It seems Catharine has opened it again, hopefully only those wishing to help people ‘Survive France’ will now respond! I have received quite a lot of personal messages which have been both helpful and supportive… Thank you!
Thank you Joan! It’s good to see people on here helping rather than ‘having a go’!
Such a shame
Karen - this could be a great solution as Melissa's young french man may also have a circle of friends your son could socialise with if any have the same interests. Would be a nice introduction to the social scene.
Oooh, Melissa, you're good.
Can't find my previous post but if your son needs a night to stay in Angouleme for the Bande Dessinée festival then I can recommend lodging in an apartment just outside the old town with a young french man who speaks English. We stayed there in September for the Course de Remparts - old car races. I think the young man is an illustrator himself, or teaches it. I have his address and phone number so even if his room is booked I am sure he would be happy to talk with your son as he likes the English and loved talking in English as he has travelled a lot.
In fact you are lucky being near Niort. I was there for a weekend a ‘guest’ of the Association Sportive de l’Automobile-Club des Deux-Sèvres. I was surprised by the depth and quality of the entertainment in the town. Having said that when my nephew and his girlfriend, both in their late 20s, visited in July they were ‘blown away’ by Angoulême.
That's a great idea, Melissa - good opportunity for networking in the industry as well.
Karen - does your son have transport to get to events a little further afield?
To some members I've just read comments from, if you're not able to post anything positive and constructive, please refrain. Thanks.
Don't knock the uke! Sales have more than doubled in last couple of years, influenced by bands like Mumford and Sons. Clubs starting up all over the UK.
This 28 year old is in transition, from one mature, independent activity to another. Why would decent people who also happen to be his parents not offer aide. We would admire any other such association. Blood relatives do not give up kindness based on age of progny.
I would do same for my children, who have always been open minded to counsel from informed respectful adults.
Many of my ancestors have been seafareres or military or missionaries. All were welcome at home during leave-time and we would celebrate their prescence with dances and parties so they’d enjoy respite from their duties in warfare, or jungles, or nowadays deserts.
Leaving home at 19 is no big deal. I did it myself and I was a girl, back then.
As an illustrator does your son know about this, the International Comics festival in Angouleme in January 2016 http://www.carnifest.com/events/france/angouleme/948/the-international-comics-festival-in-angoul%C3%AAme-2016.aspx. If not I am sure he would find it interesting even if "comics" are not his thing and may meet like minded souls of a similar age and Angouleme is not a million miles away from Niort.
I have to say I am of that “get off my arse and do it” generation as well and, despite getting on very well with my parents, moved out in my late teens. My first reaction on reading this topic was that if my Mum had done that to me when I was twenty eight I would have freaked out (which was a very popular term at the time) as would have my, currently twenty five year old, daughter if my wife and I had ever tried to get involved in her social life post adolescence. I can hear it now “Ohhh Dad!” if we’d tried 
I suspect it’s the location that’s the problem. A twenty eight year old should, in my opinion, unless a farmer be in the bright lights of some vibrant large town or city.
Dear Joan, What on earth is "the full world order" ? "Methinks" is truly one of the great archaic usages on all forum discussions usually used by your people of "Judgement without information". It's Armagnac not armignac. I thought this conversation had been closed.
You are so right about these two posters.
"Judgement without information"
So little personal experience of the full-world order that they think every life is like their own.
Too much armignac methinks!
Difficult one as life in France is so quiet. Have you see this site though (I did a brief Google for you) http://www.vivre-a-niort.com/fr/services-publics/culture-sport-loisirs/sport/sport-pour-les-jeunes/activites-anios/.
You are wrong Brian. Read the posts again.
Actually Brian, there has been a build up of quite 'snippy' comments directed at Karen so I'm not surprised she's become exasperated.
Can I please ask, no more posts on this thread unless you have a constructive suggestion of a place / event / activity etc. that might be appropriate. Thank you.
Excuse me, I am not testosterone fired up but wondering what is going on? I do not understand the logic of asking a question then mainly dismissing how people respond, irrespective of their gender. Shouldn't every suggestion be gracefully taken into consideration rather than defensively shooting them down? Personally, I am confused. You ask if X is anything to do with anybody but you raised the question and people tried to respond to the best of their ability. I have looked through the entire thread and do not actually find anybody judging you but raising opinions, however once challenged they become more argumentative. Does it not serve your purpose better to accept the initial propositions, say thank you and move on, whether you are grateful or not?
Do you know folks this is beginning to sound like a Monty Python sketch. The next testosterone fuelled comment is going to tell me they ’ ad it tuff’ and ‘lived int shoe box ont central reservation of th’M1’… 'Ad to get up one hour before they went to bed… Lick motorway clean wi tung… And so on, blah, blah, blah… Do any of you know what we have had to do? Noooo!!? But… You like to think you do, don’t you guys? You like to think you know exactly how we have lived our lives, but god you, who opine, are all so far from the truth, but I guess that doesn’t matter to you, does it!?
This guy, my son, has lived independently for the past 10/11 years. He owns a house in the UK. It has a family in there renting it. Would all those judging us, tell me that I should have said ‘turf the family out on the streets and go back to your own home’? My son can work anywhere until he finds a new permanent position, but freelance art doesn’t pay that well and I have an empty gite. Was it so wrong to offer the space for him to use? Is it really anything to do with any of you?
I just asked the question on here as a short cut because my son is working hard to build up his freelance work and his portfolio. I have the time and contacts/network to do this (or I thought I did). Fortunately, thanks to helpful, non-judgemental people, we now know of bars that are favoured by younger people, where the nearest indoor climbing centre is, a couple of great websites and some good, diverse suggestions for ways to get out there…
I’m not ‘arranging my sons social life’ i’m just gleaning info on the local area that I have access to so that he can then decide what to do with it. But perhaps that is beyond the understanding of some people…? Or maybe those people have nothing constructive to do with their lives other than have a dig and wind people up…?
And maybe, at the end of all this, what I have is a pretty darn good relationship with my family which some less fortunate people may not be able to understand or appreciate!
I left home at 14 years of age and never looked back.
Jeez what a load of opinionated, ill-informed, judgemental idiots… You are so far from how things are but what’s the point! You’ve already decided just what sort of family we are. I should think you are both really proud of your smart ass hurtful, condemning comments.
Why waste your time asking a question on this site when there are people like you who are just going to decide that you know everything about me and my family and then you are going to act as judge and jury.
Guys take your heads out of your a**es and realise that you have no idea what you are talking about… YOU KNOW NOTHING, ABSOLUTELY NOTHING ABOUT ME! What gives you the right to draw erroneous conclusions and judge in this way.
Go back to your pompous self-righteous, know-it-all lives and keep out of mine. Over and out!!