The Chateau Diaries #196 Nothing ever gets finished and often never even started

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I BELIEVE!! I BELIEVE!!
lol.. When the kids came and questioned Santa's existence, I told them, while they believed, they would still get presents from him... to this day I have to buy a couple extra from Santa...

She has no connection to SA other than Isobelle & the old boy, Perky.. so clearly they set her up with contacts in a hotel or guest house to work a few weeks...
 
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I do !
I have made my Chrissie Cake and its iced with marzipan and white icing with my handmade marzipan fruits on the top Rexy !
I love marzipan & Icing...I'm the only one who likes christmas cake so I just buy the bar iced fruit cake. Small enough for me to devour over the week.
 
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I usually make two Christmas cakes - one traditionally topped with marzipan and icing which hubby loves and it serves as his birthday cake as he is a Christmas Day baby. The other rich, dark fruitcake is topped with nuts and glace fruits as I am not a huge fan of marzipan and icing. The family like both. I use my mum's cake and Christmas pudding recipes from a 60 year old McDougalls flour cookbook. I used to make mini cakes in very well washed tuna tins with the children at school and they loved to make the decorations from fondant icing.
 
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Perhaps it was just me, but Stephony seemed a tiny bit jealous during those pre-purchase touring vlogs. Especially about the grounds.
 
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lol.. When the kids came and questioned Santa's existence, I told them, while they believed, they would still get presents from him... to this day I have to buy a couple extra from Santa
We always said that he stopped coming when they stopped believing. They never did confess to not believing!
 
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She was doing volunteer cooking at a wildlife safari lodge. No info on how that came about. I think she funded her flights by selling her FloraMobile since I haven't seen it for a very long time, no proof though. I think she needs to stay in Norway close to home. Forget the social media stuff, she's not good at it. Her IG account is sporadic and boring. Last clip I saw was of snow falling, as if that's something new for Norway in winter, yawn! Sometimes we just need to accept our position in life, no matter how humdrum, and just get on with it. Nothing wrong with being a florist and staying put to get your life in order. Forget the glamourous stuff, world travel, YT star. Listen to your elders that have been through the mill a few times. Eat well, exercise, save money, get to bed at a reasonable time, and if you can get that under control, you're doing pretty well!
 
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I remember that !
I saw a hedge he burnt in around Camberwell ....shocking ! It was a beautiful cypress hedge too.
I wonder where he is now and is he still burning stuff !!!
I thought you might!
I know he trained as a male nurse but I don't know what became of him.
My husband remembers him as a really great kid from a loving family.
 
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@Albee


Could it be because of the gas shortage? That girl (vlogger) who stayed at the shiteau said she couldn't get gas anywhere, so maybe they thought an electric vehicle for a long trip? But didn't know you had to plug it in occasionally
There doesn't appear to be a fuel shortage now. It's stopped making the news. The cost peaks and dips but it's readily available. The main problem, I believe, was with Total Energies fuel stations (either I'm having deja'vu or I've said all this somewhere before!). Total Energies passed on the government subsidies to the customer so their fuel was always cheaper than anywhere else. However, their workers went on strike, during the strike season here in France - October and November, and blockaded the refineries. The tanker drivers also went on strike. So the fuel stations weren't getting the full quota deliveries. But there was always fuel available at other petrol stations. In fact the only fuel stations I ever saw without fuel were Total Energies, so they regulated how much you could pump. That all seems to have finished now and I think the government subsidies may have too.

The problem with electric cars is their autonomy. Great if you're town driving but if you have a long distance journey you have to ensure that
1. there are charging stations on your route
and
2. you have enough charge to reach them!
At present it is free to charge your electric car in France at the public bornes. If you have a charging station set up in your home I believe the fitting of it is free. Not sure if the electricity supplied is free. The French government is very keen to get everyone in electric cars. However, before too long you will have to pay for the charge at public charging bornes (credit card, bank card, tokens etc.,) and for charging from your home (if you don'talready). I don't think it's possible to just plug it in to any source electricity. There needs to be specific equipment.

Another thing that has been aired by the government to help counter the electricity usage in France is to only make the charging stations available at certain times! Kind of goes against the previous government encouragement of buying an electric car! There is a large carpark in Montpellier that has dozens of electricity car charging bornes. About two dozen of them are supplied by Tesla. All of the Tesla ones have been made unavailable for use! Not sure what's going on there.

Motor trade wife. I could talk about this all night. I should get a life...
 
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Apologies for being off topic, I’m floored with a virus at the moment so any vlogs you can recommend to help pass the day would be greatly appreciated. It sounds like we have similar taste. Thank you
I feel your pain ! We’re down with some virus here too … really recommend Lady of the château and Homeworthy to pass the time.
 
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Apologies for being off topic, I’m floored with a virus at the moment so any vlogs you can recommend to help pass the day would be greatly appreciated. It sounds like we have similar taste. Thank you
Gosh hope you haven’t got the latest mutation of Covid which apparently outguns all known Covid vaccines so apparently we are back to square one in terms of protection from it. Hope you fight it off soon. Sorry can’t recommend any vlogs have completely lost interest in all of them. The only one I watch in a regular basis is Nikki from Positano.
 
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Agreed.
And sometimes she sounds so absolutely flat when she speaks.
It appears to be have become 'his' passion project and no longer 'their's'.
 
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So Billy has just dropped Alexander at the Chateau with Fanny and Micheal will be back to her for Christmas
 
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The problem is she saw what Stephanie had and wanted the same. No doubt silly Stephanie said it was possible.
Clueless and very unhelpful .

Davey has arrived. …Dan has ‘ landscaped’ …moved some soil about badly near the chapel . Have the plants arrived. Will this be an adventvlog?
Is he planning how to get water to the fountain? And where is the fountain and Indian Temple.
Will the pergola be finished and planted?

With F4F new interest in vlogging/ flogging the garden perhaps the planned fruit trees will arrive. And will they come from France?

Someone mentioned previously that perhaps F4F has not made as many curtains as she herself claimed. I do wonder if the dump is sooo cold why does no one close the curtains. Those being the ones that have not fallen off the tracking.
Have they been made as dress curtains only?

And why does Fanny use a carrier bag to move logs about? Very odd.
How did they do this previously for the open fires?

Potts was the pyromaniac. He loved the pizza oven… now not working of course!
There is no heat in the winter salon . Are they permitted to have a fire there? So many questions!?
I’m guessing they will all huddle in the marquis apartment , eat lunch very late and be so drunk they don’t know how cold it is.

Bets on for her Christmas Day outfit that squirrel will have prepared!?
 
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We always said that he stopped coming when they stopped believing. They never did confess to not believing!
There’s enough of an age difference between me and my sibling that I was aware of Santa’s true identity years before my brother. Of course I was easily sworn to secrecy for those few more years as that meant extra haul for me! Mom did insist on continuing the stockings for the rest of her life. She’d shop throughout the year for the exactly right little gifts that were her signature special touch. My parents never had stockings though so after the first year Santa had moved on from our house I made a pair for the ‘rents and my baby brother and I returned the favor. We continued to do as mom and hunt for special trinkets for theirs until they passed away 20 years ago. To this day we still hang their stockings with a favorite photograph sticking out the top.
 
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I love Marie Anne.
She is witty, down to earth and shares great info/tips.

I also watch her vlogs. She doesn't put on airs and shows a variety of homes owned mostly by bonafide interior decorators from modern to very traditional.
She also has a few lovely books out you may like.

Which fashion house did she work for? Wasn't Balenciaga was it? Their website says 'closed for renovations'... when have they not been renovating??
It was Balmain.
 
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Well with Alexander there maybe, just maybe, something good will come about from all those fabrics. I just have a feeling Alexander will "clash" with Phyllis. Alexander's style of dress is so different than Phyllis but I do like how Alexander dresses.

the reaction with Michael and F4F was genuine. But Michael should stay away, or at least it small doses, so he doesn't get love bombed and return home to get "re-centered"
 
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I have a feeling Squirrel wil stay in his room more…… counting his stuffed animals
 
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Perhaps it was just me, but Stephony seemed a tiny bit jealous during those pre-purchase touring vlogs. Especially about the grounds.
It's been awhile since I've watched it, but I remember a couple of instances where Stephanie caught the envy bug. The grounds, which you mentioned and I think were on some sort of conservancy list and, of course, the china room!
 
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I have a slight worry about Yorick’s presence as a volunteer. Could he be sussing it out as a suitable training place for learning disabled young adults? He has in no way been treated as a typical volunteer during his stay. I can see Fanny And PhiPhi seizing on thé idea of cheap labour combined with”so noble” appeal for the Patrons. I pray he sees through her.
 
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