A cut in hours !!

The battered old antique clock case stood amongst the rubbish pile adjacent to the car park - a pile where the owner of the brocante always dumps odd bits of wood from broken furniture and unwanted bed frames which he periodically set fire to rather than take it all to the local "dechetterie" (rubbish) dump. I was so excited. The old grandfather clock case no longer had its top section  and the bottom was damaged, but it was the wonderful 'fat' middle section which had a tiny bevelled glass panel in the door that I wanted. I knew it would make a perfect little wall cupcoard.

We went in to ask the price but the young appentice said that the owner was out. He accompanied us out to the rubbish pile and said the case could be 20 euros. Parfait - and we handed over the money.

I knew that Mark could cut away the damaged section leaving me the 'fat' middle cupboard which I could already see painted in Gustavian grey. We carried the case to the car but no matter how we tried it was simply too long to fit inside. We decided to ask whether there was a saw inside the shop which we could borrow to cut it down to the section we needed, intending to discard the damaged base back on the rubbish pile. The apprentice found us an old saw and left us to it.

Mark quickly got to work and the base was almost sawn through  when the apprentice came running out .   "Madame..Monsieur.......Non, non, non. Arretez, arretez!!"  We  looked at him in suprise. Looking very embarrassed he started to explain  that the owner had just phoned to say that he had left the clock case by the rubbish pile ready to be carried indoors - and that he was on his way back to the shop with the clock's top section and its movement in his car!!!

So the worried apprentice returned our money and carried the almost sawn-in-half clock case into the shop.

I never did find out what happened when the owner returned and whether  they did manage to repair the base again to sell the clock? Nor for that matter did I get my 'fat' middle wall cupboard after all, but what we do always have a good laugh each we reminisce about the visit!

Finally,  good news following on from yesterday's blog and my worries over our kitten's little op. Well, my fears and concerns were unfounded! As you will see from the photograph, below, Charles Le Baron du Breuil is very much recovered today - and has even been helping me photograph my latest treasures for my auction site.