Fed up to the back teeth

Of the disrespectful French. At some point this weekend, some retard did this to my poor wee car. And naturally, they didn't leave their insurance details. Because in this forsaken country, it is not the done thing to have the slightest consideration for anyone but oneself. Now, I know probably more than most car-owners that if you have a car, it will get damaged. Yes, that sounds very pessimistic, but it's the truth. People will open their car doors into yours, they'll scrape past with supermarket trolleys or pushchairs or bikes or whatever. If you're really unlucky, other motorists will drive into you. I have owned my car for 10 years now, and every 2 and a half years, on average, somebody has driven into me. It's had 3 new front bumpers, 2 new bonnets, one new rear light cluster...

This means that I, more than many others, know full well that having a car means it will get damaged. Put it doesn't make the pill any easier to swallow. I just cannot get my innocent little mind around the concept that a person has caused damage to another person's property, and they have simply driven off, without a second thought. I wasn't brought up to behave that way. But it would appear to be the national attitude in this cursed country.

Or maybe it's something about this town. Disrespect and conceited, condescending deceitfulness are, after all, practised with skill and finesse by our town council. Local residents have only recently, and quite accidentally discovered plans to build blocks of flats just behind an existing, very small, lotissement (subdivision/estate). Now, if you or I common mortals wished to build a small extension to the kitchen, for example, we would be made to jump through many administrative hoops. Building permit application, declaration to the town hall, public announcement (ie permit application displayed on town hall notices board) followed by 3-month holding period in case any local residents wanted to lodge an objection... And of course you must pay for the privilege. But when it's the town council and their cronies who want to build 90 apartments, they can just approve the programme. No building permit applications for them, no public consultation, no planning procedures. Had this deceit not been uncovered, the first most residents would've know about the whole shambles would've been the morning the bulldozers turned up.

So possibly, the fine example set to inhabitants by the mayor and his cohorts is what leads to the sort of "petty" crime that saw my car door severely bent and nobody to own up to their misdeeds. Or maybe this town just has a higher than usual population of arseholes?

I know, I know. France doesn't have a monopoly on arseholes. But it is indeed strange that I have so many friends and acquaintances in other countries whose cars are never driven into. And even if they did, I am quite sure they would be able to report the crime to their local polis on any day of the week. Whereas, in third world countries, one can only report crimes from Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm. Eh? I wonder if I can ask to only pay my taxes for Monday to Friday, and deduct Saturday and Sunday.

And on top of all this, Doggy has a lump in her abdomen. Operation tomorrow to remove it and the vet has promised a biopsy if it looks remotely iffy. I know this has nothing to do with leaving in French France, but it's not helping maintain healthy, happy serotonin levels in my wee head.

Round and round and round

Doggy, like all baby dogs, used to really enjoy chasing her tail:

She's grown out of that particular type of silliness since.

But I would walk 500 miles

Well, I wouldn't walk 500 miles to walk my dog, but we did take a two hour drive yesterday just to take her to the beach at Fort-Mahon! What can I say, she likes that beach. And incidentally we stopped in to see Stéphan who was there for the weekend.

Enjoyed a bracing walk, watched learner kitesurfers

Went out for dinner just in time to catch the sunset

Had moules frites (mussels and chips) for dinner, then whizzed home and aahed at a lovely waning hunter's moon on the way.

Nice.

I can't get no sleep....

Oh, if I could only get some sleep. Actually it's not *that* bad but I really could do with a decent 8-hour stretch.

On the up side, not sleeping means I have plenty of time to read my book. Currently on the go is Michael Lewis's Liar's Poker. It is a Wall Street trader's memoir about the early to mid-80s, and in particular about the creation and massive expansion of the mortgage bond market. Even though it covers events from more than twenty years ago, it is eerily resonant in today's unpredictable times, in particular with the latest news from the US property markets. There is quite a lot (the technical bits) that I don't understand, but I'm getting enough to know that people on the money markets make money out of literally nothing. I see it as a bit like a dog chasing its tail. I can't really explain it, but so much of the finance industry is built around entirely intangible commodities. It has inspired to find out a bit more about how the whole crazy world of the markets works.

In other news:
Doggy has a flea. Or maybe even two. Damn and blast. She will have to be subjected to the flea-annihilating spray. Lucky doggy.
Yesterday was Marianne's birthday. Happy Birthday!
Last Wednesday was Bro's birthday. Happy Birthday!
Hubby bought a new suit.

Er, that's about all I have to say about that.

Faced with an empty text box

My blogging has been lacking lately. No posts, no visits to my blogroll. No nothing. One explanation is that I have been avoiding my laptop. The horrid fluorescent felt tip pen came back and I didn't want to use my laptop in case it made it worse. Anyway, it seems to have gone away all by itself for the moment.

Another explanation is feeling slightly guilty (as deftly-explained by Princesse Ecossaise) about not maintaining my blog and visiting everyone else. Which is silly really, but that's what I'm all about, isn't it? Silly, I mean.

Yet another explanation is lack of anything blog-worthy to tell. Lately I've been low and worn out and just not right. I can't sleep because my brain likes to be awake at 4am and think about things in a very excited and busy way. My body thinks this is a crock o' shite but it can't get my brain to SHUT UP and GO TO SLEEP. It's been so bad some nights I've switched the light back on and reached for a book to pass the time until sheer fatigue inevitably takes over. Doc has given me some proper drugs because the drowsy-making anti-histamine tablets weren't making a jot of difference. I hope my brain will quickly come round to the idea that thinking is for daylight hours, and the only decent thing to be doing at 4am is sleeping.

Hubby is jolly fed up with his stupid job. When he tells me about the stupid working methods they have and management's flat refusal to invest in any tools that might make his team's job easier and help them produce better, more reliable results, I am struck by how patient he is. I just could not work in the environment he works in. I'd have shouted very rudely at people and probably assaulted my boss long since. Poor Hubby.

The company in the UK that wants a telephone interview hasn't been back in touch this week to re-schedule (the first attempt went nowhere due to difficulties with their conference call system), but hey. Hubby is very diligently practising his English. We used to speak mostly French to each other but now it's mostly English. I have taught him useful idiomatic English such as "innit" or finishing every other sentence with "but" (this is to prepare him for visits to Lanarkshire to see Bro & Family). But he is under strict instructions not to show off this mastery of modern English during any interviews!

Doggy is as delightful as ever. Here is proof:

Pic taken with my new toy, which is now back from after-sales hell and works again. Obviously. That hairy blue thing behind her used to be a slipper, but she savaged it. She's that sort of a doggy. Can you tell from the photo?

If you were paying attention you'll have figured out that Bro & Family have finally moved West. They sold their flat very quickly (within two days of it going on the market!), but finding a new house didn't happen quite so quickly. And when they did find one and their offer was accepted, it wasn't looking likely they would get entry the same weekend they had agreed to vacate their flat. It was all a bit of a soap opera, but they are at last installed and have a postcode that starts with "G". The day they moved in, some curious kids from round about stopped by to see who the new neighbours were. Sis-in-law says she didn't understand one word they said. It's Sis-in-law's birthday today. Everyone say Happy Birthday.

Anyway, that's enough from me. I'm going to change my "currently reading" book and make a cup of tea and visit some blogs. Cheery-bye.

Party under the sun and clouds

We just spent the weekend at Hubby's dad's farm in the Sologne region of France (just south of the Loire around Orléans). Saturday he held a family party to celebrate his 60th birthday and our wedding. It was another lovely day and interesting to meet many of Hubby's family. There is quite a strong family resemblance actually it's rather striking. And one of the cousins gave Hubby a book of his family tree. They have managed to trace back to 1609. Fancy that!

We (hubby, parents and I) arrived on Friday early in the afternoon. Immediately got to work blowing up balloons and making them into sort of balloon arrangements and attaching them to the picnic shelter down at the pond (well, it's a small lake really). Unfortunately we lost a few in some heavy rain showers. So we changed tack and just filled the Clio with balloons ready for the next day and last minute decorating.

Once the car was full, the menfolk helped the marquee people to put the marquee up (they only turned up at about 5.30pm!) and Mum and I took Doggy round the farm. Poor Doggy, she unwittingly tested the electric fence round the corn fields (used to keep wild boar from getting in the fields and scoffing the tender corn shoots). She got such a fright I felt so bad for her.

Bro, whom we had expected to arrive for dinner, got stuck in some especially nasty Paris traffic and they finally turned up at gone 11pm. Super nephew was in a good mood though and had been really good on the whole journey (from Selsey to Romorantin!).

Fairly early start on Sat. to lay the tables and empty the balloons from the Clio. Weather looked ominous but in the end the sun shone nearly all afternoon, with only one heavyish shower. Yet again, step-mother-in-law had orchestrated a veritable banquet. She should go into events hosting, I swear. We had giant pike (from the currently-drained pond), two whole legs of ham, various yummy salads and some rather magnificent cakes. The French are quite good at eye-catching cakes.

All in all it was a lovely day and a pleasant weekend. I just wish we could have stayed for longer. Parents and Bro and his hangers on are spending the week at the farm the lucky things. Wish I could have stayed on to enjoy super nephew. Of course, Doggy doesn't reckon much to him. Stumpy little person, she probably thinks! He is quite fascinated by Doggy, but fortunately for Doggy his attention is often quickly distracted. I have plans to teach him to pull the hairs on his dad's legs. :)

Telly addict doggy!

This is SO cute I have to share it: Big Cat Diaries is on tv right now and doggy is sitting on the doggy rest (initially a footrest but she's made it her own), just gazing at them big cats on the tv. She's fascinated. Probably if I go for the camera she'll stop... I do love my doggy.

Cute doggy

Lovely doggy is curled up on a cushion in doggy foetal position. Unfortunately I disturbed her when I went to get the camera. Some who know doggy would say she's disturbed anyway. She definitely has a couple of loose screws. The French have a funny and quite imaginative expression: she has a spider on her ceiling. That does describe doggy fairly well.

Talking of her behaviour, I got told off by Le Postie the other day. You see doggy rather hates the mail and tries to savage it as soon as it comes through the letter box. I think Le Postie is worried that she'll mistake his fingers for the gas bill one day in her excitement. Anyway, because we're such DIY-people, we just fitted another letterbox flap to the inside of the door. Now she can't get her little doggy nose right up against the door. She still savages the post though. Quite often in the summer she takes it outside. She's a funny thing.

How to get a doggy cuddle

If you'd like the dog to come and sit on your lap, here's how to proceed:

1/ Choose any chair or the sofa
2/ (optional but helps) Get the footrest and put your feet up
3/ Get the laptop out and open it, on your lap
4/ Move the laptop to one side because doggy has just turned up and wants to cuddle.

And that naughty dog

I caved in and gave her a stick. You see you cannot reason with a 4-year old dog. She had a bit of a play and settled down after that.

I suppose a stick is better than sweets!

Naughty dog!

The dog is sitting on the floor (for once she's not on the furniture) and trying to browbeat me into giving her yet another stick. She's been sitting doing her little doggy dance and saying "hummmh" in her doggy way. She probably won't give me any peace until I give her a stick. The fact that she just had one about seven minutes ago has escaped her.

Naughty dog.

On a slightly less frivolous note, I've noticed she has two little cysts on her sides (one on each side). Must remember to mention this to the vet. Don't let me forget.

New doggy toys

Cléo (who is not spoiled AT ALL) has TWO new squeaky toys. Lucky doggy.

Star dog

Cléo is such an amazing dog she needed to get her very own web album. So here it is: Doggydo. She's just the best.

She is turning into a bit of a telly addict though. This evening on the news there was an item about wolves and she sat and watched them, and she also likes the meerkats on BBC 2 just before Top Gear. Which is back, by the way :)

Not been a good blogger lately

So what's been going on?

Well, work is quiet. Very quiet. It's the calm before the storm. So much so I had Friday off, which was nice. Doggy and I took Hubby to work then went for a walk in the park. Then I went to that nice butcher and bought braising steak and mince. Then I went to the supermarket (braving some weapons grade plonkers out on the roads!) and bought proper bread-making flour for the bread machine. And some other stuff.

Then I made a loaf of bread (read put the stuff in the bread machine and pressed the button). And some stew, some shepherd's pie mince, and some bol sauce, all of which is now in the freezer. Much to Hubby's disgust I might add.

Yesterday we went and closed our French gift list (about time). We have ordered the dishwasher but right now it has nowhere to live! They said delivery would take about 5 to 7 days so that gives us a bit of time. We also got a new kettle and toaster. But the main thing is the dishwasher. Oh joy!!

We also went and got stationary to do our French thank you cards with. Need to get them done. My Christmas cards came yesterday too so I should write them today. Actually, the weather is really foul, so what better to do than write my Christmas cards? I think Cléo would like to go for a walk, but I also know that if I take her outside, she'll look at me like I've lost the plot. Doggy doesn't really do wind and rain! Right now she is pawing at me because I have the laptop on my lap, and she thinks she should be there!

I also could use today to sort out my Christmas gifts. Haven't really given them much thought actually...

Today is Grandad's 90th birthday. I mustn't forget to call him!!

Next weekend we are going to Reims to see Charlene and Jean-Paul and Chantal. Should be fun. All the more reason to do my cards this weekend, as if I don't I really will run out of time.

Right, I'm off to make another loaf and give this desperate dog some love.

Such a lot has been happening

Haven't blogged for quite a while, there's been a lot going on.

Start of November we were joined by Mum and Dad, Matt and Marianne, and Macleod and headed off to Blois for mother-in-law's "wedding party". It was quite a lot more fun than we expected! Was a pretty tiring weekend though!

Then Hubby forgot my birthday.

Since then:

We had dinner round at Sophie and Olivier's. As usual, was lovely to see them and they entertained us with their holiday photos which are pretty amazing. Anthony and Stéphanie were there too and that was nice.

I did management training at work. Nice to have two days off :) And the course content was quite interesting too. Hopefully I'll maintain my current level of good will to put some of the stuff we covered into action.

My shiny new toy has arrived. Am using it right now. Like very much :)

Yesterday we did the wine fair. No Mum and Dad this year which is a big shame. But they sent us a shopping list and we went with Stéphan, Hélène, and Jean-Charles. And despite me having said that we were not going to buy any posh wine that you have to keep for ages before drinking, Hubby went and bought posh wine you have to keep for ages before drinking. !!

Also:

Hubby decided he was proper fed up at work and was going to look for another job. And then decided that maybe he'll stick around a bit longer because maybe things might improve. That rather deflated my balloon of hope that maybe we could find him a job in Scotland and escape...

Mum and Dad brought our John Lewis wedding gifts with them. That was fun. All our presents are lovely. Thank you everyone!

Doggy is full of beans. Her coat is starting to grow back over her leg but still seems very thin on her tummy. Fortunately the weather has been ridiculously mild so far. Well, fortunately for her but not really for all the beasties and birdies, and flowers, who will all get a big shock when it eventually turns cold.

And that's all I can remember for now.

Stitchless dog

Cléo had her stitches out today. She is making good progress, hardly limping at all on her peg leg and getting back to all her unpleasant habits so she is definitely on the mend!

Got a lovely pic of Carmen from Andreas today. She is tiny and lovely. I'm sure Andreas is looking forward to having her and Jeni at home at last. Jen said they should both be able to come home by the weekend.

I had been thinking of another book, but I can't remember which or what I wanted to say about it so nevermind.

Pet hospital

Cléo has had her op, which went very well. She was very dopey all yesterday evening following the general anaesthetic, valium, and three shots of morphine!

Vet put two pins and some prosthetic ligaments in her left knee. She must have only gentle exercise (walks on the lead!) for two months then progressively more active walks for a further two months. Back to the vet on 31 October to have the stitches out.

We didn't sleep very well because we were both listening out for her. She is moving around a bit now but doesn't put her back left paw down yet. She has had a lot to drink and is eating again too. She even had a few barks today so she's getting back to her usual self.

The patient:
As you can see, she has also had a bit of a radical shave. It will grow back soon enough I suppose.

Other news:

There is a caterpillar on my nasturtiums! Proof if it were required that the current weather is far too mild. That's climate change for you eh.

Bought some shoes on ebay. Two pairs in fact. Pair mauve suede slingbacks, pair silvery satin kitten heel court shoes. Hope the silver ones go with my trousers! I don't think the suede ones will but they looked nice so I thought I'd have them anyway.

Dog op scheduled for Friday 20 October

It's not actually displasia (my mistake) because the problem is her knee, not hip. But it's similar. Her left knee is in fact permanently dislocated, because the ball at the top of her tibia doesn't lock into the socket under her kneecap. And her knee cap just slips off the top of the whole assembly anyway.

So the vet is going to cut some bone away, add a new bit, put a pin in and strap some artificial ligament over the whole lot, which should mean her knee will then fit together like it's supposed to. Hurrah.

I know this is pathetic but it's quite daunting all of this. She has to go in at 8 on Friday morning, and we can stay with her while the vet puts her under. When the vet's receptionist said this I had tears in my eyes because in French they say "put her to sleep" (or send her to sleep I suppose). And that of course means something entirely different to my British ears! We can take her doggy blanket in so she has something familiar. Also, she'll need to have a lampshade on her head after because she's destructive and she'll pick her bandage to bits given half the chance. Poor Doggy!!

Other news:

Glad it's the weekend. Weeks would be alright if it weren't for those five days in them where one has to go to work, eh? Still, never mind.

Cold is colonising my throat now. It's not really on the move, just expanding its territories. Need to do something about that.

Spoke to me brother last night. That was nice. He has a blog. Well he has two, but he's forgotten what he called the first one. D'oh. Click here to see his new one. I will be lobbying him for photos.

Spent some money yesterday! That was nice too but probably only in my opinion. Bank probably feels differently ;) I bought a blouse and two tops from Esprit. Blue. All three of them. Also tried on two skirts. One was just not right. The other, a dark chocolate coloured cord skirt, looked fantastic with the tops. But I don't have any suitable shoes (black just don't go). I *did* see some boots that would go perfectly. But I had set myself a budget and didn't want to overspend, so no skirt and no boots. And then when I told Mum about it, she said I should get the skirt and boots and one of them could be my birthday present. Yay! Mum understands these things you see.