This and that!

I had another good week last week - the weather was good, I got a lot done and a whole pile of junk taken down to the tip. I have loads of tubs of paint and other miscellaneous gooey stuff down in the basement which I reckon has been there since we had the whole house painted around 20 years ago. Bit by bit I've lugged it upstairs and taken it to the tip to be disposed of however they dispose of that kind of thing. I've also made a start on dismantling a barbecue that I've had sitting on the back terrace for years and which, even though it has been covered up, has rusted pretty badly. Thinking about the barbecue brings to mind the story of when my ex had moved out and was living with his skank down in town. Every couple of weeks they'd have a playground spat, throw handbags at each other and he'd move back in because "it's still my house" - only to move out again about three days later! Well he was back at the house when I was trying to get the barbecue cleaned up and spending about an hour a day after work (I obviously have a thing about spending an hour a day working, don't I) scrubbing that thing to within an inch of its life, all while he sat on his backside and watched me! After about a week it looked pretty good - which was when he turned to me and asked if he could have it for his place! I'd been getting progressively more annoyed at having him sit there watching me work so I flipped on him and yelled that now he wanted it, after he'd watched me scrub it for a week????? Needless to say he didn't get it and I told him to tell his girlfriend to buy her own! Anyhoo, I no longer use it but it has been too heavy for me to move so I've spent the past week bashing away with hammer and screwdriver and gotten it dismantled enough to take to the tip - and very satisfying it is too!

I also got word this week that the fittings for my bathrooms have finally shown up so now that I've paid the balance I'm expecting everything to be delivered soon and I can get the plumbers and tiler in. I'm not looking forward to the mess at all, but I'm guessing it'll be worth it in the end! But that reminded me that I needed to get the radiators painted before they showed up, so I set to and slopped around a bunch of paint the other night thinking I'd done a half way decent job - untilllllll I got up the next morning and in the bright light of day saw what it looked like. Oh my word, I reckon Stevie Wonder would have done a better job, I missed so many spots. Still, after a couple of coats on each radiator I'm thinking (hoping) that I've knocked that job off the to do list!

Things are still very volatile here in France and not just in Paris. I've got to hand it to Macron, he really does seem to have pissed the entire country off this time. There's another general strike called for tomorrow and he has supposedly been meeting with his cabinet this week so I'll be curious to see what, if anything transpires. On the subject of pensions though, a French news channel had the bright idea of asking semi-celebrities to reveal the amounts of their pensions, although why anyone thought this would be a good idea is beyond me. What I'm seeing is some fairly average (to my eyes) pensions, but of course in the comments people are getting riled up about the injustice of the current reform. I don't know how this helps anyone, or maybe it's just another tactic to wind people up and foster animosity! I'll be damned if I can figure it out!

On a more positive note I finally finished the Kaffe Fassett mystery quilt I started about four years ago!!!! It was a mystery quilt in that once a month we would receive a set of fabrics and instructions and after six months (if I remember correctly) information on how to assemble the final quilt. Well I made such a cock-up cutting the fabric that I ended up going rogue and the quilt became so big and cumbersome that I just gave up. Well that is until I started back at sewing in September. So after much blood, sweat and curse words I got the damn thing finished. I reckon it took slightly longer to finish than it did to build the pyramids, but now, at least, I can finally forget about the bloody thing and move on to something more appealing!

This is what it was supposed to look like,
although the colours may vary!

And this is what I ended up with!

We had our latest board game evening on Saturday night at Jordan and Jen's place and it was a lot of fun. Then on Sunday they asked if I would look after Charlie for them to spend the day at a spa on Lake Geneva as a wedding anniversary treat. I loved spending the day with him, of course, but man was I beat by the time they got home! And I can hardly believe it but the Munchkin will be two tomorrow! I honestly don't know where the time went as it feels like he has always been a part of the family - and a very much loved part at that!

Talking of babies, Max (who was Jordan's previous boss and has been the kids' long term friend and band mate) announced on Saturday that he and his girlfriend were expecting a baby. It kinda surprised me, to be honest, because I didn't see him as the baby type, but more to the point, his girlfriend is the young woman I've mentioned previously who has been wheelchair bound for about 10 years since being in a car accident involving a wild boar! Her legs no longer function and she has what I can only describe as "crippled" hands, but there you go, she is pregnant and I'm delighted for them. I'm sure it isn't going to be the easiest of pregnancies and taking care of a baby has got to have its challenges given her circumstances, but she is such a go-getter and positive young woman that I'm sure they will make wonderful parents! 

Max also mentioned to André at band practice this weekend that he wished he could take Jordan back as an employee, to which Jordan replied that he didn't leave because of the money (although he was paid a pittance) but because of the toxic work atmosphere created by Max's brother and, to a lesser extent, by Max himself. And talking of work, Jordan had an interview with the director where he is working at the moment and they are drawing up a contract this week to take him on as a new employee, rather than employing him through the temp agency. His supervisor told Jordan that he actually went to see the company owner and asked him to take Jordan on as a site foreman because not only was he capable of it but he was a great help as they are working mainly with Polish and Romanian plumbers who generally speak better English than French! Jordan doesn't know what the job offer will look like but either way it has given him a boost to know he is appreciated!

At the moment I've got the itchy fingers of someone wanting to pot up seeds when spring is knocking on the door, so my living room is yet again starting to look like a bit of a jungle. Last autumn I planted out leeks, onions and garlic to see if they would survive the winter and so far the leeks look to be doing well. I'd read somewhere about putting the inner tube of a toilet roll around the leeks when they start to grow because it encourages more of a white part to the leek rather than just leaves. So as of right now quite a few of my young leek plants are suitably attired in the latest spring toilet roll fashion and to be honest, while they may look a bit daft, they can't be any worse than some of the stuff at London Fashion Week!

And finally, I've discovered a new-to-me Youtube gardener who I'm quite taken with. He lives in London and has the tiny back yard of so many London homes, but by gosh does he get a lot of produce out of it. He's covered in tattoos, which is not something I'm very keen on, but once I took the time to listen to him it turns out he's very funny and informative - and actually quite cute if you watch him "live", thus yet again hammering home the ponit that it's never a good idea to judge a book (or a gardener) by its cover!

Spicy Moustache Gardener!