Medical Care

We had our first experience of French medical care - Craig cut his thumb, and it was obvious straight away that he would need stitches, so we made our way to Carhaix hospital. We had heard that it didn't have the best of reputations, but we were very impressed with the quality of care and cleanliness etc, and have no complaints. After a very short wait (that in no way compares to the waits in a UK hospital ), Craig was stitched and sent on his way with two prescriptions ! The first was for all his dressings, and the second, we discovered, was to be given to the nurse who would visit daily to dress the wound, and then to take the stitches out at the appropriate time !!!!

This put a slight set back to progress, but against my better judgement, Craig was determined to continue with what he was able to do with a big dressing on his hand. He was working on the bathroom, building a wall to surround the shower, and a cute little shelf inserted in it, so that we could store the shower gel etc. He tiled the whole room floor to ceiling too, so that it is easier to clean, and no decorating to repeat. We now had a heated towel rail too - how exciting - the first room in the house with permanent heating in place.

Wardrobes were built, and we could start to fill them with clothes that had been in bags and suitcases for about 18 months. It felt as though I had a whole new set of clothes.

On the basis of Craig's good experience with the hospital, I decided to visit the dentist, as I had been having a few problems with my teeth. However, once he told me that my treatment for three fillings would be over 650 euros, I decided that they didn't hurt that much !

A major set back at this time, was the discovery that we had been burgled. Not from the house, but from the workshop and shed where Craig kept his tools. It was a bit strange, as for a few days Craig kept saying that he had mislaid things, but we just thought that he had put things in a different place and forgotten, as we had never encountered anything like that here. However, he then realised that boxes that should contain tools, were in fact empty. The burglar had emptied them and replaced the boxes so that nothing looked different - very clever ! We went to the local Police Station and made a statement, and two Policemen visited and took photographs of the area. They weren't very optimistic though, and in fact didn't seem particularly interested, if I'm honest. Two days later, the burglar returned !!!! We tried to report it locally, but the Station was closed, so we had to go further afield. This time however, they were a little more interested, and we had to visit them several days later, with an up to date list of stolen items. Nothing was ever discovered sadly, and we had to put it all down to a very bad experience, and even now, over twelve months later, we are still discovering items that are missing. Tools are being gradually replaced, but the quality tools have gone, and tools that Craig had received as gifts, or as hand me downs from parents and grandparents, can never be replaced. It put a big damper on our morale, and made us suspicious of everyone, and a lot more vigilant.

Work stopped on the house, and began in earnest on the security in the work shop. Craig was determined that we wouldn't be caught out again. He installed security lights, new walls and doors, and even windows. 2012 was ending on a sour note, but I was determined that 2013 would start better, and planned a surprise visit back to the UK for Craig's birthday.

We had a lot to be thankful for - our health, our family, and our life here in a beautiful part of the world, and Arthur of course !