Sorry if this sounds stupid @JaneJones , but you did āchargeā them first using hot water, or I think some can use the microwave ?
If they are solid and opaque you need to put them in boiling water until they become liquid and transparent again. Once shocked they will become solid and opaque once more, fascinating to watch, and release lots of heat which they retain for a while - then you make them liquid again by putting them in hot water and start the cycle anew. The substance is sodium acetate I think, fun stuff.
You donāt need to do that, @hairbear - as @vero says, you recharge them once they have gone solid by putting them in boiling water. Usually takes about 10 minutes. They are brilliant things!
(Not the microwave because of the metal - the microwave ones work as you suggest , by heating up first in the microwave, but these are more useful for when you are out and about)
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Itās been a very good day so far today! I had to go into town for my French lesson and while I was there, took advantage of the nationwide sales that started yesterday (apart from the alpine departements)
Iād already been tempted by a pair of bottines but in the end bought two pairs, very pretty, for 50 euros so was well pleased. Then bought a salopette for wearing with leggings and when I got home, we had a delicious lunch outside, sitting in the sun. Iām revelling in it all 
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We went for a good walk, and had a picnic lunch outside too. Lovely, but cold. Thank God I got the handwarmers to function!
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For those of a nervous disposition, rest-assured this is my last mention of my pacemaker op, but just to say, every nurse who has cleaned and redressed my scar over the last two weeks has exclaimed at how beautiful it is. I have the best-looking scar in France! My favourite exclamation - cāest chouette!
And, yesterday took our Airedale Vita for a check-up at the vets. In the summer she was diagnosed with significant heart problems and we all thought (vet and cardiologist included) that she had only about a couple of months left. She is still doing splendidly and will be 13 in a month or so.
Life at the moment is very good.
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Every time I see the photo of your dog it reminds me my Airedale (Tosh), he was a dog my first wife insisted on getting despite never having had a dog before, after the initial excitement of his arrival she soon wanted him gone and I was given the ultimatum of either he went or she would. With the benefit of hindsight I should have kept him and let her go as within a couple of years she left and never came back. Fortunately, I was able to find Tosh a good home and he lived to the age of 14 having had a great life with a family who absolutely adored him.
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Glad you found somewhere good for him @tim17 . We adore our Airedales - Vita is our fifth. They can be a handful - they are terriers on steroids after all! But we love their character. Not always the smartest thing on four legs, they do however have a mind of their own. Vita at her dog classes used to do the exercise twice (just to show she could do it) and then sit there saying āwhy on earth do you want me to keep doing it?ā She has the sweetest of temperaments but has no sense of social distancing, which can be a problem for other dogs and some humans! We will sorely miss her when itās time and for the moment we are just grateful she has decided to stay.
Itās owl?
Yupā¦. French and English have many things that arenāt literal translations.
(Great, sweet, cute, stylish, all sorts of meanings depending on context and intonationā¦)
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Thanks - as you can tell, Iām still learning. 
Yes, and I LOVE it. My French teacher thinks our house is āchouetteā which I find very flattering. 
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Cāest trop chou.
I wonder if chouette and cute have common route?
Been around forever, lovely, cuddly term. Iāve always thought of it as āitās coolā. How about verlan anybody? I remember that days when we smoked peuclots instead of clopes.
Meuf and barjot still in common use. And barjot is a favorite insult that a freind of ours uses.
Yes it was in common usage amongst our pals in the very early eighties. It brings back loads of memories. I remember one very good friend we had aperos with most workdays who always announced ā Je dois tĆ©lĆ©phoner Ć Giscardā when going for a pee.
Abbreviated to ābargeā
When you throw up you call Raoul on the big white phone.
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Reminds me of when I was a kid, a friend of mine and myself spoke in back slang so most others couldnāt follow what we were speaking of especially on CB radio weād even call each other up, āIckda Urpinta oda opyca ittlela olfwaā, some people came onto the same channel thinking we were in Holland . We could probably still do it today with a bit of practice.
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Poss a different generation? She is a mature woman and definitely says ābarjotā - although my spelling may not be spot on.