I took a trip out to our large, local charity shop last week to drop of some stuff (not enough - I need to do better) and have a look around. As I was almost there a cyclist came belting round a bend, down a hill and on the wrong side of the road! He wasn't a lycra fettishist, just an old fart on a bike, but thank God I spotted him before he got to me. The guy behind me wasn't quite so lucky though as he had to swerve like crazy to miss the idiot! Damn, do some people have a death wish or what? This charity store isn't much cop, to be honest, but they don't do too badly for baby items and I was able to pick up a lightweight, collapsible stroller to keep at my house for just €10 - whereas they run anywhere from €80-€100! So score there then!
On the way home I stopped back off at the garden centre to pick up a couple more of the 7' wooden stakes and a couple of tomato plants. The old guy behind me at the check-out made me laugh though when he said "hon, you've got some high hopes for those tomato plants, haven't you"? Although actually no I don't. My "build my own greenhouse" idea is a roaring flop so that will all have to be taken down, I guess. In all honesty, given the amount I've spent on my "organic gardening" idea so far, I'd probably just be better off buying it all from the health food shop and to hell with it! Still, every spring I get this madcap idea how "this year it's going to be better" and then it mostly goes tits up (if you'll forgive the expression)!
Jen had an interview today for the director position at another local crèche (she was upfront with her current employers about it). I don't know how she did as yet, but if she was lucky enough to get it it would basically just mean a transfer from her nursing job at the psychiatric hospital (where she worked before she had Charlie), on the same pay grade and with all her time in grade respected, so fingers crossed!
Then last week I got a reminder email from the people who prepare my French taxes asking where my paperwork was. I told them I'd been waiting for them to send me the link to the Legal Pilot that we used last time but nope, this time they were using Swisstransfer - and what a wonderful system it is. I'd already prepared my paperwork anyway, but using Swisstransfer it literally took me two minutes to upload everything, type in their email and they'd received it. The difference is that once the document is sent, other than my own copy the email/file then disappears permanently. Clever huh! I would guess these people handle some pretty big tax declarations and can't take the risk of having people's personal tax information possibly being hacked!
On another positive note I recently received my latest water bill so I yet again sent André a message saying "thank you for moving out", because my water bill is now only about a third of what it used to be! And then, I got a phone call on my mobile from "Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes" - which is this region - and while I don't normally pick up on numbers I don't recognize, this time I did and it was my bank/insurance company wanting to review my various insurances. My first thought, of course, was "here we go", but nope he suggested that as my car is now 11 years old I probably didn't need fully comp (I had no idea it was still on fully comp), the insurance amount for renewal of home contents was waayyyy overvalued so all in all I've knocked about €60 off my monthly bill for that, in addition to the €40 a month that I was being charged by my telephone provider for a wifi box I no longer owned. The one place I wouldn't go was my accident/sickness insurance because I have excellent worldwide coverage through my former employer, but all in all I did pretty well from that phone call! Add to that the euro is dropping like crazy at the moment so that gives my Swiss franc denominated pension more bang for my buck, so I'm well pleased!
And finally, the windows guys showed up today to install the three velux windows I'd ordered a couple of months back and man did they work hard. It was scorching hot and they were up and down my stairs and had those babies installed in just five hours. The only thing missing is the blackout screen for the large velux in my TV room, which is on back order, but I'm so pleased with the rest as those rotting windows were starting to get on my nerves. Now if I can just get my bathrooms started .....! But I think I'm going to have to go with someone other than Jordan as he is working all hours God sends at the moment so he's fine with my looking for someone else - although goodness knows I won't be looking forward to the mess when they start that! I think it's time to do some serious decluttering before even thinking about all that!
After Covid summer one garden was such a flip, I decided I am a farmers market girl. Of course if the world truly does go to the crappers the way the panic spreaders of one world order say, I guess me and mine will starve. So be it I guess. I'm not prepper material. Good luck to Jen.
ReplyDeleteI think I'd do better if I didn't go all gung ho to begin with and plant seeds. Heck they sell beautiful plants at the market here so why bother. My problem is I don't want to/can't dig so I probably should just go with tomatoes and zucchini (sp?) and leave it at that. But that farmers' market is looking better and better right now! And yep I'll be curious to see how it went for Jen when I see her tomorrow (I've got Charlie all day as she has a long day)! Fingers crossed!
DeleteWe kinda missed the garden last year and might skip it this year to do Farmer's Markets instead.
ReplyDeleteAm I lazy or tired or terrible at gardening?
All three.
I really envy people with beautiful veggie gardens BUT there's no way in hell I'm going to try to dig my plot, and then keep up with all the weeding, so I've been planting in pots more recently. That being said, I'm also becoming lazy/tired/terrible at gardening so I might limit myself next year to just tomatoes, courgettes and lettuce - and then of course they all ripen at the same time, don't they!
DeleteNext time for your taxes, try and do a blind carbon to yourself, that should work. Were the windows expensive? Over here they dear as hen's teeth.
ReplyDeleteLast year I had to upload my paperwork to Legal Pilot but this year they are using Swisstransfer, so I'm good with that (although these people are expensive)! I just don't want any problems with the tax people! As for the windows, they put in two large (maybe 4' x 4') and one small window (in the bathroom - which I can open by remote control). The two large windows also have blackout blinds because the sun comes streaming in, of course. I paid €4,600 for purchase and installation. I don't know how that compares to you but most everything is expensive in this region of France (because of its proximity to Geneva and people witih money, of course)!
DeleteThat's pricier, but then one was a cottage window in the front and 2 standard 30" x 60" on the side, and nothing is motorized; I only open them to clean them.
DeleteI only clean them occasionally but in any case I can't really get to the outside. I have to rely on the rain for that!
DeleteJo here, not sure why I’m ‘anonymous’ but hey, is it trying to tell me something! Will have to look into it.
ReplyDeleteYour phone call was sure worth the effort, well done, every little saving helps especially with how things are at the moment. Great when you get jobs done too, you’ve already made a start on your bathrooms, you’ll get there and they’ll be great.
Fingers crossed for Jen.
I did indeed make the phone call about my wifi box but oddly enough it was the bank/insurance company that phoned me about the rest. I told them that I thought they were expensive (particularly my car insurance) and he said I should have called them before. I told him I know that but I usually just get pissy at the prices and move to someone else. Lesson learned, I guess!
DeleteSounds like things are going your way for at least a while here now. Good!
ReplyDeleteI, too, feel an overwhelming need to get rid of things. I just hate to leave all this crap for my children to deal with. On the other hand, I'm still using a lot of it!
I know what you mean and I agree about not wanting the kids to deal with it when I pop my clogs. At least my admin paperwork is all in one place with access codes, etc. I see some other bloggers really ploughing through decluttering but me? I just have to take it slower, I guess. Problem is, I also have a pretty large basement and a garage and I suppose you wouldn't be surprised what can be stuffed into those would you?
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