Strimming on a public holiday

[Teamedup]

I was making a point too. We get rain here  and most people around here work. Also I  live in a village and this is something that really really annoys me. And my neighbours doing this whenever they want will never make it right as far as I am concerned AND it will never make it right legally either! For once the law is not an ass and I regret enormously that it is not enforced.

 

[Missy]

Deimos!

Teamedup!

Put a couple of sheep on the grass.

That should sort it out and the neighbours!... and the freezer for the winter!!

[Logan]

The going rate for contract gardeners in my area of 24 is between 15 - 20 euros an hour. The figure Ian has mentioned seems a tad steep. 11 hours to cut his grass, blimey you must have some acreage.

I find all my neighbours respect Sundays and fete days, even farmers. Perhaps I'm just lucky. One of the many joys of living in rural France is that some days are still special. Long may it be so. The UK for example has long since destroyed those conventions to serve the needs of mammon along with many others in it's headlong dash to imitate the USA. 

[Deimos]

This thread seems to be degenerating. However, I’m probably not explaining what I mean. You cannot legislate for people to be considerate. Start enforcing a “law” that makes your neighbours life difficult, then I’m sure they will find two laws to enforce to make your life more difficult, etc. till you are both at each others throats. For me I prefer being tolerant and easy going and things balance out. I’m fortunate in that people round here seem to have a similar “laid-back” attitude so it all works. To me it really has nothing to do with being “law abiding”.

(Logan, if you want to cut my lawns for less then feel free. It takes me longer than 11 hours and I purchased a large more powerful lawn mower this year. Everybody lives in different situations and people need to appreciate that different people have different constraints).

Ian.

[Monika]

[quote]The going rate for contract gardeners in my area of 24 is between 15 - 20 euros an hour. The figure Ian has mentioned seems a tad steep. 11 hours to cut his grass, blimey you must have some acreage. ...[/quote]

I agree with you Logan. It is nice to keep one day a week "holy". Having lived in Switzerland I know that on Sundays and on Fete days you must never:

do any mowing or strimming

no hanging out washing

no loud music

(My mother even says a farmer who works on a Sunday will have bad luck on his farm and seeds sown on Sunday will not grow, however a long bad weather period wards off any spell!!!)

I also like the custom of shops being closed on a Sunday and Fete day and for Lunch in Switzerland and France, may it long continue.

 

 

 

[pinkfluff<P>Big Wet Drops and Lots of Them, Are a Sure Sign of Rain!<P>]

There may be laws for this and that but it does not excuse someone shouting at a 82 year old chap and if he was my dad the guy doing the shouting the one thinking he is judge and jury and the one trying to blackmail money out of the old guy he would be have to physically be prepared to defend himself talking of inconsideration I was cycling along on my bike and a heavily pregnant lady was stood next to zebra crossing I had stopped my bike in order for her to cross when the irate driver behind me overtook whilst cursing me and the next guy passed and one on the other side now correct me if I am wrong this is a very polite country but in England the lowest smack head driving in a stolen car to cash a knicked giro would have stopped   and the same token most people have a bit more respect for the elderly (they seem to have a lot of respect for my mum when she is here) So I have come to my own conclussion that even if the strimming was not allowed the chap should have asked nicely and Im sure the old boy would have had the strimming stopped  I think the nasty chap must have been a Parisian they dont like Parisans down south do they not that I know any Parisans but they sure take the flack away from the Brits

[a.foreman]

You take your life in your hands on ANY zerba crossing in France  who ever you are

[derf]

I believe that the law in France says that you must stop if someone is already on the pedestrian crossing but not if they are waiting to cross, some thing to do with keeping the traffic flowing.

 

[Teamedup]

No Deimos, the thread isn't degenerating and no it is not being laid back to make a noise when you aren't supposed to be.  This isn't a gentlemans agreement we are talking about it is the law of the land. And for me it is simply another version of yob culture which as far as I am concerned, has no endearing qualities what so ever.

 

If the 82 year old was strimming in France when he shouldn't have been and someone shouted, well, THIS  IS FRANCE, didn't anyone tell him that people shout here. Polite is bonjour and shaking hands and bisous, the rest is a noisy free for all and not polite a lot of the time.

[a.foreman]

law or not it needs to be a brave person to try it 

[Logan]

[quote]This thread seems to be degenerating. However, I’m probably not explaining what I mean. You cannot legislate for people to be considerate. Start enforcing a “law” that makes your neighbours life dif...[/quote]

These laws exists as a fall back position. If your neighbours cause you a problem that you cannot resolve by negotiation the law is there as a final remedy. If you insist on your right to prosecution the state must support you. That's societies final protection under the law in a democratic system. 'The Law is the Law' as Auden once wrote. We all have no less but an obligation to observe and keep to.

Amazing how 'Gentlemens Agreements' usually are observed better under the threat of financial sanction. A gentle reminder usually work wonders, as this thread will testify.

Sorry Diemos can't come to cut your grass, much too busy cutting my own, during weekly hours of course.

[BJSLIV]

Strange isn't it? The many little things that add to the charm of France, that people frequently quote  when listing it's attractions , such as peaceful weekends, limited shopping on sundays etc etc, become "tomb like", out of date etc etc when they get in the way of My Life.

The real charm of France is that in many areas there are still social norms and fa spirit of fraternite that govern the way daily life is carried out, which largely make the laws unecessary.However people know how much they can bend the rules without causing offence, but everyone knows those who are a nuisance!

As the lady in the local Hotel des impots said to me, "We like having you English people here, but we cannot understand why you  do not want to obey our laws when you are here!" She was talking about planning matters, but I think it applies more widely.

 

 

 

[JohnM]

[quote]Strange isn't it? The many little things that add to the charm of France, that people frequently quote when listing it's attractions , such as peaceful weekends, limited shopping on sundays etc etc, ...[/quote]

I'm not too keen on the french planning laws because of the amount of the hassel. I was a little surprised when I discovered that I had to fill in a form (which seemed to say it was for work that didn't need permission) for permission to paint my shutters, a bit more surprised when they wanted to know exactly which paint I intended using. But amazed when told I had to wait 8 weeks before doing it, even though I didn't need permission. ,My french friends said they wouldn't have bothered asking... so it isn't just he English who don't like the planning laws!

 

[Linnorton]

[quote]Strange isn't it? The many little things that add to the charm of France, that people frequently quote when listing it's attractions , such as peaceful weekends, limited shopping on sundays etc etc, ...[/quote]

You misunderstand my point.  We don't cut lawns/strim or use other noisy equipment on a Sunday and wouldn't dream of doing so but the family of our elderly French neighbour do.

I take the view that it is their only opportunity to tend to her garden and I certainly have no intention of telling them that a load of ex-pats on the LF forum want the laws rigidly applied so they'd better hire a gardener to do it during the week. 

I know we all think the world would be a better place if we were running it but we are only in charge of our own behaviour, not other peoples'.

[condorman]

Hi All, Dont know about the laws on this, but from my own experiance as someone whos always fixing things and using tools, i try to make noise when others arnt around, never late and only when necicary,   Playing music loud isnt neccicary and drives me nuts, people fixing there house up is neccicary so we gota live with it, Strimming is a nut doooer too, but it has to be done,, Mr MnM DRIVES ME NUTS WITH HIS bass BOOMING,   AAAA, and shooting season, ive found prozac's helped me with me nut problembs, aaaa chow doooodes,, condor

[Laotze]

Surely courtesy, consideration  and commonsense are more valuable in neighbours behaviour than obeying the letter of the law. We have an appartment on the coast that needs a great deal of work on it but we have halted work as all the surrounding neighbours are at the moment in residence and having their holidays and I am sure that even if we are working in the accepted hours it would spoil their pleasure. On the other hand when we were using our current residence as a maison secondaire and coming out to do work for a few short weeks of the year we frequently transgressed the accepted hours and the neighbours realised that we were only here for a short period and needed to make the most of that time.(we didnt take the p*ss though didnt work too late and tried to do the quiter stuff on a Sunday) Similarly the farmers at certain times work all sorts of hours and this is quite accepted (although it is FAR noisier than a strimmer or bricolage equipment!) I think it does also boil down to attitude as well - we have some new French neighbours in the village and after a couple of months they have managed to antagonise everyone as they stand on their rights when they wish to do something but dont see how their behaviour affects others. They parked a huge lorry in front of their property - as far as I could see it was quite legal but it was awful for the neighbours as all they could see from their wondows was this vehicle. The Maire has now made them move it! Their dog barks all the time (as do some other dogs in the village without comment)  and they have had complaints! When they first arrived in the village they spent several weeks doing work on the house starting at 7am and continuing till whenever they felt like it with their wondows open and music playing and no one said anything as they took the view that they needed to get themselves settled in. Now because of their attitude to everyone if they cough too loud people complain and they are finding that people no longer greet them in the village. Its really quite sad I think that they have started off on such a wrong footing.

[condorman]

Hi Latze,  Aree with ya total on that about consideration etc, I got no simpathy fer the silly gits making the noise, even if they change there tune now, youll all know its not because they care about everyone else in the comunity, its beacuse of how its effecting Them, now people have had enough,  I say string um up and throw away the key, condor