chrisb

I've got a Britline account (Credit Agricole) and you can download all the application stuff online ~ but it then has to sent off by post and takes quite a while to get processed once you've done all the form fillng. I imagine this will be the case for the other banks as well. Abbey used to offer an account which presumably you could get signed up for at a UK branch so if that's still going it might suit you.

mmm. I'm not sure that Brittany can lay claim to being the origin of the dish - pancakes occur in cuisines and cultures all over the world. The word is obviously French - but which came first - the pancake or the cloth?

Ours is under a manhole at the front of the house. The hole is lined with blocks of polystyrene against the frost - and every year they come and read it at the end of November and don't put the insulation back. Which resulted in one frozen and bursted meter several years back - whihch of course we had to pay for them to replace. Now a neighbour makes a point of putting the insulation back for us after the meter reader has passed our way. EDF insist on sticking to their original silly estimate of the amount of electricity we're likely to use - even though they have to do a refund every time. As yet they have accepted our readings though.

We've got CA Britline card and it works fine at botk the LeClerc and EcoMarche automatic pumps. I should give Britline a ring and ask if they can advise what the problem might be.

[quote user="Deby"]Yes, I know my statement is contentious, but in light of holding strikes whilst hosting a major sporting tournament -this is simply wrong.  Apart from making life very difficult for all those who wish to attend, it effects France's economy, fewer people spending money in restaurants, hotels and on tourism in general.  These people who are striking in the name of losing their outdated pension rights are plain selfish!   [/quote] So who's the more selfish - people wanting to protect their pensions or people who think sport is so important that everything else must make way for it?

[quote user="47AJM"]Reasons to move here: Quality of life/pace of life/peace in your life/better healthcare, no worries of superbugs/no fear when walking the streets, day or night/respect shown to you by children as well as their parents/no hoodies/no fear of your car being stolen, windows broken and items stolen/most immigrants here are not the freeloaders most immigrants going into the UK are, and mostly decent people who want a better quality of life/greenery/beauty/seasons which remember when to change/traditional markets/fresh food and veg/quality wine/etc etc etc. [/quote] It's relatively easy to convince yourself that France is better than UK if you swallow all the rubbish typified by this list. Perhaps a study of FACTS rather than prejudice would reveal that both countries actually share a lot of the same problems and the same benefits. And "seasons which remember when to change". What?

According to BBC SE News ALL ferry and tunnel crossings this Friday/Saturday are completely booked. We're travelling out the following weekend (Sat 20th) and could only get a tunnel crossing before 6.20am or after 3.00pm. Obviously a lot of people are expecting England to be playing in the final!

Oh the happy times I've had going up and down to Montcuq... Fantastic market though...

[quote user="The Riff-Raff Element"] Well it's not all hanging around in bars chatting up sailors, you know. [/quote] Spoilsport!

It might also be worth mentioning - I certainly hadn't realsied until recently - that the flexible hose connecting the cooker to the valve and cylinder has a limited life and will need regular renewal. The hose is printed with the date for replacement. When I discovered this I went straight to inspect ours and discovered that the hose had actually "expired" before the people we bought the house from had bought it! Feel we had a lucky escape there! I bet everyone else knew that!

[quote user="urko"]Do program makers not have any imagination???!!!  No. Neither do journalists "how do you feel?" "what's the mood tonight?" [/quote]   or "what will the report say when it's released in 3 hours time?"

[quote user="CatherineS2"] Do program makers not have any imagination???!!! [/quote] Not a lot - they'll also leap for an obvious snippet of music rather than waste time thinking about it. For a good 20 years after the release of "Local Hero" every programme about Scotland featured something from that soundtrack. I have to admit to aving "La Valse d'Amelie" as a ring tone!

Yes - we were advised the same by a notaire. She advised that we shouldn't even accept gifts that could be construed as payment  - and this could include the 'tenant' doing some work for you. Not that we've ever had anything but a great relationship with the farmer who uses our little patch of grazing - but you need to bear in mind that even French farmers sell up and move on occasionally so you need to make sure that there's no chance you could end up losing it.

We've had this happen at several filling stations near us in the UK, and the scam usually involves a rogue member of staff observing the PIN used - in one case by having the CCTV focused on the keypad. So you may in fact be safer using the "pay at pumps" facility out of hours.

If your reaction is caused by 'normal' paints you may find that one of the clay based or linseed based paints will solve the problem. Not such a huge choice of colours though.

I'm not sure - but I don't think it got played on Junior Choice or Family Favourites.

In the interests of family harmony you can get a cheese-keeping box from Tefal. It sits in the fridge and has a  filter in the lid so air can get at the cheese but the pong is contained within. Stops everything else in the fridge tasting of the cheese. You can get it from Lakeland in the UK and doubtless lots of other suppliers in france

Norwegian yak's cheese?

Can you knit thongs - like they used to do with thwimming cothtumes? And would you have the same problems? Without a thong, the day would never end. Without a thong the road would never bend...

[quote user="LyndaandRichard"]So what is normal, bog standard fresh milk called and where is it normally found? There's millions of different types (it seems) and I can only ever find the long life stuff and all the bio this and eco that stuff. I just want normal milk![:'(] [/quote] demi ecreme is semi skimmed lait entier is whole milk lait cru is unpasteurised (not widely available) bio just means it's from an organic herd Most supermarkets either have it near the cream or the yoghurt - somewhere in the dairy chiilers anyway. They always used to have sold out by lunchtime but now seem to have bigger stocks.

You don't seem to see the charity boxes that are so common in UK shops and into which people seem only too pleased to offload their small change. Is it that French charities haven't thought of the idea, or would the shops not allow it?

Our local Leclerc have now moved the fresh milk so that it's next to the longlife stuff. They're also stocking much more than they ever used to - there's even a choice of brand. Demand must have risen - can't just be the Brits!

[quote user="Russethouse"]The Songs we are Singing thread moved to The Lighter Side [:)][/quote] Thanks - I think it might help encouraging more posters. Now I'll get back to more librarian type things...

Not so good if you haven't got a tractor (envy envy) - but yes - the only way is to chop right back and just keep doing it as they re-emerge. It will work eventually. Meanwhile bramble jelly is a lovely treat on crumpets.

Some time back those who run the forum decided that this section of the site should be for "General discussion forum about France and all things French" - an alternative section being set up for non France related topics. Is there a possibility that this might be put into practice? There seem to be less and less appropriate postings and I seriously wonder if this isn't because the Postbag has been overwhelmed by the massive thread about music. Excuse my cheek in mentioning it - but as a librarian I like things to be in the right place!