22.04 Day 218 . . . Our Final Viewing
22 April 2023, Perancis ⋅ 🌙 11 °C
Today is the day we go to read the mètres at the Chenay House - so we both woke immediately thinking about it and trying to check we had all the questions ready that we needed to ask.
Downstairs we had breakfast and I downloaded a load of payslips for all my work last year to send to the French accountant. Downloaded and sent, Tre and I set about replying to the English accountant so that she could sort my tax with UK HMRC - questions such as how many actual days did I work in the Uk between set dates!! Nightmare!! Anyway we got it done and sent.
I wanted to fly the drone today due to the incredible rapeseed in the fields, but I was having to watch how windy it was.
Tre cracked on with ironing all the covers from the 3 piece suite she had laundered while I kicked my heels and found a little green bug to photograph out on the patio.
The southern green shield bug larvae molt five times before they reach their mature size. They are named for their unpleasant scent and are considered pests due to their preference for feeding on leguminous plants such as soybeans. Wasps and flies that parasitize the southern green shield bug are sometimes used as biological controls for its population.
The adult males can reach a body length (from front to elytral apex) of about 1.2 cm, while females are bigger, reaching a size of about 1.3 cm. The body is bright green and shield-shaped and the eyes are usually reddish, but they may also be black. They differ from the similar green stink bug (Acrosternum hilare) by the shape of their scent gland openings, which are short and wide in Nezara viridula, and narrow and long in the green stink bug. The eggs are barrel-shaped, with an opening on the top.
Once the wind had died down Is joutes to Tre and we headed out to the end of the lane to fly the Mavic Air.
Still a little gusty and having not flown it for a while, I struggled to remember all of the imagery settings during the two short flights. On landing the second flight I thought at one point it was coming down due to low battery in the rapeseed field, which would have been a total loss of it. I then nearly clipped a tree when I got it close to home. Next flight will be less adventurous and more re-learning my skills.
We walked home and I downloaded the footage into the MacBook. I was actually quite pleased with some of the stuff I’d got.
I pinged a couple of images into Instagram and then shit upstairs to get changed. Tre was already and we needed to leave to get fuel at Sauze before heading to the house.
At just gone 5pm we were fuelling at Sauze and whilst there went to check the tyre pressures as I now know how to use the French air lines - a little odd to say the least.
All done Tre and I headed for the house passing the estate agent parked up in a layby, probably killing time.
We arrived at the house at about 5.50pm ten minutes early and there met the estate agent and Madam Auvin one of the sellers. She had with her, her son and one of his friends.
We spent some good while at the house checking the location of water stop clocks, electric metres, water points within the street, what the family had and hadn’t left in the house and outbuildings. To say Tre and I weren’t impressed is an understatement - but I won’t go into it. The estate agent agreed that the state of the place was not acceptable. We had a serious conversation and it would appear things will get done before Wednesday - we will see.
The sun was out and it was a beautiful evening, the house itself and especially the garden looked stunning, if not overgrown.
It’s all Tre and I actually want - the rubbish the family have left Tre and I will sort . . . We have the time!!
We finally left being given some assurances and decided rather than go straight home we would go to a bar we’ve meant to visit for ages.
We drove about ten minutes tops, to Clussais-la-Pommeraie and La Pause d’Ore. once inside we saw that they made and served freshly baked pizzas.
We ordered a Canabel (Cannibal) pizza and a couple of drinks. The pizza lived up to its name being fairly spicy. With the addition of some chilli oil the owner had provided my mouth was on fire - in a good way. Due to having a very large glass of Leffe Blonde, Tre drive home which took about ten minutes.
Indoors we had another drink each and continued to discuss the issues with the way the house had been left, but more importantly how pleased we were to have found it and that it will be ours on Wednesday.
We both went to bed really happy but in my case a little fuzzy headed.Baca lagi
23.04 Day 219 . . . Big Pot Hunting
23 April 2023, Perancis ⋅ ☁️ 12 °C
After waking at 3am with a thumping headache . . . as a result of too much Leffe Blonde last night, I fell back to sleep and we both woke at about 8.30am and were treated to the sounds of the Cuckoo and the Hoopoe from over in the woods.
We had decided to go to Civray during the morning to visit the market - which today was a brocante, not a locals one - more professional sellers antique fair.
We arrived at Civray just before 11am and found a parking space over the river from the market square I. A fairly large car park.
We started our walk around the market, taking in the weird and wonderful treasures to be found. We saw a fairly large metal pot which Tre suggested might make a good fire pit for the garden and so we asked a price. Far too expensive for what it was. We were now on Big Pot Hunt. We found another couple as we walked, both were neither quite big enough or the right price.
It was then that we saw it, a bloody big and heavy iron pot with handles. After a short discussion with the seller and a 10€ price reduction we bought it. Only then did I worry about how we would get it into an already full Roxvanné. Add to that Tre and I had to carry it back through the market, across the river and to the car park. Anyhow after two stops on route we arrived at Rox and sorted the back contents enough that we could put the pot in . . . Bloody hell it’s heavy!!
Back to the market we walked again before grabbing hot drinks in the small bar/cafe right next to the church.
Although it had been sunshine when we left home it was overcast in Civray and getting windy.
So after drinks we headed for Rox and drove home. On our arrival the weather was sunny and warm again.
We decided to sit outside but after 10 minutes it had clouded over and started to rain a little. Within half an hour it was lashing it down. This rain came and went all afternoon.
We decided to eat early and had the lamb and mint sausages from Sauze market.
Due to the weather we sat to watch some TV and waited for Brighton v Manchester United FA Cup Semi Final to start.
As we are an hour ahead, by the time the game had finished with a penalty shoot out it was well gone 8pm if not nearer 9pm.
A bit more TV and some social messages to some friends finished the day and we toddled off to bed.
Something else bought for the Chenay House - 3 more sleeps!Baca lagi
24.04 Day 220 . . . Packing Up Rox
24 April 2023, Perancis ⋅ ☁️ 10 °C
Up at 8.30 and straight downstairs to crack on - we have a lot to do.
We whistled through breakfast and then we called Orange British line and spoke to a very helpful guy about getting a landline new phone installed at the Chenay house. Wasn’t as cheap as we thought as we hadn’t ordered it online, but you can’t order an engineer to attend to hook up a line using the online system - so stuffed in that one. Anyhow all sorted and an engineer being sent out next week. All the bits ordered and being posted out and we had to give Craigs mobile number for the contract as they will only take a French mobile number. So this afternoon we need to go get a French mobile phone.
Next up call the Insurance lady Vanessa to get a new attestation document done and sent out, so we can send to the notaire.
Once that was done and email copy received we forwarded it to the French Notaire and also asked them to confirm that they had all our funds safely held for the Chenay house.
I then packed a few bits upstairs just to make a start on our move out. Tre had also started her packing - more of what she had already done in the last few days.
Shortly after lunch we both climbed into Roxvanne to drive to Sauze. We both noticed again that she is not starting very well - we’ve ordered a new battery for when we get back to the UK in May but we may need to sort it sooner.
We drove to Sauze and into SuperU. First up we bought a phone but found out we needed to go to a shop down the parade for a SIM card. We then did a small food shop but also picked up some items that were on offer due to a stamp collection scheme - a bit like green shield stamps back in the UK in about 1970 . . . all gardening equipment.
After SuperU we went to get the SIM card which was a bit of a phaf, but the lady in the shop was really helpful and explained what we needed to do . . . Or so we thought.
Across the road to Bricomon to buy some charcoal, but changed our minds and just bought some fire lighters. We think we can use wood (of which there is plenty in the hanger at the Chenay house) in the newly purchased fire pit if yesterday.
Back home via the main roads and parked up in our normal bay at the Gite.
We then spent the next two hours or so humping our belongings from the Gite to Rox and loading her up. We seem to have accumulated loads of stuff while we have been here - certainly more than we arrived with.
We finally locked the doors on Rox and called it a day.
Tre then made a fab, huge omelette which we had with salad whilst flopped on the sofa watching rubbish.
We then for some bizarre reason started trying to activate the new mobile phone and also too it up with the details and directions we had been given by the shop lady. Not a chance! We were both tired and tempers started to raise, so we decided to leave it to the morning. It cannot be that difficult.
Both pooped we decided to call it a night - it was well gone 11pm here yet again.
Tomorrow is our last full day at the Gite!!Baca lagi
25.04 Day 221 . . . Last Full Day Here!
25 April 2023, Perancis ⋅ ☁️ 11 °C
So today could and should be our last full day here at Chaignepain. We have the day here packing and then the night here.
The alarm went off at 8.30 but I was awake well before that. Tre was still in the land of zog.
Once up we breakfasted and then first thing first was to sort the bloody French mobile top up. It took Tre and I another good fifteen minutes this morning before we finally sorted how to input the code number to activate the top up.
After this is was full on sort out mode. I cracked on with a full deep clean of the pellet burner while Tre did the same to the cooker.
I then helped Tre get some burnt on residue from the glass door and the metal rings within the cooker. Tre then worked upstairs while I finished off the burner and then started the defrost of the freezer, which fortunately didn’t take that long.
I got an unexpected call from Russ ‘Benny’ who I had meant to call for about two weeks - I always feel bad if I don’t keep in contact with people. It was good to catch up.
Whilst having to pop to the van I decided the start Roxvanne to ensure she started. As per yesterday she has a bit of a dodgy battery now and I was worried that when we loaded up yesterday, the lights in the back and cab had been on quite a bit.
On the first turn of the key I knew all was not good - yep Rox was flat. Definitely not what we needed today.
I went to speak with Tre who had made lunch, but I wasn’t hungry now thinking about the battery and it’s impact on us over the next few days. After half an hour I tried Rod again - no joy. Fortunately we had a power pack gadget in the van and so we broke that out. I connected it up and Tre turned the key - up she fired. We locked up the Gite and went for an unscheduled drive of the surrounding lanes to give the battery’s charge.
Once back we got an email from Kate estate agent asking if we had heard anything from the seller who was due to send us some house update photos. We replied nothing received. Waiting on these images had been on mine and Tre’s mind all day, we were started to think tomorrows signing might not be as straight forward as we hoped.
Tre and I continued for another hour or so packing things away and cleaning. We had a visit from Hannah with some post and we updated her on a couple of issues in the Gite.
We then got a call from Mr and Mrs Hollywood and at about the same time finally got the photos we had been waiting for all day. The photos were what we needed to see and as a result made us feel a lot more confident about tomorrows signing!
Once we finished chatting with the Hollywoods we decided to call it a day and Tre got dinner together. We then sat and chilled for the evening - it being our last night sitting on our little sofa here - felt a little odd to be honest.
Tomorrow is a big day!Baca lagi