Category: Reviews

It can be very rewarding to teach in France, whether as a full time teacher, or as a teaching assistant. Most people travel to France to work as an English as a foreign language teacher, and take on short-term to longer contracts. Before making plans for a potential career in France, or even just a short break to gain experience of teaching abroad, it’s worth reviewing what qualifications you’ll need, how to get the right job, and what to expect once you’re working, as well as how you can take advantage of travelling within France.

Get the Right Qualifications

To teach English in France, you’ll need to have a TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) certificate, as well as a general proficiency in French – an A Level qualification is typically fine, but having a Bachelor’s degree in some area related to your teaching, from French to English Literature, can also help your chances.

Make Trips for Interviews

To really get a sense of what jobs are available, you’ll need to combine online searching with a trip to a particular French location. There you can arrange for interviews, and try to hit as many different schools and agencies as possible. Doing so can be worth the effort, given the competitiveness in large cities like Paris for jobs, and the benefits of having a one-to-one interview.

Look for Other Opportunities to Teach

As well as teaching in schools, you can also look into gaining experience as an English teacher in a summer camp, where you may be able to make future contacts. You can also market yourself as a private tutor for students and adult learners – in order to do so, however, you’ll need to aggressively promote yourself, and be prepared to not always get regular work. Many new teachers in France will join recruitment and teaching agencies that can try to find you placements.

Average Salaries

Once you have managed to get yourself a position, expect a monthly, full-time teaching salary of somewhere between 1,400 to 2,000 Euros. This rate may increase if you’re teaching in and around Paris, or within other large French cities such as Marseille or Bourdeaux. Expect to teach about 10-25 hours a week, with options for additional private tuition work. New teachers are usually placed on temporary contracts, with options for renewal. Expect a relatively low income tax band, even with the recent tax increases in France.

Cost of Living

The main thing to focus on is finding out the average cost of living wherever you’re based – working and living in Paris will be more expensive than a rural post, or being based in a smaller town. Look for any accommodation tied to schools, or university accommodation that’s let out to non-students. Shared apartments and houses can cost around 250-300 Euros a month, exclusive of bills. In terms of budgeting, you can aim to spend about 40-60 Euros a week on food, and then decide on how much you want to budget for in terms of travel and going out.

Holidays

Teachers in France, and especially teaching assistants, can get a lot of time off. Key holiday times during the year include the end of October, late December to early January for Christmas, late February, and April. If you do get a lot of time off, it’s worth using it to explore France. Take the time to see all you can of a city if you’re based there, and take advantage of the relatively low cost bus and train services in France to get around the rest of the country. Trips to Provence and the Cote d’Azur during the summer, or to the Rhone-Alpes in the winter, can be made more cost effective by travelling with friends, and splitting the cost of countryside gites, apartments, cottages, or lodges in the mountains.

Now as an animal of the feline variety I enjoy nothing more than sleeping and I have my favourite spots – on the back of the sofa, at the bottom of the bed and the best on is on the carpet just underneath the radiator. You see the hot water pipe runs under it and so as soon as I hear the click of the heating system I spring into action to make myself comfortable and there I wait for the floor to staring heating up underneath me.

But you see recently my napping has been disturbed and it is making rather cranky. My owners (well that’s what they like to think they are, but they are really are my pets and I’m the boss around her), have decided to redecorate. And not just one room but the whole house. Not a day has gone past in the last week where I haven’t been woken up by paint tins clanging or worst still actually being moved from my sleeping spot so that they can paint. They really are pretty rubbish at painting and often get more of it on the floor than the walls. And then I am the one that gets told off for making coloured paw prints across the carpet. It’s hardly fair. These days they have the following website bookmarked https://www.clean-able.co.uk/ and the commercial carpet cleaning Cheltenham business on speed dial.

On Wednesday I was having a particularly productive sleeping session dreaming about chasing that lovely ball of wool that the lady always throws for me. When I had the most disturbing sensation. He actually picked me up whilst I will mid bum wiggle waiting to pounce on that wool and placed me on the cold sofa. Now normally I enjoy sleeping on the sofa but only after I have walked around a few times, kneaded it into the right position and warmed it up a bit. This was stone cold. I gave him a disapproving look and a disgruntled meow, and do you know what he did? He rubbed my head and said, “What a grumpy kitty face”. Too right mister, I was definitely grumpy. I was going to protest further but I really couldn’t be bothered. So, I made a mental note (an actual note would be difficult as I don’t have opposable thumbs) to knock his phone off the side board later. He hates it when I do that, but it is hilarious watching him pick it up over and over again. Of course, occasionally he will move it, but I just find something else to knock off instead.

Well I’m glad I got that all off my chest and it has been lovely chatting with you, but I really need to get some sleep because in a minute they will be back again probably with more paint in their hands. I wonder what they would do if I knocked an entire paint pot over?

Who hasn’t heard of or played the popular game Super Mario Brothers. Both children and adults alike enjoy this game. Watching the ever-lovable Mario and Luigi racing against time with their trusted Yoshi by their side to save Princess Peach from the evil clutches of Bowser.

Mario and Luigi are brothers and plumber by trade. Although if you are searching for an Emergency Plumber Exeter I wouldn’t give them a call. You would be better off looking at http://www.hprsouthwest.co.uk/emergency-plumber-exeter/ as the brothers are much better at jumping on toads and collecting coins rather than dealing with your plumbing emergencies.

Super Mario Brothers was initially released in 1995 following on from the very successful 1983 Mario Bros game.  The game is credited with helping to revive the video game market following a crash in interest in 1983. The game itself has sold over 40 million hard copies worldwide and Mario has become a household name separate from the video game with merchandise and toy characters becoming readily available and of huge interest to young fans.

 

Mario and Luigi find themselves doing little plumbing work as the Princess Peach is constantly being captured by Bowser and held until the 2 brothers can come and defeat him. Where never made clear just why Bowser It’s hard to see what reason Bowser has for kidnapping her. She’s a tall willowy blonde, he is a large red-haired turtle creature. I get that opposites attract but how is this actually going to work? Statistics also show that kidnapping someone greatly reduces your ability to build a relationship with someone.  Ah, wait I get it he’s holding her to ransom I see, well that’s a relief I was becoming very concerned as to how that was meant to be going. One thing that the brothers could not save was al live action film of their adventures which really bore no resemblance to the game whatsoever rending it a very strange mess. Cinema sins gave it a score of 206 so stick to the games.

Towards the latter part of last year Nintendo brought out the Wii U and the Nintendo Switch and alongside these came another version of the Mario game. The latest games see the old characters coming to life again across a variety of worlds all based around the original premise of rescuing a female character from the clutches of Bowser. These include:

• Mario & Luigi
• Princess Peach
• Yoshi
• Baby Yoshi
• Blue Toad and Yellow Toad
• Bowser
• Bowser Junior
• The Koopalings

Everyone wants a stunning lawn for the spring and summer and thankfully there are several gardening tips that can help you achieve this. You can easily turn a thin, threadbare or brown lawn into a lush carpet of green grass in no time if you follow a few sensible tips.

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1.      Edging

One of the first things to do is properly edge your lawn. Using long-handled shears you can define the edges and stop grass growing into the borders and giving it a messy appearance. You can use a half-moon edger to re-shape any areas where grass has grown over. You could install a shallow moat or permanent edging so the grass cannot encroach further.

2.      Feeding

Lawns sometimes need feeding to keep in top shape. Often the lawn responds best to feeding in the spring and summer, so apply fertiliser when rain is forecast so it can be washed down into the roots. The grass should respond and appear greener and lusher in a week or so. When preparing lawns for winter, use an autumn lawn fertiliser high in phosphates and potash, rather than a spring fertiliser.

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3.      Reduce compaction

If the grass is too compacted it can lead to bare patches and waterlogging. You can push a garden fork into the soil every 10cm or so to relieve any compaction and rolling the handle back and forth. The prongs will open up the soil and encourage the grass to breathe and grow. Any bare patches should be filled with turf.

4.      Mowing

Lawns should be left longer in summer so leave about 10cm of grass to prevent drought. Keep blades sharp and choose a quality mower and replacement parts such as Mountfield spares from online shops such as https://www.diyspareparts.com/parts/mountfield/. Cut lawns once per week in summer and once every two weeks at most in other seasons.

5.      Weeding

Some weeds can spread quickly through the lawn so get them out swiftly with a trowel. Rake before mowing to lift weeds and make them easier to remove. Mowing regularly removes weeds naturally and chemicals can sometimes cause more harm than good by weakening the grass.

6.      Watering

Finally, watering grass in hot summer months is advisable, especially with younger lawns. Tough fescue can withstand less watering and its deep roots allow it to stay green and rich for longer in dry spells.

Every skater wants the most sophisticated skate boarding footwear they can find anywhere. Shoes might look the same from outside, but in terms of quality and the comfort they provide especially when skating, things become different. Your best bet if you don’t want to spend money purchasing a new pair every now and then is to go for a class known to withstand the most arduous tricks and moves. So what are some of the things you need to consider before you settle on what you think are perfect skating shoes?

• The first thing to look for is durability. This is to save you the trouble, as I have noted above, of purchasing a pair everyday. Nothing eats shoes like skating boards. You’d think it was food!
• Skating involves a lot of dexterity and complicated movements. The selection you make should have quality standards for energy and shock absorption. You can pick sneakers that use the STI Foam and System G2 Gel technologies. This works as energy absorbing fabric for shock absorption and more comfort.
• You will need shoes that absorb a lot of impacts. You will want to be stylish looking in a sophisticated manner without drawing too much attention to yourself. This means buying shoes that are comfortable and reliable. Qualities such as thin padded tongue and collar for comfort, waxed laces for easy tying, and foam for heel support on the footbed or heel cushioning gel insert are things you definitely need
• Apart from being long lasting, you will want something highly attractive to the eye. This will make them fit for casual wear even when you are not skating. The color choice should matter to you. Something either too drab or very bold would simply not look the part. While skating, you will need to pull off certain good moves. This calls for great flexibility. The worst you can do is to purchase a pair of rigid sneakers that will hurt you every time you bend. Remember skating means being on your feet for long hours. So go for something that will not give up on you and start hurting when the fun is getting juicy.
• Having good laces is very important. The shoes you buy should support lace up system which will give you complete comfort and security when fastening your sneakers. They should be easy to tie and not something that takes hours.

You need shoes that can breathe even during the most humid conditions especially if you are going to spend hours on your feet.

Cats require a lot of extra care and attention to be kept at home. There are a lot of needs that need to be fulfilled for your pet cats. Their biggest requirement is that they need fresh food to eat and completely clean water to drink. The litter box is another major requirement of cats. There are few cats that do not like to live in other places and are not at all social; therefore cat boarding can become a problem for you in such case.

What you can consider is that you can arrange a self-cleaning box, but your cat might not be comfortable with it. The other thing is your cat will definitely miss you a lot while you are away at work.  Ear mites are another big issue which you need to consider before leaving your cat alone.  All these problems greatly need to be taken care off when you have to leave your home for work leaving your cat behind.

Three services can be hired to take care of your pets; pet sitter, asking your friends to take care of your pet and hiring the services of cat boarding.

How Can You Hire A Pet Sitter?

Try to find a reliable person to take care of your cat. Do not hire such a person whose charges are flying high. If you can not find a trustful person, then you have to ask your friends and family to find a trusted man. This is how you will get maximum satisfaction regarding your cat’s care.

Ask Your Friends And Family To Take Care Of Your Cat:

Another best idea which can do a great favor to you is to find out a reliable person who can take care of your cat with great reliability. Try to find that person who has enough time to visit your home to feed your cat and play with it. There are a lot of good neighbors around everyone’s home. Maintain your neighborhood and ask them a favor to take care of your cat while you are away for work.

This will definitely solve your problem without incurring much cost.

Cat Boarding Services:

Availing the services of cat boarding is another fantastic idea. Although the services will be costly for you, they will not make you worry about your cat when you are away. The boarding facility might not be comfortable for your cat; they may feel out of the place as they will have to meet different strange people in there.

Besides all these aspects, your cat will be greatly taken care of. It will be fed and watered punctually. It will have enough toys to play with; thus providing the best environment for your pet cat.

The boarding facility is more comfortable as compared to the pet sitter services. These institutions are legal and are regularly inspected by the authorities; therefore, you do not have to worry about your cat’s care.

Will you need Building Regulations approval?

Yes, you will. Every loft conversion needs to have Buildings Regulation approval even if planning permission is not required. A surveyor will inspect the work at different stages of construction, issuing you with a certificate when the project is complete, and a final inspection takes place. With semi-detached or terraced homes, your neighbour will need to be notified of your plans if the proposed work falls into Party Wall Act territory.

Do I have a suitable loft?

Things to consider when wishing to convert include sufficient head height, the type of structure and pitch of the roof and whether there are any obstacles like chimney stacks or water tanks. A prior inspection will identify whether your roof has the right conditions and dimensions for conversion.

Head Height

Building Regulations make no specification as to acceptable ceiling heights for rooms, but stairs have a regulatory 2m requirement. When measuring the loft space for head height, measure from the bottom of the ridge timber to the top of the joist in the ceiling. It should be greater than 2.2m.

Check how much headroom there will be with your architect or designer. Often people have less than they thought as it’s not always clear to see in the plans.  The greater the angle of the pitch, the more central head space there is likely to be.

Roof Structure

There are two main types – the truss section and the framed. Framed roofs are normally found in older pre-1960s homes where rafter and joists are constructed on site and assembled into the property. This is the easiest type of roof construction for conversion as its strong and easily opened up with strengthening the rafters. Factory produced trusses came after the 1960s and are thinner and cheaper. They get their strength from having diagonal braced timbers attached. As there are no loadbearing structures underneath, a conversion will require adding in extra structural support.

The truss roof can be made stronger by inserting steel beams in between load-bearing walls and a steel beam at the ridge. This will need to be completed by a specialist company. For Loft conversions Bristol, visit http://www.caineslofts.co.uk/

How Much Will It Cost?

The cost of a loft conversion depends greatly on whether the type of roof structure you currently have, the amount of space available and if changes need to be made to the floor below to incorporate stairs. The most basic room will start at approximately £15,000 and would include floor reinforcement, skylights, a staircase, electrical work and lighting and additional insulation. Fire doors and smoke alarms are also mandatory to comply with building regulations.

A Dormer loft extension is another option and includes the above alterations and the installation of dormer windows. These are useful for adding head height and can provide more options for the positioning of the staircase. This will cost more but gives more options, more space and will increase the resale value of your property.

Without access to the fountain of youth, how do we make ourselves look younger or at least not older than our actual years? Here are some great tips for looking after our skin, health, hair and mind to aid us in our eternal quest for a youthful glow:

Wear a wide smile

In a study where people of different ages were asked to guess the ages of people in photographs, the results were a hands-down win for the smile. Those who wore a neutral expression had their ages guessed more accurately, those who frowned were thought of as older and those who smiled had their ages guessed younger than they were. Therefore, if you want to look younger you’re your years, laugh and smile often.

Big up your hair

If you find your hair has thinned as you’ve got older, use volumizing products and a lighter hair colour to disguise any thinning. Use a conditioning treatment to prevent dryness and volumize often.

Don’t skimp on the grapes

Because they’re so sweet you might have been avoiding them, but sorbitol in the grapes is a humectant. This means it’s a substance that attracts water and will help your skin to absorb and retain essential moisture.

Book a quick treatment

If you’ve got an event or occasion coming up, then you might want a quicker solution. Botox is a cost-effective, safe, quick and easy treatment that can reduce the look of lines and wrinkles. For Gloucester Botox treatments, visit http://doctorkate.co.uk/

Cleanse and moisturise

Regular cleansing and moisturising helps to wash away grime and grease without drying out skin like normal soap does. Use a gentle cleanser that won’t strip the skin of its moisture, avoid harsh or alcohol-based toners and use a good quality day and night moisturiser.

Dress to impress

The clothes you choose can affect how old you look. Learn what styles and fits suit your shape, what colours flatter any lumps and bumps and if you have a wrinkly neck, try to avoid tight or crew-neck tops that push skin upwards.

Give us a hand

Don’t overlook the importance of your hands in looking youthful. You’ll want to use a good hand cream with a built-in sunscreen on a regular basis. Dried out and tired hands will age you prematurely, so invigorate with an exfoliating scrub and drink plenty of water.

Get regular exercise

Muscle loss can be prematurely aging, so too is not getting enough sleep. By exercising several times a week, you’ll keep your muscles stronger and sleep better at night. A mix of exercise is most beneficial, including some cardiovascular, some resistance and stretching and balance exercises.

Put greens and reds on your plate

Kale and other green leafy veggies contain vitamin K which helps prevent bruising and the lycopene in tomatoes is tough against the damaging effects of UV rays on the skin.

Put oily fish on your dish

Oily fish is full of good compounds that boost muscle tone and these compounds are also found in some of the most high-end expensive face creams on the market. If you were to eat just two portions of oily fish a week, it would have the same benefit as using one of these creams.

It’s a little-known fact that the average person spends over 100,000 hours of their lives pursuing a career.  This career then starts to shape who they are, which is a little wonder when you consider many people automatically introduce themselves by their job title, rather than their name.

Historically, work has always been about earning money to live, but for a growing number of professionals the recession has focused people more on income survival, and personal and professional identities are becoming blurred.

The problem with working for longer is that the risks are so much greater if people become ill, suffer a personal injury such as stress or depression, and are unable to sustain this level of work.  The average person has very little savings to fall back on in these circumstances, and families can be under serious threat if illness reduces their normal income.  This helps to explain the rise in specialist injury lawyers.

People are spending more time than ever working, and the promise of a perfect work-life balance appears to have all but gone out of the window.  But why?  And is there anything we can stop doing in order to achieve the perfect work-life balance?

1.    Stop comparing yourself to others

There are no rules – balance is a very individual thing and everyone should find their own equilibrium.  Stop telling yourself ‘I should be able to…’ or ‘he/she can do it, so I should be able to’

Pay attention to your own needs and wellbeing and listen to your intuition.

2.    Stop being a martyr

If the phrases ‘I’ve got so much to do’ or ‘I have to do everything around here’ sound familiar, and it’s making you feel resentful whilst at the same time you’re hogging all the work, then you might have fallen into the trap of being a martyr and you must stop.

Let other people take some of the strain from you and learn to trust that others will be able complete tasks to a good standard (even if it’s not the way you would have done it)

3.    Stop saying yes

This doesn’t mean saying yes all the time or refusing to work within your job description, this is about all the extra work and responsibilities you’re taking home with you.  If you are someone who tends to say ‘yes’ to everything there are a couple of good techniques to help you deal with this:

If someone asks you to do something, avoid committing either way immediately.  Say you’ll get back to them in five minutes, and then use this time to think clearly about whether you can realistically take on this work
If you need to say no to someone, just say it.  Try to avoid making excuses or justifying why you can’t do it, just firmly and calmly say no.
4.    Get off the grid

In today’s digital world, it’s so easy to spend 9-5 glued to a computer or laptop at work and then from 6-10 glued to your tablet or smartphone at home.  Try to take yourself off the grid at least one evening each week and do something completely different instead.  Read a book, take a long bath, play with your children or simply sit in the garden with a glass of wine.

5.    Stop looking for perfection

Start celebrating what does get done, even if it’s only part of what you planned.  It’s better than nothing and over time creates a good foundation of well being and order we all crave.

Ponder this: if motivation is what fuels you to take actions then inspirational thoughts are what fuels your motivation. When you are inspired and hyped to do actions and when your motivation weakens you become lazy and pessimistic. Let us look at these 3 simple yet effective ways which you can use to stay inspired and motivated while in pursuit of any goals you have set.

Stay Concentrated on Your Goals

Always keep your eyes open on your objectives. It is sometimes simple and fast to get so caught up in the hunt itself that we tend to forget what it is we are chasing. When this happens the struggle of the chase wears you down draining your energy, ardor, and motivation. The end result is that you quit. You must keep in mind that it is the outcome we are chasing and striving to fulfill to achieve our dreams so it is very essential to always remind ourselves of the consequences we’re going to experience. Remember you why! This will help you stay inspired by your dreams.

Record and Chart Your Progress

Recording and charting your progress is more of a visual that highlights to you the progress you are making. This type of inspiration strategy will help increase your energy and enthusiasm so that you can maintain the efforts needed to reach your goal.

Surround Yourself with Like and Open Minded People

By socializing with people who have the same pursuit as yours will help you stay and keep motivated. By sharing your thoughts and ideas will not only inspire you but also give you a different view of point to your own approach. You will then meet people who become successful because they stay focused and so you will be more positive and energized that you too can reach your dreams. It is also a great way to meet and know people who have “been there and done that.”

As you can learn and understand that by maintaining inspirational thoughts you are greatly honing your skills to remain driven toward the goals you’ve set for yourself. It’s a fact that at first, your motivation is very high and intense but over time it tends to weaken. So, with the help of many different forms of daily inspiration, you will able to stay focused that inner drive you’ll need to reach your desired goals. Learning how to stay inspired and motivated in this way will make you more successful and happier in both the personal and professional aspects of your life.