Frederick

Sweet 17 .....To look the part in your tabard....you also need a wine brimmed hat with a long feather in it and a sword....You also need two pals dressed the same standing either side of you ! 

Today... I discovered what trick or treat was about when I went to post two letters.....some childs idea of fun was to pour a jar of jam in the mouth of and down the front of the post box  last night ...no doubt the postman will find most of it in with the villages mail.  Somebody will have to be called out to wash inside and out the post box ....some trick .. I managed to slide my envelopes into the box in poor light this morning and  felt the Bl....y stuff ..    

My holiday home was an abandoned refurbishment by a Parisian  who went back to Paris leaving a scruffy house to deteriorate ....Not a ruin to rebuild ....it was however in need of enough work to stop a local buying it ...they seem to be having new ones built ..loads to choose from in our and adjoining villages .  So I am not concerned about "depriving " one of the locals from having a home .....We have had compliments on how the house now looks .... and help and friendliness from those living round us .....My car was in the garage for a week during September and it was noticed I was using a loaner ...I find it amusing  when I am asked which garage has my car ...I know I am going to be asked ! ..and note the nods of satisfaction when I say its the one in the village  . We spend a lot of our time in the village through the year ...so perhaps not seen as one of the usual 3 to 4  weeks there and leave the house shut up to let the grass grow holiday home owner . A lot of the Parisian owners we have round us do not seem to use their houses so much  . One house near us has not been used for 3 years its  Parisian owned....and the cats live and breed in the overgrown garden and their fig trees grow out over the walls into the road .... You have to be seen to use the local services ...and to be spending your money... then its fine ......I am told the Dutch arrive on holiday with all they will need brought with them and dont spend locally ?....I haven't noticed .....but my neighbours have.   Our local bar/ hotel has a shop attached ....even when closed.. if we run out of anything they will open the shop for me and let me in ...so by that I assume they are happy to have us among them .

We now  always take our own big strong bags to the supermarkets in the UK having got used to taking own bags in France .....  we find it better than filling loads of little plastic bags .....

I believe those grey bikes the Village bobbies rode years ago were water cooled ..were they not ? and purred along almost silent ....Velocette  ? ...I only ever saw the police ride them ....not noisey enough eh ?

Blimey Pads ....Sounds like assault to me  !...........find a lawyer .....could be a new BMW with your name on it ......

Patf......They tell me that they are already doing referrals for depression.....also people from the hospital cardiac unit who have had an event ...those I was aware of ... It was the overweight being able to get reduced cost gym exercise on referral that was new to me ......

I dont know if this also applies in France ...but . I have just found out  UK .GP.s have  a scheme  ( so must have funding )  where they can  refer people who have put on a bit of weight to their local Leisure Centres for attendance of a fitness programme under an Exercise Consultant. Having put on a bit since I retired...I blame the red wine !   I asked my GP to refer me ....so found I was entitled to lower cost gym  membership.... access to trainer etc ...A specific programme  is designed for you to follow with reviews at week 8 and 16 ......On my 1st session I found myself on the treadmill  next to a guy who was 81 and his wife who was 80 ....so if you think these places are just for sweat soaked guys pushing weights or slim dolly birds pounding away on treadmills going flat out ....they are not.... all the time ......most mornings are taken by the retired ......its on offer to us now now .. so .worth taking up .... 

My   2 bedroom holiday home is  fully furnished from IKEA.....I had looked at the UK site  and also visited them ....Some of the smaller items we had picked up from Bristol  and  had a good look at what we were going to get in France .....Some stuff much cheaper in France other stuff not !  I was not happy that any arrangements re delivery would be on time from Nantes  to South Vendee ..things can go wrong  ...so hired a van from Super U and drove up to Nantes where their staff were most helpfull in assisting us to buy and load up everything .....I note what the delivery cost is that you have been quoted ...The hire of the Van was about 53 euros for the day  as I recall. a very roomy Ford with side door access ....We were also able to call in at La Roche sur Yon  Conforama and pick up a cooker...  fridge.. and the telly on the same run .. so it worked out fine for us...and on the day after we picked up the keys ..I accept not everyone will want to drive a Van and spend a whole day going to IKEA  or  hump stuff about themselves ..but if  someone has a "window " to work with.... the above is an option .

Winter !........You cold weather lovers can have it ......after years of standing on a station platform waiting for the 0519 .....yes  0519 to London and watching the sparks off the frosted  live rail from about two mikes away.... and wishing the warm carriages would get to you faster ....stuff the winter ! 

It appears there is an opposite to winter SAD ....some people get depressed in the summer and to make them feel better they wrap them in a "Chiller Blanket "....then they cheer up !.......bit of a bug..r getting that one !

Thanks  S D ....I was just wondering how long a registration number was kept "Live " in the system if the DVLA knew it was out of the country ... so I suppose the answer is forever !

 Chris ....I learned this years ago......" Life owes me nothing ....one clear morn is boon enough for being born ....and ....be it ninety years ...or ..ten ..no need  for me to question when ....My life is mine !....I find it good.....and greet each hour with gratitude ....."

Perhaps Ron or Sunday Driver  you know the answer to this .....Should some keen French policeman decide to make a list of all these UK plated cars found in airports or where ever....and then contact the DVLA by the web site and pass the list on.....and the DVLA  then find that these vehicles have been out of the UK for years  not subject of SORN declarations ...  export  notification   .MOT. etc .... what are they likely to do with  registration number....withdraw it ?  Further more what are the French Police  likely  to do ...collect them up ?   .....    I ask this as on the Costa del Sol  I saw lots of cars  Jags ...Range Rovers   good cars dust covered and in the care of the police when I once had to go to a Police Station  ....At the time I thought they were probably stolen or still owned by finance companies ...but perhaps they had not been registered for use in Spain ?

I have a similar package the free calls are through your livebox...their help line do not always make this clear when they set up your package ...They are  very keen to sell you the package with free calls to most of Europe and broadband.included .....I have a live box in the UK and knew you needed  two phones and the one plugged into the live box gives you the free calls ...FT  need to make this clear to callers who know nothing about live boxes ...when they enquire about connection ....but they dont ...they just want you to sign up ..then they have you for a year at least ....then I believe you can dump them . Any body making calls outside France thinking is free with their package without a live box phone will get the full international call rate on their bill .

Its paid  as part of your  Taxe d'  Habitation ....  Redevance Audiovisuelle  for me was 116 euros .....I have paid mine ...after all its cheaper than the UK licence  and I am happy to do so as I watch their channels ....  I dont know what the penalty for viewing in France is without paying ....but can guess it will be steep !

I am yet to do it ...but ...if you go to your PayPal homepage and look at the send money link you will see they do it in I think about 16 different currency's ......

What are they phoning SKY for  ? ......all you get from a SKY didgy box is the freeview channels you get in the UK ....I dont think you are going to get the  SKY package with their card activated via  FT phone lines ?  ....and the up date is not via the phone anyway. It does a search and up date automatically  when you switch the thing on ... you can force an update by holding a button in and then un plugging it then plugging it back in....Google the instructions under setting up SKY  boxes ....Mine came off ebay.....and I certainly didnt tell SKY I had taken it to France !. Mine gets re booted into a search  for channels  every time I  visit the house as I turn the power off at the mains when I leave it ...I have never had any problems .

There is a lot on here who know all about it Bob ....they know what they are doing .... just dont care ....hence the Airport car park crowd  "on display " ...lets just hope we dont hit one of the chancers .....They should take them off the road tomorrow ..nice to know their days are now numbered ..but its not only France .....Spain also have their share.

I have never seen the windscreen chip repairs in France either.......there is a guy who regularly  pitches his "tent " in our local Supermarket car park .. and seems to do OK .I have also seen them in motorway services in the UK and I believe your insurer will cover cost of repair .....Welcome to the forum Steve  and yes .....you could well have a buisiness.....come to think of it ...never seen a  Mobile valet business in France .....now where did I put that bucket and sponge ?

When I bought my first house I went to the CO-OP building society for the mortgage .....now the Nationwide  I recall the manager telling me that any mortgage I took out ....if the monthly payment was more than my weekly wage ...then I could not afford it and bring up a family ...best advice I have ever had .....

But I do know that the arrival of the eastern European workers has taken many of the jobs that the young French used to take so that for them it is not such a mecca. Spent yesturday afternoon in the company of a very helpful guy who organised the lay out of a room in local golf club for a private function last night ...40th birthday party for 100 plus ..arranged buffet ...manned the bar etc ..........Bulgarian

I stay in a 2 star just off Place d' Italie when I go to Paris ...I have used the place for years its modern ...clean ..comfortable and has great transport links on the door step and is surrounded by  good value restaurants .... Place d' Italie has the metro links to everywhere  and the Latin Quarter is 20 minutes away or a short bus ride .....Room for three is 75 Euros ....Hotel Neptune  15 rue Godefroy ...if you want to Google it ...... I am sure  lots of people will have their favorite spots in Paris ... and will pass them on ....Wish I was there now  getting on and off the water bus  which we tend to use with a day ticket....I do like Paris...enjoy ! 

Gastines ....good luck selling your Dorset property.......havent noticed any downturn in Dorset yet....in fact people seem to have a few bob in their pockets at the moment ......like a guy round the corner from me who is taking wife and two boys to the match in Paris this wekend ..........only 6 grand !!!....I think I retired too early ......

Negative equity....couples handing their house keys back to the lender and going to live with their parents again  / splitting up .....it happened last time .....When I bought my house in Dorset I discovered the seller was a bank ......this was in 1991... the house had been built in 1989 ......it was sold by the builder for far more than I paid for it from the bank .so you could say that from the fall in house prices I was a winner.. but it does not make me happy knowing sombody had to go bust for me to get it .... Housing crash would be a bad thing ......