It's been a month since I last wrote. I was waiting for some proper news to share, which I kept thinking was just about to happen and then it didn't. So last time I wrote about how Dan had just been made redundant and that meant we couldn't get a mortgage on the house we were about to offer on. Since then it looked very likely that he would get a new job with a solar panel company. He had a phone call that he said, "could not have gone better" then he went to an interview which also went very well. The job would be very similar to what he was already doing for the swimming pool company (web marketing), except he would be the only one doing it. He came up with several ideas for them and they seemed very impressed by him and were calling him an expert. They also loved that he is bilingual because they actually are focusing on getting English speaking customers.
They asked him to write a proposal of everything that he would do for them, like a marketing strategy for the year, including what he would like to be paid. No one else was interviewed for this job or asked to do this. He spent a lot of time on it and sent it in, he asked for a bit more money that what he was on before but still less than he has been paid in a previous job. And he was ready to negotiate on the money, they said they might initially take him on a self employed basis, which was fine.
We didn't hear back for a week, and then they said "no thanks." They said they were doing well as a company without a web marketer. It was pretty confusing, because it seemed like it was pretty much certain apart from the pay which he though was all negotiable. He would have been happy to do it part time or for less money, but they just said "no" and we're wondering if they're just taking all his ideas and doing them without him.
This was all happening at the same time as we put in a lowish offer on a house. We can no longer get a French mortgage but thanks to remortgaging our old house and borrowing a big chunk from family, we can get something on a smaller budget than we were looking at before. We both agreed that we'd rather go for a cheaper house so we don't have to do another winter in this weird house that was meant for just 3 months but has already been over a year.
So our dream village of Thuir seems out of the question, but Millas where Percy is at school is much more affordable and would mean the kids wouldn't have to change schools. And me and my new English friend Robyn have a plan to gentrify it. She might start a nice brunch cafe, and I did shake on going there every weekend if she did it in Millas. So there's a house I've loved for a long time that is very beautiful from the outside and has a lot of potential, but has a lot of issues on the inside. Like most of us in our early 20's. We saw a few more houses including one that we saw this week that had a little less potential but didn't need much work, it made a lot of logical sense. But I just really love the other one and they're very near to each other so if we got the less pretty one, I'd have to still walk past the beautiful one a lot. I really wish I hadn't made the analogy that the beautiful house that needs work was like someone in their early 20's, because now I feel like a superficial pervert. You should see it from behind though, it has such a gorgeous behind (back garden).
Anyway we went in low. It's been on the market ages, and hasn't had any offers or even any other viewings. It was on for 220k euros, we said 195K, then they said they'd take 210K we said ok 200K and at the time I didn't think I'd go up from that. But then I just kept thinking about it, and cycling past its beautiful behind. So we did the maths on if we could go up to 210K and we just about can but it doesn't leave much for any work and it needs a rewire, and ideally a new kitchen, a new bathroom and double glazing, and all the 70's wall paper removing. So we've offered 208K and just this evening we heard that they have accepted! But they want to wait another month until officially accepting and starting the process of selling it, because he has some health problems and is going to a lot of medical appointments. Dan thought I'd be very happy when I found out they accepted, but I just don't feel 100% sure it will happen. I think they could still say, "sorry I'm too ill to go through the hassle of selling a house right now." We'll see. (Once they sign they have to actually do it or pay us compensation. It's not like the UK where you can just drop out any time you like with no consequence.)
Job wise Dan has a side job he can do more on and there's something else part time that I'm not sure if I'm able to share yet, because it's not official. I annoyingly don't have work over the summer. but I am enjoying doing more art.
I did this series "attic to chateau" where I showed my art from my weird old attic bedroom surrounded by boxes. And someone who owns a chateau reached out and said, "would I like to have an exhibition in their chateau?" Of course I said yes! I've been working on some new works for that exhibition, which will hopefully be near the end of August. Here's some photos of when we went to visit the chateau on an art market day.
I've also just done a lino printing workshop, which I loved doing so much! I really miss doing art workshops, but doing it with 6 adults was so chilled compared to doing it with 30 kids! So I hope to do more of that. If anyone is looking for an arty gift please check out my website, my newest thing is embroidery hoops and I can do custom ones if you send me a photo you like.
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| this one was made with the photo above. |
We unfortunately cancelled our plans to do a big Italy road trip over the summer, but we have instead bought a tent and did our first recce two weeks ago. It was French mothers day and I requested a camping trip that I didn't have to pack for. My sisters said, "that's risky you might have nothing you need" and yeah if I hadn't intervened we wouldn't have had a mallet for the pegs or plates or a washing up bowl, or pillows. I think that's just about survivable though. Anyway we had a great time, the weather was perfect, there was a lovely pool, and we just hung out without screens and played card games, it was nice to be away from our no natural light or garden house. Apart from being woken up by noisy wild boar at night, that was mad.
We've got two more trips planned: a weekend to the place we go for skiing which I've never been to in the summer, and one to the Gorge du Verdon where we've been to before. I'm not someone who normally likes to go back to the same place but this place was so good, it's my top recommendation if you go to France. Don't tell anyone else though, it's currently a beautifully unspoilt by tourists spot.
Night. x
