Not taking credit

Today has been about; learning more about the French medical system, thinking about the cat and looking at plants. Understanding French systems can be difficult but is necessary, so I’m always pleased when I make progress. And progress is certainly occurring in our poly tunnel.

This morning I had to have a blood test; I know something that I seem to have with unbelievable regularity. We had both had letters saying that our mutuelles, health insurance, had not paid for all of our tests. They had then phoned about the shortfall, at which point I had said that I would resolve it when I came for my test this morning.

The woman who booked me in was really helpful. She looked at our mutuelles and the bills and our carte vitales, the health card that it is necessary to carry. She explained that the mutuelle was showing our temporary number social security number, rather than our permanent numbers that show on our carte vitale. She asked me whether or not I understood. I said that I did and that I would go to the bank, whom our mutuelle is with, and try and resolve the issue. In the meantime I paid the outstanding bill.

So later I went to the bank. The gentleman there seemed very confused. He made a phone call and then told me that I needed to bring in the certificate that went with the carte vitale. I said that I would return after lunch.

In the meantime I had a rendezvous in another village to collect a cat trap. It seems awful however I cannot simply catch the cat. He won’t come near. So I have now set up the trap primed with wet cat food that he really likes. I do hope that this works. The word trap makes it sound as though it will hurt him but it won’t and I have placed one of his blankets in there too so he has somewhere comfortable to curl up. Please cross your fingers and send me good vibes that this will work. I don’t think my husband and I can do any more nights of disturbed sleep.

So back to the bank! Well I thought I knew what was needed and that I knew where it was. After much searching we found the one that relates to my husband but not to me. I think that when it arrived I thought that it was simply something that the carte vitale was attached to rather than being an important document, so I threw it away. Tomorrow I will go to the bank and see what they say.

This afternoon I took a turn around our garden and poly tunnel. I’d love to be able to take credit for what is happening out there but I can’t. However it is so exciting. The chard that is growing in a bed in the garden is going at a pace and we think we’ll soon be eating it. It is looking as though we’ll be needing to try and swap it for other vegetables with friends and neighbours. In the tunnel there are bean plants that are suddenly going for it. Yesterday we thought that we had about a dozen. Today we can see nearly 40. The tomato plants that we thought were dead are also doing well. They caught the late frost. I suggested that rather than throw them away that they were planted in the poly tunnel. They are now making real progress.

So I cannot claim credit for the garden and the vegetables. But I can claim some credit for sorting out our mutuelles. Is there anything that you are claiming credit for today?