Tracy van Leyden Interpreter

01/08/2024

Just a little reminder - my mini domestic art gallery will be open for viewing Thursday 1st and 8th from 17H00 to 20H00 - a bit of a cultural apéro? 😂

04/07/2024

https://mailchi.mp/97768dd2e7cc/n3-newsletter-bits-and-bobs-about-property Newsletter number 3 out now! A few bits and pieces about property

04/07/2024

Hey everybody - want to spent a mellow Sunday afternoon sipping fizz and checking out my art? Sunday 21 July is my opening/versnissage I'd love to see you 😘

11/06/2024

Doing another Garage Sale - completely restocked (yes I've got a lot of stuff!) do come and have a rummage....😃

11/04/2024

Thank you Harry Shindler .

When I was about 10 years old I remember my grandfather telling me that I must vote, even if I only voted for the good-looking one, because women died to get me my vote. I moved to France in 1988 and at the time I was told that I could only vote in the UK for 25 years, which seemed like forever back then. I didn’t vote because I thought it a bit of a cheek since I no longer lived there and what went on there was really no longer any of my business. Until, of course, the Brexit vote - that’s when I found out that somewhere along the line the 25 years had been shrunk to 15! I wouldn’t have been able to vote anyway since by Brexit time I’d been living in France for over 30 years. Right up until Brexit I consoled myself with my local vote here in France and the European elections. So, its been a few years now that I have been completely disenfranchised!

I had heard that the UK had had its knuckles rapped about this particular bit of naughtiness and that someone had taken them to court and won. That was Harry Shindler who fought for 20 years to get his British vote back - and finally won. Although Harry got to see the legislation pass through parliament he didn’t get to vote before he died at the ripe old age of 101. Thank you from the bottom of my heart Harry.

I have just registered to vote on line - and have my parents to thank for keeping all my early documents for me - whilst rummaging around I managed to find an Official Poll Card from Birmingham District Council from 1983, addressed to me with my maiden name, living in a tower block that has since been demolished at a remarkably minimalist postcode that couldn’t be recognised by the site. Also found a letter from the Department of Social Security telling me about my National Insurance contributions for 1988/1989 (equally minimalist!) which obligingly gave me my NI number. So thank you Mum and Dad for saving these bits of historic necessity for me.

I have had to register for a postal vote because my proxy would need to vote in Birmingham - if anyone is interested the deadline for applying for a postal vote is the 17th April this year… so not much time left - Thank you Richard for your timely nudge.

I’m still waiting to hear if my application for a postal vote has been accepted but the emails from Birmingham City Council have been very prompt this far and I’m ever the optimist.

Good luck anyone else who’s planning to do this and get your skates on!

Thank you Harry, Ruth, Brian and Richard.❤

Lots of love
Tracy

11/04/2024

Yeehaa I finally did it! Here it is my brand spanking new Monthly Newsletter! Well the link to sign up for it anyway 😆 I'm hoping in the future to add links to it for any checklist and information documents I produce, they'll also be posted on here in the archive bit when I find it but I'm guessing that a link from the Newsletter will be easier to navigate. Just click on the link if you want to join the mailing list.

Sign up to my monthly Newsletter for timely reminders, updates, info and tidbits about living in France and navigating French bureaucracy

01/04/2024

Just because I wanted to share this somewhere 😃

“Every city has a s*x and an age which have nothing to do with demography. Rome is feminine. So is Odessa. London is a teenager, an urchin, and in this hasn’t changed since the time of Dickens. Paris, I believe, is a man in his twenties in love with an older woman.”

― John Berger

01/04/2024

There you go! 😂