Ok, as promised, it was the second instalment of the aborted shopping trip to Leclerc last week, today. And what an unmitigating disaster it was too.
For one thing my indicators packed-in after threatening for a few days and they chose to do it today, en route to Bergerac. Today, a day which involves lots of left and right turning, round-abouts, busy shopping roads, where you have to plant yourself in the middle of the road to turn left across oncoming traffic, with lorries kissing your back bumper. I got many hoots and cusses, which doesn’t surprise me really. What does surprise me is that I didn’t get followed into a car-park and physically threatened, or worse, stopped by a Gendarme-who always strike me as being particularly humourless and surley. Result…arrived in bad mood.
Second, had to suffer the La Rentree throng at Leclerc yet again, in fact, worse, due to an even heightened sense of panic and lack of time. And yet again, we couldn’t find a suitable wheely-wotsit for Diddy and I draw the line at forking out E80 plus for a fancy one in the bag shop.
Third, I am coming to the conclusion that French girls are the shape of willow-withys until they reach 18. Some of the clothes we saw for 16 year olds would have fitted Diddy when she was five, actually, that’s not strictly true, I don’t think Diddy has ever been that size! Do they have no hips, curves, buttocks or bellies, these girls? And every boy that needs football boots just has to be size 33, due to the fact that the shelves were completely devoid of size 33 football boots….
By this time, I have raged at the kids a few times, done battle with my simmering anger and decided that we need to make haste home right now, there and then, before I lose all sense of dignity and decorum. Which is what we did.
If Diddy has to turn up at school with last years ruck-sack, her back bent like an old crone under the weight and The Boy hobbles because his football boots are nipping….so be it!
Filed under: Family life in France, Trials and Tribulations....
As soon as school’s out, the shelves are being stocked for the rentree. We do ours in the middle of July when we’ve got the place to ourselves and you can get everything on the list, apart from the elusive Spanish and English workbooks which have to be ordered!!!!
Tell me about bags and marques and stylo plumes and classeurs. No sac this year, but super posh classeur’s instead!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Methinks an early start is definitely the way to go. Did ours on 30th August and it was a bit of a dash. Actually not too busy in leclerc then though, so at least there wasn’t the crush. We do miss the old “Sports Soccer” type places from the UK where they sell cheap bags, trainers & sports gear. Great for kitting out the kids.
Maybe next year, we should all club together, hire a van and take a trip to Dover, to stock up on cheap clothing!
I resent, well, won’t, pay designer prices for stuff that is ruined within a week anyway.
As my mother used to say, (to our groans of horror and resignation)…’I could knit/sew/stick together one of those for half the price’!!