On Wed, 15 Apr 2009, David in Normandy wrote:

I abandoned the email address with my ISP Wanadoo/Orange here in
France. The account is saturated with spam. I think someone managed to
hack and grab their entire database of email names a couple of years
ago. Either that or they sold it to spammers! There was a lot of talk
on forums at the time about the explosion in spam to Wanadoo/Orange
email addresses. The address gets a thousand spams a week. I don't even
look at it any more.

Interesting! I've never had any spam on my Wanadoo/Orange account but
then I never use that address.

David

--
David Rance
writing from Le Mesnil Villement, Calvados, France

On Apr 15, 6:28*pm, David Rance
wrote:
On Wed, 15 Apr 2009, Judith in France wrote:
On Apr 15, 12:04*pm, David Rance
wrote:

Making friends with the local maire is always a good idea.

It certainly is David, we are moderately friendly with him and he has
visited our home a few times for a BBQ and supper. We also support all
municipal events including the annual ball in the square, where we all
sit on scrubbed pine tables, eat, drink and dance. I've even danced,
or tried to dance, with him but my Auvergne clog dance is not up to
scratch :-)

Ah, you're doing all the right things. We found the value of that here
in Normandy.

David
--
David Rance
writing from Le Mesnil Villement, Calvados, France

LOL They have such power though, don't they? I asked about an extra
window in the office when he was here and he took a look both inside
and out and said go ahead, no permission!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! BUT I have to
have permission for a greenhouse!!!!

Judith

On Wed, 15 Apr 2009, Judith in France wrote:

Making friends with the local maire is always a good idea.

It certainly is David, we are moderately friendly with him and he has
visited our home a few times for a BBQ and supper. We also support all
municipal events including the annual ball in the square, where we all
sit on scrubbed pine tables, eat, drink and dance. I've even danced,
or tried to dance, with him but my Auvergne clog dance is not up to
scratch :-)

Ah, you're doing all the right things. We found the value of that here
in Normandy.


LOL They have such power though, don't they?

They do! And they can circumvent local byelaws when they want.

I asked about an extra
window in the office when he was here and he took a look both inside
and out and said go ahead, no permission!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! BUT I have to
have permission for a greenhouse!!!!

Hmm, strange. Our maire, when he was first elected, was keen to get on
the right side of everyone. I have a lean-to on the side of the house
which was originally a cider shed - and it still has a cider press in
it. I asked him whether I could demolish the wooden structure and build
something more substantial. Would I need planning permission. Oh no, he
said, we can just say that it's replacing the original structure. And he
took a photograph of the wooden shed so that if anything were said we
could prove that there was a already a shed there!

Did you know that the maires of rural communes have a right to a free
supply of coal at the ratepayer's expense to keep them warm through the
winter? That's why the previous maire wasn't keen to give up the job
even though he was about 85!

David
--
David Rance
writing from Le Mesnil Villement, Calvados, France

On Apr 15, 11:20*am, Martin wrote:
On Wed, 15 Apr 2009 02:54:49 -0700 (PDT), Judith in France

wrote:
The new greenhouse has taken off in the gales this morning and is a
crumpled heap. *It wasn't quite finished. *We think it is beyond
repair as it is twisted. *What a waste of money, insurance won't cover
it. *I said originally that I wanted it in the garden and not on our
land opposite, because of the gales here. *Unfortunately to erect a
greenhouse in the garden, we need planning permission!!!!!!!!!!!!!

For as long as I can remember, there's been a commercial sized polytent in a
windswept local field surrounded on three sides by Leylandii.

I hope we aren't going to get the leftovers of your weather tomorrow.

100,000, mainly French and Germans, visited the Keukenhof on Saturday and
Sunday, *whilst 30 miles north west of Amsterdam, there are flowers to the
horizon and nobody shows any interest.
--

Martin

Take a look Martin, I worked so hard to erect this thing, the
instructions labelled each part. BUT part 107A didn't exist!!!!!
Part 50A was labelled, but it didn't show in the instructions. I am
disheartened.

http://i40.tinypic.com/2vwsapv.jpg

Judith

On Apr 15, 7:34*pm, David Rance
wrote:
On Wed, 15 Apr 2009, Judith in France wrote:
Making friends with the local maire is always a good idea.

It certainly is David, we are moderately friendly with him and he has
visited our home a few times for a BBQ and supper. We also support all
municipal events including the annual ball in the square, where we all
sit on scrubbed pine tables, eat, drink and dance. I've even danced,
or tried to dance, with him but my Auvergne clog dance is not up to
scratch :-)

Ah, you're doing all the right things. We found the value of that here
in Normandy.

LOL *They have such power though, don't they?

They do! And they can circumvent local byelaws when they want.

*I asked about an extra
window in the office when he was here and he took a look both inside
and out and said go ahead, no permission!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! *BUT I have to
have permission for a greenhouse!!!!

Hmm, strange. Our maire, when he was first elected, was keen to get on
the right side of everyone. I have a lean-to on the side of the house
which was originally a cider shed - and it still has a cider press in
it. I asked him whether I could demolish the wooden structure and build
something more substantial. Would I need planning permission. Oh no, he
said, we can just say that it's replacing the original structure. And he
took a photograph of the wooden shed so that if anything were said we
could prove that there was a already a shed there!

Did you know that the maires of rural communes have a right to a free
supply of coal at the ratepayer's expense to keep them warm through the
winter? That's why the previous maire wasn't keen to give up the job
even though he was about 85!

David
--
David Rance
writing from Le Mesnil Villement, Calvados, France

Is this just to keep the Maire warm, rather than their home?

Judith

On Apr 15, 7:17*pm, Martin wrote:
On Wed, 15 Apr 2009 18:28:05 +0100, David Rance



wrote:
On Wed, 15 Apr 2009, Judith in France wrote:

On Apr 15, 12:04*pm, David Rance
wrote:

Making friends with the local maire is always a good idea.

It certainly is David, we are moderately friendly with him and he has
visited our home a few times for a BBQ and supper. We also support all
municipal events including the annual ball in the square, where we all
sit on scrubbed pine tables, eat, drink and dance. I've even danced,
or tried to dance, with him but my Auvergne clog dance is not up to
scratch :-)

Ah, you're doing all the right things. We found the value of that here
in Normandy.

Judith should have bought a pair of Dutch clogs when she visited the *Keukenhof.
--

Martin

Nah Baby, I wore loafers, Bally.

Judith

On Apr 15, 10:42*pm, Martin wrote:
On Wed, 15 Apr 2009 14:13:02 -0700 (PDT), Judith in France



wrote:
On Apr 15, 11:20*am, Martin wrote:
On Wed, 15 Apr 2009 02:54:49 -0700 (PDT), Judith in France

wrote:
The new greenhouse has taken off in the gales this morning and is a
crumpled heap. *It wasn't quite finished. *We think it is beyond
repair as it is twisted. *What a waste of money, insurance won't cover
it. *I said originally that I wanted it in the garden and not on our
land opposite, because of the gales here. *Unfortunately to erect a
greenhouse in the garden, we need planning permission!!!!!!!!!!!!!

For as long as I can remember, there's been a commercial sized polytent in a
windswept local field surrounded on three sides by Leylandii.

I hope we aren't going to get the leftovers of your weather tomorrow.

100,000, mainly French and Germans, visited the Keukenhof on Saturday and
Sunday, *whilst 30 miles north west of Amsterdam, there are flowers to the
horizon and nobody shows any interest.
--

Martin

Take a look Martin, I worked so hard to erect this thing, the
instructions labelled each part. *BUT part 107A didn't exist!!!!!
Part 50A was labelled, but it didn't show in the instructions. *I am
disheartened.

Did you buy it in IKEA? )



http://i40.tinypic.com/2vwsapv.jpg

Very sad!

We had a thunderstorm this evening. Your weather is a more reliable forecast for
us than the traditional piece of seaweed.
--

Martin

No, not Ikea, Gamm Vert, I think.

The weather forecast for tonight is winds of 55 kilometres per hour,
so it will be relatively quiet.

Judith

On Apr 15, 10:43*pm, Martin wrote:
On Wed, 15 Apr 2009 14:24:19 -0700 (PDT), Judith in France



wrote:
On Apr 15, 7:17*pm, Martin wrote:
On Wed, 15 Apr 2009 18:28:05 +0100, David Rance

wrote:
On Wed, 15 Apr 2009, Judith in France wrote:

On Apr 15, 12:04*pm, David Rance
wrote:

Making friends with the local maire is always a good idea.

It certainly is David, we are moderately friendly with him and he has
visited our home a few times for a BBQ and supper. We also support all
municipal events including the annual ball in the square, where we all
sit on scrubbed pine tables, eat, drink and dance. I've even danced,
or tried to dance, with him but my Auvergne clog dance is not up to
scratch :-)

Ah, you're doing all the right things. We found the value of that here
in Normandy.

Judith should have bought a pair of Dutch clogs when she visited the *Keukenhof.
--

Martin

Nah Baby, I wore loafers, Bally.

Gold?
--

Martin

What else? :-)

Judith

Anne Welsh Jackson wrote:

We didn't hang about when we were erecting either of them.
Got 'em up, and masticked to the slab base. No probs! The mastic prevented the slugs accessing the 'house from
under the base as well...


We didn't hang about either we[1] built it twice, in the one day, once
as per instructions but 'too' well, parts that were supposed to slot
together didn't have spaces as we had constructed parts with no gaps.
Then we rebuilt it on the ground, we made little plates to screw the
bottom cill to the base. The gaps between this bottom cill and the slab
base was filled with a sand/cement (mortar) mix to keep out
'creepy-crawlies'.

[1] Myself and my youngest son (15)(who requires lots of support special
school all that)it is his greenhouse (his as he saved up for it he was
too old for toys so at birthdays and Christmases he got money for
presents until he had saved enough to get a greenhouse) really he is the
gardener I just fumble about and do what he tells me.
He started of with a ½m x 2m patch in the garden, next year I
extended it a bit for him, we sent photos. of this patch and what he
grew in it to Blue Peter, he got a BP badge. This patch has grown (no
pun intended) again plus he has the hanging baskets, the greenhouse and
he looks after the tubs out the front.

ASIDE :- Just had a thought one of these days I will have to put
together a web page of what was done.

soup wrote:
[1] Myself and my youngest son (15)(who requires lots of support
special school all that)it is his greenhouse (his as he saved up for
it he was too old for toys so at birthdays and Christmases he got
money for presents until he had saved enough to get a greenhouse)
really he is the gardener I just fumble about and do what he tells me.
He started of with a ½m x 2m patch in the garden, next year I
extended it a bit for him, we sent photos. of this patch and what he
grew in it to Blue Peter, he got a BP badge. This patch has grown (no
pun intended) again plus he has the hanging baskets, the greenhouse
and he looks after the tubs out the front.

I am impressed!! Perhaps he could come over here and teach me)


ASIDE :- Just had a thought one of these days I will have to put
together a web page of what was done.

I hope you do

Hello!
I have found this forum, trying to find other people who had problems for assembling a greenhouse and I have read that Judith's greenhouse had been twisted by gales, sorry.
I am erecting mine, sweating, swearing and battling against that stupid instructions manual!
I wished to say that in France, you need a permission if the building is over 20 square meters.
The greenhouse is only 6 square meters and I did not ask anyone.

Marc

Judith, I have only just caught up with all the gardening chatter including
your bad luck losing your greenhouse, I am sorry to hear that :-( I still
havnt decided on a new greenhouse or a poly tunnel, My daughter kindly
reglazed my existing greenhouse so I will make do with that,I had to get the
tomatoes in and growing.
It is very windy here today I dont think that I will be doing much outside,
I suppose I had better do some housework instead :-(

kate

Gloucestershire