Repairman made us smile

SUMMERS in France can be frustrating if you need things done but we had a novel happening a couple of years ago when our dishwasher broke and, even though it was July, the shop in the next village sent out a helpful repair man to look.

He said it was too complicated to repair on the spot and, as he took it away, I did impress upon him that we would be in desperate need of the machine for the first week of August as we were expecting more a 100 people in the village for the annual professional piano concert.

Two weeks went by and as my nails got shorter I rang the company, but was told: “Madam, we will not be able to find a replacement during the holiday month of August!”

The concert was a big success and as people dived into the food, I was kept running between the village square and our house, cleaning serving plates and replenishing them.

On one of these trips I noticed something odd about our kitchen. The dishwasher was back in its usual place and the rogue part, along with a bill, was on the kitchen table. I had forgotten to lock the door.

The next day I paid the bill and handed in a letter of thanks – to staff who care.