Good Friday

It is a good Friday. I am back to feeling civilized today after two days fighting both pain and Percocet. I don't know why I ever take that drug, as it and I do not get along at all. I hate what it does to my head!

On a really good note, our visas for living in France came in yesterday, exactly a week after our application. That was fast!! We left last Thursday on the 6:00 a.m. flight to Houton. When we arrived, we were dismayed to discover that no cars were available for rent - we hadn't bothered to reserve a car. Cab fare to the conslate was going to be $96. Then, quite by accident, we discovered that the Supershuttle could take us right to the consulate doors, pick us up and return us to the airport, all for $63. Nice! Actually, that is even better than driving there and back - no worries about traffic, parking, etc.

We hadn't had anything to eat except for coffee on the plane, but on the drive there, I noted a McDonald's about two blocks from the consulate, so after checking out the consulate office, we walked down there and ate breakfast. Our appointments for the consulate were at 10:00 and 10:30. We arrived at about 9:45, and the interviewer told me to come on over and have a seat. She asked if Roger was also applying, and when we told her "yes," she invited him to pull up a chair as well. The interviewer was behind a heavy (bullet-proof?) glass wall with a hole in it for transmitting voices and a pass-through slot for paperwork. The interviewer asked the purpose of our visit to France, then proceded to work her way through my paperwork, one page at a time. We had gone through our paperwork again and again at home to make sure everything was in order, so things went pretty well - there were no glitches. Actually, there were a couple of things that had me a bit worried. The first was that the required letter from the insurance company stating that we are insured in France was in Roger's name, since he is the insured, but it did not have my name on it anywhere. We had taken the precaution of printing up something from Aetna's website showing that I am a beneficiary under his insurance policy, but the issue never came up. The other worrisome item was that the contract for our Montpellier apartment doesn't actually say "Montpellier" anywhere on it - it just gives the street address. But no questions were raised regarding these two issues, or anything else, actually. When she finished the paperwork, she instructed Roger to place his fingers on the fingerprint machine, and she fingerprinted him. Then she took his photo. We then traded chairs so I could access the fingerprint machine and the camera, and she did the same for me. We paid for the visa applications, then Roger remembered that we hadn't given her our envelopes for mailing the visas back to her. We showed them to her and were about to push them through the slot when she stopped us, stating that they prefer to use FedEx, and gave us a mailing label. She instructed us to fill it out for delivery and to add our credit card number in the appropriate place. When this was all complete, she told us that we were finished, and that our visas would arrive next week!!! We were astonished - expecting that they might not arrive until June or so. Yesterday, in my Percocet fog, I heard the doorbell ring, then a few seconds later, a heavy engine engaging and driving down the street. I had a feeling that it was the delivery of our visas, and a short time later Roger walked in with our passports in hand, complete with visas. FANTASTIC!!!

Lots going on

It has been too long since I wrote - so much has happened in the interim that I am not sure where to start.

First, we decided to try to get the house on the market for the April 7 MLS tour, so we hired a painter. He has completed most of the interior and is starting on the front exterior. He is not going to be able to do the sides and back, as they are in too poor a shape. We have not determined what we are going to do about those areas. Sigh.

We ordered the vanity countertops for the two larger bathrooms and they came in Saturday. We got the one in the master bedroom installed Tuesday evening although the plumbing is not connected yet. I wanted the top installed before I went in for surgery. That way, Roger can do the plumbing and get it ready for use even though I cannot help.

Why can't I help? I am lying in bed today, having had surgery on my foot to excise my Morton's Neuroma yesterday. It feels as if someone placed a red-hot poker up my foot. Ouch! I was considering waiting until Jami's wedding on April 24 but decided that date is too close to our insurance change-over related to retirement, which starts May 1. If something happens and I can't have the surgery in that last week, then it will cost us considerably more to have it later. I am in a great deal of pain. Further, I made the mistake of taking a Percocet on an empty stomach. I had something to eat about half an hour later, which made me nauseous and I upchucked the breakfast. I have now eaten a couple of peanut butter crackers and two cheese crackers and a bowl of fruit and a soft drink, and I'm feeling much better. I am struggling with whether to take another Percocet or not.

I think that's all for this post. I will share more news later.