Beaujolais Nouveau

I go back and forth on whether to organize an activity for the Beaujolais Nouveau every year.  We haven't done anything for the last few years. 

We had several ideas for this year's event.  Our tennis club hosts an event every year.  We made reservations.  It sounded like a lot of fun when we made the reservations.  We've been to this event before and it was fun, festive and interesting. 

But, it is cold, raining and dark today.  We cancelled the plan to go to the club, it is too far.  We then decided to go to another place, a neighborhood cafe.  As the afternoon progressed, the rain, the cold, the darkness.  We are home for the night.  I went to the local G20 and bought a bottle of 2013 Beaujolais Nouveau which is chilling a bit to take the "edge" off the taste. 

Not exactly the most exciting event, but we are celebrating. 

Affordable Care Act -- Not For Me It's Not (affordable)

I just heard from our insurance agent that we have to change the renewal date on our health insurance plans from August to December.  This will give us a pause, a breather, before the policy price is increased by 30-50%.  The kicker is that immediately we have to pay about $100 more, but in the long run, this will save a bit of money.

It just postpones the inevitable 30-50% increase that will now come in December, 2014 vs. August, 2014. 

Certainly it's great that the 40 million uninsured Americans will now be able to be insured.  Many of them will be subsidized by the government if they fall below a certain income level.  But, with an increase of 30-50% I think that I will be subsidizing the rest.

I'm OK with paying taxes and I'm OK with the taxes paying for healthcare for the elderly, the disabled, the poor.  But, I'm not OK with also paying a for-profit company more than my fair share.  They will be making up for the price of the low-end policy that is subsidized by OBAMACARE by increasing my payment. 

This isn't good for anyone.  I object to this and I am stuck because I need health insurance.  This is really a poor solution. 

Chloe The Princess (snoring pug)

Can one be a princess and snore at the same time.  Yes!  Chloe is the example.

Here she is, alert as usual. No snores now!

But, we've all heard it.  Yes, she snores.  She also purrs.  Like a cat.  These are normal sounds for a pug, but sounds rarely emitted by a princess. 

She thinks she is a princess.  She acts like a princess.  We are at her beck and call.  We all jump when she needs to go out, if she does her "business", she gets a treat.  If she doesn't ,  she gets a treat anyway.  Just for "sit"ting...  Life is good in the kingdom where Chloe lives.  

Chasing Rainbows

The weather has been weird this week.  A large storm that has torn across Northern Europe has also hit Paris.  It's been alternately windy, cold, rainy, sunny, warm; sometimes all at the same time.  Today, I thought there had to be a rainbow out there.   I looked and looked and didn't find one.

Then, on the way home on the bus, I looked out the window and Voila!  There it was!  A gorgeous rainbow.  Remember, this is through a bus window and it was moving. 

This one was taken after I got off the bus (you can see the bus pulling away) on rue de Sevres at Sevres Babylone.

Enjoy.

Do I Look Like A Fool???

In the past week, I have had countless small snubs come my way.  The kind that if you don't listen closely, it will go over your head.  They've come from Americans and French people, so it's not cultural.  It's something else.  I guess it must be me. 

I'll have to examine my method of operating.  Maybe I'm too casual, don't dress properly, smile too freely; I have no idea what it is that's leaving me open to comments of a negative nature.

I had an American woman imply that I could not afford a vacation like the one she had just taken.  I was so astonished (she is a psychotherapist, imagine!) that I was speechless.

Then, I asked a bus driver for directions and he literally didn't answer at all and shooed me off his bus.  Oh well.  Another person recently implied that I couldn't read French well enough to understand an article that he had enjoyed.  Finally, a neighbor today demanded a "Merci" twice from me before I could even respond.  I had to answer that I had heard her the first time and she hadn't given me the time to respond.  Hrmph!

I have also had my successes in places that are otherwise hostile.  I successfully, and without incident, bought a case of champagne today after a long discussion with the shop owner.  But, the man at the kiosk couldn't understand my request for "Le Figaro avec les magazines" even though I buy the same thing every Saturday from the same man.  On the good side, the guy in the grocery store went to his special supply of non-bruised bananas to find me four perfect ones.   The woman in the shoe store found the pair of boots I wanted after thinking she didn't have my size.  Pascal is always great at the tennis shop.

The bad still outweighs the good over the past week.  

I guess I should renew my membership in the "thick skin club". 

Chestnuts

It's that time of year again--I can smell the chestnuts roasting in big pans over high heat.  The smell is between woods-y and something burning.  But I love the smell.

Growing up in California, we never had chestnuts.  Maybe it's not cold enough. 

I don't even like the taste of chestnuts very much. I like the smell and the idea. 

I couldn't resist today and bought a small bag from a woman outside the Luxembourg Gardens.  She measured them out and then gave me a couple extra.  By the time I got them home they were cold, so I had to heat them up again to try them. 

St Jacut de la Mer

The tiny town of St. Jacut de la Mer is so small that it is hard to find on a map of Brittany.  A peninsula that juts into the ocean.  At low tide, you can almost walk across to the other side.  At high tide, the waves lap up against the sea walls. 

They have a small "downtown" with a grocery store, a few shops, even a weekly open-air market. 

There are a few adolescent boys that drive recklessly around town on Vespas, scaring the pedestrians. 

I doubt that many people live here full time.  But, there are enough little gardens and cute little well-kept homes that I could be wrong.

A bus stops once in the morning and once in the evening.  It costs Euro 2 to ride into Dinan, about 30 minutes away.  Otherwise you need to have a car, get a cab, find a friend with a car or walk.

For the second year in a row, we spent a week doing almost nothing.  Beach combing, hiking, breathing deeply to get as much of the cleansing sea air into our lungs. 

It's an ideal way to forget your problems, regroup, recuperate.

Photos from our beach hikes.

No One's Starving At This Monastery

No One Goes Hungry at L'Abbaye

 

CBS vs. Time Warner Cable

Yesterday I decided that I need to change to another television provider because my current provider, Time Warner Cable, has been in a dispute with CBS for more than a month. 

The straw that broke the camel's back was my inability to see the US Open Tennis matches over the weekend.  The Tennis Channel and ESPN 2 had weak offerings.  I also miss 60 Minutes and the CBS Evening News.

But, lucky for me, the two media giants somehow got it figured out and made a deal late yesterday.  I'm saved.

Saved from the ordeal of changing from one company to another. I think they make it hard just so you won't change.  A change would involve a change of equipment (modem, DVR, wifi router), change of all my internet settings (how would I figure this all out) and a change to the Slingbox which we use to watch US programs while away from home.  I'm sure the change would have taken weeks and we would have been without one service or another for a long time.  We now get TV, internet/wifi and phone service from one company.  Maybe that's a mistake, but I'm willing to live with it now that we have CBS again.

Spices

I have to admit it, I have lots of spices in little bottles like these.

I buy them for recipes.  I buy them with the intent to cook something new or different.   It is always a hopeful, happy purchase.

Today, I came home with about 10 new jars of spices.  I didn't count them but it was a lot.  I bought  two jars at once for some of my favorites.  I hate that moment in the kitchen when I use the last of something or find the jar empty. 

Unfortunately, I bought two jars of rosemary today.  I use it a lot and I thought I was completely out.  I cooked a rack of lamb for Terry last night.   I had to improvise with the spices due to the lack of this key ingredient.    Too late for dinner last night,  I found a jar of rosemary in the pantry while I was putting my new loot away this afternoon.  It was in plain sight with the other new, unopened spices waiting patiently to be opened.  So now I have three. 

I hoard spices.  I feel unhappy, uncomfortable if I'm missing one of my go-to herbs or spices.

I just looked in my pantry and realized that I must be in the habit of buying a spice for a recipe when I already have one.  That's the case with nutmeg, turmeric and paprika.  I have 5 different kinds of paprika and I rarely use it because it doesn't seem to bring much flavor to the my recipes.  It does bring color though, so I can't count it out. 

There is also poultry seasoning and pumpkin pie spice.  I certainly don't need more bottles of these once-a-year flavors. 

I have to import and export certain spices that are better in the US or in France or simply unavailable.

French herbs de provence is much better than the overpriced stuff for sale at Williams Sonoma.  I buy big bottles of it at Monoprix.  When I check out with five or more bottles of herbs de provence and a few containers of sel de camargue, I'm sure the checker wonders what I am going to do with this vast quantity of herbs and salt.  A lot of it goes in the suitcase, for use in my US kitchen and for gifts to friends and family members who are "in the know".   Imports into France include ancho chili powder and smoked paprika from Trader Joe's. That's the one paprika that I love and it's almost impossible to find. 

I hoard spices in both countries.   Even though I cook differently, cook different things in each place, I use the same spices routinely so they are the jars that are stacked up in both places.   I once told Terry that we can't leave France for good until all the spices are used up.  That won't happen anytime soon. 

Is It A Pharmacy?

I was driving to an appointment yesterday in LA.  I needed to stop at a pharmacy and buy some Advil.  I had a headache developing from all the traffic and smog.

I saw the familiar sign and pulled into the parking lot.

This is the universal  sign that means "pharmacy"  in France. 

When the light is on, the store is open, when it's off, it's closed. 

CVS, Rite-Aid and Walgreens don't exist in France.  The normal French pharmacy is very small.  Most of the things for sale are behind the counter so you have to ask for them; even Advil.

Back to LA.  I walked into the store.  It was kind of dark and not very welcoming.  No one else was in this store except me.  Finally a young guy, very shabbily dressed, walked out from the back room.  "Hi", he said.

Suddenly, I realized, I'm not in Kansas anymore.  I'm not in France.  I'm in a medical marijuana dispensary.

This is the sign that was out front.  Actually, it was a flag.  That should have been my first clue of impermanence. It was so familiar, but not quite the same.

I made my excuses and left the store. Laughing as I got into my car, I realized that I would never have had the courage to park and enter this kind of store.  So this was an interesting mistake. 

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It's A Dog's World

Dreaming of Voltaire

I used to walk by this statue of Voltaire every day on my way to the Club Med Gym. 

He (it) is in a small private garden across from one side of the Institute de France.  I think it is at the very top of rue de Seine.  It is one of so many historic places in Paris that makes me feel that I lived here during Voltaire's time. 

Of course, I wouldn't have liked pre-Haussman Paris nearly as much.  But I can still dream. 

Weather Report

It's sad that the weather such an important part of a trip.  But it is.  Madrid was warm, sunny, dry.  Not a cloud in the sky.

Everyone was sitting outside, under umbrellas, at 10 PM.  Starting to consider the dinner menu.  These guys were taking care of the entertainment.  They were actually pretty good.

Despite the graffiti in this picture, the city was clean, seemed safe.  Everything worked.

We only saw one demonstration and it was only about 20 people walking on the sidewalk, so traffic wasn't disrupted.

I'm trying to be "zen" about the Paris weather.  This lovely creature lives at the Musee Guimet. 

Paris has had dark skies, thunderstorms and lots of rain.  It's hard to plan the day.  One minute it seems like Summer, the next minute I'm ducking for cover. 

J'ai fait mes courses

Saturday is always a big errand-running day for me in Paris.  Most stores are closed on Sunday. 

People that work have only one day to do all the chores.  On the positive side, Sunday is then allocated as a rest, relaxation and fun day.  Except that many restaurants are also closed.

In the US, my routine is simple and familiar.  I can do all my errands without getting tired and without having to go home to drop things off.  I start out at the gym.  I do my workout, throw on my jacket and jump in my car.  Many of the stores that I frequent are nearby;  the grocery store, pharmacy, tailor.  Even if I go to several different stores for groceries they are all easily within a five mile range. 

I put all the "stuff" in the trunk of the car, run the rest of the errands and go home.  I put it all away, take a shower and I'm done for the day and it's not even lunchtime.

In Paris, I also have a long list of errands.  In May there are so many holidays that I have to "stock up" a or I risk not having an ingredient or a band aid or laundry soap when I need it. 

Off I go.  It is not normal to run errands in workout clothes.  I walk to and from the gym in workout clothes and that's a bit unusual; most woman change into street clothes to go home (even if they don't shower). 

Sometimes I run errands before working out and sometimes I work out then  take a shower and change into street clothes before going out to do the errands.  I have tried both schedules, they both work so it just depends on what is going on. 

My errands are always in different directions.  I have to organize them, using the apartment as a "hub".  I go off in one direction with my trusty cart, do everything possible in that area, come home, drop it all off and then head out in a different direction for another "load".  Yesterday I didn't finish all the chores until about 2 PM.  That's OK, it's also interesting.   There's always something new to see.  I also feel a sense of satisfaction when everything is in order (at least for a day or two). 

They Come, Without Fail

The Luxembourg ponies arrive for a day of pleasure for small children.  These ponies are in the garden every Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday without fail.  They are famous; in everyone's home movies and photos of a day enjoyed outdoors. 

Daylight Savings Time Came A Bit Early Here

I almost had a heart attack on Saturday afternoon.  As I was walking around the Lux, I looked up and the clock said it was almost 2 PM.   I was supposed to be at a movie at 3 PM.  Heart attack. 

Then, I realized that someone had set the clock ahead a day early.  Why work on the weekend?

Lockdown In The Lux

I've never been frisked trying to enter the Luxembourg Gardens for my AM jog -- until today.  Most of the gates were closed and the area around the Senat was cordoned off.  I made my way around enough times to get the minimum 5km before beating a hasty retreat.

CNN has the answer to what's going on;  the Senat is debating the same-sex marriage bill today.  Wow.  How can an issue like marriage bring such an air of hostility and violence.  I've never seen the Lux so protected in all my years here.  

Order Has Been Restored

This is our third coffee pot in 11 years in France.  A pretty good record.  Our last one was past it's prime when it finally stopped working.  Unfortunately the day it decided to stop working was a Sunday when nothing is open.  We made do with a few Nespressos this morning before venturing out for what seemed like a simple errand.

In the US, we jump in the car, probably still in our workout clothes, and go to Target.  We grab one quickly and rush it home.  Done, in under 30 minutes door-to-door.

Not so in Paris.  We got on the bus which took us to the stop, "Hotel de Ville".  A manifestation was getting underway so the police had the whole square in front of the Hotel de Ville closed off with those metal fences.  Hoping for a short errand, we pushed through the gate and crossed the square.  At the other end, a bunch of police had gathered.  The wall is kind of high at that end so we had to jump down.  Ouch.  No permanent damage.

Into BHV, which is under construction on the outside and is being re-arranged on all 6 floors for the Summer.  Nothing is where it used to be!  We found coffee pots on the 3rd floor I think.  Didn't all that stuff used to be on the 4th floor?  And more importantly, why did they move it.  Oh well.  We found a display of coffee pots.  The one feature that we were looking for was not marked on any of the machines.  We like a coffee pot that turns off by itself after awhile in case we forget to turn it off.   We asked a salesman who didn't know so he got another woman who showed us the models that turn off automatically.  All of them are big and cost Euro 100.  Not what we had in mind.  We walked around, saw a few others and decided that BHV might not have the best selection.

Back on the bus.  This time we took the first bus that was headed in the right direction, since we didn't really know where to go.  We got off near the Pont Neuf.  We crossed the street and right there was a huge Darty store. In we went.  We saw a pretty good coffeemaker but the saleswoman told us that it was low quality.  Hard to imagine that happening but we decided to believe her since we'd never heard of the brand before.  The other models were nothing special, back to the bus, back to BHV.

We avoided the square in front of the Hotel de Ville this time and walked around, back to the 3rd floor back to the displays.  They all started looking better since we'd now been on this errand for at least two hours in our semi caffeine-free state.  We finally decided on a model, bought it and left.

Not to be outdone by how logistically hard it was to buy a coffee maker, the bus we were on had a "terminus" (stop where everyone has to get off) that wasn't the end of the line.  We all got off the bus and the electronic sign said that the next bus would be coming in 9 minutes.  I hate it when this happens.  We decided to hike it out.  During this part of the journey, Terry was hit by a woman on a bike who was going too fast.  We got to the 58 bus stop and had a bit of time to wait.  A crazy woman was asking the same question of everyone that was waiting for the bus, we answered in the same way as everyone else and she seemed surprised to be getting the same answer.

The coffee pot has been washed and is ready to brew tomorrow morning.

Laundry, Paris-Style

French washers are very different from US models.  In our limited space, we have one unit that both washes and dries the clothes.  You can wash, dry or wash and dry.  You can also rinse or spin the clothes.  There are many different cycles, many of them take a very long time (more than three hours) but there is also an ECO cycle. 

We are already on our second washer/dryer combo.  They seem to be quite expensive and they break down quickly, probably due to the violent activity that takes place with each wash cycle. 

They also hold very little.  I can do 2.5 kg of wash/dry and it takes more than three hours.  On the "good" side of the equation, it uses very little water unlike a US model.  A small amount of water is heated, goes into the tank, the laundry is spun, rinsed and the water leaves.  This is also good if there's some kind of breakdown.  My US washer had a problem about a year ago and it flooded the entire floor with many, many gallons of water.  If this happened in France, it would flood our neighbor's apartments and cause a lot of damage.

So, with guests coming from the US soon, I've had to warn everyone that doing laundry is time-consuming and noisy.   For large loads I often go to the Laudromat down the street and do it all at once.  It isn't bad at all and it's done in one hour.

A Bit Of Snow

This is the scene that we woke up to this morning.  A bit of snow on the ground. 

It's March, I know, but that's OK. 

It's also very cold outside.  Too cold to go out. 

I re-covered my plants, not with the special stuff I got at BHV earlier in the year but some plastic painting tarps. I'd already taken off and thrown away the covers thinking that the sun would be out soon.

It was supposed to snow yesterday but it didn't.  We've had a steady light snow all day long.

President's Day or Presidents' Day or Presidents Day?

Tomorrow is President's Day.  Or is it Presidents' Day?

When I was in school, we celebrated Washington's birthday and Lincoln's birthday; two separate holidays in February.  At that time, the days were celebrated on the actual birth day (date).  Washington's actual birthday was February 22 and Lincoln's was February 12. 

Several attempts were made to create on generic "President's Day".  Obviously, we can't have a holiday for every President, can we?  Actually, many we want to forget. 

In any case, along came the Uniform Monday Holiday Act which puts many holidays on a Monday to avoid confusion and give people a three-day weekend.  The third Monday of February was chosen, between the two men's birthdays.  But, the holiday was still called, "Washington's Birthday". 

It was later changed to Presidents Day to honor the office of President.  Some states still honor Lincoln on his birthday, but that goes state-by-state. 

The spelling of the day is up for grabs.  It can be found in the dictionary three different ways; with the apostrophe before the "s" (one President), after the "s" (more than one President),  or without an apostrophe.  I think the first two are fine depending on the meaning.  The third, which is the current style in the AP Stylebook (followed by most journalists) is incorrect.  Oh well, what do I know. 

Happy President(s) Day.

Holiday Abundance

It's President's Day weekend in the US.  Monday is a holiday. 

I think that it's also "ski week" here.   Ski week is a  holiday week in February that was started a few years ago because so many of families took their kids out of school for a week to ski.  The schools decided that it was easier to "go with the flow".  Now there is a holiday week in February and the week has been tacked on to the end or beginning of the school year. 

Many of these holidays take me by surprise.  They're not on my calendar.  I'd forgotten that Monday will be a day off for many, including banks, schools and the post office.  At least I didn't plan a week of skiing thinking that I'd have the mid-week slope to myself. 

It feels like we just got over the Christmas/New Year's holidays.  I like the normalcy of daily life, unmarred by closures, multitudes of kids on skateboards and no mail service. 

I'm off to France soon, so I shouldn't complain about holidays here.  May is impossible in France with five holidays, November has a lot too. Then, if the holiday falls mid-week, the French people take a few days off either before or after the holiday to make it a long weekend.  It's called "le pont" or the bridge.    The abundance of holidays never ceases to amaze me. 

Easter is early this year, falling at the end of March.  In the US, I remember that some companies would give the employees a 1/2 day off for Good Friday.  What a treat.  In France, the Easter holiday is at least four days -- Friday through Monday since "Easter Monday" is a holiday for many people.  Stores are all open the day before Easter so everyone is out stocking up. 

Then, there are the vacances scolaries, for students. This holiday consists of two weeks off from school several times a year.  It is wise to never book travel at the beginning or end of these holiday periods, everyone scrambles to get out of town and cabs are scarce, train stations crowded and the roads jammed in both directions (in and out of town). 

While I like holidays in general, I think there are too many of them both here and in France.

TGIF, and it's not over yet...

 It's not a job-related TGIF today, it's a dishwasher that has caused a lot of undue stress in my life for the last week plus.  Here's the culprit. 

Our old dishwasher still worked and I had a hard time justifying the purchase of a new one.  The old one was very, very noisy.  With two new grand kids sleeping right below the old monster, we had to "time" the dishwasher cycles between naps and bedtime.  If everyone was visiting, the dishes started to pile up pretty quickly.

Then I heard that today's dishwashers are silent.  My sister says that she has to look for the light to see if hers is running or not.

I thought getting a new dishwasher would be easy.   We've just put in new hardwood floors, carpeting and purchased custom furniture.  All of that should have been hard.  Even though it was hard to have our house torn up for several weeks, everything went smoothly.  The workers were professional.  They did the job right. 

Off to Pacific Sales I went with my tape measure and the measurements of my existing dishwasher.  I found a salesman right away and told him I wanted the quietest dishwasher available.  His eyes lit up.  Evidently the quieter the machine the more expensive it is.  Of course.  He showed me two machines; one American, one European.  He suggested I buy the American brand which was more expensive. 

It looked really nice had a lot of features that I hadn't asked for but that would come in handy.  Like a third row that you can put knives, and utensils to wash. Out came the tape measure with a surprise.  This machine is too tall for my space.  I went clear across the store to measure the other one.  It was slightly shorter but still 1/8" too tall.  I asked the salesman about the height and he replied, "they're all standard".  Of course they're not exactly standard since one was about 3/8" taller than the other one, but I guess we're splitting hairs. 

Back home to re-measure.  The second set of measurements told me that neither "standard" size machine would fit in the space.  Back to Pacific Sales.  Found the salesman who was rude and impatient with me, repeating his mantra, "they're all standard".  He didn't offer any suggestions and couldn't wait to leave my company.  Obviously I couldn't buy a dishwasher today.  Back home, this time to my computer.

Yes, dishwashers are a standard height, 33-7/8".  Yes, my space is 33-3/4".  So, I asked Mr. Google for suggestions.  Back came four model numbers each from a different manufacturer.  There was one I liked.  It was at Best Buy.  Luckily Best Buy is closer than Pacific Sales.  I went there, with my tape measure and my model number.  A nice salesman spent a lot of time with me, looking on his computer. Unfortunately, he couldn't get the one I wanted any time soon.  Back home.  I called Pacific Sales, talked to a woman who told me that they had 26 of the dishwasher I wanted.  Back to Pacific Sales to find, to my amazement, that the dishwasher I wanted was sitting right on the showroom floor and that the original salesman could have easily pointed this out to me.  Anger aside, I bought the dishwasher and the saleswoman arranged for delivery and an installer to come out the next day.

If I'd only known that this was the easy part. 

The installers called and gave me a three hour window.  They arrived 5 minutes before the end of the window, of course.  The head guy immediately jacked the price of installation by 100% due to electrical, plumbing and other things that he found deficient. OK, the dishwasher has to go in.  They worked, drilled, hammered.  They ran up and down the stairs.  By 5:30PM, the dishwasher was still in the middle of the kitchen.  The installer called and said that they had to finish their other installations today and that they had to go to Home Depot to get a pipe to finish our job.  They'd be back later.  Hungry and tired, our kitchen was trashed.  Chips of stuff, dirt and water on the floor.  They'd used, without asking, my pots and pans to contain water leaks that they'd created in their task.  I just wanted them out of my house at any cost.  

When I told them that they'd have to come back the next day, the installer yelled at me.  I told him to take his tools and leave.  Needless to say, they aren't welcome back.  We called a plumber who finished the job 24 hours later.  I sanitized the kitchen, put everything away and order was restored. 

WICE Visual Arts Department Vernissage

Please join us at another great event at WICE.

The Visual Arts Department will be having an exhibition every two months during the academic year.  The next vernissage is scheduled for Wednesday, February 13, 2013. It will run from 6:30 PM - 8 PM.

The artists that are represented will be on-hand to discuss their work.  Snacks and wine will be provided.

The event will take place at the WICE offices.

Thursday Is The New Friday

After a movie last night, we went to our favorite sushi place.  We were hoping for a casual, fast meal. 

We arrived a bit later than usual.  The place was packed.  Standing room only.  Mostly 20 and 30-somethings wearing casual clothes not work clothes.  It was loud, almost like a party. 

We declined the table offered to us right by the front door.  It was next to a long table of young men who were screaming, getting up and down to talk to the other end of the table, taking sake shots. 

Do we want to pay to be in this atmosphere?  We went home and lit the grill.

Then it dawned on me -- it was Thursday night.  We've run into this before.  Thursday is the new Friday.  Remember TGIF?  Now it's TGIT. 

Do people work four days a week instead of five or do they show up for casual Friday with a hangover?  Maybe a bit of both.  I think some of the aerospace companies in the area work on an every-other Friday off basis.  All these people can't be unemployed or they couldn't afford the sushi and sake.  I don't know what unemployment pays these days but it can't be enough for this kind of meal. 

In any case, we were shut out last night.  Maybe we'll try for a Friday night out, it might be dead at the sushi place. 

Sheet Protectors

Sheet protectors are those plastic sheets that protect paper.  Normally they have holes in one side so that they can be put into a binder.

When we were looking for an apartment in Paris, the real estate agents didn't log into a multiple listing service on their computers, they pulled out a binder, licked a finger and proceeded to turn the pages encased in sheet protectors.  Each sheet protector held an apartment.  At the time, it didn't seem like there was any order to these papers, as a new apartment came on the market, it was written up, printed out, put into it's own sheet protector and added to the front of the binder. 

Since we haven't been in the market for an apartment for a few years, I don't know if they've upgraded the system to computer yet.  In any case, there is no such thing as a multiple listing service so each agency has it's own apartments.  If you're in the market to buy something, you have to either look on the internet (Se Loger) or another website to find all the products and then contact the agent directly.

I hadn't thought about sheet protectors in a long time until recently.  We don't/shouldn't use as much paper with the ease of use and portability of computers these days. 

We went to buy a new couch and to my surprise, the store didn't have all the models available in the store or on-line.  We had to sit at a table and look through -- you guessed it-- a binder with papers in sheet protectors.

When we found the model we wanted, we referred to fabric samples to find what we wanted.  Putting the two together to find the price and delivery status, the rep in the store opened yet another binder with more sheet protected pages of specs and prices.  It was very laborious and took quite a long time.  Several phone calls were required before the price and specs were delivered to us for approval.   Why they still use paper is beyond me, especially since they don't have any kind of catalog.  

Micro Cell Deux

The micro cell took all day to install and countless calls to AT &T's technical support.

At one time, AT & T told me that my modem wasn't fast enough to support their product which prompted a call to our internet service provider who assured me that our modem is quite fast, thank you.  This is the game that companies play when they can't fix the problem, they tell you that someone else caused the problem.  It's impossible to have one-stop shopping for something like this.

I finally ended up on an hour+ long call with a rep that somehow got it to work.  Now I can get phone calls and texts in my house, quite an accomplishment. 

The pain of losing half a day of my time wasn't worth it, though. 

Quail and Rabbit in France, Bison in the US

I had my first taste of bison meat at Christmas time. My sister ordered a bison steak and I had a bite. It was delicious.

If I think of those big, wiry-haired creatures munching grass on the plains and it's hard to imagine that they taste good.  But the meat is quite tasty when prepared properly.  My sister makes bison spaghetti sauce which she says is great and her family loves it. 

I was in Whole Foods yesterday morning.  It's one of the few places I know that carries bison so I decided to give it a try. Luckily it was early and the butcher was talkative.  He walked me through the different cuts of meat, where they originate anatomically and how to cook them.  I settled on ground bison meat and decided to make a meat loaf. 

I didn't think too much more about it until it was time to actually prepare the bison.   I opened the package and looked at it.  It was very red.  I later read up on bison and found out that it is redder than beef because it is leaner.  The ground bison is guaranteed to be 10% fat or less. 

With the normal recipe I use for turkey meatloaf (loaded with fresh veggies) I prepared the bison and popped it in the oven.  We loved it and now I'm hooked.  I wonder if it's available in France? I can't imagine bison grazing in Burgundy next to a vineyard but it could happen I guess. 

I have my go-to lean favorites in France too.  Quail and rabbit are equally delicious and healthy.  Just like the bison in the US, I have to get these treats at a butcher although I've seen rabbit and quail packaged on the store shelves it makes me a little nervous to buy them this way.  The first time I made quail, I didn't know that you have to ask the butcher to cut off their little heads (feathers, eyes and all).  The feet, thankfully were off.  So, I had to decapitate them before cooking them.  It didn't sour me on the experience because they were magnificent. 

Rabbit is an acquired taste in my family.  We used to eat it when we were kids, I think because it was inexpensive.  Terry declined several times when I offered to cook it for him.  Finally we were surprised by French friends who cooked a rabbit for us.  Terry thought it was chicken, luckily he didn't compliment the meal by name.  It still took some work to get him to try it.  I researched recipes, found the perfect one.  We went to the butcher, found the perfect rabbit and had it cut up to my specifications.  Terry is sold on rabbit now.

So we have our options for healthy, low-fat, high protein meat.  It's hard (but not impossible) to get rabbit and quail here.  Almost impossible to get it fresh (not frozen).   I have no idea about bison in France, it would probably be frozen too. 

The "Micro" Cell

We have horrible cell phone reception at home in the US.  We have AT &T but I think that all the mobile operators have the same problem here.  At the store, the sales guy told me that it isn't AT & T's fault, it's the City of Manhattan Beach that won't let more towers be built to extend cell coverage.  I'm semi-skeptical, but I can't imagine having a cell tower on my roof and there is very little public property around here.

So, I got a "hot tip" a couple of days ago that I could call AT&T and get a "micro" cell which would extend coverage.

After a lot (!!!) of run-around, I finally got it today.  The run-around is that they should give everyone this cell so that we can use our phones.  The obvious thing is to change carriers if they don't help out.  After several phone calls and an extended and weird negotiation at the store, I got the micro cell, brought it home and plugged it in.  I'm waiting for it to boot up before I can call this a result.  It is supposed to take 90 minutes, but I think that's just enough time for all the people I've dealt with today to finish their shift so I don't bug them again.

At the store, when I asked for AT &T to waive the cost ($199) they tried to make me buy something else that is the same cost, give me the micro cell and then I could return the other product.  They actually then tried to get me to buy another product, but it just seemed too convoluted.  I can't figure out why they would do this.  In any case, I am expecting a credit on the next bill.  I am also expecting my phone to ring a bit more often.  We'll see.

The bad part of this product is that you've got to register all the phones to this cell. So, if I have a micro cell but my neighbor doesn't he can't use his phone with mine.  That seems like a bother since now everyone will have one more device and if they don't, they won't have cell service.

Other Grooming Differences

I never get my hair done in France due to a bad experience.  The downside of this is that I can get pretty scraggly looking between trips across the Atlantic.

The differences in my grooming habits are deeper than this.  Almost every aspect of my grooming routine is different in the US than it is in Paris. 

Part of the problem with grooming in Paris is the traveling to get to and from an appointment.  If it's snowing and I've just gotten a pedicure, I can't slide into my boots to make the trip home.  Hypothermia aside, it would look a bit suspicious to be on the metro in flip-flops. I don't have a car.

This brings up the first of many cultural differences in the area of grooming -- nail polish is optional (and costs extra) after a pedicure.  In my opinion, why would anyone want a pedicure and not get their toe nails polished.  That's the cute part.

I seem to have a busier schedule in France.  Mornings are reserved for exercise, a shower and maybe a trip to the grocery store.  Several afternoons are blocked with on-going obligations.   Then there's the myriad of exhibitions, museums and movies to see.  Friends to visit.  It's hard to find a second for grooming. 

In the US, maybe it's because I have a car that grooming just seems easier.  It's warm most of the time, so flip-flops aren't weird.   No one even sees them if I'm coming home from a pedicure.  No one sees my red, no makeup face on the return trip from the facialist.

And I have more time in the US.  Cultural events aren't nagging me to attend before they disappear.

Another biggie:   I can speak English.  It is really hard to tell someone in a foreign language that my skin is sensitive, and I don't want a chemical exfoliation that will make me look years younger after the blotchy red skin goes away. 

It seems to me that the only safe grooming activity in France is waxing.  They don't break the skin and it can grow back.  Unless it's the eyebrows, if it's a bad job, no one will notice.  And, it's fairly inexpensive, compared with the US.

I've never had a massage in France, maybe I'll try it sometime.  All the grooming activities also carry the fear that I will meet my neighbors either in the street or in the building when I'm coming in the door from a grooming appointment.  Flip flops when it's snowing, no makeup, hair in a mess, the rumors will fly.

I Didn't Realize

I didn't realize how much I needed a hair appointment until I walked out of the salon yesterday. 

I had a bad (very bad) experience with a french coiffeuse in 2006.  At that time, we'd been in France a long time and I needed my hair done.  I'd seen a nice, large salon near our apartment.  I went in to investigate, talked to the owner.  We discussed what needed to be done and I set up an appointment to see her in a few days. 

When I arrived at the salon, I was told that another woman would be doing my hair.  I should have balked then but I accepted this change and sat down in her chair.  In the US, I have a "weave".  They put color (or colors) into a thin amount of hair and wrap that in foil.  Then you wait until it works, they wash and style the hair. 

I had asked for a weave.  The original woman (owner) said OK to the weave.  Maybe they don't do weaves in France.  The new woman started doing what she called "balayage" which means sweeping.  It is similar except they put the hair in plastic wrap instead of foil.  I didn't object to this.  But, it took FOR-EVER.  At the two hour mark, I should have been out the door but she was still sweeping.  The cutting took forever too.  I ended up staggering out of the salon at about the 4-/2 hour mark.  My hair looked OK, not great, not even better.  But, the next day when I tried to style it I encountered a disaster.  The woman didn't cut it right, didn't color it right and it didn't look good at all.  I had to let it all grow out. 

Ever since then, I've been getting my hair done exclusively in the US.  So, sometimes I have to wait a long time between appointments. 

I've been putting off getting my hair done because I've been busy.   I should have gone sooner.  This week, I looked in the mirror and decided that I'm overdue.  I looked "witchy".  Off to see Jeannie I went yesterday.   I really didn't think too much about it, I just needed a bit of rejuvenation.  But now that it's done, I realize that I waited far too long.  Maybe I need to find a French coiffeuse that I can trust.