A good day

Today they took the scaffolding down. And took away all the piles of poles, planks and jointy thingies that were cluttering up the place - as if we hadn't got enough stuff cluttering up the place. So now our lovely house is revealed in all its glory. With new openings, newly exposed wall stones and the basics of a balcony all painted, railing to be replaced. Pause to delight in it .................................

 

Him Outdoors has also cut down the hedge. Not quite sure why this hedge is here. We don't own the bit of garden on the other side which is between the front garden and the view. At some point, someone has planted leylandii along our house wall and between us and the view. We politely asked the next door neighbours if we could cut it down a bit over the winter. They agreed. At least I hope they agreed, because it is too late now!

 

It's still 2 metres high on their side which apparently is the legal limit and they did say we could! It makes a huge difference to the light in the front garden. Also today another neighbour popped in to admire the house and view and was completely, racistly scathing about the Parisiens who live next door. Apparently it is she who has had the yellow line in the road put in because they were so difficult about leaving a metre of space so she could park her van, that she has had the mayor put a line and if there is a problem in the future, the gendarmes can step in!

 

Today was also the first day after the summer that we are able to have a bonfire. We have got rid of such a load of stuff and apart from the heaps of stone from the enlarged openings and the piles of wood, the garden is beginning to look respectable. And also, because it was such a glorious day, possible.

 

 This is a picture of the new kitchen window. Love it, perfect double glazed replacement of the old one. (Apart from the handles which are coming later.)

 

This is the wrong one for the spare bedroom. Which had been reordered with only 6 panes to match the kitchen window which it is above.

 

 

This is the sitting room window. To be honest I wish we had divided it into 5 panes high, not 6 but it is better to match the other ones that are already there. But the balcony floor is in, scaffolding now removed and it is absolutely spectacular.

The view from our bedroom window is so lovely, I spend ages gawping. (And the proportions of the window panes are better too.)

 

Today I finished the end bedroom wall jointing too. (This is a nearly finished photo.)

 

At the end of the day Noam (like Noah but Noam) appeared. He is happy to do the screed for the cellar floor on top of the underfloor heating - no problem. So now we have to investigate pipes, insulation, and all the gubbins that is involved in underfloor heating. He will also crepi the breezeblock wall - no problem. Lovely guy that speaks enough English for Him Outdoors to be able to communicate well with his French and also son in law of the local builders merchants!

 

Also. yesterday I popped in to the Mairie to get some recycling bags and to check that they are still thinking of having our tree for a Christmas tree. If not, we will have to think of getting it cut down. Today the guy rang back announcing he was from the Mairie. OMG what have I done, what have they found out, help.................. what it is to have a guilty conscience :-) it is all fine, they will come at the beginning of December to cut the tree.

 

A good day.

I'm so sorry it's all my fault!

Never thought I would hear that from a workman French or otherwise.

Today was window fitting day. Got to the house for 8 am to prepare for the fitting of four windows with appropriate handles, new handles for the one already fitted and balustrades for two of them.

Not quite according to plan. The sitting room window is lovely, the kitchen window is lovely, the bedroom window is lovely. Muttering from upstairs about the spare bedroom window. Problem seemed to be resolved but after a little while I went upstairs.

That's not the right size. (And you're trying to make it fit.) Huge gaps all round. Excuse me but I don't understand, is this the right size?

Having been found out in their trying to fudge it, they couldn't have been more helpful. (Thank heavens we were there.) No, I'm sorry, that won't do, I will need another one. OK I will call the office. It's fine, the man will come this afternoon and remeasure.

Meanwhile the bedroom and sitting room were cracking on and the kitchen looked fine.

Where are the balustrades? What balustrades? We haven't got them, I'll call the office.

Where are the new handles? We have them. Oh, no we don't. We ordered the right ones but they have sent the wrong ones.

So they continued with what they could do, were everso apologetic about what they couldn't, the boss would come this afternoon to talk to us.

OK I'll just go and admire the ones that are brilliant. (Pictures later.) Opened the large bedroom window and there is nothing to hold the unopened half shut. What, you expect to have the window half open? But it's not a door, they are not built like that. You should have ordered the fitting if you wanted that. Oh for f's sake, enough is enough. And the kitchen window is the same.

Talk to the chief who is coming this afternoon.

We await the chief, thinking that he is going to be some slimey bugger trying to weasel his way out of sorting out the problem. We couldn't have been more wrong.

Oh madame I am so sorry it is all my fault. I did the measuring incorrectly, I will order you another one to come as quickly as possible (and you would like to change the layout of the panes in the new window, no problem).

I am so sorry the handles are wrong, that wasn't our fault but we should have checked before we came, we will order the new ones for next week.

I am so sorry the balustrades haven't arrived, the blacksmith is making them and he is delayed, I will fit them as soon as they arrive.

How could you possibly know that you have to order the fittings for closing windows, I will get them for next week too and that will be no problem.

You could have knocked us over with a feather! They may have messed up but their customer service was gobsmacking - especially from France who don't know the meaning of the word (sorry couldn't resist that).

Well bless that mason

Worth waiting for eh. When I left him, he was saying that he would have to leave some of the stones on the left hand side because it wasn't looking strong enough to support itself without them until it had been jointed, but he obviously reconsidered when he got to it. The greenery is stuff that has grown on top of the pile of stones in the ruin. You can watch the birds and butterflies on the ripe grapes without them noticing you :-)

 

 

So now why would you brick that up and plaster over it to match down below. Then there is a fire and the whole lot is filled in with stone and plastered over. It makes me smile as to why you would have a window within two feet of next door's wall. And did the neighbours build their house first or after?

 

This is my first attempt at jointing. Him Outdoors so loves doing this that when he tried to show me how a few weeks ago, it was physically impossible for him to let me do it. This seemed to go alright but do I dare do the bit that will be right in his eyeline when he's in bed. (This bit will probably be mostly hidden by cupboard!)

 

 

 

And since yesterday morning this appeared on the road just above the house. I wonder what that means exactly (all other parking spaces are marked by white or blue lines so it must be no parking in just that bit, mustn't it??) and what happens to you if you park on it? I did see the municipal police there yesterday and asked them politely what they were doing - nothing was the reply!

Wait for it

Called in this morning to see how the mason was getting on. Wow!

 

 

Pas mal huh.

 

 

I think I might be spending some time in the toilet!

 

It's not very clear, but after our discussion of how amazing it was to find this and what a special view and general being pleased with ourselves, he pointed out a metal bar that appeared to be holding up the sink.

 

Shall we have a lookat where it goes? Ooooh yes please, now. And he fetched his drill and in two minutes had taken all the plaster off at the bottom and revealed that under the sink was infill too. Although some of the stones continued straight down, he didn't think it was a doorway filled with a sink, he thinks it might be a cupboard. So it was agreed that he would do the work that he expects to finish today and then if there was any time he would investigate the cupboard. Since he loves this stuff as much as I do, I can't wait to go and see tomorrow!

Definitely

1. The balcony man is definitely coming to look at the balcony to see what needs doing today.................or tomorrow, definitely.

2. He will definitely come to do the job on Monday 30th September because the scaffolding comes down at the end of September.............definitely.

3. The mason will definitely finish the window today .............. or tomorrow.

4. The crepi will definitely dry the same day you put it on ...............or maybe the next day ..............sometimes ...................it depends.

5. Yes you have definitely ordered the handles we talked about for the windows ..............probably.

6. I will definitely remember all the things to tell Him Outdoors when he gets back from walking.......................not

Sink

Went back today to admire the mason's handiwork in peace and quiet. Did a bit of cleaning, putting tools back in the right place and brought home the cake tin and teabags' jar to replenish. (Note to self, orange cake disappears quicker than ginger.) And sat with a cup of coffee wondering about the women who had used the sink and what their lives might have been like.

 

The mason suggested that the window might well have been blocked up because of window taxes in the old days. As he will hopefully reveal next week, the window would have looked out straight at the side wall of the ruin. 

 

 

 

 

As you look closely at it, it is more evidence of a major fire in the house at some point. Various remains seem to point to the destruction and replacement of most of the woodwork.  And the wall at the back of this sink (which must be after the blocking up of the window) is black. Various stones that the mason has removed are black on one side too.

 

There are potentially three lintels over the window and only the central one remains. The mason has found an old one to put on the house side and we agree that if he couldn't find another old one, a new one would be fine on the outside. There is a huge stone and also a carved stone arch in the ruin, both of which seemed a bit over the top for the loo window that you can't see! 

 

I wonder how old the house is? And how you tell when all houses are built in the same way for hundreds of years. The notaire promised to look into papers that he had. But since he still hasn't given us the house purchase documents from January,\I'm not over hopeful. Good reason for a visit to nudge him though.

 

 

The walkers are off

Just got back from dropping the walkers off at the station. Miserable morning, dark and drizzly when we set off. They are renovating Agen station so no decent coffee, horrible loos and no train either. Their train was a bus.

 

 

Just heard that everything was on time and they are now happily munching at pork, ratatouille and chips with a carafe of red wine just about to meet up with friends from last time and all is brilliant. So pleased.

 

(This is my husband and his sister who have already walked 650 kilometres of the Camino de St Jacques de Campostelle between Le Puy en Valey and Aire sur L'Adour. They are off to finish the French bit to St Jean Pied de Port and then on to Pamplona, another 250 kilometres or so.) Ben if you see this before you go to see granny, and can print her off a copy, you will gain even more brownie points x