Our first wood delivery

One of the things we have found so frustrating in France is the lack of livraison or delivery. You can order huge amounts of stuff yet they seldom deliver.

Thankfully, when we bought the wood burner, we got it delivered. Just a well since it weighs hundreds of pounds, thanks to being cast iron. However, the delivery cost us an extra fifty Euros.

Pricey.

When we booked the winter supply of firewood, we had been led to believe that about two and a half  stères (about two and a half cubic metres) would be sufficient for a winter. So we order five - just to be on the safe side. 

Then a friend told us that they got through about fifteen to seventeen over winter and we immediately doubled our order to ten stères. We asked about delivery and the farmer's wife seemed to think it unusual that we would think they didn't. 

We set the delivery for Friday. 

Friday was bright warm and sunny and we waited for the man with the lorry, truck or tractor to trundle round the corner, but no. By six that evening, we rang and the man's wife couldn't have been more apologetic.

"We completely forgot," Penny was told.

Were were understandably annoyed, but at the same time happy that she had agreed that he would deliver the wood instead the next day.

The tractor and trailer we every bit as big as they look in the
picture, the wood piled high and dumped somewhat
unceremoniously on the road outside our garage.

Saturday, the weather was not at all pleasant. We had been shopping earlier and it had been teeming down. The sky was leaden and didn't look at all promising for the arrival of our wood - which had been set for two that afternoon.

Right on time, he turned up with his trailer and dumped the wood outside our garage. There seemed so much of it. 

"Oh this is only half," he told us and said he would try and get the rest to us later that afternoon.

Our friend had offered her help in getting the wood into the garage and we set about shifting five stères from the road into the garage. At least it wasn't raining by then.

It took about an hour or so for the three of us to move and stack the wood and once done, we settled for a hot drink in the lounge, only to be half way through when the telephone rang. It was the farmer's wife telling Penny he was on his way back with the second instalment.

This load was bigger than the first and no sooner had we started, it began raining.

At seven feet tall, three to four feet wide
and ten feet long, that's quite a few lumps of
wood

We slogged on with the moving and by about five that evening, finished, soaked to the skin and completely knackered.

It was hard work, but that's it now - hopefully - until next winter, when the whole process begins again, but then we will be more prepared, won't have builders in our garage or anywhere else on the property and can order it earlier so we might have more chance of it being fine for the work.

We might also have more of an idea how much we'll need, but it's an inexact science anyway, because it depends how cold it is and how soon winter and then spring arrive.

Nevertheless, it would be safe to say that there are three people in our village now that ache in places we didn't know we had!

Prior to this, we had no real idea what ten stères would look like, but as you can see, it's no small amount.

I was hoping to be able to work in the garage - making the airing cupboard in the bathroom and one or two other bits and pieces, but where we would have been able to fit our sizeable Volvo in the garage and open the doors, now I'd be lucky to get my bicycle in between the main stack of big bits and the little stack of smaller bits.

We can't wait to fire up the wood burner now though. 

Bring it on, winter!!