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BIBLIOTHÈQUE ANGLO-FRANÇAISE"
JULY 2013
the English Library
newsletter
www.theenglishlibrary.net
WHAT’S ON DURING JULY - now that the sun has returned you might get out more!
ACTIVITIES
4th and 18th July - Rando de Nuit followed by a soup au fromage at Peyrusse le Roc. Leaves
from the Place de Treize Vents at 20.30.
FÊTES
14 July – it’s Fête Nationale, so don’t forget the fireworks and grillades at Villefranche’s Place St. Jean – and indeed, at a place near you!
21 July – 17th annual Medieval Fete in Villeneuve, with vide-grenier and brocante, everyone dressed up in medieval costume, with dinner and fireworks in
the evening.
20/21st July Fete du Blé at Almont-les-Junies – includes the usual Vide Grenier,
haymaking as done in olden times and music and dancing in the evening. If you’ve not been
to Almont (the capital village of ‘stockfish’) this is an ideal opportunity to see an unspoilt village with superb views over the Aveyron.
VIDE GRENIERS AND BROCANTES
7 July – Ambeyrac
13 July – Brocante-Vide Grenier at Najac
14 July - Privezac, Colombiès, and La Capelle Balaguier
18 July - Villefranche – one of the summer series of Brocantes, in the gardens of the Mairie
ARTS
Méabh Warburton is running a weaving and tapestry course at the Salle des Fêtes in Montsales. Info: Méabh Warburton 12260 Montsalès. Tél.: 33(0)684391943,or [email protected]
SPORT
Maybe not for Camilla, but yes, tennis is possible whatever your age! If you fancy taking up
the sport, the Villefranche tennis club is running 6 group sessions with the club’s trainer.
Cost: 50 euros. More details [email protected]
MUSIC
6-7 July - Rignac goes Cuban with ‘Fiesta de Cuba’ - music, salsa demonstrations, ‘animations’
throughout the village and much more.
25-28 July, Africa comes to the Lot with the annual Africajarc Festival. Stalls, food, and above
all music including some headline names. For more info see www.africajarc.com
25-27 July: the annual giant son et lumière ‘Hier un Village’ at Flagnac, when villagers
of today take part and explain the history of the village.
23-26 July Les Nuits Musicales Villefranchoises: from classics to jazz, piano, chamber music and singing in various places including the cloisters of the Chartreuse
and the Chapelle des Penitents Noirs – more information from the Tourist Office.
28 July – Classical Guitar concert.Philippe Cornier plays the Concerto de Aranjuez at the
Collegiale de Villefranche de Ruergue. 21h. (www.philippecornier.com)
Please Note in your diaries
Jacqueline Yallop will give a talk in the Library on her latest book Friday 19 July at 2pm. There
will also be a book sale along with tea/coffee and cake. See page 4. Venez Nombreuse as they say.
"
PAGE 1
BIBLIOTHÈQUE ANGLO-FRANÇAISE"
JULY 2013
MYSTERY SHOPPER
Well it’s the biannual Glastonbury beano so not only is Bristol full of
hopeful hitchhikers but the weather has taken a turn for the worse
(scarcely possible, perhaps you might say). But this does bring to mind
that most beloved of British stereotypes: cheerfulness in the face of adversity. We apparently smile at the most appalling adversity and just put
the kettle on. The French on the other hand, according to a recent survey, are among the most miserable people in the world. Everything is going downhill and the government can do nothing about it.
As evidence of this malaise, plans for extending high-speed rail lines have just been cut to shreds; among
half a dozen LGV lines projected by the Fillon government only the Bordeaux to Toulouse extension is
likely to get the green light. “The state’s coffers are empty” says the current prime minister Jean-Marc
Ayrault.
This is depressing stuff for a nation wedded to the grand projet but is it just cause for claimed national
depression? My personal theory is that so often research merely confirms what those who commission it
want to hear: “a recent survey showed that 8 out of 10 cats preferred Whiskas” tells you very little other
than the desire of their owners for free samples (I know, I worked for the ad agency that originated the
campaign).
Just a final word on one of my favourite consumer topics: motoring. If you ever think of selling your lefthand drive French-registered car, do give a thought to dealers in the UK specialising in this type of vehicle. There is a robust market among British moving abroad and prices offered are surprisingly good; the
dealers need stock. I’ve just sold my car to one such and will be reporting on my experience in the next
newsletter. So far the portents are positive.
I’m off to Glastonbury with wellies and raincoat. Did you know, it was the French company
Aigle that originated the modern gumboot? Eat your heart out Wellington!
Mystery Shopper
JULY IN THE GARDEN
We have now been here over 5 years and every year the weather has been different. The last particular 6
months have been far too much like England, grey, cold and wet, not what we expect of
France. However apart from the obvious down sides such as far too many slugs and eratic germination we see lush growth and very positive effects on plants such as Roses.
Plants can clearly survive here, but how much better they do with more water. The
spinach and beetroot have never looked so good.
The tomatoes and squashes still look miserable. They definitely need some warm sunshine and a liquid feed. We use a lot of farmyard manure, but I think this year many of
the nutrients have been washed out by all that rain. As as soon as it warms up we will
give them a home made comfrey feed (purin de consoude). It's smelly stuff so you
might prefer a tomato feed from the garden centre. It's good for all flowers and fruit, so anything which
looks miserable could well benefit
Insects generally seem to have taken a knock, especially the butterflies and ladybirds. The blackfly was
late to arrive, but it is now everywhere. Generally, we leave it where it doesn't matter to encourage the
ladybirds, but this year we have yet to find any. However for some reason the pollen beetles have been
prolific, particularly the small grey/black ones which are just big enough to hide in the individual lupin
flowers. For the last month I have made an evening tour of the garden to pick them off and put them
into a small tub of water. For the first time ever I had a useful duck called Dennis who made the tour
with me, ever ready to gobble up the contents of the tub. Sadly, Dennis is no more. We found him floating in the stream with just 2 pin pricks of blood either side of his head. He should have slept in his
house, but he was a teenager and sought his independance and late nights out on the stream. We still
have Hector who was wise enough to learn from mum and spend his evenings by the pond. If you know
of anyone who could take Hector in exchange for another drake we would be very pleased.
M&Y
http://www.amisdujardin.fr/
"
PAGE 2
BIBLIOTHÈQUE ANGLO-FRANÇAISE"
HOW IT ALL BEGAN
So this is how it all started. In ancient Israel , it
came to pass that a trader by the name of Abraham
Com did take unto himself a young wife by the
name of Dot. And Dot Com was a comely woman,
broad of shoulder, well endowed of breasts and
long of leg. Indeed, she was often called Amazon
Dot Com.
And she said unto Abraham, her husband, "Why
dost thou travel so far from town to town with thy
goods when thou canst trade without ever leaving
thy tent?" And Abraham did look at her as though
she were several saddle bags short of a camel load,
but simply said, "How, dear?" And Dot replied,
"I will place drums in all the towns and drums in
between to send messages saying what you have for
sale, and they will reply telling you who hath the
best price. And the sale can be made on the drums
and delivery made by Uriah's Pony Stable (UPS)."
Abraham thought long and decided he would let
Dot have her way with the drums. And the drums
rang out and were an immediate success. Abraham
sold all the goods he had at the top price, without
ever having to move from his tent.
To prevent neighbouring countries from overhearing what the drums were saying, Dot devised a system that only she and the drummers knew. It was
known as Must Send Drum Over Sound (MSDOS),
and she also developed a language to transmit ideas
and pictures - Hebrew To The People (HTTP).
JULY 2013
And the young men did take to Dot Com's trading
as doth the greedy horsefly take to camel dung.
They were called Nomadic Ecclesiastical Rich
Dominican Sybarites, or NERDS. And lo, the land
was so feverish with joy at the new riches and the
deafening sound of drums that no one noticed that
the real riches were going to that enterprising
drum dealer, Brother William of Gates, who
bought off every drum maker in the land. And indeed did insist on drums to be made that would
work only with Brother Gates' drumheads and
drumsticks.
And Dot did say, "Oh, Abraham, what we have
started is being taken over by others." And Abraham looked out over the Bay of Ezekiel , or eBay as
it came to be known. He said, "We need a name
that reflects what we are." And Dot replied,
"Young Ambitious Hebrew Owner Operators."
"YAHOO," said Abraham. And because it was
Dot's idea, they named it YAHOO Dot Com.
Abraham's cousin, Joshua, being the young Gregarious Energetic Educated Kid (GEEK) that he
was, soon started using Dot's drums to locate
things around the countryside. It soon became
known as God's Own Official Guide to Locating
Everything (GOOGLE).
That is how it a# began.
And that's the truth, the whole truth!
LIBRARY NEWS
Since last September we have had a busy and varied programme of activities with
three pub quizzes in the winter months and celebrations of two Saints' days with tea
parties in the Spring.We enjoyed an interesting talk from local author Andrew
Chapman and spent an entertaining afternoon of stained glass making with Libby
Dowle
We had a lively A.G.M in December preceded by a buffet lunch and a book sale. In
May we manned a stall at CodEurope as one of the associations in Villefranche. We
have also provided forty seven weeks of active book borrowing and before the summer finally gets under way ( at long last - hopefully). Now we have another local published author Jacqueline Yallop to speak to us on Friday 19 July at 2. 15pm, to be followed by tea and cakes and an opportunity to stock up with garden reading from our surplus book store.
Don't miss this event!
Jacqueline Yallop has a double first from Oxford and a Ph D in Victorian literature from Sheffield
University.This past year she has been a writer in residence at Aberystwyth University. Jacqueline lives in
the area and her second novel "Obedience" set in South West France is strongly evocative of the Aveyron. Double Man Booker prize winner Hilary Mantel says of this book "An intensely imagined novel
about one of the defining questions on the century past; where and how we choose to draw the line between innocence and guilt, ignorance and complicity."
Julie Myerson writing for New Statesman says that in her opinion " Obedience" should have been on the
Booker shortlist.
Continued on fo#owing page
"
PAGE 3
BIBLIOTHÈQUE ANGLO-FRANÇAISE"
JULY 2013
There are similar accolades for her other books "Kissing Alice" her first novel which was shortlisted for
the Mckitterick Prize and for "Magpies, Squirrels and Thieves. How Victorians collected the world"
which was long listed for the Longman History Today Book of the year 2012
Jacqueline is an interesting and entertaining speaker and with such an impressive record this is an event
not to be missed!
We look forward to seeing you on July 19th.
JN
ADVANCE NOTICE
Keep November 22nd free!!
START SAVING FOR YOUR TAX BILLS
If you normally pay PS (Prelevements Sociaux) be aware that URSSAF have handed the responsibility for
the calculation of this “tax” over to the “Impots”. The certain impact is that the PS demand will arrive
with the Income tax advice, and be due at the same time, i.e. two months earlier than last year.
The other impact is that the” Impots” are more likely to be able to link “early retired” to pension and
may start to impose PS on “early retired” UK pensions, i.e. assuming you are dependent on the French
health service. If you are in the CMU then you are liable to this tax, otherwise you may have to prove
that you have private insurance or are covered by an S1 from previous employment in the UK. This is a
complex issue, and this is a very brief summary, if you want more details, please drop an e:mail to
[email protected]
So the tax demands for most people will now be:Income Tax and PS in September,
Taxe Fonciere in October
Taxe d’Habitation in November/ December
MOVING MONEY? POUNDS TO EURO
If you receive a UK pension the best (ie more Euro’s in your pocket) is the Citibank service. This service
is not something you can choose, but it is used by the UK Pension Service for State pensions and many
of the larger pension funds, the rates are about the best you get, i.e. closest to the interbank spot rate.
For UK state pensions it is around 0.5% i.e. on the basic state pension paid on a four week cycle the
cost is about £2(or £26 per annum).Your bank should not make any charges on the receipt of these
Euros. Other pension fund users don’t get quite such a good deal,(i.e. they are not as big as the Pension
Service) but it’s much better than Western Union, the banks and the money transfer specialists.
If you move small sums there is a new provider www.transferwise.com which works on a peer to peer
principle i.e. your money moving Pound to Euro is matched to somebody sending Euro to Pound, and
you both get charged 0.5% of the Interbank spot rate, no other charges, apparently.
I do not recommend this service, but I intend to try it out later this year, and will let you know how it
worked. They cannot guarantee to move the money instantly, and exchange rates can move significantly
in the 3 day limit they set.
PLEASE NOTE The Library will be closed on August 15 and 16 as the building will be shut due to the
Feast of the Assumption.
The next newsletter wi# be published in the beginning of August. The deadline for inclusions is July 22.
The English Library takes no responsibility for articles, reviews, financial advice, advertisements etc.
published in this newsletter. The views of the reviewers are personal and do not necessarily represent
those of the Newsletter nor the Association. Readers should verify all articles for sale, trades persons etc.
before handing over money. The Editors reserve the right to accept, reject or edit any ad or article sent
for publication.
"
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BIBLIOTHÈQUE ANGLO-FRANÇAISE"
JULY 2013
WRITER IN WONDERLAND
Having sold or donated all our furniture in the UK,
we arrived here in early March with an assortment
of cardboard cartons and little else. Following various trips to Brocantes and retailers of household
goods, our home is beginning to lose its emptiness,
hubby has organised his workshop, I have planted
the legumes and we are ready to relish the abundant delights of life in the Aveyron – despite the
sun’s reluctance to put its hat on and come out today!
Regrets? NO.
Previously dwelling on a busy road near Manchester, here we could wander naked in our garden
(should the fancy take us) and play loud music
without fear of complaint by our neighbours either
side, who are situated so far from us we haven’t met
them yet! When we venture out, every turn of the
road opens up another vista of panoramic beauty,
tempting us to visit the breathtakingly lovely villages nestling in the valleys. With visiting friends
we have satiated our appetites at several quaint restaurants. Life doesn’t get better than this - except
for what I miss most ….
Recently we were kindly invited for aperitifs one
evening, and tea and cakes on a different occasion,
(sincere thanks to the hosts for a lovely time) during which we discussed things which we miss from
across the Channel such as bacon, fish and chips
and Sunday lunch at the local pub. I pine for them
too – very occasionally. What I miss most is the
twice monthly meet up with my fellow writers.
“Please! Stifle your yawns and read on”.
The writing group ‘The Oldham Writing Café’
(check it out on the web) started in late 2008 with
four members, I joined the group in early 2009.
"
Today there are over thirty members, half of which
regularly attend meetings. The group became official in 2009 appointing a committee and held its
first AGM. With official status we managed to secure free IT equipment and a grant which allowed
us to publish an anthology of short stories, of
which I am proud to say, contains two of my best
efforts! The group runs regular workshops and
writing competitions, occasionally we are honoured
with a visit from a local author happy to talk about
his or her work. Everyone is very friendly, some
people are prolific writers or poets, one or two
have self-published their work, others simply wish
to put pen to paper once a fortnight.
Borrowing Alice’s response to the Gryphon: ‘It’s no
use going back to yesterday because I was a different person then’, the craving for bacon, fish and
chips and Sunday lunch dwindles daily. Here in
France, however, with more precious spare time
than before, I can indulge myself in a less gourmet
fashion, write more, and hopefully meet fellow
creative writers. If there is anyone in the area interested in creative writing we can all enjoy our interest together.
Could there be ‘The Villefranche Writing Café’?
If you are interested in forming a creative writing
group please contact me (Lesley Truchet) at
[email protected] or telephone: 09 74 76 71 37
© Lesley Truchet June 2013
PAGE 5
BIBLIOTHÈQUE ANGLO-FRANÇAISE"
JULY 2013
SMALL & COMMERCIAL ADS
HOUSE CONTENTS SALE
This will take place on
Wednesday 11th September
from 10.00 at Maison Dyson,
Ambeyrac.
Look for signs to the house
when you reach the village.
Lots of bargains, especially
cooking equipment.
No reasonable offer refused!
Email. [email protected] - for
info or Tel no - 0970773579
CANTEEN OF CUTLERY
(EPNS)
Large
boxed set
of Kings
cutlery for
sale. Never used, mint condition.
Every knife, fork and spoon
you’ll ever need.
Make me a reasonable offer &
it’s yours. Info tel. 0565 293725 or
[email protected]
HAIRDRESSER
AVAILABLE
I am a fully qualified hairdresser with 30 years experience. From a simple cut to a
complete restyle, colouring
and highlighting,
I can attend to all your hair
care needs!
I come to your home, so you
can relax in privacy on a one to
one basis. Tel: Jayne on 0565
636687. or [email protected]
"
PAGE 6
BIBLIOTHÈQUE ANGLO-FRANÇAISE"
JULY 2013
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"
PAGE 7
BIBLIOTHÈQUE ANGLO-FRANÇAISE"
JULY 2013
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PAGE 8