We are debating on a move to France. Any advice appreciated!

[Scooby]

It's still standard formatting for the (very large) business I work for.

[Catalpa]

I expect lots of people and companies do still stick to the convention of two spaces after the . but it's not necessary with the advent of pcs and word processors... it doesn't really add to reading clarity unless someone is also sticking to Courier 10. [;-)]

I used to prepare some documents for professional printing and in word processed documents, one of the things I had to check were the spaces - I had to strip out double spaces and change them to single spaces before the documents were sent off (electronically) to the printer.

The usage is probably somewhat age-dependent too. If someone learnt to type prior to the 80s, they are probably happily and permanently wedded to the double space. But I'm sure we're agreed on one thing: the end of a sentence needs at least one space after the . [:D]

[KathyF]

Not nit-picking at all, Sweet, just a difference of opinion. [:)]  Whether it's one space or two doesn't really matter, compared to jon's habit of not using any spaces at all after punctuation, which to my eye makes what s/he writes rather difficult to read.

[desperatedan]

Blimey what a post I started. Opened up a whole can of worms I guess

 

 

[krusty]

Well DD will you or won`t you ? [:P]

[Weedon]

Only advice I can give you D/Dan is that you can't get a decent meat pie here so you will have to bring your own cow pie if you come.

[desperatedan]

[quote user="krusty"]Well DD will you or won`t you ? [:P][/quote]

 

Definately but maybe not until next year

[krusty]

Thanks for the answer , I hope all goes well for you and your family.

I am one of the early retired members so no children to worry about , been here 3 years now and still loving it.

Good luck for the future.

[bubbles]

er, maybe it was the french version of the word. (domain)

grovel, grovel, grovel.

and, before you say anything, yeah, yeah, yeah i don't do capital letters.

but then i don't have a website and i am not trying to advertise anything.

[bubbles]

[quote user="sweet 17"]Don't like nitpicking, KathyF, but the rule always used to be one space after a comma and two spaces after a fullstop.  Has anyone else heard this one?[/quote] yes. that rings a bell from old office days, sweet 17.

[Dog]

Can you imagine reading a book with a double space after a full point?

In my experience people with dislexia have other skills - usually people skills and are hard workers.

If you are going to nitpick over spelling why not grammar and layout?

[odile]

Personally I like to exchange ideas, experiences, etc - and Grammar, spelling or layout (within reason!) are not that important here.

I would find it very sad if people felt they couldn't join in a discussion or express views or feelings, because they were afraid they would be criticised for mistakes.

On another note - I do not think we should stop doing things and live our dreams because of our parents. When I first went to the UK and met OH, then married and stayed - my parents were great and very positive. They loved the UK and visited most Summers and we travelled all over the place- they also came for Christmas almost every year. We went to the Jura most years to visit too.

BUT the last 12 years have been dreadfully stressful for me, as my mother went downhill quickly after a broken leg- and dad couldn't really cope with looking after her, as she became weaker and her mind started to go. I had to go to help them every few weeks - and my career and health suffered. I would just like to say that looking after ailing, elderly parents when you live abroad can be very difficult - and this needs to be taking on board. Bonne chance whatever you decide.

if you are waiting till next year, get started with learning French asap, and get tuition for the children too. Most secondary school have a French assistant (from October till end May- so too late for this term) whowould usually be glad of a bit of extra money. How about getting in touch with your local school to offer to host next year's assistant in exchange for tuition, if you have the space?

[NormanH]

[quote user="odile"]Personally I like to exchange ideas, experiences, etc - and Grammar, spelling or layout (within reason!) are not that important here.

I would find it very sad if people felt they couldn't join in a discussion or express views or feelings, because they were afraid they would be criticised for mistakes.

[/quote]

You have completely missed the point.

Anybody who bothers can spell-check their posts or their web site.

Not to do so is lazy and shows a contempt for your readers in the case of a posting here, or a suicidal negligence if it is a commercial site.

jon's self- congratulatory posts on  another thread said that  anyone with talent who works hard can succeed in France, implying that the rest of us are people without talent who don't bother to do things properly..at the same time revealing his/her inadequacies..

[mint]

Norman, I don't think that Jon has implied that "the rest of us are people without talent who don't bother to do things properly".

At least, I don't remember him/her saying anything like that.

I do agree that s/he is very enthusiastic about things and is obviously one of those people who thinks they can control their own lives, make their own fortunes, etc.

I myself can't go along with that because I believe that there are very many things over which an individual have little control and that that's what makes the human condition so terrible sometimes and so unbelievably fabulous other times.

[Renaud]

"jon's self- congratulatory posts on another thread said that anyone with talent" (see above).

Pretty sloppy leaving a double word space between the words 'on' and 'another'.

Kettle... black.

[Owens88]

[quote user="desperatedan"]

Blimey what a post I started. Opened up a whole can of worms I guess

[/quote]

 

Good luck in whatever you do.  Everybody needs it.

As for forum responses I always think it is best to treat them as valid as the answers you might get sitting around a British bar. Some tosh, some prejudiced and a lot with nuggets if you can sift them fast enough.

You might take into account the weightings of each type of response you get and wonder whether the isolation of living in France inreases the negativity, and if so why?

Bonne Courage

John

[odile]

It's not a question of not bothering - it depends on the situation. Here I consider myself to be 'chatting' - and therefore minor mistakes are of no importance. It is a question of 'register'. If I am doing a translation, or preparing teaching materials or a formal letter, I DO bother and take great care - but not in informal exchange, especially as I am not a native speaker/writer of English.

[baypond]

NormanH, in your own way, you are just as infuriating as Jon was. Why do you always play the Victor Meldrew card? are you really like that in real life? or just in the anonimity of these posts.

Yes I know I spelt anonimity and spelt wrong because they are undarlined!

[AngelFish]

I have been looking at this post for the last three weeks or so and despite the negatives, would like to add my query, we are in a slightly different position than Desparate Dan, but would appreciate some input from those who are experienced in living in France.

Our situation is as follows: we have been given the possibility ( I say this because we are still in the fact finding stage) of renting a house and shop within a rural village in the south of france, the shop is a small shop but is the only one for 2miles the village consists or around 300 people, this includes some english speaking expats, who also have businesses in the area and with whom we have formed friendships with. My husband is a landscape gardener by trade, however he will turn his hand to anything, and as well as the shop we have researched the area and found that there is only one other gardener in the vicinity and that he would be interested in looking to discuss a possible partnership, even if this was not so,  a preliminary reccy did result in my husband been offered 4 separate jobs just in the 10 days we were there last.

We have forged good contacts with the owner of the house and shop and have set up a appointment through our friends there with the local Mayor, who we are led to believe is keen for new families to come to his village and especially concerned that the local shop does not 'die'. It would be just the three of us my husband and I and our 12 year old daughter. Any thoughts would be much appreciated.

Many thanks

[odile]

sounds like you have done quite a bit of groundwork - well done.

The only factor that would influence my otherwise positive reply is 'how good is your French?'

I do feel that if it is the only shop around - and therefore the one the locals, especially the elderly, have available - not being able to speak the language could be resented by them (even if they realise you have 'saved' their local shop) I am not talking about perfect French/correct grammar - but an ability to communicate and a desire and will to improve. Also I feel it would be important to make contacts to learn more about French and local  produce, local producers, etc. If you do have have good basic French - would you be able and willing to do an intensive course before or as soon as poss? How would elderly neighbours feel if they can't make themselves understood in their local shop - or have a bit of a chat/banter - as they have always done.

[Chancer]

Speaking fluent and colloquial French is essential for serving in the shop, if not how will people be able to hold up the queue behind for 10 minutes whilst jawing about n'importe quoi? [6]

[Russethouse]

How does your daughter feel about it and what are your plans for her education ? It might be a good idea to have a good look at the Education section of the forum.

My understanding is that it may be a little late for her ....

[Sprogster]

AngelFish, if you research the Education section of the Forum, there seems to be a general consensus that by the age of 12 it is too late, to sensibly move a child into the French educational system, unless they are reasonably fluent in French.

The next five years are the most important educational period of your daughters life, as presumably she will be starting her GSCE syllabus this September and therefore the risks of disrupting her education during this critical period are considerable.

It is also worth noting that the majority of the members of this forum moved to France later in life, after their children had grown up, or have second homes in France and therefore were not in your position, when deciding to move.

[NormanH]

1) "We have forged good contacts with the owner of the house and shop and

have set up a appointment through our friends there with the local

Mayor, who we are led to believe is keen for new families to come to

his village and especially concerned that the local shop does not 'die'"

It is real problem of small communities, but make sure that you don't sacrifice the interests of your family to those of the village.

Although apparently simple country people, they  may be more crafty than you imagine...

What have you to bring to the shop to make it pay that local owners have not been able to offer?

2) "My husband is a landscape gardener by trade, however he will turn his hand to anything"

I do not doubt that he is capable and willing, but will he be allowed to in France?   This sort of polyvalence is foreign to the way of thinking here, and it is often said that you need very specific training in a relatively easy job even to be considered for  it.

Can you afford to live off the uncertain profits of the shop while your husband looks for work?

3) At least come and look in the depths of winter, rather than judging by how things feel in season. You could find that both the shop and your husband's work suffer a downturn at the same time.

3)baypond asked "are you really like that in real life?"  Yes I am a realist.

I believe that it is important to point out the potential pitfalls if someone asks for advice, and to offer constructive criticism (such as use a spell check, particularly in commercial or professional situations)

[Braco]

Angel Fish

If you are looking to start a small retail business. My advice would be to research setting up a stall within a number of markets. The advantage of this is that you will reach far more potential customers, and not tie yourself down to what at best will be subsistence living.