs, as I was acoompanying my 18 year old across the pennines via the M62, to buy a new car. With him driving, the possible weather over Saddleworth Moor worried me. The metoffice gave fluffy cloud and sunshine, ALL DAY SATURDAY. What we ACTUALLY got was rain, strong winds, fog/low cloud, and spray, spray, spray........... TBH, the metoffice are thieves. They ought not to be paid for such poor service.

[quote user="J.R."]Not when it has cured and grafted to your skin it doesnt![/quote] Give over..........once it's cured, it just rubs off[:D]

Yes Mousse expansif, and it DOES come off with Acetone.

[quote user="La Guerriere"]French JB's seem to be designed to look cack [/quote] But seem to be FAR better quality than their English counterparts.

[quote user="Tresco"][:D] Did you get your waders on and try to find the treasure? [/quote] Don't do that............I saw Noddy do it on TV the other morning and the rainbow disappeared, never to return.[:(] That is, until Bigears made Noddy put the treasure back. LOL

Could you not route the pipes ABOVE the floor once it's poured? They could then be boxed in, or put behind false walls. Both better than concreting them in and not being able to get at them in the event of an emergency........... My shower came with a flexible hose made from what appears to be thick polythene type stuff, and connects to the 40mm waste using this and a stainless "Jubilee" type clip. If you had the same, it wouldn't matter WHERE the shower waste was, so long as you could get to it to start with, or it was under the shower tray, SOMEWHERE! However............be warned. My downstairs loo connects to a stub of pipe coming out of the floor, and necessitated us buying a "straight down exit" type pan. And the shower........my goodness, fitting THAT singlehanded was a day's job! I had to prop the tray onto breezeblocks to be able to lie prone to get at, and tighten the waste connection. FA

Sadly, I am convinced that the fuel companies and the government, (because of the extra VAT), have been trying to force the public in the UK to accept the £1 a litre for fuel for AGES. Now it's sneaked over that price, watch it fly. I predict £1.50 before next year[:@] And STILL the petrol companies insist they make hardly any profit from fuel....... And STILL the UK government refuses to lower the the fuel duty or the extra VAT it gets from the windfall.

[quote user="Anton Redman"]1972 - Large numbers of three lane roads with the centre shared for overtaking. Trucks a lot slower so much more overtaking. Huge differences in how fast people could drive. Almost no roundabouts.[/quote] Seatbelts that HAVE to be worn, airbags, better tyres, better suspension, better lights, better brakes, stronger cars, crumple zones, collapsible steering columns, etc etc too.

[quote user="Tresco"][quote user="Ford Anglia"]Why? Why couldn't it have been poor visibility? Or poorly drained road surfaces? Or drivers who were distracted by the rain, spray, wipers etc? Or people using rear foglamps so blinding others in wet conditions? I can only agree with your statement if you remove the word "excessive", or if you mean that they shouldn't have been moving AT ALL. FA[/quote] (my bold) I suspect those are some of the 'conditions' SD was referring to. For example, if someone is blinding me with their fog lights, I slow down and let them get far, far away from me, rather than put myself in danger by maintaining the same speed while being dazzled. [/quote] Yes, I suppose so........

I bought some two years ago from the guy who sold me our uPVC windows. He owns a local scierie. FA

I've now explored the routes fully, Seafrance are cheapest if you buy 7 or more returns, but only by £2 per return over P&O. Seafrance also have TWO levels of surcharges, but surcharge on more days. Phew. Returns are £52 Seafrance, £54 P&O, with surcharges of £20 and £30 PER SAILING, not per return[:'(] P&O allow as many tickets as you like to be designated for friends and family, Seafrance allow up to TWO returns to be designated if you buy 5 or more returns. The tunnel is £78 return as long as you travel off peak. Apparently you cannot designate ANY tickets for friends or family[:(] Hull Zeebrugge is £210 return if you buy 5 or more crossings, no surcharges unless you need cabin space for more than two people. If you buy 5, you can designate one return for friends and family. Alls I have to do now is get the wife to decide...............

[quote user="Sunday Driver"]  However, given that the majority of accidents occurred on wet roads, it's reasonable to assume that excessive speed for the conditions may have been such a factor.   [/quote] Why? Why couldn't it have been poor visibility? Or poorly drained road surfaces? Or drivers who were distracted by the rain, spray, wipers etc? Or people using rear foglamps so blinding others in wet conditions? I can only agree with your statement if you remove the word "excessive", or if you mean that they shouldn't have been moving AT ALL. FA

Teletext today reported that each and every hospital in the UK would soon have to have a manager in charge of cleaning to a certain standard. They didn't mention a salary, but your guess over £40,000 a year is as good as mine. Meanwhile, there are now, according to the UK papers and some websites, including teletext, more managers in each UK hospital than nurses. Go figure. Keep voting Labour though, won't you all............. And before the usual suspects come on and indulge in silly anti-anti labour rants, I LOATHE the Tories too[;-)]