"I've Been Framed"

To put this in perspective, Ralphy weighs 18 pounds.

Several weeks ago, he was reported to San Diego Animal Control for "charging" a woman while he was on a leash. He actually did commit the crime, but most people aren't too worried when a pug approaches them. Certainly not enough to report the animal as dangerous.

So, Noah, who was walking him at the time, had to go to court yesterday and was given a public defender to represent them. Even with a skillful lawyer, Ralphy was fined $50 and now has a record.

He is now back in obedience school where he is excelling, we're proud to report.

Suitcases Full, We Head Across The Atlantic Again

The Import/Export Game

In preparation for our next trip to Paris, I make a list of all the things I need to buy to take back with me. I also do this when we’re ready to leave Paris for LA.

Because we split the year fairly evenly between two places, I feel that we don’t really import and export, we simply import to both countries. It’s a small import/import operation, with everything in the suitcases for either personal use or gifts. But, the list is long, as usual.

It’s fascinating when I hear others describe what they “import” from their home countries. Much of it is food product that can’t be obtained in France.

I guess the main reasons to import things are:
Lack of availability
Cost
Fear of the unknown, fear of not having your “thing”

Here’s my normal list of things that we take to France:
Shampoo, conditioner, zip lock baggies, Advil, Excedrin, Robitussin DM, contact lens solution, Afrin, English language books, the latest electronics, table linens, towels, kitchen accessories, tennis balls (this is Terry’s idea).

Here’s my list that we regularly bring back from France:
Tea, salt (all types), herbs and spices, French books, tea towels, candles, scarves, beauty products, chocolates.

And, here’s some of the things that are favorites of my friends (not exhaustive):
Brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, chocolate chips, tortillas and corn bread mix. Many others bring the zip lock bags, shampoo, lotion.

Terry drinks light beer and it is impossible to find in Paris.

We made a massive search one day and came up empty-handed. We found an American (The Real McCoy) store that sold a small Coors light (maybe 6 oz) for Euro 3.50, so a six pack of this would be Euro 21 and at today’s exchange rate, the 6 pack of small, miserable beer would be around $32.50!

Since you can’t even bring a bottle of water on the plane these days he’ll just have to settle for a “seize”.

What do you import?

The Scarecrows of Hidden Villa

We visited Hidden Villa this week. It is in Los Altos Hills, in Northern California.

Being a city girl, I enjoy this kind of outing.

I love vegetable gardens. The one at Hidden Villa is just my style – large but unkempt, visually interesting and full of surprises. There are still remnants of last summer’s crop – some artichoke stems, pumpkins, a stray zucchini. Winter crops like carrots were safely underground, staying warm.

On the day of our visit, the air was damp from the previous day’s rain. I could smell the wet earth, wild sage, pine.

My favorite part, though was the scarecrows who were busy guarding the garden.

Elma vs. Amala

No, this is not meant to be a metaphor for the differences between life in the US and life in France.

In fact, cleaning ladies seem to be similar the world over, both the good and the bad.

They all want to be paid in cash.
They seem to always be from a different country than the one they live and work in.
They seem to work miracles in a short amount of time.
They are brown and round.
They now all have cell phones.

The bad ones don’t stay for long. The ones that make a fatal mistake (ie bleach on the rug), the ones that are late, make excuses, don’t show up when they’re supposed to. The good ones sometimes become demanding or get an attitude (I was fired by Mirabelle because I asked her to dust more thoroughly). Yes, I have been fired by my cleaning lady.

Elma is from Guatemala. Amala is from Sri Lanka. They both can speak English, kinda. They are both whizzes at cleaning things that I hate to clean.

There are different cleaning challenges in each country. In Manhattan Beach, we have a lot of windows that need to be cleaned so we can see out. Every time there is a little rain or wind, the windows get covered with a slight bit of sand that’s blown up from the beach and it is impossible to see anything. So, there is Elma, all five feet of her (on a good day) standing on a ladder with her Windex bottle and roll of paper towels.

Amala has the chore of getting the water spots off the glass shower door. The water is very rich in minerals in Paris, so the doors look horrible after just a few days. It requires white vinegar to get this perfectly clean. But she does it.

Rituals are also necessary for both Elma and Amala. Amala starts the minute she walks in the door. For some reason, the dining room is the altar. She takes off her shoes, her coat, hat, scarf, etc and then bows and prays silently in the dining room. Then she’s off to work. Her husband told us she’s Catholic, but the red dot on her forehead and all the dining room prayers make me think otherwise.

Elma brings her huge bag of McDonalds and a large McDonald’s coffee into the house each morning. We never see her eat it, but we know she does. Once inside the house, she sets to work and never stops. When she’s ready to leave or whenever she has to speak to us, she puts her hands together (as in prayer) about waist high, and bows as she says goodbye, tells me to buy more Ajax or thanks me for the Christmas bonus.

Both Elma and Amala are wonderful. We’ve known Elma longer, so we feel more comfortable with her. But we are grateful for both of them. Oh, I almost forgot, Aidan, our grandson LOVES Elma, he follows her from room to room watching her work as she coos softly in to him in Spanish.

We Had A Storm!

Hmmm! If we hadn't been in Paris this fall, we might not have recognized this stuff -- RAIN!

The weather forecast called for a "monster" storm and we were skeptical.

It was suppossed to start on Thursday and continue right through Monday, maybe Tuesday. But Thursday came and went, nothing. Friday morning was cloudy, no rain. We left Manhattan Beach and headed to Carlsbad for a family activity. Missed the rain on the drive down.

We had some rain and wind in San Diego, nothing serious. We drove home on Saturday late afternoon and had a few sprinkles. By this time, we were convinced that this was another storm that was blown completely out of proportion by all the TV weather guys who just want something to talk about.

That is, until we pulled into the driveway. Our huge, 25 year old bougainvillea had blown over and was completely blocking the driveway.

So, our apologies to the weather guys. There was plenty of storm for us.