05/07/2008
Do the French work in May
Someone in the bar told me there were only 11 working days in May as they have 3 or 4 bank holidays and if they fall on the middle of the week they call it "Le Pont" (bridge ) and have a long weekend so tomorrow is another long weekend as 8th May ( end of war , and my wedding anniversary ) is a "jour ferrie " so by next Tuesday the 13th the French workers will have done 3 official workdays in May so far.Nice work if you can get it.
We had a bit "barney " at Geant the other day ,we needed to buy a fridge and as we buy all our white goods there assumed we were considered good clients. Wrong thinking first we arrived during the period between 1200 and 2 pm you almost feel you should apologise for being there and the service was so bad I lost my cool and had to walk out. I think part of the problem is with the French labour laws making it differcult to sack any body so their customer respect has declined I find it a complete contrast to the Uk where I almost feel every one has been on a customer relation course.
I have at last managed to sideline my problem with "Echo " by playing the alto sax and my mate Rodger has to go back to playing the tenor and sitting next to him. Serves him right for not attending practises regularly and it gives me a chance to be more objective about his dismal playing. Tomorrow there is another run out by the remains of the Plestin Fanfare , we march up and down the hill , ( a bit like the Grand Old Duke of York ) play the " Marseillaise " a couple times and then go into the Marie to drink a few toasts.
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04/30/2008
" The Marriage "
We set off for England last Thursday with great trepidation for Louise's wedding at the weekend we had all been kitted out with suits except me as I had to hire a suit with tails so I would resemble a penguin and having to give Louise at the church also had to give a speech later. We stayed with our good friends Jonnie and Francis near Amersham which was a half hour from the venue Taplow near Marlow and the reception was to be held at Stoke Park a superb country house where parts of the JamesBond film Goldfinger was shot.
Friday passed in a blur with a bit of shopping ( buying sad things such as baked beans and cheddar + books ) then being measured for my penguin suit and a rehearsal at the church afterwards we dashed back to Aylesbury for a meal at a noodle bar where they messed up our reservation to such a degree we got the meal for half price + free drinks to the point of embarrassment that we chucked in another £20 (it was for 11 people)
The big day arrived quickly first I dropped Paulien off to be beautified at Louise lodgings Red Roofs another very beautiful location later on I left with Louise in an 80year old Rolls Royce for the church at Taplow. The most differcult thing about escorting a bride down the isle is trying to avoid walking on their dress and ripping it. The service passed quickly although Louise had to give me a nudge to remember to lift her hand and place it in the vicar's to join the grooms. Afterwards they departed in the " Roller" for Stoke Park to be followed by the rest of us .
The reception was magnificent a quartet in the background playing classical music perfect weather for photo shoots good food and service and a sympathetic reception for my mumbling speech ( I spoke first and apparently pinched Adam's ( groom ) best lines ) The evening continued with fireworks then more music (rock ) and dancing we eventually got to bed in the early hours . It was a great time meeting up with friends and family ,Paulien's sister ( she is married to my brother ) and a really interesting experience ( although expensive , I seem to recall we got married for £25 but then I'm probably a tight "git " ) and then we wearily returned to France on the Sunday very tired
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04/22/2008
The return of Mr Echo
The dreaded return of Jeano has happened, He spends the winter months in Paris ( I think he must play with a punk band which would account for his total lack of tonality, timing and loud volume ) and the summer in Plestin. Unfortunately for me and the other members of the Harmonie band in Lannion he thicks he can play the saxophone and even worse sits next to me as as the other sax player ( Sophie ) refuses to sit next to him. I think I'm going to have a musical nervous breakdown and can see myself picking up a music stand and attacking him ( they are quite heavy ) and trashing his saxophone and the bizarre thing is nobody other than Antony complains about him as if any idiot can turn up with an instrument and trash all our practise and concerts. I know we are short of players but at least we should have some standards.
The wedding is approaching and I guess I've got to sort out a speech so I have done what most students do now a days and trawled the internet for examples and jokes which aren't too offensive, apparently I have to hire tails which will be quite a shock as I usually hang out in jeans and some old trainers. Nobody will recognise me. The downside is I'll miss both semi finals for the HC but I suppose its a sacrifice worth making giving Louise away at least I don't have to give a dowry when I married Paulien I received 2 cows.
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03/31/2008
Miserable Easter
Easter was very wet cold and windy this year and far too early for tourist only a couple of houses rented. One was to a bunch of French who had a drama workshop in Plestin. Sunday is our most social day as we see lots of French to chat to in or outside the bar and the ex-pats a lot them are ex clients who have bought houses here which is a worrying trend temporarily halted by the decling pound. We saw our ex vet from Plestin who moved in the opposite direction , they are living in Truro,Cornwall where he used to work in an abattoir, signing death certificates ( Oliver's joke ) but is now in Brussels their daughter is at Oxford uni. In the afternoon we visited some friends at Locquemeau they said just call in very unusual for French as they like to formally invite people and are a bit put out by cold calls. He had made a pizza oven which I wanted to look at , they live on a newish estate ( 12 houses ) and as we were leaving I saw Phillippe ( kinio and drummer of rock band ) arrive so we had a look at the house his wife has been building for the last 3-4 years. Its made from straw bales and then rendered with a lime mix, lots of alternative materials have been used ,sheep's wool to insulate the roof , compressed straw panels for internal walls and a earth/lime render is smeared on them. The roof is red cedar shingles not a really good idea in a humid climate next to the sea. It has a fantastic view of the coastline of Locquirec and Treberdan and the price he paid for the building plot was 25€ a metre square and he has 1000ms so 25€k a useful investment.
The wedding is getting nearer so am getting into speech mode wondering if there are any sites I can rip off a speech..................
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03/12/2008
Election a damp squib
The local election turned out to be a rout with the Mayor's party winning all the seats. The last result had been 12 for the socialists and 10 for the right but this time he has all 23 seats with a majority vote so there is no second round of voting.I think in a small town like Plestin with a population of 3500 the use of political parties is pointless even I knew who two thirds of the candidates so I voted for a mix of the 2 lists but it seems most people just vote either left or right. At least my mate Rodger got elected he was 18 on the list for the SP but what really bugged me was a neighbour who has had the complete bimbo package including brain removal has been elected, quite shocking. The other thing that disturbs me is with total party domination the mayor can push through dodgy development deals as there is less opposition. A couple years ago a developer wanted to but a couple "bunker" 20 retirement apartments on the seafront at St Efflam it was backed by Plestin but the environment party took them to court and the plans were shelved.
Its been really rough weatherwise a friend at St Efflam had a wave cross the road and fill her parking space ,the first time she had ever seen that. It could be a good time to move house. Xav is on crutches he seems to have a problem with his Achilles he has just had a growing spurt and it appears to be a common occurrence.
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03/06/2008
Boring work
It seems I got the week wrong for the local election the first round is on next Sunday and voting tends to be a popularity contest the first week with a more discerning vote the following week.At least I can wind up my Irish mate in town although he is marries to a French woman he hasn't been registered as she didn't think he was eligible so I can tell him,criminals ,the insane and Irish don't vote.
Have been doing the most boring job of the year getting the accounts in some sort of order before depositing them at the accountant. I always find it a depressing job seeing how quickly money flows out we have to get 4k before we can eat of that 2 and a half thousand are taxes,social security and pensions all obligatory so its no wonder the French economy is such a mess as independent enterprises are positively discouraged. Now i know how the system works ( or doesn't ) I should really close the business then start again and be registered as retired and keep the business in the micro regime which would exempt me from half the taxation.
Max has yet another interview at the prefecture St Brieuc for his naturalisation I think he has to recite the words to the Marseilles and swear allegiance to the republic.
I have been practising playing with a rock band its quite fun reminds me of the stuff I did about 30yrs ago but we have to organise our own festival to get a gig
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02/29/2008
Elections at the weekend
We are allowed to vote in local and European elections very kind of them as we are also allowed to pay taxes here. However local elections are very interesting spread over 2 weekends the first vote is a popularity vote so you vote for your mates and the second vote is more pragmatic at present we have a socialist bunch running Plestin they taxes us more every year employ more people who work less hard ( around 30 hours a week ) so probably the first round will vote for the opposition + my mate Rodger who plays sax in a couple of the bands I play in. Paulien was getting some bread in the boulangerie this morning so I thought I would ask him what their policies were as he is No 1 on the list for the right and off he rattlied ,improve the roads,heating for the church so I asked him why don't you reduce the Marie borrowing ( it has a loan of 5-6 million €s ) by selling the sailing school and the camp site should raise a couple million and be more dynamic ( the sailing school is actually shut on Saturday in high season ) It didn't go down too well he was a bit shocked by the radicalism.
We had a friend call in the other day he has a few houses and always comes at lunch time and as the boys were home and cooking not liking competition in the eating stakes they ground up 4 laxative pills and put it in his soup. I couldn't understand why he was moaning about the soup as I wasn't in on the joke.Hope he didn't have too bad an evening
The renovations on the gite Etables are nearly finished I changed the roof of the veranda with the aid of the boys this week they have a master's degree in destruction as it only took them a few hours to remove the old conservatory and replace it with the new panels so now the gite can be sealed and dried out and Paulien can do her subtle finishing touches covering my mistakes , as if I would make any .
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02/12/2008
Saving the world on pause
Its seems I got too excited by the possibilities of the air car as it isn't going to be manufactured in France for the moment but is for sure in Australia this year I found a blog in french it explains how the environmental friendly company's such as Total and probably Renault and Peugeot persuaded the government its not a good idea for their profitability to allow the production of a zero polluting auto on the roads. So it looks as if the only possibility of getting one will be to import it assuming it meets the European norms (another word for protectionism ). Tata from India are going ahead to produce them probably for a lower price than the Australians which will be 5400€ according to the blog. I made a few errors on the last blog MDI website is www.wdi.lu they are based in Luxembourg although research is done at Nice also the pressure in the tanks will be 300 bar not 150 as I wrote last time.
Mean while the weather is ridiculously warm for February the birds are singing so will be mating far too early and when they hatch their young the weather will be foul and food supplies short but who cares the price of oil is 100$ a barrel petrol companies are making a fortune and governments are raking fuel taxes and the ice caps are melting.
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02/05/2008
Buy an Air cars and save the world
I am seriously thinking of buying a new car , generally I think they are a totally waste of money ,polluting and a reflection of egos, but the car I'm interested in is a compressed air car which costs less then 2€ per 100km and is totally eco friendly. You could say they will have to build a couple more nuclear power stations but you could have your own windmill and there is a solar panel version which would operate the compressor to refill the tank.,recharging the tank overnight takes about 4 hours and the tank is filled to 150 bars + of air. In reality its an electric car without batteries and just uses compressed air as the energy source. Its designed by a French ex F1 engineer and is based outside Nice. His website is www.MDI.com also there is a good short film on youtube at
The company have signed a deal with Tata the Indian car company and production has started with the car due on the market at the end of the year with prices starting from 3000€. The interesting aspect is there are going to be major losers ,big car manufactures, spare industries, petrol manufactures and governments which would lose lots of tax revenue they get from petrol/diesel.
The concept is fantastic most households would save between 50-100€ a week ,instant reduction in global warming and cheap transport for the masses. If you go to the website you can make a non binding commitment to buy one
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01/31/2008
White lines in Plestin
Some mysterious white lines appeared in Plestin on Monday morning someone has painted white stop lines on half a dozen junctions. Traffic circulation in all villages is a total mess as technically once you enter a village you have to give way to the right regardless if your road is a the principal one. I think its a hangover from ox and cart days so some enterprising person has put stop lines on most of the minor junctions, unfortunately it looks to be interior paint so will not last more than a couple of weeks.
Max's interview was a snip it was held at the police station in St Brieuc he said if it was up to him he would have handed a French passport on the spot as he ticked all the boxes. There is a slight racial bias in the system so when they get a " white" " Christian" clean living adult studying law and claiming he wants to join the police as a career move they snap them up. There was a story in the press last week of a Senegalese woman who had received French citizenship a few months ago but as she was 3 months pregnant at the time the child will not be French and her partner was being deported for working with false identity papers. Not sure whether they deported him because he was working ( unfrench activity ) or he had false papers.
There will be a few broken hearts this summer as Bas has got a regular girlfriend ,long telephone calls ,taxi service to Lannion and Trebuerden still her parents have a very smart house with good sea views.
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01/22/2008
In defense of Sarkosy
To give the man his due he isn't a hypocrite whereas previous presidents have had affairs and the strict privacy laws stops it going in the tabloids and Mitterrand even had a daughter by his mistress and it wasn't reported until he died. So he's not a hypocrite but whether its seemly for a president to date a singer/model with a very impressive CV of male celebs its very interesting. I have never heard the French mock their president as much as the present one.
At last I have finished the roof it will be nice working with both feet at the same level another month and the make over for Les Etables will be completed. Max has his interview on Thursday for French nationality there are certain jobs which are restricted to French nationals such as fonctioners ( civil servants ) which probably accounts for half the jobs in France. Paulien visited the CAF (they are occupied with family allowance and family support ) to get yet another form for his visit to the Prefecture and was told that he is entitled to a student allowance of 150€ a month which would pay for half his flat rental.
The system in France taxes the population more but then gives lots of benefits back very socialist and doesn't really encourage initiative and for people to work hard. Whereas the Anglo system ,less tax but more borrowings and less job security makes people work harder. I don't who's got it right
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01/02/2008
Smokeless bars
The new year kicks off with a smoking ban in all bars and restaurants which makes it more pleasant for me when I drink my coffee in the bar in the morning and the smokers have to go outside to satisfy their drug habit ha ha hopefully it will rain soon.We had a few friends over for the new year fete and Paulien stayed up to 10.30 which is quite an achievement for her as she needs 12 hours sleep normally. Our neighbour who has the bio shop ( organic veg ) came with his guitar which is a Stratocaster Fender so he is a very serious musician and has a gold disc but now grows veggies.It was a typical French meal ( 3 hours ) then around midnight everyone kisses including the men (I never realised beards pricked so much ) and then we had a bit of jam session with Steve ( the permaculture Brit ) Christoph and myself with Cloe later playing an accordion Breton style for the dancers. So didn't go to bed till 4.00 am still in the bar next day there were plenty of people who hadn't slept and were still socialable mainly due to alcohol.
Max the eldest went back to Brest a week early to revise for exams in a few weeks as they have a high failure rate so he takes it very seriously. The first year about 60% were culled from his course if he had done psychology you just need to turn up and they give you your degree.
Its very quiet on the political front as Sarko is holiday in Eygpt with his new girlfriend a starlet model /singer something politicians in the rest of the world wouldn't get away with.The protection of privacy in France is more strict but I guess it allows for more corruption. Last year the magazine Paris Match did some articles on his marriage and the editor got sacked as the owner is pally with the Sarko family.
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12/27/2007
Pineapples on the beach
A few weeks ago we had some bad storms and half a dozen containers were swept up on the Brittany coast including a shipment of pineapples destined for Tesco. However they arrived on the beaches between Plestin and Perros and recently there has been a glut of people making pineapple jam and tarts. Further west about half a ton of tobacco was washed up mostly Golden Virgina which even tempted Paulien to go for a walk on the beach the customs were soon on site declaring it was illegal to take it away.
Christmas has been very quiet with a couple of families staying on site French/English + the dog and goat of Karen and Kas who have gone to Holland for the festive period so its a happy new year to my 2 regular readers Jonnie and Peter and any one else who stumbles across this blog. Bloavez matt as they say in Breton
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12/11/2007
Brest is best
Brest airport has just opened its new terminal this week its the only new airport development in France post 9/11 at present it has just over 800 000 travellers making it the busiest airport in Brittany ,but with the new facilities it can handle up to 1.8 million. It services about a dozen large towns in France , has a few package operators but more important for me it serves 5 towns in the UK, Exeter, Southampton, Birmingham, Manchester and Luton.I used them in October going one way by ferry and returning by air and the flight was cheaper than Brittany ferry. The Brest airport management are looking for an Irish operator as at present Irish flights are going to Rennes ,Lorient and Nantes I suppose it depends on the airport charges but its the nearest bit of land to Ireland.
The weather was quite rough last week with high winds its interesting that all the local wind surfers arrive at St Michel or St Efflam ( the large beach below us ) and surf it as its safe but interesting in gale conditions. I have at last started slating the gite with my mate Eric I have to keep an eye on him as he hasn't done it before whereas Paulien has so she is doing her own bit at the back of the gite where it will not be seen so much.
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12/03/2007
End of November
Its been a strange few weeks my mum died a couple weeks ago she was 80 and had been in hospital a month and there wasn't much they could do for her. Its always a shock for me to see an English ward with 6 beds whereas in France there is a maximum of 2 to a room. The funeral was over a week ago on a Saturday so I took the overnight boat with the boys leaving Paulien to look after the cats and dogs and met up with the family in a little Devon village church there were some cousins I hadn't seen for 30years so It was good to catch up on their news. Its a shame it takes a funeral for a family gathering. After a very simple service we moved next door for a typical English cup of tea and pasties/sandwiches/cake which my lads loaded their plates several times. They are like human vacuum cleaners when it comes to food and don't put on any weight its not the PS2 exercises more likely the football training. We met up with Louise who promptly measured us up as she is insisting that we wear suits ( top and tails ) for her wedding. A few more family get togethers and then a dash to Plymouth to catch the overnight boat again and by 10 am the next day I was having a coffee in the PMU at Plestin on market day.
A few days later I must have done something awkward working on the roof as I couldn't move too well ( sciatic problems )on the Thursday and the doctor gave me a sick note for a week off work which didn't go down very well with Paulien. Most of the hard work is done on the roof project just the slates and then the slates need to be finished off.
I have to go to church on Sunday with the town band as its St Cecile day who is the patron saint for music and we have a musical program to play. At least I don't suffer from Monsieur Echo's presence for the moment.
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11/22/2007
Repas pour les anciens
They really look after retired people in France twice a year the town of Lannion provides a free meal to the over 70s and free entertainment the harmonie band and the Jo Evens orchertre ( a trio accordion guitar and drums) . The harmonie band was 14 in number yesterday ( 4 of which are English speaking ). I have had some really good news Jeanno or Monsieur Echo has gone back to Paris for the winter, he is the bane of my life in the band as he has no sense of rhythm or tonality and plays loud.Normally in rehearsal I get the other sax player Sophie to sit between us so I don't hear what he is playing so well but now we have a 4 month break from him. For the meal they eat in a large hall and usually there is about 600 ( a captive audience they take away their zimmer frames ....) We play for an hour or so depending on the director of music. he is increasing erratic and beginning to lose the plot one number we played he changed the rhythm about 10 times also our drummer isn't in a good state he had one of his lungs removed this year not a good advertisement for smoking. Afterwards we get a free meal its a very good standard with wine I can't imagine it happening in the UK they would charge £10+ for the afternoon. During the long waits between each course we moan about the director ( a very nice guy but useless as a conductor ) and plot how to change him at the next AGM. Its symptomatic of France there is a lot of talk of change ( Sarko ) but nobody is prepared to make it happen
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11/17/2007
The roof
We started work on the gite Les Etables as soon as the last clients left.First it was the demolition team consisting of son 2 and 3 , Bas should change his initials to WMD as with a sledge hammer in his hand he is a destructive force and its the only time I wear a hard safety hat. It took two days to reduce the roof to the floorboards leaving the stone gable ends standing and sparing the dormer window , which is useful giving us an on site toilet and shower if needed. At last I have learnt to ask for help and Eric just about the only intelligent person I meet in the bar in the morning agreed to help. He is a house husband as his wife works in accounts but he has been writing a book which is to be issued on cd or downloaded on the internet quite a complex process with music and various voices, he also wants to rent a gite for Christmas for his family so we can do an exchange ( the price of the gite will rise the longer he works ) We did all the worst jobs in a couple of days which is the hauling of blocks and buckets of cement up a ladder which if it doesn't break your back then you should be able to finish the project. My English mate Phil helps with the posing of the frame for the roof , we have done at least 6 roofs together so are very quick so hopefully in a weeks time the gite should be reasonably water tight although the forecast for the next week isn't good.It looks as if I'll have to go to England next week as my mother is dying but I guess 80years isn't a bad age to make she had a good party last June with lots of friends and family there, its just a shame the last stages of life are differcult its a pity you can't press a button and go quickly
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11/09/2007
Winter of dissent
It started a month ago with some strikes by train drivers who think its normal to retire at 50 years while the rest of society works until 65. It didn't have much impact in Brittany but last week the fishermen started protesting ( higher fuel prices and low fish prices? ) now they are serious protesters. They blocked the main towns/ports not letting out lorries the most important being fuel delivery trucks so there was a scramble to fill up at Super U this week before they ran out on Tuesday. The police eventually broke the blockade but then they change tactics and stopped a few lorries ( foreign ) containing fish products and dumped them on the side of the road.Sarko came to talk to them before his trip to America but was generally heckled he offered to suspend their social contributions but I think they want more than that so the protests will continue.
The weather has been very try but the goddess of rain quickly noted that I had taken a roof off to replace the timbers and slates and promptly sent a few showers over us also our local farmer Francoise had started cutting his maize crop, as soon as I hear his tractor working I know its going to rain. Max had a good result last weekend he plays for Plestin B team and they beat a local rival Ploubere 21-2 but he didn't score as he is playing fullback.
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11/04/2007
Back to Blighty
The passport eventually arrived after 5 working days at the embassy and it had been flagged as urgent, they only have to check that I exist and don't have a criminal record . So I took an overnight boat to England it takes 12 hours as it out of season and the idea is you spend more money as the crossing should be 5-6 hours normally. My brother picked me up and was taxied to my sister at South Zeal ( it used to be a lead mining village outside Okehampton but nowadays its a very middle class place full of 4 wheel drive cars and hardly a Devon accent in fact being born and raised around Okehampton only for 6 years I felt more of a local ). My mother is in Exeter hospital on a ward for acute strokes and isn't in too good a condition with some paralysis on the right and can't talk as yet, when she starts complaining it will be a good sign.It was interesting to compare the hospital to French ones as my father had a couple strokes in France the rooms are much smaller either one or two beds where as Exeter had 6 beds to a ward open plan and much more traffic so its easy to see that diseases like MSR can spread, but to give them credit the hospital staff had been very good, x-rays and scans straight away. I only stayed a couple days as I have 3 sisters and a brother who visit regular so it was a dash to the airport using public transport ( a double decker bus to Exeter then a change to the airport which called in at the Met office which is based outside Exeter )The flight is only 50 minutes to Brest where my taxi was waiting ( 2 hours as I gave the wrong time ) but she had amused herself well by looking at the shops and spotted a smart coat which could be a useful bargaining chip in my quest to upgrade my baritone sax.
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10/23/2007
"Perfect week" cont
(The blog published itself before I had finished.) We invited Yves the pharmacist over to watch the rugby cup final ( he brought his glasses as our TV is only half the size of his ) I assume he was supporting the English but it didn't help as they lost but there was the disallowed try not given by the Australian official not a very happy evening then my sister telephones saying our mother is in hospital having had a stroke so after examining my passport realised it had expired so had to renew it which is a slow process but sent it by chronopost only costs 15€ to arrive the same or next day and if I telephone the embassy at Paris I should get it back by the end of the week
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It should have been a perfect week
But first I had a small plumbing job to do in the farmhouse one of the radiators had a very slight leak I think someone had knocked the pipe. The system I put in was the plastic pipes you cut and glue which I had done about 5 years ago ( I wouldn't use it again you have to be very clean and clinical with each joint ) so I started on the Wednesday thinking it would be easily finished by the weekend when clients were expected and finished the job 2 hours before they arrived with the fourth attempt . The glue takes 6 hours to dry sufficiently to be put under pressure so its one try each day.
We
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10/14/2007
Watching TV with a Frenchman
Yves the pharmacist at Plestin ( the Tim Henman lookalike ) has been asking me all week to watch the semi final match at his house as it was England v France so I gave in.He has a fantastic house as pharmacists are the richest people in the village as French are the leading pill poppers in Europe and the doctors over prescribe for their various treatments. But I have to say that Yves has done most of the interior work himself and his wife has very good taste so the house looks like its popped out of an interior design magazine ( it does help having a good income). The match was really tense ( he has one and half metre flat screen very nice ) and I'm a very irritating person watching rugby as I tend to twitch a lot ( mentally helping the lads with the rucks and mauls ) so I had to try control that aspect and also being generous would like the host to be happy , but he was so sad when they lost. I kept saying "desole pour toi ........." and he had a good stock of interesting English beer such as "speckled hen" "green giant" he deserved better. The perfidious English had done it again the Sunday market should be good fun this week.
Our car failed its "controle" last week the problem is that being a plastic car the rear door of the Espace sticks in hot weather and it was hot the day of the test so it has to be retested but they only retest the one item ( just 8€ ) so we wait for a cooler day and try it before.
Allez les Blancs
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10/11/2007
October in Paris
The weekend seems to have passed in a blur mostly through lack of sleep ,we ( Peter and Me ) caught the morning train to Paris the TGV is a very civilised way of travelling quiet clean and punctual arriving there in just under 4 hours then a quick lunch at an Irish bar which had a large screen to watch the SA v Fiji match our eating was interrupted by a street busking accordion player demanding money so we said no we are not tourists and didn't like his music.He was a bit shocked but being Parisian ( thick skinned ) moved off muttering to himself.By the time the afternoon match had finished our Irish friends had arrived so it was a few more guinesses then off to Montepanasse to check i the at the hotel then off to Stade de France a very stylish and futuristic stadium with a very good view of the match but the toilets are rubbish as they are too small hence the long queues.The match was average compared to the previous 3 other ones but its a good experience to be there.Getting out of the stadium was quick and just a slow walk to the trains along with 76000 other people.The Montepanasse area is really interesting it has a lived in feel along with the sex shops and Bar /restaurants which Hemingway and Jean-Paul Satre frequented ( I mean the restaurants in their case ). Next morning it was breakfast at a coffee bar munching croissants watching Parisian rush to work at 9.30 am then Mark ( one of the Irish lads ) rang his secretary asking her to google directions to the airport as he was returning on Ryanair.The answer was it took at least 2 hours and with booking in he should have left an hour ago so it was a hasty goodbye and they were off ( he emailed the next day and they arrived 2 minutes before the gate shut ) We did a tourist thing visited Luxembourg gardens and then caught the returning TGV back to Plouret and next day taxied Peter to Brest airport to fly to Southampton.An exhausting but fun weekend.
We have a sister staying this week she has the English disease wanting a second house in France prices are still reasonable they should be able to get what they are looking for within cycling distance of Roscoff.
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10/04/2007
A cry for help
Last week I was minding my own business just checking my emails when I heard an anguished voice " Paulien help "
I thought it was one of our nosey neighbours come to check out the apples in the orchard so didn't rush but it was Nadine wife of Francois the local farmer. She had been working in the field adjacent to us when she had dislocated her shoulder and was in considerable pain so I immediately took her back to the farm and then searched for her husband. I could hear a tractor but couldn't locate him , he probably leaves it running and goes and has a drink with a neighbour ( he does at our place ) So when I returned to the farm Nadine had got changed ( very important ) had her handbag loaded with the appropriate papers ,x-rays, written a note to Francois , left the car keys on the table with the mobile telephone all with one arm while the other was looking rather useless. I was surprised she didn't prepare the evening meal but I was very impressed . So we dashed into "urgence " at Lannion which took 15 minutes and she kept apologising for "dearranging" me as if I would let her drive in my herself. Its the second time its happened to her so she knew the procedure so I just dropped her off and went back to see Francois.He was at home time and had already spoken to his wife, I had to wind him up that he would have to do all the milking for the next month , they have 40 cows but he wasn't worried and poured me some "wine " from a screw top bottle which I found strange but after the first sip thought he had given me fruit juice but after examining the label saw that it was "sans alcohol". Which was a bit of a shock he must be going to AA then visiting the neighbours for the real thing.
This week has involved a lot of planning for travel arrangements as I 've had the opportunity for tickets for the QF for the rugby WC so its a taxi job for me to Brest to pick up Peter ,Saturday then Sunday TGV to Paris and meet up with a couple Irish mates who have adopted Argentine nationality for the weekend see the match at Stade France ,doss down somewhere for the night and return by TGV Monday. Life really tough some times .
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09/24/2007
England 44 Samoa 22
The weekend had been in the planning for 3 years with Rollo bringing over a bunch ex rugby players from Bude and I was to provide the transport so last Saturday I left home at 7.00 and took our Boxer 9 seater to Roscoff to pick the lads up from the ferry there was 7 of them so there was a place for Max who was also the backup driver. A quick coffee/croissant stop at Plestin then onto the N12 direction Rennes/Nantes. It was a 3 hour trip and well signposted into the various parking lots where a bus service took us to the Beaujoire stadium. Outside it was like a beer festival with lots of white shirts milling around supping beer and munching a baguette filled with chips and sausage. Amazingly there were no toilets they were inside the stadium where there was no alcohol,strange. We all had tickets for different parts of the stadium mine was near the roof level with the dead ball line next to a Breton Nationalist who cheered every time a decision went against England finally his day was ruined by the result. For the apres match entertainment we headed back to Rennes with a change of driver, Max sporting his new white shirt. In 15 years living in Brittany I have never been into Rennes the centre is really old and interesting a bit like Lannion x 10 lots of timber clad houses and cobbled streets. We found an interesting restaurant and ate outside on the pavement which was a bit tricky only one incident ,Chris doing a backward somersault with the waitress serving the dessert. She was excellent and didn't even drop the plate in her hand. During the meal large groups of people wandered pass as there was some sort of theatre in the street happening concerning witches. The lads needed a beer after the meal ( I was only drinking perrier water ) and the first bar they went they remarked how friendly and chatty everyone was it wasn't until Max pointed out to them it was a gay bar that they clicked.We looked for another bar and was directed to "rue de la soif" which is the heartland of Rennes a large cobbled square full of bars with their tables outside and hundreds of people just sitting around talking and drinking, but our destination was the Webb Ellis bar in keeping with the weekends theme a rugby bar. The sight of 8 English shirts entering the bar caused a lot of booing but after a few hours of socialising there was a communal singsong at 2.00am in the streets where the Bretons were taught the subtleties of Cornish rugby songs such as Camborne Hill and the nuances of Swing Low Sweet Chariot.Finally we dragged them away or carried in the case of Derek (the granddad of the group who should have known better ) back to the truck and home. Its around a 2 hour trip and arrived just after 4.00am where the lads crashed out in one of the houses and I went to bed but inadvertently had woken Paulien who wasn't too happy.
A few hours sleep then Sunday market where I met Oliver a local Irishman and wound him up about the rugby especially as he had been to the match at Stade France. I was amazed how quickly the lads recovered from the previous night they had to be taken back to ferry in the afternoon and as an appreciation of their company ( and slow down their improvement ) I gave them one of my vintage bottles of calvados which under Rollo's instructions they all had to sip every hour so they shoud be in a good state for work Monday morning.
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09/18/2007
Quantum physics and water
I developed an interest in water during the summer as its always annoyed the piles of plastic bottles sold in the supermarkets ( questions of quality control ,how long they have been bottled and the recycling of the plastic ) also you read about Norwegian water being transported to the Middle East such a wastage of resources and also operating a swimming pool you become aware that water gets tired and can change its colour very quickly. So after researching the subject on the internet the first book to read is anything about Viktor Schauberger the water guru of the last century he been dead since 50years but now his ideas are becoming more acceptable from reading him we have fixed up a system for the domestic water a filter and then I bought a vortex jug from www.clean-water.com. Its a strange device it holds about 2 litres of water and then has a paddle at the top made of silver which spins around for 3-4 minutes creating a vortex which allegedly charges the water and purifies it. There is certainly a difference in taste and it is also cooler. The direction of the spin is important it has to turn anti clockwise as according to Schauberger this causes an implosion and gives energy to the water whereas a clockwise rotation "explodes " and depletes the water. He has lots of theories on the effect it has on the bonding of the molecules hence the quantum physics bit.
For the pool I got hold of some para magnets ( 3 ) which I strapped to the return pipe the idea being it de ionises the water reducing the bonding of dirt particles (cleaning the water's memory ) and also reinforcing the H2O bonds. They arrived last Friday and the pool water wasn't in a good condition on the verge of turning into a green soup ( I try to use the minimum of chemicals ) so a few drops of an algicide + some flocculant + the para magnets and withn 24 hours the pool water was clean and sparkling. I have a spare set so will put some on the incoming domestic water pipe it can only improve the efficiency of the septic!
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09/15/2007
The "enterrement"
The funeral went quite well a lovely sunny day well attended and the band played much better than the previous night we were half way through the piece before Monsieur Echo had got his instrument warmed up enough to get it squeak out of it so he didn't completely ruin it as usual. I quite enjoyed the service it being catholic and is more ritualistic than the C of E I was brought up on not that I am a regular visiter. Jean Kerbaol the deceased had arranged 5 years ago which music he wanted for the occasion. Since my time in the band we have done 4 funerals of ex members church and civic, I find the church ones more satisfying as its a formal ritual whereas the civic ones are too casual just turning up at the cemetery playing a tune then retiring to the bar for a drink afterwards. I calculated during the service there could be 2 or 3 more this year as we have a few ex members in terminal conditions. I asked a few of players in the bar afterwards if they had chosen their music for their departure but they said they weren't in a hurry. Anthony the Irish ex guards ,ex colonel's trumpeter ( so very good player ) said he definitely didn't want us playing as we weren't good enough, after the others had gone he insisted on another beer ( the Irish in him ) he was giving me lots of useful information ( ? ) on crematoriums as he visited a lot during his time in the forces such as differing burn times for differing bodies according to their condition , fat etc , how the ashes were collected, collection of metal fillings and joints and finally that the Germans made the best ovens. I had to change the subject after that.
The latest hassle with bureaucracy is Max has to join his own mutual for health assurance its called SMEBA and its for students , fair enough but then they have asked for his birth certificate to be translated into French which is lunacy as most of the information is digits and translating 6th November to 6 Novembre is pretty dumb but if thats what they want will have to do it . Will now have to go back to my cupboard where I'm hiding for the duration of the WC after last nights shambles .
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09/10/2007
Some sad French on Saturday
There is no better wind up than going into a French bar after a defeat and saying "Allez les Bleus " after last Fridays defeat the French were quite shocked I think they thought it was preordained for them to at least get to the final if not win the competition. Rugby being a minority sport there is a lot of public ignorance and they will struggle to get to the next round. My friend Yves the pharmacist ( a Tim Henman lookalike ) tried to hide when I saw him at the weekend at the "vide grennier " ( French equivalent of a car boot sale ) he has a ticket for the Ireland match at Stade france in 2 weeks time. I'm picking up a bunch of people from the ferry at Roscoff from Bude and taking them down to Nantes for what could be a humiliating encounter with Samoa. They have only recently acquired tickets from ebay as the match allocation was bought up hours and now the team isn't playing so well the tickets are being dumped.I did see a France/Argentine ticket go for more than 3000€ on ebay but I guess interest is falling although Chabal mania is taking off usually the French like their sporting heroes to be handsome but "l'homme de caverne " has caught their eye and even Sarko was trying to get on the bandwaggon to get associated glory if the team wins but as a wily politician he will back off now.
I have a funeral to go to tomorrow its an ex member from the town band in Lannion, the good thing about the band is you always get some free music when you die. He chose a couple numbers for his funeral a few years ago its "memories " from "cats " and another piece. I want a " Closer walk with thee " a nice New Orleans number but at current recruitment levels the band will be dead before me.
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09/04/2007
Le Rentre
September brings a host of changes the tourist numbers drop off, the weather is a little cooler and school starts again so its a 6.30 wake up each morning to take Bas down to St Efflam to catch the bus to Lannion. Xav's school starts at 8.45 in Plestin so we visit the coffee shop a bit earlier.It also means the music practises start again which is exciting for me until the reality of the rehearsal, a mass of shrill noises over/under pitched but never in tune from the clarinets and Monsieur Echo 2 places from me sabotaging the sax section with his out of tune and delayed rhythmic contributions.I think that is why we have a drink after rehearsal to recover or perhaps to dull our musical susceptibilities at least the jazz fanfare is playing at the weekend so will get some musical satisfaction.
We have found an incredible source of cheap paints well its free at our local dump or recycling centre everything is well organised we have skips for wood ( heats local hospital ), glass, plastic + cans aerosols ,metal,carton and paper.The rest of the general rubbish goes to Beggard where it is incinerated but they do use the heat for glass houses and produce some electric from the burning.Garden waste is also taken and mulched then returns as compost it used to be free but now they ask for 16€ a cube metre which is expensive as its poor quality. They also take batteries dangerous substances and paint which Paulien checks out when we do our weekly visit when we dispose our visitors many bottles .The guardian is friendly and lets us check out his store as its only going to be dumped anyway its incredible how many full pots of paint and varnish are there barely used.The guardian of the centre did suggest Paulien gave him a kiss after she took 6 pots but I think he is pushing his luck.
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08/29/2007
Looks as if I'll need a blue shirt
It was a poor weekend for the Celtic fringes on site with most of them losing their matches and South Africa looking ominously good it looks as if I'll have to swap the rose for "le coq " as the French team are looking on form. I am almost worried that England might have difficulty beating Samoa in Nantes the match I have a ticket for in 3 weeks time. Paulien's friend Inika has visited again from Holland with her 2 daughters which was fun and different as we are very much a male dominated household with 3 boys. The funniest highlight last week was Inika's daughter Rose sparring with Eileen wearing boxing gloves and chasing her around the gites one evening.
Our hot water heater packed up this week so have had to change it the plumber we use is a brilliant guy he actually rings back the same day and will visit promptly ( not sure if he's really French ) lets me do most of the grunt work then inspects. A unique French worker, the irony is I buy the heaters in the UK its a German make but the price is about £200 cheaper than in France and is actually cheaper than the plumber can buy it for. He can install for me but can't buy in the UK as it has a GB sticker in it and he can only buy and install heaters with a F sticker although the heaters are identical. Vive le Marche
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08/19/2007
And this years winner is............
Peter finally won the pool competition having lost 2 previous finals and collected the much sort after trophy a cup donated by our local bank CMB. The final was a 3 way affair with John and Phil competing hard but out classed by the wily shots of Peter. Fortunately the contestants aren't drug tested as all 3 would have failed with too high alcohol content. Xav retained his junior title ( its slightly unfair as he gets to practise on the table throughout the year ) and Paulien won the Plate competition ( the losers Cup ). The last couple weeks it almost feels as if we are on holiday as most of the clients are repeaters ( some for 10 years ) and other than doing the basics it a very socialable time for us. Paulien even had time to make some division curtains for a gite with Frances who is a top curtain designer with her own range and label of interior fabrics designs.Some very happy weeks much enjoyed by all who stayed here.
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08/14/2007
It's important to secure bike racks well
We had a client leave on Sunday in a bit of a rush the previous night I had been helping him attach his bike rack which had been damaged when he drove into a height restricted car park so we fixed it up (not very well ) the night before in the dark.So late Sunday afternoon he telephoned me to say the rack had fallen off en route to the ferry (actually he didn't make Plestin ) and he had abandoned the 4 bikes in a field outside Plestin so we have retrieved them and put them in store if he wants to collect them some time.
Yann has been having a tough time as our local vet did a poor job of stitching him up ( or stapling on Monday ) and the Friday she put in a couple stitches but next day he was worse so we took him to another vet who did major surgery on his leg and redid all the stitching. The first vet not only missed one hole in the leg which was festering she hadn't cleaned out the wound properly so it had gone gangrenous and smelly which needed to be cut out. So now Yann looks like a patchwork of steaks stitched together but is much happier and after showing him to the neighbours whose dog caused the damage they agreed to pay using their insurance.
09:20 Posted in Travel | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: brittany, france, gite
08/10/2007
Yann's hard week
Yann our ageing dog has had a bad week first he had a one sided altercation with the neighbour's dog ( he must had said something about her mother ) which resulted in a visit to the vet only 50€ for a quick rough shave and for the cuts she used a staple gun and then a few jabs not even a local anaesthetic, a hard woman.So he has been mopping around the visiters for sympathy and any spare sausages that are going then today I reversed into him ( better me than a client ) and although he's OK the staples loosened up so back to the vet for a couple stitches and another jab.A cheaper visit only 15€ this time.Our vet is from Belgium so we speak a mixture of French ,English and Dutch.
Xav has opened an ice cream shop and is making a fortune every time I take one its a minimum of at least 1€ and when we mention rental,electricity,storage costs and protection money his eyes glaze over and he changes the subject.
In August about 80% of the clients are repeaters so life is less stressful we have to organise the annual pool competition which is sponsored by the CMB (local Bank) and N Power and is contested fiercely.The winners (junior and seniors ) receive much coveted cups and various prizes
18:45 Posted in Travel | Permalink | Comments (1) | Email this | Tags: brittany, gite, france, hoiday, coat aillis
08/03/2007
Septics are simle things
Septic tanks are simple things they have a grease trap to stop grease going in and basically its a big tank of organic material bubbling away with lots of bugs doing their job. This is fine as long as everyone respects it and don't confuse the toilet with a rubbish bin. The classic comment I get is " Simon the toilet/shower seems to be slow and we are just going shopping " It doesn't happen often in fact i can't remember the last time ( either senility or have done this job a long time ) but yesterday we had an occasion it only took 2 hours but I found lots of objects which shouldn't be there plus the toilet roll core and those horrible "hygienic wipes " which take a 100 years to biodegrade. Still it was an interesting challenge I always like to shake hands with the clients after the job ha ha.
Summer has final arrived 3 consecutive days of sunshine and scary blue skies with no cloud cover we will be having forest fires soon. My cousin's son Henry arrived for a few days to improve his French as he is doing languages at uni in September so he did the rounds of asking for work locally and the sailing school took him on (we are friendly with the boss man there ) helping to haul boats into the water and cleaning them up on the return the hours are 10 till 6 in the evening we are still not sure whether he is getting paid!
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07/29/2007
Chloe's fete
The queen has 2 birthdays and this year Steve (teaches permaculture and yoga and parents bought my parents house at Plestin ) arranged a summer party for Chloe ( her birthday is April ). It wasn't just a normal birthday bash but a well thought out festival, he hired a couple marque and arranged for several entertainer/singers to perform and then there was the food there was a continuous supply from mid-day to midnight I think we were all absolutely stuffed in fact the late evening curry was just too hot for me although I encouraged plenty of people to try it.Steve had a scratch band which included me and we played later in the evening ,it wasn't too bad for a first performance and later on some other friends Phillipe and Valerie played with another couple some sort of techno/metal which wasn't really to my taste but reasonably proficient.They have a sample of their music on this link at myspace Xav thought both bands were Ok so that was a reasonable endorsement.We have just had another client buy a second house in Plufur thats the third client who have bought in that village it not good for business.
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07/15/2007
July 14th a damp squib
The big firework display for Bastille day and the previous evening was dampened by a heavy shower an hour before the event, St Michel en Greve and Locquirec hold their celebrations on the 13th with the latter being my favourite as it has more happening before the fireworks. Usually some Breton music, dancing and it takes place at the port so for the fireworks you can lie on the beach and watch the pyrotechnics overhead and at the same time listen to classical music blaring out, quite bizarre.
Xav is recovering quickly from his cracked bone in his foot having discarded his crutches is now hopping around like a frog. Locally the season is in full swing as most of France is on holiday, Super U is open Sunday morning just to 12.30, Max is on the early shift and starts at 6.30 working in the baking section. I tell the clients to be nice to him and then when they see a tart they fancy to ask for a 10% reduction sticker. You can always ask.
The evening market at Plestin starts this week on Tuesday its an arty/craft thing with the usual Breton flavour + food and drink, they sell an interesting red beer called "Dremwell "made at Tregieur. Also this week is Plestin's cultural highlight the "Nuit de Saucisse " on Friday where they have 4-5 bands playing in the parking lot and obviously sell the famous "saucisse ".The better musical event takes place in Lannion the night before the "Tardive " which is music in the streets ,weather permitting
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07/09/2007
Xav back on crutches
I think the polyclinic are beginning to recognise Xav with his regular visits. This time its a cracked toe or a metatarsal which he got by using a skimboard on the waves it a short board you jump on with a few inches of water under it and it skids on the water only he kicked it with his foot cracking the middle toe so its a few weeks on crutches. We told the staff we should have a loyalty card so his next visit is free.
The French holiday season has started this weekend with the Sunday market in Plestin packed out and we could actually sit on the terrace outside the PMU bar for the first time in a month, everyone is moaning that business is down in June our strawberry friends reckon that they were 70% down on the previous year due to the rain.
There has been no news on the kayak front the police just gave us a form and the insurance company said everything outside isn't insured but they might give us a goodwill jest. They might just lose our business as we pay them 3 and a half thousand € a year I sometimes wonder whether it would be better to insure just the minimum and put the rest into a contingency fund as I think we have only made about 2 minor claims in 15years
It looks like Sarko is reneging on all his free market ideas and turning into a typical Gaullist politician,protectionist and managed markets it shows you should never believe a politician as you are always going to be disappointed.
08:35 Posted in Travel | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: brittany, france, holiday, gite, coat aillis
07/04/2007
Strange week
We just had a bit of a shock I was looking for our kayaks and realised they weren't there so have concluded some one has nicked them last week when Paulien was away in England as its not a thing we check every day and we are a bit too casual on security as we rarely lock our house up as there is always some one around. I guess they were a soft target being dumped near the road.
We had some Scots staying who had a nightmare start,arrived filled up with goodies from Super U and their 3 boys were out playing and one pushed the other and he fell on grass and broke his arm in 2 places on the elbow joint a freak accident. I took them into casualty at Lannion the service was very quick and they tried to set it there but because of the nerves and its location it was very differcult and so around midnight he was transferred to Brest where it was set for the third time and he only got back Monday night. He just has a simple cast on the forearm to stop him twisting it and has it strapped to his other shoulder and has to stay in place for 45 days. The older brother wasn't very popular but they are all Ok now.
The boys had a good time in Cornwall surfing and even here last Sunday they said the waves were too big. The weather hasn't been too bad this week although we get rain its usually in the night early morning generally its sunny/clouds in the day with a strong breeze and tempatures a couple degrees lower than normal for JUly. All the weather forecasts are rubbish as they change every 6 hours its best to look at the satellite photo and guess whats going to happen!
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06/25/2007
I've just seen a blue sky
The last weeks weather has been atrocious throughout France I don't think there will be any water restrictions this year even in the south. Paulien has taken the boys to England for 5 days to sea her mum and they have taken their boards to do some surfing at Bude. The ferry was quite a reasonable price for Brittany ferries £210 for 4 people in a minibus ( that's with the reduction we get using the magic ref number ) but the price would have been at least another £100 for the first week in July. We have our Irish friends staying and they gave me an Irish rugby shirt which I have to wear while they are here and even worse a dvd of the Coke park match!
We had our last gig of the summer with the jazz fanfare it was the "fete de petite couchon " at Vieux Marche about 20 minutes from Plestin. It was fun the Saturday night it didn't rain so we played in the square after a local band played red neck american country music and then the inevitable breton music. The Sunday was all indoor as it tipped down with rain, there was a very interesting ensemble of bizarre folk instruments and then a total mad workshop/fanfare where some French guys have about 50 old brass band instruments and gives a quick initiation to the beginners and then they perform. It was hilarious I tried an old trombone which I have played before but then I wore short trousers so it was a long time ago.
My optimism is unfounded as since I started writing the blue sky has disappeared and we have just had a quick shower but the forecast is to get better this week the pool cover has been brilliant this year hardly anyone would have used the pool without it whereas it keeps the water at a constant temperature and stops you getting wet from the rain when swimming!
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