jono

I fitted one last year - an easy diy job. Tooway 12 costs £40 per month. It's reasonably fast and reliable. Can use Skype so no landline required.

http://www.toowaydirect.com/ This may be of interest. No phone line required. Internet connection via satellite dish which can download and upload, at reasonable cost.

Howie, I installed my dish - alignment fairly easy: - I used a compass to set to roughly 28 degrees east of south then fine tuned using the signal strength and quality bars on the TV - twist the low noise block (LNB) on its own axis (skew) to optimise - for the vertical angle, the dish doesn't point directly at the satelite because the signal bounces off the dish to the LNB - I worked out the dish inclination from info on a website (I think it was lyngsat but there are others) then a spirit level and a bit of geometry - I put a small peg in the ground in the garden near the boundary so I can re-align the dish quickly by standing above the peg and adjusting the dish to point at you - surprisingly accurate I have recently bought a flat screen TV with Freesat and HD which works well - just screw the sat cable into the back of the TV - no box or card or charges. Jon Bedford and SE Vendee

Hallfandid, Suggest you buy in UK because it's cheaper - try Wilkinsons. Jono

  tizzylizzy, Oak stair with 3 coats of Sadolin extra durable floor varnish (clear satin)  I'm pleased with the finish and colour. Jono Bedford and SE Vendee

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cherry_plum Tony, Could be 'plum cherry' - commonly used on tree lined residential roads - we have them in Bedford. Jono Bedford and SE Vendee

Our French friends were amused by my pronunciation of Bourdeilles (near Brantome) - quel bordel.

Btuckley, Select straight timber battens (25x20mm approx) and pin them all around the wall to support the first full row of tiles - check wall first for location buried pipes & cables with a detector - remove the batten once the adhesive has set - lay row of cut tiles below the batten down to the floor level (floors often not level) - this method stops any movement (sagging) of tiles - use tile spacers - allow the adhesive to set before grouting - wall must be reasonably flat to achieve thin layer of tile adhesive - fix a vertical timber batten near the corners to keep tiles vertical - remove batten and cut tiles into the corner (I tiled from floor to ceiling) - check setting out of the tiles by marking the tile spacing and adjusting the batten positions so you are not left with awkward narrow cut tiles. Hope this helps and restores harmony! Jono (Bedford and SW Vendee)

Hello Mooky, Looks like Armillaria mellea (honey fungus). Roger Phillips' in his book 'Mushrooms' says edible when cooked - in small quantities as some forms are known to cause stomach upsets - I've never tried them. Very common in dense clusters around trunks or stumps of deciduous (especially hazel) and coniferous trees  - one of the most dangerous parasites of trees - causes white rot and death - no cure - spreads by long black 'bootlaces' which can travel long distances to infect other trees. I'm a memeber of the Huntingdon Fungus Group. Have a holiday house in SE Vendee - will be there next week - hoping the good weather holds. Will try to find time to foray for fungi in the nearby Mervent Vouvant forest. Jono

I had this problem- it may be due to grains of ironstone in the sand/cement render. I brushed on a stabilising paint before applying masonary paint. This has lasted two years - it's just starting to show through again in places. Jono

http://www.missouriplants.com/Pinkalt/Robinia_hispida_page.html looks like Robinia hispida (rose acacia); native of S.E. USA. Jono Bedford and S.E. Vendee

Bob, Just as well you didn't eat them - they look like Sropharia aeruginosa (verdigris agaric) which are poisonous. I'm a member of the Hutingdon Fungus group. http://www.shotbolt.com/hfg/ I never seem to find time to foray in the Mervent Vouvant forest which is near our holiday house in the S.E. Vendee. I'm planning to spend more time in France when I retire in 5 or so years time. Jono