Slow progress

Thurs 22 May 2014

After a stormy night I woke to find brilliant sunshine.  As I drove off to go to town I bumped into [not literally] our nextdoor-neighbour-across-the-way.  First time in 3.5 years!  he seemed a nice old guy and we had a little chat about the house.  We must get him over for an apero once Chris comes back in July.

I went to visit Lynne and Phil, who I met at the Gardening Club and had a nosey around their house and garden. 

I spent the afternoon painting shutters again and then Peter came around to discuss the garage, so I took the opportunity to play with his lovely dog.  If he builds it, it will have to be next spring.  He works on his own so he reckons it'll take up to 2 months.  If we get a big company in, it'll be a lot quicker but a lot more expensive.  Decisions, decisions.

Woohoo, first organic raspberries!!

Dinner
Last ever shower in that bath.  I reflected that tomorrow the water will be disconnected from the caravan so there'll be no loo.  I considered sleeping in the caravan for one last time.  It's been a good old thing and done us well for three years.  But my bed just looked too tempting.

Unfortunately, just as I was snuggling down, there was an avalanche of rubble at one point on one particular wall and I thought "Ohhh that's odd"  So I took all my bravery into my pyjamas and went to have a look.  I realised that it was caused by the emergence of something with the appearance and  size of a cockroach.  Obviously my brain ran through all the options [some of them eg running screaming to the neighbours, were obviously inappropriate].  I thought about all the bug killer things we had in the house but I was traumatised, partly due to the constant swallow presence and partly due to the fact that I am not the sort of person who generally shares her home with birds of any species, vermin, bats etc and I have had enough of strange species invading my space......
It was obviously more scared than I was and scuttled back into the wall.  Problem solved.

Fri 23 May [according to Radio 4 - I've lost track completely]

Awake early to Skype Chris and clear out the bathroom in preparation for the arrival and installation of the cabinet de douche.  The plumber arrived around 9.  The weather was cold, overcast and showery so I couldn't work in the garden.  I popped off to dry some washing but the rest of the morning was spent sitting in the caravan, listening to Radio 4, trying to keep out of the way and trying to keep warm.  I was a bit concerned because they had obviously turned off the water supply and I had gorged on prunes last night but all was well............

When he went home for lunch at 12, I cleaned the remainders of yesterday's paint off my hands and face and headed out for lunch.  I went to a new restaurant not far from us but completely in the middle of nowhere.  It was pretty good with a nice atmosphere and it felt good to be out.

I lit the fire in the lounge in the afternoon and sat reading as well as I could taking into consideration the thick, eye-stinging smoke that belched into the room from time to time. 

As well as installing the shower, the plumber disconnected the water from the caravan and lowered the cistern over the loo so that the new window can be installed in July. So no water pipes snaking across the kitchen, no more lambri in the WC and only a couple of fixing to be installed to the shower next week.

The afternoon zigzagged between glorious sunshine and grey skies and rain so I felt guilty when the sun was out but just stayed in front of the fire anyway.  By the time they left after 5, I had no inclination to do anything, not even take a shower so I snuggled down with a book.

Maybe it was the wood smoke or maybe it was the fact that I discovered that Chris hadn't signed a devis that he assured me was signed on Monday, but whatever it was pissed me off before I went to bed.  I am truly fed up with being here in the cold and the wet and alone and then finding out that Chris hasn't done his bit!!

Beth's birthday

Wed 21 May 2014

Beth's 5 today.  The first birthday I haven't been with her.  Sad.

Didn't sleep well as the rain was torrential most of the night.  After Skyping Chris, I got up and went to the boulangerie for some bread and a chat.  Well, to be honest, I chatted and he grunted a bit.

After breakfast I lit the fire and started painting the interior of the shutters.  As the light in the house is almost non-existent and it was too wet to open them, it was quite a difficult task.  A couple of hours later it cleared up a bit and I could get outside to paint.  After 6 hours I decided it was time to stop for lunch, a drink and a snooze and then get back to work.

I made lunch and took it over to the caravan to eat and then the heavens opened.  I had left the door open so I had no choice but to go over to close it.  Lucky I did!



I suppose the good thing is that I don't have to water the garden this evening
 

Of course I was soaking and cold and miserable so I decided to return to the house, revive the fire and spend a couple of hours in the warm.  After a couple of trips shuttling the food etc back to the house I was even more wet, cold and miserable.  I was a little surprised [deliberate understatement] to discover water oozing through the cracks in the floor tiles.  We knew it happened but I had never actually seen it before.

 

One of the kitchen walls was dripping inside too.  Not my best ever day.  But not the worst either, I can recall grimmer times in 2012.

 

Sat on the fireplace to warm through, finished my lunch and a glass of red wine. Skyped with Beth, by which time it was gone 6pm.

 

Nothing much can be done til things dry out a bit.

 

The swallows are back in the kitchen!

 

By 7.30 it was sunny and the river flowing past the front door had dwindled to a pond.  But by then I couldn't be bothered to go out and door anything so just had a bath and a big cuppa.

 



 

 



Lynne leaves

Mon 19 May

After a couple of days rest [ie market, gardening, more gardening, plastering, moving some broken tiles that Chris had thrown on the ground outside the front door and which were lethal and an afternoon with the Gardening Club], the plan was to get back to work.  As Lynne said, looking at the hole I was planning on filling, how difficult can it be to stick a load of stones together? It's just like icing a cake that's fallen to bits.  The only similarity I could find was that in both cases when you drop stuff on the floor you can pick it up and use it again if no one is looking.  You're certainly not going to lick your fingers - nothing like icing a bloody cake at all.

Anyway today got off to a slow start, despite the lovely weather.  After breakfast we went to Toni's so that Lynne could print out her boarding pass as I couldn't remember how to get ours to work, then Leclerc's so Lynne could stock up with things to take home.  As we couldn't decide what to do in the afternoon, we ended up doing nothing much.  Lynne did still more crochet and I did some more plastering but then ran out of plaster before I could skim over the surface.  Looks pretty rough at the moment, you'd have thought they'd have made the tub of plaster just a bit bigger.  It's so unhelpful! Hopefully it won't look too bad once it's painted, but I'll wait til the cabinet de douche has been installed.

From about 4pm the wind was blowing strongly and there was a definite feel of rain in the air.  Too windy to start painting so we just pottered.  The wind got stronger, the air was very warm, there was lots of weather, dinner and red wine!!

Tues 20 May

It rained during the night but in the morning it peed down, putting paid to our idea of a nice day out before Lynne tackled Ryanair so just a quick trip to the Laundrette to dry everything before coming home to pack.  It was cloudy and rainy, with occasional mega lightning and thunder, but it was still nice and warm, thank goodness.

Pascal came around in reply to my email.  He said that in order to get bright light flooding in, we need a rigid tunnel instead of the current flexible one.  It will cost 150 euro on top of what we have paid to get a rigid tunnel and will take a week to arrive so I have no idea if it will be installed before I leave for SA and if it is whether it will be what we really want.

So, a spot of lunch, Lynne packed [some of her stuff she packed into bags that she had sewn into the lining of her jacket - please God don't ever let me fly Ryanair - and she was wearing 3 jumpers].  When we got to the airport I dropped her off, can't stand long goodbyes, and headed back.

I was a bit sad, saying goodbye to my oppo, my fellow wise woman, my kitchen fairy and I was listening to 41 Shots when the heavens opened. Quite frankly my wonderful little car almost changed into front crawl as we sailed along the Bergerac-Bordeaux road.  If I'd had a sheet in the car I could have just sailed home.  Ahoy me hearties! 

I spent half an hour in Leclerc's to let the worst of the storm pass and then went home, planning to light a fire and hunker down.  The rain eased off so I cleaned out the caravan and locked it up.  When I say the rain eased off, I mean that I decided that I probably did not need an ark at the present time.  I did some housework - riveting, I know - and prepared some food for the next few days. 

I've got a lot to do!  Tomorrow's going to be busy.

Two weeks today, I will be mani/pedi,  coiffured and massaged back to myself.  Hard to imagine!

Nine hours of solid bloody painting. I ache!

Friday 16 May

 

 

Side window before furniture replaced

 

Finished - not a good photo but they're looking fine

 

Oh dear!

Thursday 15 May 2014

We were sitting in the bedroom having a chat, wrapped in blankets and contemplating who was going to make the tea [Lynne!] when we heard some loud noises and lo and behold there was Pascal in the kitchen ready and willing to fit the suntunnel.

I pulled on a heavy jumper over my pyjamas in an effort to look casually chic and as if I'd been up for hours but failed miserably as my arm went through the neck bit and I ended up looking a bit of a prat.

Anyway, after the kisses, introductions and coffee he started work.  Hooray, something's happening!

We had decided to spend the day at the lake as the weather is so good but obviously we couldn't send him away.

I was a bit concerned to see that Pascal spent a long time reading the instructions.  I get the impression he's never installed one before but as Lynne said, it's better he reads the instructions than not!

 At 9.30 he hopped into the van and drove off.  I wasn't sure whether he'd gone for his elevenses or to get some assistance but in the event he came back with some extra tools and equipment.

 

 

When he went off for lunch at midday, I realised our planned trip to the lake probably won't materialise any time soon!  Shame as the weather is so nice but we'll just have to go another day.

Sadly, something is wrong with the suntunnel.  There is very little light coming though it.  I could tell Pascal was disappointed and he admitted that it was not how it should be.  He phoned the supplier but didn't really get anywhere with them.  He took himself off around 3.30 to get in touch with Velux with promises that he'll be back next week.  I think it's the first time he had fitted one and he was really unhappy with the result.  I'm sure that it will get done but it's a shame as I was so excited about getting it done.

 

We decided to rescue the day so we went to have a look at the Lac de Gurcon and had a cuppa while we were there.  A bit of shopping and then home for supper.

 

 

Gardening time

Tuesday 13 May

Woke up, sunny.  Got up, made tea.   Got robed and went into garden.  The temperature dropped 10 degrees and it started raining.  I went indoors, closed all the doors, lit the lights and the fire.  Within 20 minutes the sun was out and it was reasonably warm again.  [This pattern continued all day so we kept the fire going and ran out to the garden whenever it was not raining.  Only consolations 1. it is colder in the UK 2 I am no longer living in the caravan and have all the house to wander around, as long as I avoid the mice/rats - lots of poo near the poison so I am a bit wary]

Anyway, Lynne had a lie in so I decided to give the 2 rooms from which the fireplace had been removed a clean.  Used the Karcher, several brooms and finally cleaned the floor 10 TIMES.   Honest!  I think it is probably the first time in about 10 years that the stairs have been cleaned as the house was empty for 5 years before we bought it and I've never bothered.   It's not spotless now but it's a lot better than it was.  I'm quite proud of myself.  There are many homeless spiders now.  Sorry chaps but I've got my own problems.

Snug, all clean for the first time in how many years?

Fireplace all gone

Fireplace all gone upstairs too

I realised that the removal of the chimney breast means that there is an opening to the roof space.  This is the roof space which has not had a new roof yet and still, therefore, is home to an unknown number of bats who can wander through the house at their will.  So I am not the happiest bunny in the world, especially as the high tech solution for stopping them returning [ie a curtain hanging from the rafters] is starting to sag somewhat and they obviously go where they will.  BUT not my bedroom as the door is firmly closed all night long!

We did a lot of weeding,  I spent some time working on the lavenders and it was so good to see that the moles have taken that area as their latest playground.  So lots of lovely soft soil to put around the plants.  Then the gardener came and did his usual apathetic attempt at gardening.  I did get him to cut the top of a corner of the laurels belonging to next door.  Madame B had had the hedges cut but that corner was a good metre higher than anything else.  He cut the corner but left the cuttings lying around.  Oh well, I never actually asked him to put them in a pile. 

After he left I spent 10 minutes moaning about all the things he hadn't done.  I need to deal with this but I'm thinking it through.

Later in the evening I had a walk around the garden.

Watching the moon come up over the winegrowers' co-operative

Still no suntunnel, or estimate for the garage, or shower cabinet.  So, all in all, things are going pretty slowly here.

Wed 14 May
Lovely day out, only spoilt by argument with Chris over Skype in the evening.  I hate Skype

Goodbye to the Fireplace at last

Sunday 11 May

A warmer day and after 2 trips to Leclerc, I finally got around to putting all the black plastic on the raised beds and a lawn with Lynne's help.  Most of the plastic had been lying in the garden for weeks and smelled like someone had died under there so a warm bath afterwards was definitely necessary.
The dead body smell seemed to remain though......

Another early night.  Still not feeling particularly well. 

I wondered whether Lesley and David will turn up tomorrow to take the fireplace but just as I went to bed, I got an email confirming their intentions.....

Monday 12 May

We were up early to prepare for the destruction of the fireplace in 2 rooms.  Lynne and I battened down the hatches, closing everything to protect it from dust and moving anything vulnerable to the caravan.

Lesley and David and their children [and Monty] turned up to take out the fireplace in the Snug.  They came well-prepared and estimated it would take all day so I popped out to the hypermarket to get some provisions.

The chimney breast upstairs - gone!!

 

Monty
 

 

They worked really well and by about one-ish everyone stopped for lunch.  We all crowded into the caravan.  They had bought bread and stuff as well and we had a good old picnic and a chat.  Lesley, Lynne and I were going to clear up afterwards but just sat and chatted while the others continued working.

I asked them not to fill in the walls as we are planning to have them as exposed stone at some time in the future

There was absolutely no mess left, apart from a wheelbarrow full of sand that they wanted to tip away [they had bought builders sand in case they had to make good the walls after removing the fireplace].  They even demolished the concrete blocks on which the fireplace was standing.  Great!!

Before 3pm, they had finished, cleared up, piled everything on their trailer, picked up the remains of their picnic and headed off.  Lovely people!  Shame they live so far away.  They have invited us to visit them but it's a bit of a drag so I'm not sure we'll make it.

We took all the stuff back to the house and then went into Ste Foy for an apero.

The weather continues to go between sunny and showers and quite chilly.  I just can't get going.....

Visitors

8 May

Barney's first birthday, how I wish I was there with them.....

Lynne's first full day started late and then we did a bit of shopping at the Garden Centre and hypermarket.  Everything else was closed, this being yet another public holiday.  Then she read while I did some more painting.  That's what a visitor should do!



One coat of undercoat slapped on the exterior of the shutters!

The other visitors were of unknown origin but had got into the letter box again and eaten some of one of the two letters.  So, what do you think they chose, the lovely thank you card for the present we had bought for our friend's granddaughter or the letter informing Chris of his fine for speeding.  Yep, of course, it was the bloody card!

I walked back to the letter box and stuck some tape over the biggest holes to see whether that does the trick!

Bit of gardening, dinner and wine

Friday 9 May

Lousy day, late start.  Shopped for boring things like black plastic and toilet seat.  Fitted said toilet seat.  Well done me!  Cleaned loo floor.  I was tempted to take a photo of it afterwards.

I went to see the plumber to find out when the cabinet de douche would arrive. He doesn't know!

Went to the dechetterie, where I was welcomed as an old friend and then to the old Leclerc's, where I finally found a laurel bush to replace a dead one.

Read Beautiful Kitchens.  Hah! I don't think so.  Cooked curry on my one halogen plate.  Fed up with the weather.  The suntunnel MIGHT be coming next week.  Hope so!

On me own!

5 May 2014

Cold night but OK.  It was jolly cool this morning and I missed my teamaker, soulmate and bedwarmer.  Oh well.

Cut my finger, dropped and broke my medicine bottle.  Oh well.

Weather glorious!

Went to the tip - closed because it's Monday
Went to Mr Bricolage and bought a couple of things, including a rechargeable screwdriver
Changed the gas bottle but realised that I had left the connector on.  Luckily the woman in the kiosk had the strength of a colossus and managed to get it off.  Left me wondering whether I could get it on again.

Home for a cuppa before tackling the flamethrower/gas bottle issue.  I am being emotionally brutalised by 2 swallows that KEEP coming into the kitchen and flying around in a panic until they find the open door.  I am unfortunately scared into immobility and they ignore my pleas to 'Please go away'

After a couple of false starts and managed to do half the potager before the gas firelighter ran out and that meant closing up the house again and going to the supermarket to buy another.  Finally got going with the flamethrower. Then had some lunch and it was already 3 o'clock.

So I got started with the painting and carried on til 8.  Dropped the brush 4 times, beginning to wonder if I have some degenerative disease, it'll have to hang on for a few years, I've got things to do.
The late finish meant I missed the optimum time for a bath, which is 7pm, which is when the sun is shining into the room and the temperature goes above freezing.  Made some dinner and talked to Chris on Skype.  Luckily it stays light til 10 because I was faffing around for ages.

Tuesday 6 May
Warmer night but day began badly - for a change!  Dead rat in the kitchen.  Thanks for putting down the poison just before you left Chris!  Managed to get it into the garden using long handled dustpan and brush after I had taken off my glasses so I couldn't see what I was doing.

The kettle is making odd noises, I don't think it's long for this world, and sur les dernieres jambes.  Anyway, as I couldn't face eating in the kitchen next to the damp rat-shaped  splodge on the floor, I went and had breakfast at Leclerc's and bought some garden stuff.  Went to the dechetterie twice but the queue was really long - first day open after the bank holiday weekend.

Tidied up the garden a bit before trying the dechetterie for the third time. Yay, third time lucky.  Got home at 2 with a view to doing a few hours' painting and of course it bloody well started raining.  So I gave the poor old yellow laurels some magnesium and made a cup of tea.

I tried to paint the insides of the shutters but it's too dark with them shut, I stumbled along for about 3 hours with occasional visits from the bleedin' birds.

Lynne arrives tomorrow.  Yay!!!!

Goodbye to Chris

Friday 2 May

Woke to rain so stayed in bed for a while then faddled around for a bit.  We now have daily visits from a magpie.  Yep, just the one.  One for sorrow.  But he comes every day so that's an awful lot of sorrow piling up.  Can't wait.

We reassessed the garage and marked out its new place.  I still have major reservations but Chris is sure it'll all be fine.

The day ended with a sighting of 2 magpies together, a little bit of joy on its way then.

Sat 3 May

Although it wasn't really that cold, the North wind continues to blow through all the holes where we should have doors and windows.  After a poor night's sleep, we stayed in bed late and just did some houseworky things until lunchtime then went to Bergerac.  We weren't in the right frame of mind and couldn't decide what to do so we had lunch and looked around a few shops before going home.  We went out for a meal in the evening but it wasn't great fun, I was fed up that Chris was going and his mind was already full of all the things he's going to have to do when he gets back to work.

Sunday 4 May
After a pretty crap night's sleep we got up early to get Chris to the airport.  Lovely day, for a change, and I got home around 12ish after a couple of stopoffs.

I spent a couple of hours doing housework and washing, just to prevaricate.  After lunch I finally got into the garden with my trusty flamethrower and used it for almost 10 seconds before the gas ran out.  Sunday afternoon, everywhere shut.  Oh well, not to be.  So I blitzed the drive with a vicious weedkiller for an hour, jealous of Chris and Kerry all having lunch together.

I decided to take the bull by the horns and start painting the shutters but then I couldn't find the shaped brush I had bought in order to paint the grooves easily.  I decided to get on with it anyway.

Supper was 3 hard boiled eggs and a tin of fish standing up in the kitchen.  The entertainment provided by a couple of birds who flew in and scared the crap out of me.

So tomorrow
1. Take the fuel can to the dechetterie as Chris forgot
2. Buy shaped brush
3. Buy gas for flamethrower
4. Buy bread
5.Take the flamethrower to the potager and throw it around to show it who's boss.
6.Paint 16 remaining shutters   I may be some time

Alcohol-free day, wonder if I can make it 2 in a row.

Planning Permission and a Visit

Wed 30 April

We worked hard in the garden because we want it to look good for Henriette and Jackie's biannual visit tomorrow.  Stopped for a coffee and the phone rang.  Chris's friend from the Mairie.  The Planning Permission has been granted for the garage as long as we confine ourselves to the small plot.  Lots of talking to do!

Sunny, lots of work done but not by me as my back was playing up!  After a couple of hours I had to confine myself to cooking and housework.

We went to meet 2 couples in the evening.  I think Chris was hoping it would be wife swapping but it was actually a Gardening Club.  Everyone seemed very nice and it was good to talk to some new people. A good end to the day.

Thurs 1 May

A bit cloudy today but we weren't going to work anyway as Henriette and Jackie were coming with Doreen and Jean-Luc.  They hadn't seen the house for 2 years so could see a massive difference and seemed impressed [at least until they went indoors]. 

We had a long, leisurely and enormous lunch at Le 8 and then back to the caravan for coffees.  Once everyone had gone, we sat in the relatively warm caravan, reading, drinking tea and listening to the rain pound onto the roof.