My sister called me on Easter Sunday as she had heard about the terrible snow storms we'd been getting here and wanted to make sure I was all right, what with avalanche warnings being at level five! I told her I was more than all right as it was fine here but apparently in the mountains they had as much as 50 cm of snow (about 20 inches, I'm guessing) in one go and roads were blocked everywhere!
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The road to Chamonix/Mont Blanc - it was very much worse actually in the mountains, but I just snapped this off the local news! |
Since it genuinely was nice here on Good Friday I considered driving down to the lake at Passy for a walk but then realized that Passy being on the way to Chamonix, traffic would probably be heaving - and heaving it was! Traditionally the Swiss get Good Friday off but the French don't, so then everyone in Switzerland decides to either go to Annecy for the day "because the French will be at work" - and Annecy gets clogged up with Swiss licence plates or everyone decides to take a long weekend in Italy - and they all get stuck getting up to the Mont Blanc tunnel, so I was soooo glad I decided against heading to Passy that day!
My sister's daughter and her family took off for a week in Marrakech and have been posting the most beautiful photos! My very first trip totally on my own after my husband left was to Marrakech but to be honest the hotel I'd been recommended was too far out of the city and apart from the walled old town and the sukh, I didn't get to see much as it meant taking a taxi every time. I would like to go back and "do it properly" though as my niece's photos were beautiful! In another piece of good news, my niece's 16 year old daughter has just been accepted for a job in a travel agent's, to start in July on a fairly decent salary for a 16 year old and I'm delighted. After two years, if they're happy with her (I'm sure they will be) she will be making more than decent money and travelling all over the world! Good for her, do it while you can, I say!
I asked my sister a bit more about the old man (seemingly with dementia) who they had recently taken in and she said it turned out he was actually 80, although he didn't look it, and was obviously quite well educated and very well spoken and what a shame it was to see such a classy man not even knowing his own name! Apparently his wife had sewn air tags into his coat but as that particular day had been warm, he'd wandered off in just a t-shirt and jeans, so now she has to think of another way to keep track of him since he won't wear one of those emergency necklaces!
I had quite a productive day the other day and finally got round to cleaning out my car and vacuuming it, so it now looks quite good, even if I do say so myself. I'm not one to dump rubbish in the car anyway, but taking frequent trips to the recycling centre or the garden centre it does tend to get a bit dirty at times. After that I came in and knocked Jordan's US taxes out in about an hour, so that's another thing off my to-do list. Since I'm getting more used to the US forms I showed Jordan what I'd done in case he wanted to do them, but he's happy to let me do them (of course). He never owes the US anything because there is a reciprocal tax agreement between the US and France but as he has to file, it's probably just easier if I do them and get them out of the way!
The other day I spotted "raised beds" in my local supermarket so bought five of them and have spent a few hours happily potting up more veggies in my regular garden and the new raised beds. I'm really pleased with them as they can stand on my terrace (easier to water than lugging the watering can up the garden) and if I haven't overshot the mark by planting too early, I'm looking forward to seeing what, if anything, comes of it!
When Chuckles, the leg-swinging telephone fibre guy, was here, he advised me to get a "CPR plug" which would give me a better wifi network throughout the house, so thinking "oh that's easy to remember - a cardio pulmonary resuscitation plug" I ran into town to buy one and they burst out laughing when I asked for a CPR plug. Apparently it's a CPL plug (but Chuckles not being French, he had a funny accent and I misunderstood him). Of course he left me high and dry on what to do with it, but eventually I got on good old Youtube and discovered where I needed to plug it in in order to activate it (no thanks to Chuckles, who never came back, if you remember). In any case, it's crap as I don't think my wifi has improved at all since they installed the fibre and the "CPR plug" seems to be about as much use as a chocolate teapot too! So lessons being learned I figured if I ever decide to get rid of my phone carrier I might lose access to quite a lot of information, so I've been slowly copying all my contacts' information into a Word document "just in case"!
Everyone came to my place for Easter lunch, which was nice. I made Delia Smith's "spicy salmon with black bean salsa" (which went down a treat) with seven-layer salad and baked potatoes, while Jen brought the appéritif and her mom the dessert. We were all stuffed at the end of it but Charlie made us laugh when he told us Maîtresse Marianne (his teacher) was very strict that when they're eating they "have to keep their mouths closed with a zipper because nobody wants to see what you're eating"! Quite right too Maîtresse, quite right too!
After Netflix virtually doubled their prices a few months back I cancelled my subscription, until about a month ago as I wanted to watch a couple of programmes. Then just the other day I got another email from them to say that they were putting their prices up by another €2 per month as from May, so I'm thinking I will probably just cancel them again. With the exception of The Sopranos and The Serpent I can't think of anything I've really enjoyed as I find all their productions to be very "formulaic". Nothing seems to hold my interest - or then maybe I'm just too difficult to please!
So more and more I tend to be going down the Youtube rabbit hole and just the other day I discovered a relatively new channel called Rewilding Jude. Jude is a young man in his thirties who lost both his parents to cancer in a relatively short space of time and in order not to "go under" he decided to sell up in the south of England and bought a fairly remote place in Scotland which he is single-handedly trying to turn into a small-holding! You can tell immediately that he is a very sweet young man, and to prove it wasn't just me that felt that way, he seems to get all these elderly American grandmas in the comments wanting to adopt him, he really is that sweet!
Another channel I've followed is Early Retirement Wanderlust about a couple of teachers who have taken early retirement (too early to get their UK pensions) and who downsized in order to spend as much time as possible travelling either at home or abroad. I think the husband lost his brother at a very young age so that is what pushed him, in particular, to want to do this. I think what I really admire (or probably envy) about this couple is how in tune to each other they are. They both have the same dreams and seem to be totally on board with how to achieve them. I really enjoy their videos and can only say "good for you", and how lucky you are!
And finally, I decided that given that I'm not able to make it to pilates half the time, I was going to re-enrol in the gym I used to go to (occasionally) pre-covid to use the weights, so I trotted off down there today with all the relevant paperwork and bugger me, when I got there, the office is only open Monday through Thursday and today being Friday it wasn't possible to get in without a member's QR code! Do you think "someone" was trying to send me a message not to be so silly or will I end up going back on Monday to do the necessary? I'm pretty certain I'll end up going back on Monday as I'm so sick of these (relatively mild) bingo wings of mine (but bingo wings nonetheless) and really want to do something about them. Watch this space! We'll see what Monday brings!
"As much use as a chocolate teapot" - I always learn new expressions from you!
ReplyDeleteHa ha, I guess we all have our sayings don't we! My dad in particular was very funny!
DeleteI’ve had gym membership so many times. If I don’t actually book a session in my diary, I just don’t make it. Days turn into weeks. So I totally understand your good intentions in joining. I quit my expensive gym and joined a program that lets me use multiple different gyms. Much cheaper so I don’t feel so bad if I skip - not wasting so much money.
ReplyDeleteAlso I found going with a friend really helped. We live in the same suburb and often chat on the way to the pool where we do Aqua together. I’m trying to get her to join me at a different gym for yoga. Good luck with your decision making and exercise.
Off to check out your YouTube choices.
I always went to the gym up until I was about 45 I reckon. Heck I even went straight back the day I returned from maternity leave! I don't know what happened in my mid-40s but my attempts were pretty pathetic after that. I will definitely be keeping up with yoga as I love it, and I even didn't mind pilates, but what with it being on a Thursday (market day) it is almost impossible to find a parking space. While I'm happy to walk there when it's fine (it's about 45 minutes), when it's raining it's not so much fun. I might check out a different location for pilates in September as I realize it's good exercise too. This gym isn't too expensive anyway as I just want the weight room but I guess we'll see how I get on won't we. The road to hell is seemingly always paved with good intentions. And as for those two Youtube channels I find watching Jude's videos from the beginning is very relaxing just before I go to bed, and in just a few months he already has nearly 70,000 subscribers. The two ex-teachers - well that would probably be my ideal life if I had only had that kind of partner. As it is, I'm quite happy with single life but I do admire how "go-getting" they are! I hope you enjoy them!
DeleteNow if bingo wings really did give the superpower of flight, life would be so different.
ReplyDeleteI would be gliding through the air like a graceful eagle instead of ....!
Deletelaughing at the "CPR". We have a "Google home wi-fi" system of added "pucks" in the farther reaches of our house and out in our shop and it does seem to do a good job of extending the wifi reach, especially out to the shop, next to the house.
ReplyDeleteHmmmm, I've never heard of that. I'll definitely look into it because it's got to be better than what I've got right now. Thanks for the tip!
Delete"Bingo wings?!" I have never heard that term but I got it immediately and yes, I have them.
ReplyDeleteI hope the "CPR" plug didn't cost too much.
My electrician did his nut when I told him I'd paid €149 for the "CPR plug" as he reckoned it was up to my carrier to provide it but what can I do now! Just eat the lumps I guess. And yes bingo wings is quite evocative isn't it - doesn't need much explanation at all!
DeleteBeing from a family that was in the medical profession, the idea of getting a job in the travel industry would have been completely alien, thinking back, it would have been far more interesting than the accounting I ended up doing. I keep the Netflix though cancel the other channels regularly, renewing them only when there's something I want to watch. This saves me a fortune.
ReplyDeleteMy niece is extremely intelligent and I believe could have done anything she wanted, but at 18 she'd had enough at school and went to work for a local shipping company. She's now 47 and in one year's time can actually draw a private pension from the company - which she may well do - and then do something else with her time. Her salary is for the fun stuff and they are constantly travelling so I guess this rubbed off on her daughter who, at 16 has also had enough of school. They're all gifted at languages so I guess that helps too! As for subscriptions I'm not really getting any use out of Audible or, to be honest, Amazon Music, and am very disappointed in Netflix so I guess I could save myself some money there. I'll have to give it some thought as I really resent Netflix paying millions to some creators (who I consider to be pretty crap) and then putting their prices up so I have to help pay for that crap!
DeleteI have been working on my fitness this year and it has paid off. I am hoping to keep it up - so I wish you luck! Your niece's daughter working for a travel agency in 2025 seems old school - I haven't used an agent in ages since it's easy to book it all on my own BUT trying to book all inclusive, an agent would be perfect. How exciting for her! I use my friend's spotify and I have Netflix, but nothing else really for tv/music - I source it in other ways ;)
ReplyDeleteI kinda get the impression that the travel agency might want to train Erin up to be a tour guide. When I travel with solos groups there is always a tour guide that meets us as our destination and local guides take over from there. I would have loved to do that when I retired but I also realized that some people are quite big pains in the arse so decided I didn't need that hassle in retirement. It's early days yet though so I'll be curious to see how it pans out for Erin. As for your fitness progress, I hope you can bottle up some of your willpower/determination and send me some. Fingers crossed!
DeleteI've slowly been working on my strength and fitness for a few months. I want to keep my mobility as long as I can so it's the price I have to pay. I used to love exercising and was a bit addicted to it but for the last 10 years I've done the bare minimum and want to correct that.
ReplyDeleteThat sounds like an exciting career for your gr. niece.
I've been pretty unhappy with Netflix lately too but TBG likes it so there is that.
Have a great week.
I used to love sport and exercise too, but then I suppose as other commitments come along that's one of the first things that goes by the board! But like you, I realize I want to be as mobile and independent as I can for as long a I can, especially since I'm on my own (and my only toilet is upstairs)!!!!! My absolute heroine is still Ernestine Shepherd who, I believe, is now 88 and still looks amazing! One can hope, right?
DeleteShe is an inspiration isn't she?
DeleteAbsolutely. I looked up a more recent picture of her and she's still amazing (more to the point, she didn't start until she was 54, I believe, so maybe there's hope for me yet!
DeleteYour reflections on your niece's new job in the travel industry are inspiring. It’s wonderful to see young people thriving and finding opportunities, especially when they have the chance to travel the world. As for the tech hiccups with the Wi-Fi, it seems like you’ve learned some important lessons there, even if the CPR plug didn’t live up to expectations! At least now you’re prepared for any future issues with your phone carrier.
ReplyDeleteIt’s also lovely that you had Easter lunch with your family, and it sounds like your meal was a hit. The comment from Charlie about the “zipper” for mouths during eating made me chuckle – it’s always good to have a bit of humor to break up the seriousness of life.
As for your gym experience, it seems like the universe might be giving you a gentle nudge to take it easy for a moment, but something tells me you'll be back there on Monday ready to tackle those bingo wings! Sometimes a little detour is exactly what we need to build up the motivation to go back stronger.
Thanks for sharing all this with me – I’m sure the coming week will bring more adventures and, hopefully, smoother sailing.
I worked in HR for 20 years and for any particular professional vacancy (economist, lawyer etc.) we might have 2,000 applicants, of which 400 might be more than suitable. Supremely qualified and multilingual - but of course only one of them could get the job. That's why I'm not sure everyone is meant to be a brain surgeon. I have one son who works in a very large international organization and who earns probably double what his plumber brother does. BUT, the plumber will never be out of work and could probably make as much money on the side as he wants, so yep I'm really glad for my niece's daughter. I'm sure she'll have a blast (for the most part)! As for the gym, after another false start (the office was closed for lunch) I went back and signed up. If I can get my act together I'm going to go there tomorrow. We'll see, I guess. Bingo wings be gone!
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