Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Well, as you can see from the photos, we’ve had rainbow weather.  We have had a very cold, rainy April.  I hate the rainy weather and my joints agree, but hopefully soon, it will end and spring will arrive.  The most interesting thing about these bi-polar weather days is that it will be bright sunshine and fifteen minutes later pouring rain and hail, then again back to sunshine.  This goes on all day long so you never know what it will be.  What is amazing is that every evening about 7:00PM (or 19:00 as we are learning to call it) it is raining at the front of our house and pouring at the back.  The combination has caused a rainbow across the street over the neighbor’s house 6 days in a row.  Sometimes a double, but we see the entire rainbow…..it’s quite beautiful and we enjoy seeing it each night.

Back in Georgia, it has stopped raining and the painters have begun on our house.  Lindsay has texted me two photos so far and I’m so relieved that I really like the colors I picked. Phew!!!  It needed a good paint job but I am tired of white (our third white house), so this was a drastic change to go two shades of gray.  We have the odd pinkish gray brick on front so it’s a trick to match it.

This week I went downtown Tours for a rheumatology appointment.  Ross dropped me downtown at lunch since it was pouring buckets.  Found out that the order for bloodwork was not to be done in his office, but at a separate laboratory.  I explained how my doctor at home does x rays, blood, etc all in the office, so I assumed it was to be done there.  He smiled and said he doesn’t even have a nurse, so off I went to a laboratory.  Another learning experience for me explaining in French how my veins are small and they roll, and that using a child’s butterfly needle works best.  Fortunately between my limited French and body language and gestures, we got it.    

As I was walking to the bus stop-yes- I took the bus home-, I passed some really lovely Wisteria which I had to stop and photograph.  I also stopped at a sidewalk vendor and got a baguette sandwich in a bag.  So, I was a typical French person walking through town with my umbrella eating a sandwich out of a bag. Well, I’m sure I didn’t look French!  I had a wait at the bus stop and while being crammed in the pouring rain under the plastic house, I remembered another reason to hate the bus.  Shared it with eight other people also waiting for their buses; one set of teens making out under their umbrella, a sweet old lady, a young mom with and infant strapped to her chest pushing a one year old in a stroller-all while having a smoke.  Let’s see, smoking with two small kids is terrible, but doing it under a bus stop with other is just rude!  There was also a really weird guy (smoking as well)  I got a good look at him and figured with my size and the way I gripped my umbrella, I could take him if I had toJ Fortunately he got on a bus with the group of teens leaving the sweet old lady, me and the smoking mom…..definitely not a smoking hot mom!  The ride was easy and the sun actually peeked out as I had to walk from the stop home, which was nice.  As I arrived home the sky opened again and it poured. 

Lindsay got sworn in this week at the courthouse as a CASA worker for Hall County.  It’s the first thing I’ve missed of my kids so it was a bittersweet day for me. So proud and  I think she’ll be great as an advocate for the children, but of course as the Mom I worry as she interviews the parents and gives her recommendations to the judge.  It will be heartbreaking I’m sure for her as she sees some of the situations.  I’ve kept her pretty sheltered and the reality of some homes will be a shock.  Maybe it will bring out just a little more appreciation for the good home she had.  Oh, that sounded pukey……but having been a kid in a difficult home myself, I worked so hard to make sure my kids had love, laughter  and felt secure. 

So, backing up, Saturday Ross and I went car shopping.  His company car is due to be handed in ion September (sure after we get all that work done on it).  Anyway, he has an allowance but total freedom to get what he wants within that.  So, we can get a better car with not much in features or we can get something smaller and fully loaded.  Since we’re not big “name” people, hence our two Kias……we’re looking for more features than name.  Same car shopping issues here, Ross has a long torso and I have extra long legs, so we both have to fit in the vehicle.  It’s always an adventure.  Once he decides, he just fills out a form and the company will take it from there, so that part of car shopping is really nice. We also are looking at really little cars for me.  I need something for during the day since we live outside town.  So far I really like the new Fiat 500, but it is too expensive and doesn’t get the best mileage.  I like the VW Up and it gets over 60mpg, but my favorite so far is the Peugeot 107 which also gets over 60 mpg.  Hey with gas over $9.00 a gallon, we really look at that!  I fit in both but we haven’t decided which yet.  I’d really like to lease for two years but want the best deal….with the language it has made car shopping interesting.  I’m the primary speaker and we managed to stumble along and some dealers were kind and helpful, some not so much.  The nice part here is there is no dickering, the price is the price and all inclusive including fees and taxes.  The only extra is if you pick pone over the emissions rating you pay a “fine”.  But the very basic cars of the pones we’ve looked at for me are super basic.  I wondered if you get a steering wheel…that’s how basic.  Basically a tin can on wheels…well, they have to meet certain safety standards and have a few things, but the one I want is A/C which we’ll have to pay extra for.  Even though it is not always hot here, they get pretty nice hot summer days and they have freak heat waves and even on a nice hot sunny day the car would be too warm for me.  I’m at the age where I get hot pretty fast and don’t need anything extra to add to that!!!  We’ll see, the hunt continues.  This weekend I’m looking at Skoda which is made by VW in the Czech Republic and they have a nice little car that rates well. 

After that we had lunch at a chain here called Buffalos.  They are really trying to have an American food menu and be like an American restaurant.  Complete with a totem pole out front…..we just laughed.  It was good and we enjoyed the food although their thought of what American food is and the reality are a bit different.  We had fun and would go again, not often, but worth the visit.

This morning Ross and I had our meet n greet visit with our new doctor.  In France you must have a family doctor who refers you out if needed.  How I managed to walk in and get an appointment with a rheumatologist is still amazing.  Anyway, we need a doctor for regular maintenance and in case we should get sick.  I knew to expect different, but this was way out of the norm for us!!  First I did the call myself which was pretty amazing, I talked about that last time.  No secretary or nurse, the doctor himself answers the phone and today greeted us and led us into his office/exam room.  The whole room was maybe the size of our Georgia family room with a wall partially blocking his desk and the exam table.  We sat at his desk first and went over our history.  Mine of course was a lot more and funny as I used what words I know plus body language to describe my orthopedic history and 7 surgeries on joints.  Then add in a c-section , hysterectomy and  gallbladder surgery.  Ross only ever had one- a hernia repair so he was easy.  The doctor was very nice and then had me go first into the “exam room”  Ross could see the head of his exam table from the chair at the desk, that’s how cozy we were.  Anyway, he had me strip down to my underwear right there while he stood waiting; no privacy, no gown, no paper sheet…..just your underwear.  He did a normal exam although used the old hand pump blood pressure cuff, no auto ones here!!  After he had me get on a normal bathroom scale for weight.  I made him whisper as I told him we’ve been married 30 years but I don’t let Ross know my weight.  He laughed but cooperatedJ I actually like getting weighed here-well, like is probably not the right word-but, it’s in kilos, so you’re about half what you are in pounds!!! Gotta love that!!!!  Plus I was less than what I thought, so that was very nice.  I know my pants are fitting baggier but thought it was just wishful thinking that I had lost weight!! But- a number half my normal weight is pretty awesome!!!  I know it’s not really that I weigh half, but I can enjoy the moment can’t I?   Ross had his exam after mine which I think he liked because he saw mine and then knew what the guy was asking when it was his turn!!!    He was very thorough and did good exam, just in a simple environment.

He wrote prescriptions for us for our normal meds which I’ll take to the pharmacy (another experience for me as our local pharmacist speaks not a lick of English) Anyway, we must see him every three months which is different for us.  He booked us together again which is nice.  He was shocked that we only go yearly in the US and only again if we’re sick, maybe once in between for blood work but that’s it.  Of course in the US, I see a specialist for my arthritis and get regular blood work done for that; but I have that here too. 

I had to explain that we’re not on French insurance but have a special expat plan.  We pay up front and then get reimbursed from them.  We have a 40 euro co pay per visit so they give us back anything over that.  Prescriptions or lab work are covered at 100%.  WELL, the amazing thing to me is that the visits were only 23 euro each( cash only).  We won’t get it back since it’s less than our co pay but compared to the US, that is soooooo cheap.  When I saw the rheumatologist this week, his fee was 50 euro –for a specialist….wow!  My labs were 29 euro which I’ll get back, but you can’t even walk in to a lab in the US for that.  Guess the fancy offices, nurses, receptionist and staff must help raise the costs in the US.    Doctors here make a good living but not anywhere close to what a US doctor would make. 

So, another big French speaking experience down.  It’s getting easier and I like that, although I have so much more to learn.  I have lots to listen to now for class as that is my most difficult part…..they speak quickly and sometimes the words just slur together.  Listening is my worst skill anyway so I am working at it.  I bought a few children’s books yesterday at the store.  I can practice reading them both visually and out loud.  Liam will get to hear them when he comes J  I got Little Red Riding Hood, the Three Pigs , Goldilocks and a few like that where we know the story but now can read it in French.  As I type I am listening to a children’s cd, even though I don’t get it all, just in the background helps.  I’m watching some French tv shows too, just trying to pick out what I know.  I need a French Sesame Street.   At least verbally I can usually get across what I need-surprise, my talking is better than my listening…who would have thought? 

This weekend is our first long one in May….Ross gets Monday and Tuesday off this coming week and next.  Love the French and their holidays.  The kids are off school for two weeks again after a two week break in February.  Then they’re back until the end of June when they break for July and August.  We had planned on going to Italy next weekend, Ross had work and we were going to extend it…..but that got canceled. Bummer…..oh well, we’re planning that for another time.  We’re thinking of taking one day this weekend-if it isn’t rainy- and taking the train into Paris for the day (1 hour on the train). 

One weird thing, our water bill is our most expensive utility.  We had a work lady call and check something else for us today and just check that the cost was right.  We pay 67 euro a month for water for two of us and a small house.  It’s about 4x what we pay in the US for a much bigger house.  Plus the sewer isn’t included, that comes in a tax at the end of the year.  We pay less since we’re renters, the homeowner pays the bulk.   All we do is laundry, dishes and shower.  She checked to see if our usage was average and apparently compared to the average French household we bathe more and do more laundry.  HA-I told Ross then we’ll just pay…..we are not skipping showers or clean laundry!!!  Oh well, just one of those quirks…..

I’m off to do laundry……yes laundry and using water……more soon.