One Year on

We've been over here for more than a year now, so it seems like a good time to review how things have gone so far.

At le banque de cheval noir we used to have something called Balanced Score Cards, where you had to come up with objectives and targets to work towards and then, at the end of every year, the bank would move the goal posts, so that you couldn't get a pay rise, or get stitched up even worse than that. This was such a good motivational tool that I left.

However, as this is the only sort of review that I know, I am going to use it here.

Financial planning

So far we haven't done a Viv Nicholson and blown all of our cash at once. We may have overspent a bit on the pool, and I didn't allow for all the tools that I would have to buy. It would have been a bit different if Saints could take penalties, as I would have easily spent a grand going to the play-off final.

Next year, we might even raise our wine limit to €3.50 a bottle!

Verdict : Met Expectations

Entertainment

We hoped to see at least one band this year and we've ended up seeing about 20! Not only that, but we saw one of the best live bands of the year, Arcade Fire, some old favorites like Queens of the Stone Age and Hives, Editors and Maximo Park as well as loads of new bands, Art Brut, LCD Sound System, TV on the Radio and Cold War Kids.

The highlight though had to be not only seeing the Mercury Prize winners (Klaxons) twice, but also seeing the bass player shatter his ankle stage diving! That being said, it would be even better to see Mobo winner Amy Whinehouse being thrown off stage/ into rehab again ...

Vedict: Exceeded Expectations

Garden

It has been a bad year everywhere for tomatoes and spuds, and our tiny veg plot has been no different. I didn't know what the difference was between seed potatoes and ordinary spuds, so I planted three that had started sprouting, and duly got back about five spuds 3 months later!

We have had more success with our courgettes and our pumpkin plant is taking over the world.

We have also had more success landscaping the garden, with two new rockeries both surviving ( the nurseries over here must be good, as we normally kill everything. The grass is growing back by the pool, thanks to hard work by Tina and my Mum and Dad, and Tina is also winning her battle with the hedges.

Verdict: Met Expectations

New Skills

We are learning more and more each week.

Horticulture, where not to plant tomatoes, how much room courgette plants need, how to move tomato plants away from the courgette plants.

Tina is a master at pointing now, so much so that she has even been asked to do some repointing at a friends house.

am now qualified as an electrician, and have installed a working consumer unit and supply for the pool, as well as building all of the circuits in the barn.

We've also tried our hand at dry lining, hanging wooden joists, fitting false ceilings and stone masonry.

Next up is carpentry. We've already fitted some new window ledges and trims and we're now thinking of building our own furniture !

Building

We had hoped to have finished the new lounge by now, but it is a bit behind schedule, what with time out for visitors, Rock Festivals, gardening and building the pool patio.

That said, it is really taking shape. This is what it looked like before we started.

And this is what it looked like in September

Verdict : Behind schedule, but we don't have to keep to other people stupid deadlines any more, so we say Exceeded Expectations.

More Days Out

It's not all work and no play. We have managed to get the odd day out, aided and abetted by our friends John and Sue who were over on holiday with their girls, Alice and Lizzie.



We always used to go to Salisbury Races together, so we looked out for a race meeting over here and found one at Pompadour, an hour south of John and Sue's house. It was a bit bigger than Limoges, with a main stand with a restaurant on the top floor, and a stewards box at the finish line, unlike the cherry picker they use at Limoges. This meeting was also a mixture of flat racing and point to point, which is like National Hunt in England, but without rails in places.



We managed to find seats next right by the winning post, and had great views as they went over the jumps, and one fall ( no-one hurt, animal lovers). I'd only ever been to one NH meeting before, at Wincanton, where you were in a box stand a bit far away from the action.






Pompadour is one of the homes of the French national stud, and also to a magnificent chateau, which is almost as big as the rest of the town put together.

The betting on the course was PMU, the French version of the tote, so we were all doing the minimum €2 bet. On the first race, I couldn't decide between two horses, so I did a forecast which came in. Being the Tote, I had no idea how much I had one, so I queued up for ten minutes to receive €2.60 back. Well worth it. All of us picked at least one winner, and I managed 4, so I ended up 3 Euros up on the day. Hurrah, no need to go back to work next week!

Sue picked the best priced horse of the day(7/1) , but we didn't have time to put a bet on that race. Still, it was a good day out, and we managed to avoid most of the showers by hiding in the stand.

While they were all over here it was Lizzie's birthday, so we all did a trip on the velo-rail as one of her birthday wishes. The velo-rail, is a big 5 seater, 4 wheel push bike that goes along the, disused, railway lines. The carriages are quite heavy and it's about 8km each way from Roumazieres to Manot and back. Also railway lines are a lot more up and down hill than you would think, so it is hard work.

We shared the work between three of us in each carriage, but on the way back I started to go purple trying to get us up a hill, while Lizzie's legs were going round like Roadrunner at full pelt. It turned out that the chain had come of on Lizzie's side, so we had to stop to do some running repairs. Another new skill on my CV. After that it was plain sailing, and we even got the girls home in time to watch Neighbours.

We've been back to Bordeaux again, to watch Die Hard 4, which was great, although one quick reading Frenchman was getting to the gags before Bruce Willis could deliver his lines, getting his laugh in early. Also, the translation of the Yippe-kay- aye M.... F.. line was a bit different on translation ( .. connard ) . While we where there we took the opportunity to go back to La Tupina for lunch. This time it was the €32 menu for 3 courses and a bottle 3 glasses of wine each. Well worth it.

We've also been out and about locally, to a local night market at Montrbron. The market was a bit arts and crafts but it was a great atmosphere. The whole town centre was blocked off, with bars and restaurants spilling out onto every available bit of pavement. Very good, apart from the fact that it was my turn to drive.