the shelves that Jacques built...

My rdv with Jacques took place as planned, and there ensued 3 hours of effing and blinding (qu'est-ce que c'est que ce bazarre! purée! putain! merde et encore merde! c'est à se faire chier!) as we hit solid zone after solid zone in the breeze block. Lean on me! he yells, as the drill whines. And together we apply all the force we're capable of until the drill pops through and, slapstick, we fall on top of each other. And this was only the first part of a painfully drawn-out process. The screw-rawl-plug connection only worked one time in three - more swearing as trashed rawl plugs had to be prised from the garage wall.  And all the while I hovered nearby, the lady in waiting, with Jacques barking in English: spirrrit levelle!, drrrill beet!, move the laddaire!. It was only at the end of the morning that we realised the screw attachment had been designed to work flush with the object being attached to the wall - not possible with the shelf mounting we had been using. Ample confirmation that drills and shelving are tricky animals, and best avoided. But I am thrilled with the result. Thank you, Jacques!