On Saturday 26th November the purchaser of our house came for a visit to look it over, we had no problem with that at all; then came the bombshell – she wanted to move in on Friday 2nd December. My husbands face was a picture! It was an ‘Oh Shit!’ moment! he then realised that he had to pull his finger out (fully!) and start to clear his ‘stuff’.

OK, we had been to the UK to help our eldest daughter celebrate her 40th birthday (what a lovely time we had too!) and had lost a few days of packing/sorting etc. He had hoped that Mme A. would want to wait a couple of weeks before moving – no way, she wanted to be in ASAP.

And so we signed the Acte de Vente on the morning of Wednesday 30th November 2011. (for a few hours we were homeless!)

Daughter came out with her partner and little Georges (the bouncy one) for the signing. A very quick turn around for them – one night in France and back home! I wanted them involved and insisted that they came out to sign; after all we had been inconvenienced enough over the last couple of years – time for them to make changes to their plans.

On the Wednesday afternoon we signed for the purchase of this property. Our Notaire is an absolute gem, we have used him over the last 10 years and he knows us well; our last property involved many purchases and a couple of sales. Amazingly enough one of the two agence immobiliers that we used did not realise that Maitre C. was fluent in English until we told him. It was a very interesting learning curve for us although Himself seemed to switch off during the process and automatically signed/initialled all the papers involved.

We moved the furniture and electrical goods over the Thursday and Friday morning with the help of some super friends, only downside, it rained non stop!! Since then we have been bringing boxes etc that had been stored in the barn (note: big shed!).

We are now installed in a very nice 3 bedroom house with a sous sol/garage. The house has not been truly lived in and loved. Only one room has been decorated and that is the main bedroom. There is a fitted kitchen and yesterday we went and bought a new fitted oven and ordered the hob to match. We have basically been camping since last Thursday using kettle, microwave and steamer but am now able to use an oven as well! We only had 4 functioning electric sockets until our lovely new neighbour, Mr M., who is an electrician, came and sorted out the fuses for us. He is in partnership with another guy Mr P. who is central heating engineer. Both of these men are friends of an English guy we know who has been here for 17 years as a builder…. Everything fits into place eventually!! I consider that we have been very fortunate with where we have moved and who we know.

I have sorted out the basics for living, beds set up, dining, lounging, bathroom etc. I still have loads of things to sort for our use and also for selling on. It isn’t until you go through such an exercise that you realise how much is accumulated over the years. The sous sol is full of boxes and duplicate things. After Christmas I will be advertising these things for sale and hopefully make a little extra spending money for our hols.

I like it here. I do hope that Himself settles as well, he seems quite comfortable at the moment. He has been through the mill over the past couple of years and maybe now a new beginning is right for him. Fingers crossed!

Dog and cats are fine. I bought some Feliway to help the cats settle. It seems to have worked as they are not scrapping as much as they were. They have had a couple of visitors, one ginger and the other a Felix type, it seems that they know the house!

The boy also is absolutely fine.

There are other dogs in the neighbourhood, one of which is next door. It is a little white ‘yappy’ thing – possibly Shih Tzu or similar. The little yappy thing was ‘yapping’ (as they do) and our boy heard it and decided “Oh goody goody, (pant pant) a playmate, lets go play!” Mme, owner of yappy thing, was horrified to see our boy heading in her direction and leaping over their fence in order to introduce himself and play. She scooped her precious up in her arms and shot indoors! We apologised to Mr. explaining that our boy only wanted to play - he was OK but I am still not sure about Mme… I think that they (dog and little yappy thing) need a proper introduction!

More to follow!

New chapter

We have moved!

We have intermittent internet connection.

Will post a proper 'blog' once we are sorted out.

Since my last posting various things have happened.

My internet connection went up the spout, again!! We had the most horrendous storm. I was shaken out of the bed by thunder (not the God Thor unfortunately!) and I rushed downstairs to turn off the modem… too late, it was done in. When I phoned our internet provider the next morning I eventually got through to a very ‘exhausted’ sounding young man who said “just post it to us we and will send a replacement today, let me know the cost of sending.” Methinks there were a lot of modems blown up overnight!

We also went back to the UK to help our eldest daughter and her husband celebrate their 40th birthdays..

What joy! Not only seeing our lovely daughters but also seeing our lovely grandchildren, who are so affectionate and polite.

The youngest, Georges, bounces!! We saw him on the Friday night and he ‘bounced’ into the room and ‘bounced’ around it. He ‘bounced’ into my arms for a kiss and cuddle, he also did the same for his granddad. He was ‘bouncing’ back and forth in all directions. He is the only grandchild of ours that has done this, absolutely full of joy and ‘bounce’. I would dearly love some of what he is having!! (isn’t bounce a funny word?)

We also went to see my dear Mum, she is coping very well, albeit with the assistance of my older sister. Mum is determined not to leave her 3 bed house ‘it is the only home I've had you know!’ she says. I appreciate her feelings and thoughts, she never had a home with family in her infancy and youth. She has lived there since 1947 – may she never be taken away from the place that she has loved and in which she has brought up her children. She is an amazing woman my mother, almost 91 years on this earth….

So we took a trip to the UK… what fun. The car kept slipping out of gear, and we had it serviced a week before!!! Got to the ferry port early and were allowed on without any problems so we got to our daughters before the grandchildren went to bed… They were so pleased!!

The weekend progressed well. We caught up with friends and family, just love it! Did some shopping and lunches and dinners… Much too busy for Himself though!

The return journey was as traumatic as the leaving.. I think that once this house is sold a new car is on the cards! I know we bought this car as a stop gap, but at the moment a new one would be a good idea, I would just love comfort and reliability. When we got home we were both so tense we could break in half.

A very tense journey and we had other 'stressfull' things to contend with once we got home.

Dog was ensconced with a friend and was so 'waggy' to see us home, the cats did not give us 'cold' shoulders at all, but the house was absolutely freezing!!

I will arrange for some Feliway for when we move - apparently it helps cats settle when their are 'things' going on. Maybe there is a human equivalent?

Our ‘buying’ agent had arranged for the electricity and plumbing to be checked for us, good girl! Electric meter read and switched on. Plumber in to check central heating, Ooops we need to put some oil in the tank! We arrange for oil company to fill said tank, done this morning at a ‘silly o’clock’, at least we will have heating.

We went to the telecom shop to arrange new phone and internet. What a lovely young guy! He was so helpful, so we now know that the engineer will be there on 1st December to connect the line and also sort out the internet for us (I have the modem in my hot sticky hands waiting!!).

All is going to plan at the moment.

Youngest daughter is coming out with her partner and the bouncy child for the signing next week. Yes she was worried about the loss of pay etc… but she was reminded that she will be quids in afterwards….

Will update after 1st December… I am still thinking POSITIVE!

Moooving

Not long now, at the end of the month we sign the acte de vente. One problem though is that our dear daughter and her other half will not be able to come and sign for their property, (too expensive to travel, got to bring kids, losing money at work etc.). So now stops need to be pulled out to get a power of attorney for their signature. I am getting really fed up with the child’s attitude to it all, she has been given plenty of notice. I am quite tempted to sign for ours and let her sort her ‘bit’ without my help.

I have been bending over backwards to accommodate her and she has yet to say ‘sorry mum for putting you through all of this and thank you for doing it all.’ even himself is in the shadows and doing very little to help matters.

Stress is rearing its ugly head again. I thought that I had it beaten – no!

I think I will take a holiday when this is over and done with.

And, I still have to see another orthopaedic surgeon for my elbow. Saw the original guy and he has referred me to his colleague who is fluent in English and is good at the ‘minor’ stuff. So I get to see him in another couple of weeks, just before the ‘signing’.

Life is not good at the moment.

It will get better though.

Just got to be positive.

Not sure where to start, just type and see where it takes me I suppose. Thank heavens for spell check, it tells me where I have gone wrong!

Have had a few ‘bad’ days, not sleeping, feeling fed up, wanting to have a change from this life of sorting, cleaning and packing boxes, I suppose I am getting a tad impatient.

‘Tad’, now that is a word that I never knew existed in general conversation (Tad Williams the author yes!) until around 8 years ago. Never encountered it before but my husband started using it and I exclaimed ‘what??’, he said that he used the word all the time – ‘not in my presence’ I said ‘maybe at work, not in front of me!’. ‘Hmmm’ was the reply.

It seems also that at least one of our daughters used the same word.

Now this set me to wondering, was I living in a different time, were they living in a different time?

A parallel universe that met only occasionally.

One wonders, well at least I do!

So the sorting, cleaning and packing continues.

I think I am getting it all under control but I must admit that today I did give himself a bit of a ‘talking to’ to put it mildly. I think I used the words ‘lazy’ ‘indulgent’ etc. Anyway I told him that I was fed up with doing all the necessary on my own without any input or help from him. Now I was talking everything from sorting laundry, doing laundry, sweeping floors, mopping said floors, preparing meals, cooking meals and all the other ancillary things that go on in daily life without him lifting a finger to help. And this is not including packing boxes prior to our moving.

I think he is living in a parallel universe and just visiting me occasionally!

Tomorrow he will be getting reminders.

Yes I have had a few bad days…

Feel better now.

Moving & Stress

We have a date for signing the acte de vente.

At last, we are no longer in limbo, we know when things are happening.

I have found though that I am waking at silly o'clock in the morning and mulling over all that needs to be done. My mind goes into overdrive.

Will the furniture go through the doors? Will it even negotiate the stairs? Will the house be warm? Will the house be quiet? Will it be noisy? Will the pets settle? Do I get some Feliway for the cats? Do they do a version for dogs? If not why not? What colour should the walls be? Will my man be happy there? Will I be happy there? and so it goes on, and on.

I try to put it all out of my mind, shelve it, file it, and all those thoughts creep into my conscience again. How long before we have telephone connection? Will the central heating work? How long before I get an oven and hob? How long to walk to the Spar? What do they sell? Then I doze and wake again, eventually dropping off around 7am and sleep through till around 9.30 am - and then wake from weird and wonderful dreams!!

STRESS!

Apparently moving house is one of the most stressful experiences one can have.

Yes, I agree.

Death, I believe, comes at the top of the list for stress and divorce is quite high up in the list (I have never been divorced).

I have not experienced a lot of death (sounds strange I know). I never knew my grandparents, they passed away before my parents married. I realised that I was missing something in my childhood as all of my contemparies had either a gran and granddad or both and I didn't. When my father-in-law passed away I felt a deep pain - he was a lovely guy and I adored him. When mum-in-law went we were here so the pain, in a way, was not so intense. She had lost her 'spark' many years before when dementia arrived. But, when my dear Dad died I was absolutely devastated, it hurt. Even now, 5 years on, I still find it hard to believe he is not here. That was stressful and even typing this brings back the sadness and pain.

I diverge, I was talking about the stress of moving....

At least, thrashing it out on here relieves some of the tension.

It seems that not only will we have the problem of moving house but I will also need surgery on my left elbow.

Some years ago I tripped on a kerb and, as one does, put my hands out to stop falling on my face and damaging the pleasant 'visage'. The ulna and radius in my left arm 'slipped' either side of the humerus and then replaced themselves. A lovely dislocation (and oh so painful)! I went to the doctor then hospital and they confirmed what had happened. My arm and hand swelled to twice its normal size - my fingers were like sausages (thank heavens I had the foresight to remove my wedding ring).. I was monitored and also had physiotherapy to help the recovery and got on with living.

Since then I have had intermittent problems with the elbow and just ignored it, put up with the inconvenience, and carried on working and living as one does.

Until now.

My little and ring finger go dead and are painful most of the time.

So off to see my GP who refers me to a neurologist. He checks and confirms that there is a nerve trapped in the elbow joint. He sends his findings to my GP. I go for a visit and she writes a prescription for me to see an orthopaedic surgeon. He needs an x-ray which I had today.

I seems that my elbow is 'deforme' and riddled with arthrose.... No wonder I have so much pain.

Rendezvous beginning November - will be interesting to see what the Ortho guy has to say!

Better get the packing done before then!!!!

Also, I remember one of my doctors in the UK telling me that I thrive on stress, I think he was right!!

Little boxes, seduction & change of role

Surrounded by boxes, some empty, some full and some half full.

Pictures, plates and photos are off the walls. Boy does it look bare now, just as well we didn't put wallpaper up - there would have been lots of original colour patches!

Curtains are down, washed and ready to pack.

Cupboards are emptying.

Bed linen and towels are in vacuum bags, now that's a laugh, I extract the air in the morning and by nightfall they have expanded... Will get it right eventually.

Found things I forgot I had, bonus! Although there is every likelihood that they will be stowed away again for another few years. c'est pas grave!

Hopefully, we will be out of here in one month - then unpacking.... Oh joy!!

Our dear boy, Jensen, has been seduced by the bitch next door. The brazen hussy has been shoving her rear end under his nose for the last few days and he eventually got the message... Thank heavens we had him castrated! The thought of the gene combination does not bear thinking about.. At least we will be removing him from this canine hothouse of passion.

When we first arrived here in La Belle France we had two dogs. A male and a female, both very calm gentle creatures we 'rescued' from Battersea Dogs Home. Max was an Alsatian/Collie cross, a lovely chap. Guess what? One of the bitches next door seduced him!! Now this particular bitch was a tiny terrier type, (she is now in canine heaven) poor Max could not resist her charms. What is it with these Chiennes Francaise and les Chiens Anglais? Are les Anglais irresistable?

As some of you already know I belong to a group that brings ladies of all nationalities together for social occasions, notably lunches, once a month. It started out as a small group of around 20 and has now reached well over 200. It is also spilling into the adjoining departments.

The originators of this group, due to unfortunate circumstances, are now no longer in France.

As it has grown so it has changed, and not necessarily for the better. It seems that it needs to be re-developed. There are lots of ladies advertising their services, asking advice on various things (medical, educational etc.) so the group is now totally different. No longer just a 'place' for meeting new people over lunch.

Change of role?

There was a thread within this group regarding the need for a dentist.

Now things were said in the 'public domain' about this dentist and his wife.

These were opinions that should have been said privately not on an open forum.

Another member and I both said that the things that were said should not have been aired publicly.

For that we were both labelled as 'PC' and 'liberal tree huggers'...

Enough said!