Thursday, November 30, 2006


This weekend
was so sunny we went for a lovely long walk on Sunday afternoon. We forgot to go to the Christmas market in the village, I hope there weren't too many others who did the same. Now you've seen my photo you must go and see what weather Mary Lou and Phyllis had.

Wednesday, November 29, 2006

I went round to the post office
as usual this morning with a handful of postcards to send off to customers. I always try to be there just before it opens as I hate being stuck behind customers who don’t really know or understand what they want. Unfortunately I was pipped to the post by a really old couple who didn’t look to happy.

Yesterday they had been sold a special armchair that was supposed to cure arthritis. They were very upset because they had been confused by the price in euros ( they were still thinking in francs). The cost of the chair had cleaned out their savings. Fortunately when the smooth talking salesman had left with their cheque they had time to think and made an appointment with their doctor to ask his opinion. The doctor explained to them that the chair was useless and to write a letter to be sent recorded delivery straight away. Our lady at the post office arranged the cancellation of the cheque and sent the recorded delivery off, but thinks that the address is a false one. The post office is busy in the morning so they had lots of help filling in forms and the lady who works at the town hall went back to register a complaint. I felt really sorry for them, they both looked really sick with worry. I don't know if there is a cooling off period in France if you sign a door to door contract.

I’ve been waiting for someone to knock at the door selling chairs all day, I’d love to give them a piece of my mind; I believe in karma so I hope something nasty happens to the salesman, if he doesn’t end up in prison.

Thursday, November 23, 2006

I've been paid!
I know I’ve written about this twice before but I’m really pleased to say that I’ve now been paid for the first few articles I wrote for PayPerPost The articles have to be up for a month once they’ve been approved before you get paid and they really do pay on the 30th day! So far I’ve been paid $37.20 and I’ve got another $29 to come. It’s been great to make some money from blogging. I’m really inspired now to continue writing and I think I shall aim to make enough money buy myself a really nice pair of boots for the winter (see post below!). I’m pleased that I came across the site via Creating A Better Life (see blogroll), she really does come up with some great and interesting ideas.
Happy Thanksgiving
to any who pass by that celebrate today.

I was interested to see that I had a visitor via Google who’d Googled a date and I’d appeared because I’d written a post on that day from my handwritten diaries. I had a look to see what else had come up on that day; odds and ends, nothing historical. I suppose there must still be days left in history where nothing much at all happened.

A couple of nights ago I dreamt that Dominique had started to smoke cigars, not discreet slim ones, but fat Cuban types. I couldn’t smell the cigars in my dream which was a pity. Last night I dreamt I could play the mouth organ. I’m sure that Freud would have plenty to say about these ‘oral’ dreams.

Back in the real world, it’s blowing a gale today. I got soaked when I went to collect the post. We still haven’t used the heating yet except for the bathroom very early in the mornings. As I write, we're having sideways rain (as Phyllis would say) and it's very misty, low cloud I think, sea-level cloud? What’s the weather like today where you are?
Voices


I was really interested to find an article about voiceovers as a few years ago I was paid to be the voiceover on promotional CDroms for the Xter train here in France and the storage silos at la Pallice. Not very glam I admit, but I got paid well. With the voiceover for the train I was told afterwards that I had carried my work out more professionally that the French actress they used for the French voiceover.

A lot of singers can use their talents successfully in a voiceover They have the benefits of special training in voice control and can really use their speaking voice better than they might think. If they have experience of recording techniques they are at an advantage.

Wednesday, November 22, 2006

Flower Power
Did you see our flowery Tram? According to the local newspaper news bulletins all over the world included pictures of the tram which will soon be sent for service in Montpellier. Made in La Rochelle (well Aytre really, but it’s too complicated to explain)

Sunday, November 19, 2006

Unconscious Mutterings

  1. Teacher :: school

  2. Fifty :: age

  3. Crossword :: squares

  4. Stuffed :: turkey

  5. Family :: home

  6. Purr :: cats

  7. Toad :: in the hole

  8. Cocktail :: prawns

  9. Insecurity ::fear

  10. Magical :: mist

I feel like I'm getting old
Rob sometimes talks to me about what I’ll be like when I’m eighty. We usually have this conversation as I’m getting out of bed in the morning. I don’t mind getting up early, but it would be nice if everything ran smoothly straight away. The first twitches come from my back, it’s always stiff in the morning and worse if I’m foolish enough to think that I can have a lie in. Thank goodness I enjoy walking, a walk usually sorts things out. I’ve recently had problems with my jaw, arthritis, my doctor informed me. Do I talk or eat too much! The other end of the day can be a problem if I eat the wrong foods too late in the evening. I lie awake with indigestion trying to ‘do something’ with my twitchy legs.

Dom teases me about my friend Al. Al is the one who makes me forget things as soon as I’ve been told them. I use the alarm clock a lot to remind me to do things. That’s if I remember to set the alarm, if I can find the alarm clock and then when it rings, remember why I set it to ring in the first place. Life is much less complicated when you’re twenty.

There is a product to help people like me, it’s called Proleva, (click here to see what it’s all about) , and it’s made from natural ingredients. It contains fruit and berry extracts, as well as green tea, which provide the equivalent of the antioxidants found in one and a half pounds of fresh fruit. Important in combating ageing. It helps to improve memory and brain function, increase energy and help the immune system. I can’t help thinking it would be great to be able to watch a film on TV in the evening without falling asleep and not feel exhausted just thinking about all the jobs I’ve got to do. With improved memory I’d be able to remember all the things I need to do as well!
Talk of the devil
In French we say ‘Talk of the wolf and you’ll see it’s tail”, which is the same thing. This week on the French news there was the report of the death of a fashion model from anorexia.

Just before she left home last weekend Dom was telling me about the Pro anorexia blogs that existed. I haven’t seen one myself and I hope I don’t. I wrote about it here, and had reply in my comments from someone called Kristin, which I thought was very interesting.

Friday, November 17, 2006

Ugg!
I rather fancy some Ugg boots for the winter, they certainly look cosy. They’re made in Australia from Australian sheepskin. It’s funny how many good things seem to be coming out of Australia in recent times. Not only do they make footwear, they do a lot of work for charity. Every year they ask a selection of high profile actors, musicians and celebrities to hand design a pair of boots which are then made up and auctioned on eBay to raise money for St Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital. It’s not only money that is raised, but awareness of the work of the hospital.

One of the best places to acquire a pair of Uggs online is at toecovers.com. This winter they are highly recommending Uggs.