Kitty Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 Crickey, it is blowing a gale at the moment on the coast west of Bordeaux and it is going to get worse. I have placed the children's beds strategically around the house away from the chimney areas. Structural damage in the area must be a near certainty.Take a look at the winds on: http://www.xcweather.co.uk/FR/forecastScary stuff... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kitty Posted December 15, 2011 Author Share Posted December 15, 2011 Just seen Bugsy's thread of the same name. Great minds etc... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woolybanana Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 Blowing up nicely here; exterior Xmas decorations taken down etc. Expectin the worst from 2200hrs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woolybanana Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 Now up to hooley and getting stronger; signs are doggie under table, camel got the hump, chickens flying past window but going backwards, Welsh friends trying to hold onto their roof with their hands and swearing loud and long in Welsh. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woolybanana Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 Update: small, fat French lady just flew past window, shouting Sacré Bleu. She seems to be trying to pull her skirt down to hide her long and baggy drawers!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frecossais Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 She's flying by the seat of her pants then? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woolybanana Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 How would be translate that, so I can tell her when the pompiers get her out of the tree? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loiseau Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 Well, from my trusty Collins-Robert, Wooly:"She was flying by the seat of her pants" would translate as:"Elle a du faire appel a toute la présence d'esprit dont elle était capable."Seems to have lost something in translation, eh?Angela Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NormanH Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 Best wishes to all of you over there in the West.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pierre ZFP Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 Lots of wind and rain in the East too with flooding reported on the A3 (I think) and A6 into Luxembourg.Heavy rain has caused some instability to a road at a major junction at the Kirchberg (Honeysuckle will know this area [:)] )and this is causing huge tailbacks in the direction of Germany Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSKS Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 Here in 71 it's windy and wet but not as severe as predicted, although we are supposed to have heavier rain this afternoon. No sign of any damage, flooding or trees down yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woolybanana Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 Quite a night, but thank Bobo the Goat that the wind did not coincide with very high tides or half the Vendée would be floating off the Spanish coast by now. Seems a tiny bit quieter, so I guess we will see a slow improvement.The measures I took to stop flooding in the downstairs have worked much better than could have been hoped, so good news there. Now to try and get to town and see what is what.I do hope everyone else is OK, too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frederick Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 After seeing your post Wooly ...I have just been speaking to my neighbours in our bit of the Vendee...After Hurricane Xynthia I imagine many were very worried indeed . It seems the power was off up to 11 this morning and they could not sleep .The only matter of great concern about the tempest from my neighbours seems to be they had to wait so long to brew their morning coffee... They have checked over my place and garden and there is no damage.... We all got away with that one it seems . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idun Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 When it is blowing like that, do any of you manage to sleep at all, or do you stay awake all night 'listening'? Sounds like it could have been much worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSKS Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 When it blows really hard we move into the downstairs bedroom which is very quiet. At least we can sleep without listening to the maelstrom in the roof. Then out with the dog in the am to check the damage (none this time, thank goodness). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suein56 Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 Quote: Idun*When it is blowing like that, do any of you manage to sleep at all, or do you stay awake all night 'listening'?*Yep that's me ... I become so anxious when the wind starts to blow like that any sleep is impossible.SueEdit: Not sure what has happened but, overnight and using Firefox, I find I cannot quote correctly. Will try later with IE. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nectarine Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 Went to Bordeaux this morning to drop someone off at the airport ... criminy, it was blowing a gale and the rain was chucking it down. Flight delayed for an hour .. I'm surprised it even took off as it was so blustery.Back here, 80 mile east, it's windy and drizzly and not as bad although one of my chickens ran across the courtyard and a gust of wind picked her up and deposited her about five feet sideways. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frederick Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 http://www.connexionfrance.com/Storm-Jaochim-trains-flights-nuclear-electricity-freighter-fire-13311-view-article.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kitty Posted December 16, 2011 Author Share Posted December 16, 2011 It's very difficult to sleep during these storms. The house seems to take off in the gusts.I moved the children's and our beds so that they were in 'safer' areas. We have chimneys that are solid but you never know. We stow everything away that is outside on the verandah or in the garden, we switch the boiler off and have candles and matches to hand.I was exhausted by daybreak when I needed to get everyone out of the house to school or work etc. I told them to avoid large trees.The storm died down at about 11am and so I tried to catch up on sleep in a chair by the fire but then one of my daughters woke me up asking if another had gone to work (why doesn't she just look in the bedroom?) and then my husband phoned up to ask if I needed anything - yes I said, some sleep... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mint Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 [quote user="idun"]When it is blowing like that, do any of you manage to sleep at all, or do you stay awake all night 'listening'? Sounds like it could have been much worse.[/quote]I don't want to sound smug because I know how worried and scared some of you are.In our house here, we have a double-glazed verandah that runs the whole length of the south side of the house. On the north side, there is a big, raised, solid earth bank over the road that shields the house from the north winds.Our bedroom has double-glazed windows on the north side plus good, solid wooden shutters and on the south side (opening on to the already double-glazed verandah), there are double-glazed doors and yet another set of solid wooden shutters.It's like living in a house within a house and when it's wild weather outside, I secure all the shutters, inside as well as outside ones, so that we are in a relatively sound-free cocoon. No sound, no light, hot water bottles and OH in the bed, dog also in the bed for short periods if she gets worried.....But, heaven help us if there is an explosion or earthquake outside because I doubt we'll notice anything [:-))] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cooperlola Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 It's all gone quiet here for the moment.My biggest problem last night (apart from the electricity one described on the twin thread elsewhere) was the cats, who refused to go out and thus spent the night on my bed. At about 3 o'clock this morning, Cooper left his place next to my feet and mosied up for a cuddle. Once he'd re-established himself on the pillow next to me his purr sent me to sleep and we both dozed off again until Mr C appeared with the tea at 8.30!Yes, Sweet, the combination of double glazing and a terrace (ours is open but nevertheless protects the house from prevailing winds) helps a lot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woolybanana Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 What a todo! I have just seen the strangest thing. An old lady, small, round was caught in a violent gust of storm. Being bowled along by the storm she used one arm to hold her shopping bag and the other to hold on to a protruding tree branch. But the wind then blew up her skirt and exposed her drawers. So, she took the branch in her mouth and used her hand to hold down her skirt. Then suddenly she seemed to let go and fly off down the street. As the wind lessened I thought I'd better go find her so started at the branch where I found, clamped deep into the wood, a pair of false teeth. These I loosened with a hammer and chisel and following a logical route, was able to find her, none the worse and slurping a large hot drink, in the local café where the wind had blown her. The return of her teeth made her face light up with glee as she mentioned that she would not have been able to enjoy the Fetes without them. Ain't life grand![:D] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gardengirl Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 It's good to hear that most of you in the path of the wind seem OK, apart maybe from loss of sleep! [:)] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clair Posted December 17, 2011 Share Posted December 17, 2011 After the last couple of days of strong gusts of wind, after the curtain of rain and the peppering of hailstone, the snow arrived last night.There is a light covering of the white stuff everywhere outside... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woolybanana Posted December 17, 2011 Share Posted December 17, 2011 Beautiful, sunny day here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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