Thank you everyone so far.

I think I shall be looking for a Cooper or a One, with larger wheels and a chilli pack. (and BRG would be a bonus!)

Thank you for the feedback. I shall definitely take on board the tyre/wheel combo and factor in the oil consumption. It sounds like the Chilli pack might be nice to have too.

I’m probably looking at a budget of £4000 and most likely not an S as I want to keep running costs down (particularly insurance as my daughter will need to be on the policy) as much as possible.

Has anyone driven a One? Are they ok to drive?

Wow. Thanks everyone. I shall try them all.

I have a working Cocker, having had a Springer that sadly died a year ago. I wouldn’t want to be with out a Spaniel in my life.

Say hello to Marmite.

Bonjour! I have downloaded 4 seasons of podcasts by Coffee Break French, and the app MemRise.

Did the first two podcasts this morning whilst walking the dog. Tres bien.

Thanks again everyone, for both the advice and the positive wishes.

Ian

Thanks Copa, will try that too.

Thanks again everyone. I think I might look at lessens as well.

PePPeR, the property is near Bellac in the Haute Vienne region.

Thanks everyone.

Very funny, GrahamS.

Thanks HammyUK, I know of a local cafe/deli where they speak French one afternoon. I’ll go along and see how welcoming they are for a novice. It’ll be worth it for the price of a coffee.

Anyone have any ideas for specific podcasts?

I have a 21 year old MX5 that I fully expect to still be going strong in another 10 to 15 years time.

It’s in Limousin, Haute Vienne region.

I don’t think the flooding is a huge concern as the house is quite elevated on the plot, it is quite a long way upstream and the catchment for the river is fairly flat.

I definitely want bats!

Ian

Thanks Del and DrP.

It will use be used on roads.

I hadn’t considered how it would stand up whilst I’m shopping!

Ian

Thanks all. I had thought of mozzies but not rats and other creatures.

Good luck with your purchase Steve, I hope it goes smoothly for you.

Ian

Marmite seems to have settled in nicely!

Same experience as Nonsense. Requested a POPLA appeal, which they agreed to and gave me the case number. I made my postal submission and they ruled in my favour saying the Parking Eye had offered no evidence at all. It struck me as a very strange way to run a business.

Ian

Breakfast Mushroom Omelette

Lunch Coffee

Dinner Risotto or Tahka Dhal with basmati, can’t decide.

I like rice.

Thanks everyone for your views. I didn’t want to throw too much money as it is only for a 2 week holiday (I use SONOS at home).

I happened to be working next door to Lidl today so popped in, they had one left so i bought it. Hopefully it will be good enough for a bit of background music and/or R4’s dramas that I have been downloading all year!

Thanks again,

Ian

Are you selling the De Rosa?

Thanks everyone. I am looking for something completely std, I thought i might struggle with this given that I’m looking at 15 year old examples but actually there seem to be a few around locally.

I will be booking on to a refresher course before taking to the roads, only a couple of days but I think that should be ok.

Great idea. Thanks Dooosuk.

Great idea. Thanks Dooosuk.

He says that he wants the pocket watch set to the time that he was born. Seems both a bit cheesy and a bit of a fad, that will go out of fashion as quickly as it came in, but to be honest I’m just grateful that he is waiting.

Thanks for all the comments.

Based on some of the more positive contributions above, we have had another talk about it. He has shown me the example that he likes, and he has decided to have it on his upper arm.

He has also decided to think about it for 3 months! If he still wants it then I will help him to get it done. It’s probably about the best outcome I could have hoped for.

He’s a great son.

Ian Warnes[/url], on Flickr

Some valid points and some different perspective, thank you.

I think my real issue is not that i don’t like tattoos, actually I don’t mind them, I just wouldn’t want one myself. I think that it is more that a decision that is made at 18 stays with you forever.

Anyway, not much that I can do, other than advise against it.

I would also recommend looking into rehoming. Having lost our rescue Springer 12 months ago we’ve just decided the time is right to get another. So last week we rescued this little Cocker, he really is great fun.

Life hasn’t seemed quite the same since losing our 12 year old Springer, Oscar, last year.

Until this little chap came up for rehoming on Friday. Say hello to Marmite.

Thanks everyone. I shall go explore, I have a feeling this might get expensive!

Thanks guys but was really looking for brands a little less mainstream.

Anyone else know of any smaller suppliers?

Ian

It works for us too. Buy everything with it through out the month, pay it off when it is due and use the points for vouchers for travel and household goods.

The only disadvantage is that Tesco have cut the value of some vouchers over the last few years.

Ian

Apologies. I stand corrected.

Ian

Speaking from experience I would definitely recommend 1and1.

I’ve been with them for about 5 years with no problems at all.

I’m on a Mac so I use RapidWeaver to build with. ianwarnes.co.uk

Ian

I had an older model, Mid 2011, that did the same. It was driving me mad too so I changed to an extra SSD drive and put all the apps/software on there and just keep files on the HDD. Runs much quieter and much, much faster.

Pretty easy to do and cost about £120 all in (I got a special offer from Maplin).

Ian

Thanks JW will call them asap.

Sandwich, what frame is it? Email in profile for details.

Thanks everyone. I’m still really tempted to stick with my drops. I’ve got them, they seem comfy enough to me

An interesting point about raising the bars on a tour so as not to have such an aggressive drop between bars and seat. I think I might look to do that or even go for something with a slightly longer head tube for the new build.

Now, steel, alloy or carbon…………….

Thanks everyone.

So given that my inclination is for drops, and most others are suggesting variations of the same, why are straight bars so popular with continental cycle tourists? I’m genuinely intrigued? Is it just a British liking for drop bars?

You can’t have a 70’s dinner party without peppered steak!

BB

Pile some bin bags up in your path so the guests have to climb over them to get in. They will love you for it.

BB

Crepe Suzette.
Bulls Blood wine (can you still get it?)
A chunk of lemon for your scampi
Fold your shirt cuffs up
Splash on the Brut 33

Hope this helps.

BB

Thank you for the replies.

As suggested I’ll give the vet a ring on Tues.

Any idea of cost?

Ian

Rachel – have retweeted. I’m sure you are aware already but what makes that even worse is that directly in front of that van is 200+ metres of 30min parking spaces. There are always several free.

Hope the Police take action.

BB