Wednesday, November 23, 2005
Thursday 17 November 2005
Yesterday was a very Cambridge day. In the post I received my copy of CAM, the Cambridge University Alumni magazine, and enjoyed reading just what the university had meant to recent and not so recent alumni. It occurred to me that for the first time I was reading it outside Cambridge, as the majority of alumni must do. In the evening N passed me a new and fascinating book on Corpus Christi College, taken down from the shelf as part of his current project to dust, label and re-shelve all of the 3000 odd books in his library. This has been going on for a week or so, a block of shelves at a time, some of which are very high.
In the afternoon we went out together, as N wanted to visit his généraliste (GP) to tell him about the drug that had had such an adverse effect yesterday, and I wanted to see where this was. I sat outside the surgery, and was amused to note that everyone who came in to the waiting room said "Bonjour, m'sieurs, dames" to everyone else already there. I couldn't imagine this happening at the surgery in Cambridge. We took more prescriptions to the pharmacie, and N explained the process of the Carte Vital and the Mutuelle to me for future reference. He said I must think he was really old and decrepit with all these medicines, and I said no I just thought he had been drawn into the French addiction to médicaments; apparently their bathroom cabinets are four times as full as those of the British!
We then did a little food shopping together – I have been doing it own my own recently – and the lady at the boulangerie observed that we had come in together, which I thought was a significant step!
The other main event was that the boiler serviced the day before began leaking, and so another phone call was made, and we were told to expect a visit today. This happened at 8 this morning! and N dealt with him this time, and then I decided to do my Pilates exercises before breakfast, which I had done in Italy, and this is a much better idea.
N's other main preoccupation at the moment is the planning of a musical party which will take place in the new house (and garden) at La Neuve-Lyre next August; partly to celebrate his birthday but mainly to celebrate the 50th birthday of his viola. Guests will include members of his family - almost all string players - and French musical friends, some of whom will be put up in the house and all of whom will be fed. Apart from the musical items, there are various garden buffets, teas and dinners on the programme.
Part of the reason for having a large country house was to be able to hold such musical weekends, but I am finding it a little difficult at present to decide exactly who can sleep where, when we have not moved in yet and only have a hazy idea of the sizes of some of the rooms, and can't see exactly how the Cambridge furniture will fit in, let alone the Italian pieces. I must admit I am looking forward to the challenge though, both the accommodation and gastronomically! And feeling glad that there is an excellent charcutier/traiteur a few metres down the road….. And glad that both here in Saint-Denis and in the house at Soliera there are large trunks full of bedcovers of all descriptions, old and new, plus curtains, which may or may not fit the many naked windows.
We are still in rapid and useful e-mail communication with Mme V, concerning the heating system, chimney sweeps, phone points, TV aerials and the electricity supply. It looks as though sorting out the phone will require a visit to Verneuil-sur-Avre, a place we both liked very much, so no problem there. Abels the removers say they will be in contact soon regarding the proposed time of day for the furniture delivery on 22 December; I am very conscious that it will be the darkest week of the year.
Saturday 19 November 2005
Yesterday we went into Paris to see an exhibition of photographs by a 95-year old photographer called Willy Ronis, mainly of ordinary working people in Paris between the 1920's and 1950's. I found them fascinating, but N thought the life of the photographer far more interesting. The exhibition was held at the Hôtel de Ville, so afterwards we went to the BHV store just opposite, with the main aim of looking at bathroom suites, to give us an idea of what we could get for La Neuve-Lyre. We ended up spending hours in there; having lunch, looking at lighting, buying a new towel rail (for here) and renewing N's BHV card which had expired; this took ages, but fortunately there were deep red sofas to sit on and wait. On the way home we called in at FNAC at Châtelet, with three main aims: buying more labels for N to print and put in his books, for me to buy a small photo album for the La Neuve-Lyre house photos, and to collect the phone/fax which should have been repaired. After even more hanging round, they maintained there was nothing wrong with the phone; very frustrating. N has since written them a long and detailed letter.
Sunday 20 November 2005
More disasters – yesterday a leak was found inside the door of the kitchen cupboard, and in the afternoon a plumber was summoned at short notice and great expense. He is coming back on Tuesday to remove the old copper piping, and fortunately N has agreed to be here to deal with him. Coming so soon after the boiler, the phone and N's malaise, this means it has not been a very good week. Tuesday was chosen rather than Monday as tomorrow N has a dentist appointment east of Paris, and I'm going along for the ride, as there are apparently some good shops nearby.
This afternoon we went to the prize giving of the Rostropovich competition for young cellists, at the Theâtre du Châtelet. The prize-winners had been selected yesterday, and today we saw the prizes presented and heard three of the winners play a variety of pieces; all were in their teens or twenties and very talented. The theatre is a sumptuous building with a lot of history, and I am pleased that we are going again twice in the next few weeks. It was wonderful to come out into the centre of Paris afterwards, in the dark and cold with all the lights twinkling.
Tuesday 22 November 2005
The visit to Nogent-sur-Marne – where the dentist is - was very interesting. The shops were very varied and quite unlike Saint-Denis; lots of beauty parlours and dog grooming, but as it was Monday very few of them were open, so it was mostly window shopping, which was unfortunate as it was very, very cold; a digital thermometer in the main street showed the temperature as 2 degrees! Fortunately for me (but not for N) he has to go back to the dentist on Thursday, so I can go again for the ride; there is a large bookshop and a very full antique shop to explore. N has to have a very expensive crown fitted; not good especially after the expenses involving the boiler and the plumber. Since Saturday we have been dealing with leak in the cupboard by having the water turned off when not absolutely necessary, i.e. when out or asleep, but I am looking forward to all bring back to normal again, and being able to have a bath or wash hair at will, not to mention using the loo. This morning I made tea and coffee using bottled water from the fridge.
After leaving Nogent-sur-Marne we visited an IKEA which was usefully very near, looking mainly at kitchen tables and computer desks, and buying a few little things, especially in the food shop.
Today I have been into Paris and N has waited in for the plumber, who was still here when I got back, filling the apartment with smells of soldering (not the rather disagreeable one from last Saturday, but an Israeli youth of 18 who seems to have told N his life story.) I have been to a free lunchtime concert at the Eglise Saint-Roch – solo classical guitar, another talented youth – and shopping in the Rue de Rivoli and the Grands Magasins in the Boulevard Haussmann. Lovely and sunny and much warmer than Nogent-sur-Marne yesterday. I have also done some research at the Gare du Nord ready for what N calls the visit of the offspring; daughters Madeleine and Caroline are coming to visit this weekend, so I checked left luggage lockers and suitable restaurants for lunch. I found some Christmas cards and even some Christmas presents!
Wednesday 23 November 2005
The plumber left very late yesterday evening, after going away for an hour or two and returning with a senior colleague. All of this time the kitchen and bathroom were more or less out of bounds, and very messy, and the air was thick with the smell and smoke of the soldering. Fortunately we managed to heat something from the freezer and eat it in front of the television. Once they had gone we at last cleared up, and each had a welcome bath! This morning however, N has found another little leak further up, which he is keeping an eye on, while re-plastering and painting the damage done during the mending of the pipes, and being horrified at the cost of it all.
Yesterday was a very Cambridge day. In the post I received my copy of CAM, the Cambridge University Alumni magazine, and enjoyed reading just what the university had meant to recent and not so recent alumni. It occurred to me that for the first time I was reading it outside Cambridge, as the majority of alumni must do. In the evening N passed me a new and fascinating book on Corpus Christi College, taken down from the shelf as part of his current project to dust, label and re-shelve all of the 3000 odd books in his library. This has been going on for a week or so, a block of shelves at a time, some of which are very high.
In the afternoon we went out together, as N wanted to visit his généraliste (GP) to tell him about the drug that had had such an adverse effect yesterday, and I wanted to see where this was. I sat outside the surgery, and was amused to note that everyone who came in to the waiting room said "Bonjour, m'sieurs, dames" to everyone else already there. I couldn't imagine this happening at the surgery in Cambridge. We took more prescriptions to the pharmacie, and N explained the process of the Carte Vital and the Mutuelle to me for future reference. He said I must think he was really old and decrepit with all these medicines, and I said no I just thought he had been drawn into the French addiction to médicaments; apparently their bathroom cabinets are four times as full as those of the British!
We then did a little food shopping together – I have been doing it own my own recently – and the lady at the boulangerie observed that we had come in together, which I thought was a significant step!
The other main event was that the boiler serviced the day before began leaking, and so another phone call was made, and we were told to expect a visit today. This happened at 8 this morning! and N dealt with him this time, and then I decided to do my Pilates exercises before breakfast, which I had done in Italy, and this is a much better idea.
N's other main preoccupation at the moment is the planning of a musical party which will take place in the new house (and garden) at La Neuve-Lyre next August; partly to celebrate his birthday but mainly to celebrate the 50th birthday of his viola. Guests will include members of his family - almost all string players - and French musical friends, some of whom will be put up in the house and all of whom will be fed. Apart from the musical items, there are various garden buffets, teas and dinners on the programme.
Part of the reason for having a large country house was to be able to hold such musical weekends, but I am finding it a little difficult at present to decide exactly who can sleep where, when we have not moved in yet and only have a hazy idea of the sizes of some of the rooms, and can't see exactly how the Cambridge furniture will fit in, let alone the Italian pieces. I must admit I am looking forward to the challenge though, both the accommodation and gastronomically! And feeling glad that there is an excellent charcutier/traiteur a few metres down the road….. And glad that both here in Saint-Denis and in the house at Soliera there are large trunks full of bedcovers of all descriptions, old and new, plus curtains, which may or may not fit the many naked windows.
We are still in rapid and useful e-mail communication with Mme V, concerning the heating system, chimney sweeps, phone points, TV aerials and the electricity supply. It looks as though sorting out the phone will require a visit to Verneuil-sur-Avre, a place we both liked very much, so no problem there. Abels the removers say they will be in contact soon regarding the proposed time of day for the furniture delivery on 22 December; I am very conscious that it will be the darkest week of the year.
Saturday 19 November 2005
Yesterday we went into Paris to see an exhibition of photographs by a 95-year old photographer called Willy Ronis, mainly of ordinary working people in Paris between the 1920's and 1950's. I found them fascinating, but N thought the life of the photographer far more interesting. The exhibition was held at the Hôtel de Ville, so afterwards we went to the BHV store just opposite, with the main aim of looking at bathroom suites, to give us an idea of what we could get for La Neuve-Lyre. We ended up spending hours in there; having lunch, looking at lighting, buying a new towel rail (for here) and renewing N's BHV card which had expired; this took ages, but fortunately there were deep red sofas to sit on and wait. On the way home we called in at FNAC at Châtelet, with three main aims: buying more labels for N to print and put in his books, for me to buy a small photo album for the La Neuve-Lyre house photos, and to collect the phone/fax which should have been repaired. After even more hanging round, they maintained there was nothing wrong with the phone; very frustrating. N has since written them a long and detailed letter.
Sunday 20 November 2005
More disasters – yesterday a leak was found inside the door of the kitchen cupboard, and in the afternoon a plumber was summoned at short notice and great expense. He is coming back on Tuesday to remove the old copper piping, and fortunately N has agreed to be here to deal with him. Coming so soon after the boiler, the phone and N's malaise, this means it has not been a very good week. Tuesday was chosen rather than Monday as tomorrow N has a dentist appointment east of Paris, and I'm going along for the ride, as there are apparently some good shops nearby.
This afternoon we went to the prize giving of the Rostropovich competition for young cellists, at the Theâtre du Châtelet. The prize-winners had been selected yesterday, and today we saw the prizes presented and heard three of the winners play a variety of pieces; all were in their teens or twenties and very talented. The theatre is a sumptuous building with a lot of history, and I am pleased that we are going again twice in the next few weeks. It was wonderful to come out into the centre of Paris afterwards, in the dark and cold with all the lights twinkling.
Tuesday 22 November 2005
The visit to Nogent-sur-Marne – where the dentist is - was very interesting. The shops were very varied and quite unlike Saint-Denis; lots of beauty parlours and dog grooming, but as it was Monday very few of them were open, so it was mostly window shopping, which was unfortunate as it was very, very cold; a digital thermometer in the main street showed the temperature as 2 degrees! Fortunately for me (but not for N) he has to go back to the dentist on Thursday, so I can go again for the ride; there is a large bookshop and a very full antique shop to explore. N has to have a very expensive crown fitted; not good especially after the expenses involving the boiler and the plumber. Since Saturday we have been dealing with leak in the cupboard by having the water turned off when not absolutely necessary, i.e. when out or asleep, but I am looking forward to all bring back to normal again, and being able to have a bath or wash hair at will, not to mention using the loo. This morning I made tea and coffee using bottled water from the fridge.
After leaving Nogent-sur-Marne we visited an IKEA which was usefully very near, looking mainly at kitchen tables and computer desks, and buying a few little things, especially in the food shop.
Today I have been into Paris and N has waited in for the plumber, who was still here when I got back, filling the apartment with smells of soldering (not the rather disagreeable one from last Saturday, but an Israeli youth of 18 who seems to have told N his life story.) I have been to a free lunchtime concert at the Eglise Saint-Roch – solo classical guitar, another talented youth – and shopping in the Rue de Rivoli and the Grands Magasins in the Boulevard Haussmann. Lovely and sunny and much warmer than Nogent-sur-Marne yesterday. I have also done some research at the Gare du Nord ready for what N calls the visit of the offspring; daughters Madeleine and Caroline are coming to visit this weekend, so I checked left luggage lockers and suitable restaurants for lunch. I found some Christmas cards and even some Christmas presents!
Wednesday 23 November 2005
The plumber left very late yesterday evening, after going away for an hour or two and returning with a senior colleague. All of this time the kitchen and bathroom were more or less out of bounds, and very messy, and the air was thick with the smell and smoke of the soldering. Fortunately we managed to heat something from the freezer and eat it in front of the television. Once they had gone we at last cleared up, and each had a welcome bath! This morning however, N has found another little leak further up, which he is keeping an eye on, while re-plastering and painting the damage done during the mending of the pipes, and being horrified at the cost of it all.
# posted by Chez Katherine @ 6:29 PM 
