Today I decided to head off down to the large mall near Annecy to buy a new phone, even though I still hadn't decided exactly what I wanted. All I knew was that I didn't want to spend a lot of money. There have been (and still are) loads of roadworks going on in that area and now I can no longer get to my usual mall entrance so I have to go a different way. This takes me to a much more practical entrance and that's where I spotted "him"! It was a small stand advertising quick repairs to phones and so on so I went over and showed him my phone, which was down to about 30% charged in just a matter of hours. He said it was most likely the battery but beyond a certain point there was just no saving a phone in some cases. However if I wanted to leave it with him for about an hour he would take a look at it. So I took myself off for an unplanned lunch out and a little wander, and wadda ya know - it was indeed just the battery and he was able to replace it and recharge my phone, all for the princely sum of €40 - as opposed to €400-€500 for a new phone! As you can imagine, I'm well pleased because I knew if I went into the SFR shop (my mobile carrier) they'd try to get me to change my contract (the one I just recently negotiated down), or try to sell me a much more expensive phone. I really didn't want to spend that kind of money because planned obsolescence annoys the hell out of me! I also spotted an Yves Rocher shop - a new one to me - and was able to pick up some of my favourite products there too. I like Yves Rocher's products and they're not at all expensive, so it was a double win!
When I got back to la Roche I stopped in at the gym and wadda ya know - it wasn't open! I had a walk around because I wondered if maybe they had gone out of business since my last visit, but when I looked them up on my now fully-charged phone it seems they actually close from noon to 4 p.m! Obviously there isn't much demand for lunch time fitness sessions by the looks of it, and 24/7 access? Ha, as if! This is France after all! I did wonder if this was maybe God's way of telling me "oh you look just fine, you don't need the gym", but then I reckoned even God wasn't that blind!
When I got home my neighbour's friend was now parked across my driveway, so as I must have been in a somewhat more tetchy mood than usual I just sat on my horn till he came out, apologized profusely and moved his truck. What is it with these people? I mean, if it's a question of just running in to the neighbours to, say, drop off a parcel I have no problem with that, but I will never get why you park in someone else's driveway, especially when there are plenty of parking spaces around! Once I had calmed down I saw that my roofing people had been back to finish up the sealant on the remaining 15 square metres that they had missed first time round (an easy mistake to make as that part of my roof actually looks like it belongs to my neighbour) - so that put me in a slightly better mood. I have to admit I'm pathetically grateful when I receive good service/follow-up, but in reality isn't that the way it should be everywhere? And then my gardener showed up with his son to get my lawn sorted. With it having rained for the last four days he has been hard pushed to catch up while the weather is holding. I do wonder what he does in the winter though - snow clearance maybe? Who knows! I asked him to give me a quote to cut my hedges and he's given me a decent price so I'm happy to let him do that too. I have to say though that I do wonder about his health. He has an enormous belly on him - the kind that hangs way down over his trousers in a kind of fat flap - and with the kind of hard physical work that he does, particularly in the heat, I'd be concerned for his health somewhat. He's a decent enough guy so I hope he proves me wrong but having all that fat, especially around his middle, would be worrying to me. So yeah, I think I've just talked myself into going back to sign up at the gym tomorrow - maybe I'd just had a vision of the ghost of Christmas yet to come!
Can you put up a No Parking sign on your driveway? I wonder if that would help. Congrats on the phone. I agree 100% with you about planned obsolescence.
ReplyDeleteI doubt that a no parking sign would help and he would know it would only be aimed at him so I don't want to go there. But more and more I wonder. Like I said, to park on public parking he would have to move maybe another 3 metres!
DeleteA new battery and there you go! The best part isn't that you didn't have to put out the money for a new one, it's that you didn't have to make a decision as to which one, etc. So good for you!
ReplyDeleteHa ha, I'm a Libran so you're bang on about the "making a decision" business. I actually don't know anything about phones so I tend to be easily led. I'm just glad I didn't have to shell out such a huge chunk of money this time!
DeleteI usually keep a phone for 4 years and then get a new one. I have T-Mobile as a provider, no contract, and since I work for a monster home improvement retailer I get a discount on my monthly payment.
ReplyDeleteAlso, working where I do, I've seen a number of people with bellies like that. Believe me, it's really disgusting when it drops below the hem of their shirt.
I did think about going no contract but since I cross borders frequently I wanted the security of always having a network. As for my gardener, the French are generally not fat (although it is coming). He just shocks me because of the size of him, but more importantly since belly fat is supposed to be a very big risk factor for heart disease. Then as I say a physical job and it's not encouraging!
DeleteIsn't it great to hold onto a thing with a little repair/replacement? I think people maybe are trying to get me to buy something out of date when it comes to phones. In my house I went ballistic and laid down on the horn often. One woman came out of the house next door and told me her daughter would be out in a minute, that she was changing a diaper. They always had an excuse. Blocking a driveway is a towable offense, but I hated to go there. I should have.
ReplyDeleteThis guy was parked across my driveway but my neighbour usually parks in front of my garage. I don't want to make problems because we have always got along but it's starting to piss me off now. The friend is back today and I have to go out later so we'll see what happens!
DeleteWell done on the battery! Phone contracts for sure are where their money is at, so if you avoided changes all the better. My husband gets annoyed if someone parks on the curb to our yard, let alone if someone parked across our driveway. He would have gone batty, but then face to face would be super nice.
ReplyDeleteHa ha, how many of us are like your husband? I'm extremely tolerant - until I'm pushed too far. Then I'm very polite but very direct and I think people get a shock. I suppose I've been muttering to myself for so long that when it finally comes out of my mouth it's pretty apt and to the point!
Deletegreat news on fixing the phone cheap. I would be getting very annoyed with them parking in your spot too. Maybe just say, "since I'm retired and in and out and different times of the day now, could you make sure you keep my driveway open?"
ReplyDeleteIt's actually worse than that. The husband parks on my driveway in front of my garage, so if I had wanted to park in my own garage I couldn't. It's not "my spot" - it's my driveway. I've played it down but I really am getting sick of it!
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