Aller Retour

Can't Speak English, Can't Speak French

2012-01-15T12:52:00.001-08:00

My sister called me the other day on my cell phone.

We live near a very steep hill and cell phone reception is spotty. So, I told her I'd call her right back using my home phone because my cell phone is "fragile".

I called her back immediately and she was still laughing. "Fragile", isn't that a french usage? Hmmm, I thought, I guess she's right. I should have used a term like "unreliable". I'm not sure "fragile" would have been right in French, either. Maybe a better term would have been "faible", meaning weak.

Weak, now there's a term that defines my language skills. "Fragile" in English, "Faible" in French.

People that are truly bi-lingual don't have these problems. The word just comes out in the correct language, right verb tense, using the proper adverbs and adjectives. They don't even have to think about it.

Now, I feel like I'm losing "it" in English. I have a Kindle and I have to use the dictionary all the time to look up words in English. Here's one that neither Terry no I knew the spelling of this morning. It was in an article in the LA Times. We both thought that they'd made a spelling mistake, but we were wrong and the paper (big surprise) was correct.

archetypal |ˌärk(i)ˈtīpəl|
adjective
very typical of a certain kind of person or thing : the archetypal country doctor.
• recurrent as a symbol or motif in literature, art, or mythology : an archetypal journey representing the quest for identity.
• of, relating to, or denoting an original that has been imitated : the archetypal believer, Abraham.
• relating to or denoting Jungian archetypes.

At least we knew the meaning of the word and could use it in a sentence.

Order is Restored

2012-01-05T16:57:00.001-08:00

I love technical things and I embrace/buy/use as many of them as I can justify.

I waited and waited for the iPHONE 5 to come out, nursing my 3+ year-old original iPHONE 3. It was on the way out for months but held on. Of course, I had to get the iPHONE 4S. I got it, I love it, I rely on it.

So, today as I was racing out the door for an appointment, I looked down at my new phone and the screen was dark except for a weird half circle in the center of the screen.

No biggie. I threw the phone in my purse, figuring that by the time the appointment was over the phone would have recovered from whatever trauma it had sustained.

Later in the afternoon, I took the phone out and the same screen was on. But, the phone was very hot. Maybe it was working overtime to try to restore harmony.

Trying not to panic, I worried that I would be phone-less, maybe for days! After a bad experience with two Amazon Kindle Fire devices, I could see the same hellish round of phone customer service tag that I'd just unsuccessfully gone through.

I found the Apple Support page on the computer but my iTUNES password was not working. So, I had to stop everything and re-set it (and try to remember it). I got through and the next screen told me that I could book a time for a phone call with an Apple tech. OK, time choices arrived. I could have an immediate phone call, which is not fast enough but I accepted it. A guy called. He cracked a couple of dumb jokes, I tapped my foot (he couldn't see it). But, in about four steps, he got the phone going again.

Order is restored.

Modern Art Hidden in Ancient Places

2012-01-01T14:02:00.000-08:00

France's archaeological past can be seen everywhere you look. It's almost impossible to miss the crypts, Roman ruins, thousand year-old stone walls.

These treasures are stored outside St. Chapelle in Paris. No idea why they have X's on them.

Modern art is around too, but not all of it is attractive. The best part is that the modern is juxtaposed with the ancient, making our brains work a little harder to understand and appreciate it all.

My friend, Christine, found this chapel in a beautiful hidden church on rue de Sevres. The church was renovated in 2007. Everything but this chapel is ancient.

We found this modern chapel in Rouen, it is the church dedicated to Joan of Arc. It was build in 1979. It is light, angular, modern.

The iron branch holds the traditional church candles. It is beautiful.

Chloe's Birthday

2011-12-28T11:00:00.001-08:00

"Playing with new toys is just exhausting...", says the birthday girl.

Smog

2011-12-28T10:57:00.001-08:00

That layer of brown between the blue sky and the blue water is smog.

When the wind blows from east to west the smog from LA blows out to sea. Normally it sits at the base of the mountains, far away from us.

Awfully Quiet Around Here...

2011-12-23T13:14:00.000-08:00

The holiday doesn't start until tomorrow, according to my calendar.

I think the "official" day off for people is the 26th, Monday this year since Christmas falls on a Sunday.

Out and about this morning, I was impressed by an unusual sound -- nothing. It's quiet outside. Not many cars, not many kids playing on the playground. A couple of dogs barking. I could get used to this -- quickly.

It won't last. Maybe we'll have some peace until January 3rd. I think January 2nd is the "day off".

I went about my usual business today. The holiday starts tomorrow.

A New Coffee Activity

2011-12-17T16:36:00.000-08:00

Coffee is one of my first thoughts every morning. If I'm an addict, at least it's legal and available everywhere in the world.

I have (had) a great coffee maker. It ground the beans and then brewed the coffee so it is (was) always fresh. In the middle of the night last night, Terry heard a weird noise and when he investigated it turned out to be the coffee pot. He unplugged it and forgot about it.

When I got up and tried the grind cycle, nothing happened. It made a weak noise, attempting to grind the beans but nothing happened. I cleaned it out, tried again. Re-set the machine's functions, tried again, the same. So, we had Nespresso.

I thought I had a spare coffee maker in the garage. I dusted it off, washed it, set it up, set it's clock and tried to make a test pot. The "on" button wouldn't work. The "off" button wouldn't work. It's gone, too.

Shopping was on the agenda anyway, it's a week before Christmas. So, this afternoon, I entered the world of the french press. I've wanted one forever but had a hard time justifying one with a coffee maker and a Nespresso machine (in both places). I bought a 12-cup model (shown above). Twelve cups of french press coffee equal about 36 oz total, or maybe two Starbuck's medium cups (I think it's called Venti but I'm not well-versed in Starbucks lingo). But, it's the biggest model they make.

I saved the brushed stainless thermos carafe from the old coffee pot, perfect to keep french press coffee nice and warm. I'm set.

I dashed home, tore open the packaging to my new french press. I'm not one to read and follow directions. Even when I get something complicated like a computer, I unwrap it, plug it in and play with it until I get stuck before reading anything. Reading is for the details, not macro usage instructions.

But, looking at this thing, I was a bit stumped. How does it work? How do you keep coffee grinds from getting (ick) in the coffee? I had to read the directions. Twice. They still didn't make complete sense, so I decided a late-afternoon pick-me-up was in order. I followed the directions to the letter. Tested, tasted the result. Fabulous.

I'll never go back. It's all set up for tomorrow's first real test.

Updating The Address Book

2011-12-15T14:55:00.000-08:00

Sending and receiving Christmas cards is a wonderful way to keep in touch with friends and family. The mailman brings pictures, cards, letters every day now. He's almost like Santa.

The Christmas card process has taken on a new dimension this year.

I went and bought cards a week ago. That was the easy part. I made the list of people, OK. I started writing the envelopes. I always do the envelopes, put the stamps on and then get down to the business of writing notes. OK.

For years I've used Palm application on my computer. I have hundreds of names, addresses and phone numbers.

Since I've had an iPHONE, I've slipped up a little bit, now I use the phone to keep the phone numbers, addresses, door codes, etc. So, I have addresses in two places; two different lists. Additionally, I have many friends that I don't even have their address.

Embarrassingly, I've had to call and email quite a few people to get their correct address. Now, that I've finished writing out the cards, I can settle into the new job of editing both lists to make them complete. This job should be done to my satisfaction by the time next year's cards need to be addressed (I hope).

I Picked This For the Label

2011-12-14T16:57:00.001-08:00

And the price (under 5 Euro). I wasn't disappointed, but my methods are suspicious.

My Address Book

2011-12-14T13:28:00.000-08:00

I am trying to write and mail Christmas cards this week. It used to be pretty easy, I just opened my Palm address book and everyone was in there.

I switched to an iPHONE a few (maybe 3) years ago. My contacts are usually a phone number and an email address. If the people live in Paris, there might be a door code in there somewhere.

So, I've had to email a bunch of people to get their addresses. Sorry, everyone, I'll put them in my Contacts for sure. If I don't hear back from you, you'll be getting an e-card, so I do have options.

Two Sunsets In One Day

2011-12-09T16:25:00.000-08:00

Flying from east to west awhile ago, we took off in the light, the sky turned orange and red, sunset. Many hours spent in the dark. Probably over Greenland. Long day and night.

We left the window shades open, it was dark. Eventually it started to get light again. Brilliant daylight for awhile, now my internal clock is really messed up.

We land in the light and grab a cab. As we head due west on Imperial Highway, the sky was, once again, red/orange/yellow. Second sunset in a very long day.

Overwhelmed by the Antiquities at the Louvre

2011-11-28T04:33:00.001-08:00

I pointed my iPHONE out the window.

She's Just The Messenger...

2011-11-26T07:34:00.001-08:00

With a washer/dryer combo (one machine) that holds a maximum of 2.5 kg, I allow myself the small luxury of having my sheets done at a real french laundry. They come back starchy, stiff and really white. They are a pleasure to slip into.

The closest laundry that is reliable (this is a relative term) is about a ten minute walk. It's a very pleasant walk in a shopping area. I have to bring a bag to carry them back in, they come covered but they are heavy.

The sheets that I took in on Monday were supposed to be done by Friday morning. The woman promised. I didn't have time to get them on Friday, so I went this afternoon (Saturday). I made a special trip and it is quite cold outside. It was getting dark as I got there. There were three people ahead of me and each one had special instructions, questions, comments. I waited about 10-15 minutes before I presented the woman with my ticket.

She disappeared into the back of the store, behind shelves filled with other peoples' sheets, blankets and bedspreads. She was gone a long time, which never bodes well.

Back she came, empty-handed. I should add that this is pretty common, it happens about half the time. While I'm not in a panic to get them, I made a special trip on a dark and cold Saturday afternoon.

She opened a dog-eared spiral-bound notebook and told me that they will be back on Monday. OK. But, they were supposed to be back on Friday morning and it's Saturday afternoon, I said.

Her reply (with a smile on her face and no malice) was that she doesn't do the sheets, she only works in the store. She's only the messenger of the bad news about the sheets.

Photo Opp

2011-11-21T08:40:00.000-08:00

What does it take to get a photo for the french "carte de sejour"?

Normally it is very easy, much easier than in the US. There are Photomation booths in many metro stops that take photos that can be used for passports, school photos, ID cards (museums, etc). You enter the booth, sit on the stool and smile. In 30 seconds the sheet of photos pops out.

Today, we needed photos and we found a booth at the metro stop at Hotel de Ville.

I sat on the little stool, pushed my Euro 5 note into the machine and smiled. Out rolled the euro note, rejected. I took it, smoothed it out and tried again. Out. I smoothed some more and tried putting it in the other way. Out.

I asked Terry if he could try to get change for a 20 Euro note at the kiosk where they sell metro tickets. No dice. He then tried all the little stores that are underground near the photo booth, negative. We resorted to buying a metro ticket to get the change but the woman wouldn't give us the necessary change and yelled at us, basically for being pests.

We need the photos. So, off we went on the metro; Line 1 to Concorde, change to the 12 to rue de Bac where our bank is located. We had to stand in line, inside the bank, but we got Euro 20 worth of one and two euro coins. Photos, here we come!

Except, there is no Photomation kiosk at rue de Bac. I wracked my brain, where had I seen one? Pasteur! Back on the metro Line 12. Off at Pasteur where we found the booth.

In go the coins, out comes the pictures. It only took 1-1/2 hours from start to finish.

Addendum to this post: When I went to get the Carte de Sejour, the "fonctionnaire" rejected my photos. In one set (yes, I tried it twice), I was smiling too much and in the other set, the top of my head was slightly chopped off. So she made me go (3rd time, now) to the Photomation booth outside the office. A man was working on it and it was out of service. I dash around inside the prefecture de police and finally find another booth. I fix the stool, don't smile, check that I can see the top of my head and get the photos. The foncitonnaire exclaimed that I looked too serious, but she accepted them. Euro 15 for photos.

Dangerously Close

2011-11-10T07:00:00.001-08:00

The mystery is solved but the problem still exists.

I kept finding my plants broken and I couldn't figure out what happened. We're up high enough that no one climbed up and tried to break in the window. Birds don't normally break plants this way.

One morning, I heard a big bang at this window and looked outside. Hanging by a rope, there was a large bucket filled with stuff -- plaster, pipes, junk. I watched for awhile and down came this door. There are workmen on a floor above us and their ingenious way of easily moving things in and out of the apartment is with a pulley system and a rope.

They don't have to go up and down stairs all day, but my plants are getting smashed all the time.

The Knife Man

2011-11-08T00:27:00.000-08:00

He's hard to see, I took this picture from the window. But, this is the "knife man".

To me, he represents what I like about being in France, that some things never seem to change.

I can hear him before I see him. He always comes early in the morning. with a very loud bell attached to his cart, he makes his way down the street, ringing about 10 times and then stopping, looking up, to see if anyone needs his services. If no one motions from a window, he picks the string for the bell up again, and gives it a few more rings as he makes his way down the street.

He takes his time, probably most of his customers are elderly and it's hard to get downstairs carrying a bunch of knives to be sharpened.

I could hear him on our block for more than an hour, I'm sure he did well.

Andy Rooney In Paris

2011-11-05T05:40:00.001-07:00

I just found out that Andy Rooney died.

My fondest memory of him is from Paris. We were sitting in a cafe on rue de Seine when he passed right by our table. No one recognized him.

The funniest part was that he was walking with his wife. They weren't walking side-by-side, he was about five strikes in front of her.

Is It A Leaf, Or...

2011-11-04T05:31:00.000-07:00

We've had some rain in the last few days. And, it's fall so there are a lot of beautiful brown, red, and yellow leaves on the ground.

This is a recipe for disaster in Paris.

When it rains, people are less likely to pick up after their dog. I don't know why but the evidence is everywhere since it rained all day yesterday.

Unfortunately, it is hard to tell the difference between a "crotte" (dog poop) and leaves on the ground. Sometimes the leaves are covering or partially covering the little surprises on the sidewalk.

I danced my way down the street this morning, barely missing several spots. Mother Nature's perfect disguise -- leaves.

Halloween, American-Style

2011-10-27T04:40:00.001-07:00

I haven't been in the US for a long time during the lead-up to Halloween. Perhaps it's been eight or nine years. This year, I noticed quite a few scary things going up before October 1.

We are/were in the US in October. What a surprise. Everyone's front yard looks like a graveyard. Porches, lawns and trees in my neighborhood are filled with pirates, zombies, ghosts and pumpkins. I haven't seen many witches for some reason, but I've spotted Frankenstein, the Headless Horseman and many scary things that I don't have a name for.

All these authentic looking decorations put my silly flashing jack-o-lantern to shame.

When the wind blows at night, the ghosts on one street blow with their sheets flapping. It is pretty realistic. That is, if you believe in ghosts.

The nursery is alive with decorations. They have a pumpkin patch for children (of any age) to select their pumpkins. They also have a giant (maybe 15 foot high) inflatable Frankenstein, an icky witch display and many other large, scary things.

A Dad was there with his two small girls for a Dad-daughter Saturday afternoon activity to pick pumpkins. He happily got a cart to put the pumpkins on as they went through the patch. But, the little girls would have nothing to do with this. Tears and shrieks erupted when they saw all the scary stuff. He had to immediately distract them and tell them that it's all for fun. They weren't buying any of it.

I haven't seen one decoration in France so far. I've seen a couple of pumpkins in the local health food store, but I think they're meant to be food. I have a few things left over from previous years and have added the flameless LED candles. I'm doing my best to celebrate in my own small way.

Haircut

2011-10-20T18:29:00.000-07:00

The woman who's done my hair for years went "south" on me recently. She didn't return phone calls and texts for days, then when she did, she told me to give her more "lead" time when requesting an appointment. After two separate go-arounds of this nature, I decided it was time to move on.

This all happened several months ago. At first, even though my hair was getting longer and longer, I was OK. It was summer, long is OK. But, in the last couple of weeks it started to get downright "witchy" looking, just in time for Halloween.

I asked around and settled on a new hair stylist. I called and made the appointment with plenty of lead time just so I wouldn't start off on the wrong foot. It only hit me this morning that today is the day for the new salon, a place I've never seen before.

Be brave, be calm, I repeated over and over to myself.

I tend to get in a rut, going to the same people, who know what to do, so I don't have to work very hard to define what I need.

I arrived and met a nice woman, about my age. Good start. She's been at the same place for 33 years she told me. Another good piece of news. I started to relax a bit.

We discussed my hair type, what I need. It has to be able to fit into a pony tail for two reasons. One, I work out and need it off my face and two (I didn't tell her this one) is that if the cut is really awful I'll wear it in a pony tail until I can find someone to fix it.

The cutting started and it seemed that a lot more hair was being chopped off than I had expected. Pieces of hair were flying everywhere. I felt my lip start to quiver. We talked a bit but she was intently cutting away. As I saw it completed but wet I was very unsure about the finished product. It didn't look at all right, not like me at all. Lip continues to quiver and now my left eye is twitching. Be brave, be calm....

She dried my hair, while I tried not to look too much. When finished, she handed me a mirror and spun me around. I looked and was astonished. It looks great, better than the old place. I paid, gave her a compliment and made another appointment (with plenty of lead time).

Black Bra in the Suitcase

2011-10-14T09:25:00.001-07:00

I have duplicates of many items of clothing -- one in the US and one in France. It makes sense. I never have to figure out where "it" is, and I always have "it" when I need "it".

One duplicate is my favorite black bra. I wear it all the time.

I recently noticed twin black bras, side-by-side in my drawer. This means that I didn't leave it. Maybe I wore it on the plane. In any case, it will have to go back with me.

In the interim, I've been wearing it.

I just took a short trip and threw one in the suitcase. It's not a suitcase that I use very often. When I returned, I put the suitcase away and forgot about it. Then, I went looking for the black bra. I only found one. The twin was missing. Where could it be? After a few days, I realized that it must be in the suitcase. Why do they make the lining in most suitcases black? I leave things in my suitcases all the time, I just don't see them when I'm unpacking, blind and half-dead after a long flight.

A quick search of the suitcase revealed black bra #2. Soon it will be returned to its home and hopefully it will stay there for awhile.

What's a French Franc Worth?

2011-10-09T09:21:00.001-07:00

I just found this in my desk drawer. I don't have a clue how it got there. I wasn't searching the bottom of the unruly stack of Post-Its, pens, erasers and paperclips, it just popped up. A little gift.

I guess I'm stuck with it, as I can't exchange it for Euros. But, if I could, it would be worth approximately 7.6 euro cents. Since euro coins in France come in 1,2 and 5 cent denominations, it's worth a little something.

I have a plastic cup in my kitchen drawer filled to the brim with 1, 2 and 5 centime coins. They are like US pennies, a bother. Once in awhile, I will pull out a bunch of these coins and use them to buy a baguette. There's one boulangerie in our neighborhood that always gives me the 1's and 2's as change and I'm sure it's because of my accent. So, back they go! I put them in a baggie and pour them into the little wooden container that they have on the counter so that the clerk doesn't touch the customer when they pass the change. The clerk has to count them before handing over the bread. After five plus years of visiting this shop, you'd think they'd trust me.

Not all European countries have the small euro coins. I noticed in Holland, that the smallest denomination coin is the 5 centime. If the purchase is 83 centimes, they round up, and give you 15 centimes change for a Euro. I guess if it is 82 centimes, they give you 20 centimes? I don't remember, maybe they always round up, in favor of the store.

Just for the record, the French franc was valued before the Euro was introduced at 6.55957 francs per Euro. For many years, a popular gadget was a thing that looked like a calculator that translated Euros to Francs and vice-versa so people could figure out how much things cost. Price inflation when the Euro took effect is another blog post.

Kinda Disappointed -- IPHONE 4S?

2011-10-04T14:26:00.000-07:00

I've been limping along with my original iPHONE 3, waiting for the fabulous new iPHONE 5 to roll out. I can only upgrade my phone every two years and get a good deal. I'm at least a year, maybe more overdue.

I guess, like everyone else that was waiting, I'll dutifully go out and get the iPHONE 4S when it is available and then wait for two more years. By then it will be the iPHONE 6 probably.

With two phones, one for each country, my "other" iPHONE contract will come due in April. Any hopes of a better phone by then, I wonder?

Carte Sesame +, 2011-2012

2011-09-28T12:50:00.000-07:00

Many/most French museums have a "carte" that you can buy. These cards give you access to the museum without waiting in line. This is a huge benefit if you've ever tried to enter the Louvre or the Musee d'Orsday.

Other benefits that are less attractive but still important are things like a discount on food in the museum cafes, discount on purchases in the bookstore and usually docent-lead tours.

If we're in Paris for a long time, it's nice to "pop over" to the Grand Palais or the Louvre for an hour or two without thinking about it. One time, on a really hot day, we went to the Louvre mainly for the air conditioning. It was a Sunday in early Summer and very crowded, but we found a nice, vacant section of the museum and spent the day in absolute calm and cool.

You can go as often as you like, without waiting in line, without making a reservation.

At one time, I worked out the break-even on each card (individual price vs. number of times we went) and found that we saved a little bit of money and a lot of time by buying the card.

This year, I found that the card for the Grand Palais (called Sesame) has a new twist, they've added the Musee du Luxembourg to the card and called it Sesame +. For a mere Euro 22 more than the normal card, we can both go to this museum as often as we like. This is a great addition because this museum is close to home but normally very crowded. If we are holding the card, we can simply "pop" in when we see that there's no line.

Another exciting first for this year -- to buy the card on-line, you have to provide a photo. This year, my new computer has something called Photo Booth, so I just snapped my photo and downloaded it for my card. It isn't too bad, much better than the booths in the metro.

We Pay Our Taxes

2011-09-25T12:55:00.001-07:00

We pay our taxes, in both the US and France. We don't ask much of either country, we just blindly pay whatever they say we owe.

When we need something done, I don't expect to have to fight for it. Today I did. I fought and I won, but it shouldn't be this way.

Right after lunch I looked outside toward the ocean, I must do it hundreds of times per day. This time the view was different. Yuck. A dead, oozing, pigeon was on my deck. Oozing yellow stuff, the puddle at least the same size as the bird.

I didn't want to touch it, wild birds have germs that I don't want. I called Animal Control. It's Sunday and they're only open Monday through Friday. Just like in France, nothing bad ever happens Monday through Friday, it always happens on a weekend or holiday.

I called the police dispatch. I was so freaked out that I almost dialed 9-1-1, but I know that's a no-no. The dispatch person who answered the phone told me to pick the bird up and throw it in the trash.

This is where the taxpayer in me starts to get a bit ruffled. I never call the police, the city, the county or the state to do anything for me. I called today. Obviously, if I felt I could pick up the dead bird and throw it in the trash, I would have already done it, I needed help.

The dispatcher finally agreed to send Animal Control out to our house, after a lot of questions -- is the bird in the back yard (if it was, I bet they wouldn't have come), is it in the front yard (well, not exactly, it's on a 3rd-floor deck), can Animal Control access it from outside (only with a tall ladder). She agreed to send someone out but couldn't tell me the ETA.

I settled down with some reading material, knowing that it might be awhile.

It must be a light day at Animal Control, a truck pulled up within the hour. I met the woman officer outside, explained the problem. She was nice and told me that she does this all the time, it's not a problem. Maybe the dispatcher was just in a bad mood.

The officer came in picked up the bird and unfortunately examined it, like an animal coroner. She thought that the bird had probably hit the window and broken it's neck. I'll accept this story because it sounds less germy than dying of salmonella or e-coli or some other pigeon disease. (I had enough time between the call and the visit to look up "pigeon germs" on the internet).

She also shared that they cremate all the dead animals and then make the remains into mulch to feed the city's plants. Maybe this will save a bit of taxpayer money.

Labor Day

2011-09-05T10:04:00.000-07:00

It feels like Sunday, except the newspaper is soooooo skinny.

Robots or Food Processors?

2011-09-04T09:20:00.000-07:00

The word for food processor in French is "le robot". It's so easy to remember, as in, "my little robot" that chops up food.

I went on an exhaustive search for a "robot" a few years ago after trying to make a fig sauce (from fresh figs) without one. I had to strain the figs through a collander and it was messy and time-consuming.

I looked on the internet then went to a store and bought one that I thought would be OK. I brought home an enormous box, took out millions of pieces and tried to put it together and test it. One key piece was missing and it wouldn't work, so I had to re-pack it (of course it didn't fit back the way it came) and trudge back to the store with the huge box. I asked for a refund and went to another store, this time, BHV.

The second robot was a success. It is smaller, with less parts. It wasn't expensive, less than Euro 100 and it is a workhorse. It has the capability to shred, slice, chop, grind, puree and make juice.

After searching for a "robot", I realized that they are much less expensive than in the US, a pleasant surprise, since this usually isn't the case.

In the US, I have one of the original Cuisinart food processors. Perhaps it is 25 years old, I have no idea. It has all the features and blades that I need. But, it doesn't work as well as I'd like anymore, food gets stuck between the blade and the bowl. I think it's time for a new one.

This should be easy, right? At least it should be easier and maybe cheaper than in France? I thought so. Off I went to the store. Nothing. There are two choices, very big, very expensive food processors or a new, small version that doesn't do many of the things a real food processor should do. This small version is really a dressed-up blender. All the nice ones are at least $200.

I'm sticking with the old one that makes noise and isn't perfect anymore. At least for now.

This Is What I Like About France

2011-08-09T16:20:00.000-07:00

The simple pleasure of ice cream on a warm day.

What I like about this picture is that it sums up the simplicity of pleasure that I see in France. This sign, in the Luxembourg Gardens, says that they have been selling ice cream since 1850. I see many people, all of them thin and healthy looking (not young necessarily) that eat ice cream on a warm day. It's such a simple pleasure. The ice cream is hand-made from recipes handed down, generation to generation. It's made from natural ingredients -- because it tastes better.

Museum Girls

2011-08-08T16:43:00.001-07:00

This isn't us

This is a scan of a card that my sister sent me awhile ago. I kept it because it could be us. Yes, a long, long time ago.

We both love museums. I don't think we went to art museums as kids. We went to the Page Museum near the La Brea Tar Pits, we went to the Museum of Science and Industry, we went to a place that had old trains that kids could look at, get inside, etc.

Somewhere along the way, we both found a love for museums. The last time we were together and didn't have back-to-back obligations, we went to a museum and an art installation (Rothko Chapel) in one day. I think we even squeezed in some shopping after all the art. We had a great day.

I was looking for something in my scans today and ran across this. It has to be shared. It makes me happy just to see these two cute little girls, all dressed up, enjoying a day at the museum.

Spinach In My Teeth

2011-07-29T15:55:00.000-07:00

I am always grateful when someone has the courage to tell me that something is amiss.

Strangers face an unknown response when they decide to speak to someone. It's even more difficult to tell a stranger about a problem.

I was walking back to my car today along a narrow path from the gym. I passed another woman who was walking slower. I was still revved up from the workout. As I passed her, the woman said, "have a nice day". I turned back, smiled, thanked her and wished her a nice weekend.

This must have given her the courage to continue. "Can I fix your sweater, your tag is up in the back," she said. "Oh, thank you" I said after she tucked it in. The last thing I want is to be walking around confidently, feeling well-dressed, even cute, when everyone can see my tag sticking up at my neckline.

I am reminded of a dinner a few weeks ago with my husband and friends. When I got home and was washing my face and brushing my teeth I found a decent-sized piece of lettuce (roquette to be exact) on the gum line of one of my front teeth. I asked my husband if he had seen it during dinner and he admitted he had and didn't know how or what to say in a situation with others. So, I wore the greenery all night, smiling and happy, unaware of the ugly thing hanging from my teeth.

But, I'm chicken too. Several times I've been in situations where a man's fly was down. Usually it's in France, which makes it even harder. What is the word for zipper? Is sign language (point at the person's crotch) weird? Yes, of course it is. So, unless it's someone I know really well, I say nothing. The poor soul walks around all day with his fly open.

The moment of realization, whether it's spinach or the open zipper is always awful. How long have I been like this? Who's seen me? Why didn't anyone say anything?

I think the woman's approach today was perfect. She made social contact and waited to see the result. Positive result, next step is tell the person about the problem, negative result, let the person burn in embarassment.

Tagine

2011-07-26T12:11:00.001-07:00

I know that I can make a tagine without the special cookware, any pot with a cover will do. But, part of the fun, mystery and excitement is having the right dish.

I've been looking everywhere for just the right tagine. Many that I've seen are beautiful but they can't be used for cooking, only for serving the dish. This kind of defeats the purpose. Then, the ones for cooking are either ugly or very expensive or not authentic enough. I found a Le Creuset one with a cast-iron bottom pan. I'm sure it would be great, but it's not what I had in mind.

Then, I ran across this yesterday at William Sonoma. I asked the guy that worked there if I could cook in it and he answered yes, but I didn't get a strong feeling that he really knew. Thanks to the internet, I looked it up when I got home with it and, yes, you can cook and microwave in it.

There is a down-side. I must soak it in water for 24 hours and then give it an olive oil bath and put it in the oven at a low temperature for 1-2 hours. A lot of work.

I've looked up tagine recipes and they seen to require a spice that I've never seen before -- ras el hanout. It's probably a combination of other spices, easily obtainable. After the tagine is fully seasoned, I'll have to find the spice.

Then, I also must find a willing audience to taste-test my new creations.

Help with my vinaigarette

2011-07-20T15:53:00.000-07:00

For tonight's vinaigrette I need this ingredient.

I'm not going to the store again today.

Carmageddon

2011-07-15T08:46:00.001-07:00

I think it's a great name. A little exaggeration, but who knows?

LA's main north-south route, the 405, will be closed this weekend in both directions so that the Mulholland Bridge, which crosses the freeway, can be rebuilt. They can't work on it with traffic whizzing by under it -- too dangerous.

But, the result could be chaos. Those LA residents living north of the closure who want to cool down at the beach, must take surface streets. Ditto for the other direction.

There are actually two traffic worries. I heard last night that authorities fear a 50 mile long traffic jam on the freeway, backing up to the last exit before the road closes. Yikes.

The other problem could be that the quiet, residential side streets meandering though some of LA's most pricey communities (Bel Air, Brentwood, Beverly Hills) will be clogged with people trying to get to their destinations via these alternate routes.

People, for some reason, are stocking up (hoarding) food, as if a natural disaster is on the way.

Even though it's the height of Summer, many people plan to stay home.

We stay home anyway, so it's not a big worry for us. We can watch it all on TV. They will have helicopters overhead, monitoring and reporting on it all.

For awhile, LA planners were worried that this project would catch people by surprise. A massive communications campaign, using every kind of media has been underway for weeks. I think it's worked.

Carmageddon was reported on both the national news channels last night and also on the french news. We're famous, again.

Movies

2011-07-13T08:42:00.000-07:00

The original concept for this post was to detail the difference between movie offerings in the US vs. France during the Summer. My idea was that the movies offered in the US are for children and adolescents while in France, the films shown are predominantly for adults.

My research has proven me wrong though.

I compared three different cinemas in the UGC chain with the ARClight theaters in California. They have about the same total number of rooms and movies available.

Several of the movies are the same, including Transformers and Midnight in Paris. They don't have the same rating system in France but Transformers is rated PG-13 in the US, so it's not for small children. Evidently Harry Potter has either passed through the system in the US or hasn't been released yet, I'm not sure since I'm not a follower.

Of interest, the french cinema has a special Opera series. They show Opera that has been filmed, therefore reaching a larger audience and possibly an audience that can't afford to attend a live performance. I think there are places in the US where Opera is shown, unfortunately, Southern California isn't one of them.

Movie theaters are normally air conditioned. Much of the US is having a heat wave right now. I would rather spend the money on a movie on a hot afternoon than on the electricity it takes to cool a house. For most people in Paris, air conditioning is not allowed, so I'm sure the movie theaters are packed when it is hot.

The only movie that I'd like to see is Le Moine which is playing in Paris. I bet it will come to the US, perhaps dubbed into English.

Hopefully more films will come out that interest me this summer, but it's not the child-centric offering that I imagined.

Lack of Posts

2011-07-09T08:51:00.000-07:00

The lack of posts on this blog is a consequence of my French class. I took the class during the Spring semester (mid-February to mid-June). I've taken many classes before, working diligently to improve my french, but never a full semester with the same teacher, same students for the whole time.

I decided to take the class because there are too many distractions. Studying by myself is difficult. I need structure and the fear factor.

Well, I got it and I'm going back for more.

I signed up for a university-level, semester-long class. I took an entrance exam, had to provide loads of paperwork to assure the school that I was up to the task, paid a lot of money (school isn't cheap).

I realized the first day of class that I would be the oldest student by 30+ years. This turned out to be the only down-side of this experience. While I love being around young people, university students, 18-22, are a bit too young to have a real-world conversation.

But, I went for the language, not to make friends.

Class started promptly at 9. On the first day of class, we had to discuss the "rules" for the class and agree to them as a group. No cell phones, no food during class, you must text the teacher if you are going to be late or absent.

A syllabus was passed out. We covered it all. The class was a mixture of grammar lessons (least popular), oral (comprehension and speaking), written (reading comprehension and production). Every grammar point was covered across the field.

We had tests! Even though I was there to learn, not for credit or a grade, I was not exempt. Of course I was stressed out. The tests were graded on the normal french system of X (your score) over 20, so X/20. I have no idea how this works. Every test had at least 40-50 possible points.

In the US, we're used to success and we normally work on a scale of 100%. A grade of 95 is good, 70 is awful, maybe failing. France is completely different. I learned along the way that the scores are also judged as: assez bien (OK), bien (good), tres bien (very good). There is no such thing as excellent. A score of 16/20 would be tres bien, no one ever got higher than 17/20. A score of 13/20 or 14/20 is considered bien (good). This is the category that I ended up in most of the time. One time I got 14.5 and smiled all day. If I tried to figure this out on the US system of 100, I could multiply by 5. So, 14/20 equals 70/100, certainly not "bien" in my book, but this is the way it worked.

Did I learn? I learned a lot. I studied hours per day after school. Tests don't ask for regular verb conjugations, they ask for the most esoteric, changeable, never-used verb tense. I learned/re-learned (knew this when in school but forgot it) to study for the test during the week prior to the test.

I made flash cards and carried them around with me, even when jogging. You never know when a question will need an answer. Instead of people-watching or listening to music, I studied my flash cards on public transportation. Somehow I never missed my stop.

School ended several weeks ago. I know I'll continue with my studies in the fall. But, I haven't lifted a book, a flash card, haven't conjugated an irregular verb unless I needed it, and haven't thought much about the passe simple.

I understand what Summer's all about.

Watching 60 Minutes

2011-07-09T08:35:00.001-07:00

I know that it is possible to download US TV shows over the internet and watch them anywhere in the world. Our technology set up won't allow this and we're scared to upgrade (touch) anything.

Our French TV is nine years old. Our computers are 5-6 years old. Burglars, beware, there is nothing here for you, no flat panels, no iPADS, no wifi printers.

We're scared to upgrade because any little change could blow up the fragile system. As it is, we get internet, TV, and phone via phone lines (VOIP and regular) from France Telecom. With this set up, we can't even use some of the phone jacks, they must be "terminated" with a special plug. We don't have a phone (or a TV) in the master bedroom. It's not possible.

We don't get wifi in the back of the apartment because the stone walls (murs porteurs) stop it.

French television programming leaves a lot to be desired. We watch the news in English and then in French. Once in awhile, we get a good movie or I watch Cuisine TV (usually dubbed from English). We watch tennis when there's a major tournament.

We read a lot. In the summer, it is light until 11 PM, so we stay out later.

In the US, we have the normal technology. Nothing fancy but it all works. Phones where we need them, several TV's (even though we only use one). We can record our favorite programs for months at a time, as long as the hard disk in our DVR has space. So, we record some of our favorite things. 60 Minutes is one of them. We've been watching the last 5 months of programs. We watch them in reverse chronological order -- the newest ones first. We just got to the program that they interrupted to tell the world that "public enemy #1" was dead. I found out on the internet the next morning, but I can't imagine how much fun it would have been to see it live on TV.

Perhaps we'll re-visit our technology needs.

Looking For Navy

2011-07-06T16:58:00.000-07:00

Black is my go-to color. Is black a color? I don't remember the rule.

I've been reading up on fashion trends lately and I see everywhere that navy blue is "in". It's also very close to black, easy to match things, easy to accessorize.

So, out I went today, hoping for some summer navy. One store even had a window display saying, "Blue Summer". No luck. I didn't find any navy, and very little blue. I found a lot of lavender, one of the most horrible colors against my skin.

I came home empty-handed but not discouraged. I'll be out in the next few weeks, searching for the perfect navy outfits.

Is This Globalization?

2011-07-06T16:54:00.000-07:00

My friend Susan and I were visiting the Jardin des Plantes recently. It was a lovely day, but a bit hot and sticky.

She pulled some hand cream out of her purse and used it, then offered it to me. I refused, my hands weren't dry. But, it's anti-bacterial, she said. Yeah! Anti-bacterial hand lotion that smells good. Where did you find this?

The US, of course. The anti-bac hand lotion had traveled from Boston to the Jardin des Plantes, there's nothing like it in France.

I just went to buy some today. It wasn't on the shelf in the store. So I asked. Evidently, this is such special stuff, it doesn't last on the shelf you have to ask for it.

So, my French tip for hand lotion has made a round trip, US-France-US again. I'm going to stock up.

Is This Art?

2011-06-14T04:18:00.001-07:00

I guess everyone has his/her own opinion, but for me, this isn't art. What do you think?

Today's Crisis

2011-06-14T03:56:00.000-07:00

Was a lost package. UPS has been very faithful in their bi-weekly deliveries to us. Since yesterday was a holiday here, I'm sure UPS was swamped. When we didn't get the package by the promised hour, I checked the tracking number which said that the package had been delivered and that we'd signed for it.

A quick check with Maria, our guardienne, our mailbox and the other apartments in the building yielded zero.

So we called UPS. Of course, as soon as we got on the phone, our other phones started ringing and we had to answer all of them, all of this was just coincidental.

The woman we got on the phone at UPS told us that she couldn't/wouldn't do anything for us that we had to contact the "expediteur". Of course, it's the middle of the night in the US and if we don't find the package immediately, we never will. No help, we hung up.

As we were on our second pass through the building, a breathless UPS guy came running in. Evidently, he delivered the package to the wrong building and someone signed for it and took it. Luckily, the man was honest and called UPS.

Crisis solved, but not without an hour of sheer confusion.

The scary part is that UPS is the best delivery service, we've already used Fed Ex, DHL and the post office, all with more problems than this.

Signs Can Be Deceiving

2011-05-29T07:10:00.000-07:00

Translation: Madame (or A Woman) and her Bulldog.
I've gone by this shop many times, usually on the 83 bus. I can only guess that either the owner has a bulldog or the demographic of this store includes women with dogs.

Chloe, I thought I might be able to find you something in this shop, even if you're not a bulldog. But, it's for humans only.

The Beautiful Canals of Amsterdam

2011-05-02T07:45:00.000-07:00

After an easy metro and train ride including about three hours on the Thalys, we arrived in Amsterdam. Everything about this city is different and new. There are beautiful, peaceful canals with lovely homes and small restaurants at the water's edge.

It is Spring here too. Everything is green, there was lots of pollen in the air, just like in Paris.

Everyone speaks English, so I relaxed, realizing that for a few days, I could communicate without a struggle. Cars, busses, trams and bicycles stop for you when you look like you're going to cross the street. Everyone is friendly.

The french think they have cheese -- this cheese display was in a grocery store. We bought a small piece and had it for our lunch on our last day, it was delicious. But, we did have one disappointment. We never got to see the Anne Frank house. We went by it about four or five times, at different hours of the day (one time at 7:15 PM) and the line always looked like this.

I know we'll be back and they'll make room for us in the line.

It Happens Like Clockwork

2011-04-17T04:46:00.001-07:00

I just saw them lurking near my window box. The pigeons are back. I take pride in my window boxes, they are the only garden that I have here. I just finished re-doing them for Spring. It makes me happy to look out the window and see the flowers, see the bees busily working on my flowers.

But the pigeons are the "spoilers". They want to make a nest in my beautiful boxes. One year we were gone for a few days and came back to this!

The pigeon was very protective of her work, too. It took me several days to persuade her that this is my home, not hers. Today I heard little footsteps outside the window. When I looked out, not one but two pigeons were marching proudly around my window box, examining it from all angles. When I tried to shoo them away, they were defiant, they didn't move!

I'm going to have to get out the CD's again, an ugly way to keep the pigeons away but better than losing all my plants.

A Sighting

2011-04-16T09:14:00.000-07:00

I've lived in LA all my life and rarely see a "movie star". Once I saw Dustin Hoffman in a health food store. I think that many of the people we see in movies and on TV look less impressive in real life.

Not so with Deneuve.

I was walking home from the Luxembourg Gardens a couple of days ago on rue de Fleurus. It was a beautiful sunny day and there was a crowd at the small tabac/cafe, Le Fleurus. I passed by, looking more closely at what people were eating and drinking (it was lunch time) than who was there.

A woman caught my eye. I went through the mental gymnastics. Do I know her? If so, what is her name? Where do I know her from?

I was wearing a visor and sunglasses, so I was somewhat incognito, but I was close enough that if this woman knew me, she would have said something.

I couldn't think of her name, and she certainly didn't recognize me, so I went home. About five seconds after I passed, I realized who it was -- silly me. It was Catherine Deneuve.

I'm very glad I didn't try to say "hi" now, of course. The most interesting thing, though, is that, in broad, unflattering daylight, she was absolutely gorgeous. The hair was just like in the movies. She was wearing glasses with red frames, they looked great on her. I was truly impressed.

Now I'll have to be on the lookout for more stars.

Scaffolding Is Gone!

2011-04-09T07:44:00.001-07:00

We've had scaffolding all over our building since mid-November. Workers climbing on it Monday through Friday, banging, clanging and looking in our windows. It felt dark and closed in.

On Thursday, it all started to come down. It took two full days but by Friday night, it was all gone and the courtyard was swept, ready for the weekend.

There's only one problem -- a huge construction project in an apartment with tons of debris being put in the courtyard every day. Will it ever end?

A Power Outage Fixes The TV

2011-04-07T09:38:00.000-07:00

Only in France!

Ever since we changed to daylight savings time, almost two weeks ago, I noticed that the clock on our TV was still registering the old time. Plus we couldn't get all the other channels that we used to get.

This bothered me a little, but since we were getting the channels we always watched, it was better not to mess with France Telecom, the Livebox, the decoder. It's too frustrating and can take many days to get to the bottom of a problem.

I was in my french class this morning when there was a long power outage. When we had a break, I got a call from Terry, saying there was a rolling blackout caused by a strike at EDF. OK, the power was back on at school and at home.

I asked Terry to check the TV and he said it was still rebooting.

When I got home, the TV decoder was showing the right time. I turned it on and, to my surprise, all our TV service and all our channels had been restored.
It only took a power outage to fix our TV.

I'm Considering Vegetarianism

2011-03-28T09:06:00.001-07:00

I love to cook things that "cook themselves". You just put them in the oven with some spices, a little wine, or something easy like that and then take it out and dinner's ready. That's why I like small birds, like cornish hens in the US and quail anywhere I can find it.

Last night's dinner took on a new dimension when I looked closely at the quail I'd bought. Yikes. Their heads are still on! I don't like to look into the eyes of my dinner. This includes fish. I also don't want to see feet, tails, or fur of any kind.

Of course Terry wasn't around to do the "dirty work". So, out came my knife. I tried not to look too closely (even when I took the pictures). I wonder why they left the heads on? No one would want to eat them, I hope! They are tiny.

I felt pretty brave after cutting off their heads. It wasn't very hard, since they're small. But, this doesn't mean I'm considering a job at the butcher shop in my neighborhood. Cutting the heads off almost took the fun away from cooking these lovely little things. But, I managed to cook them and eat one!

Without the heads, of course.

Dupuis, the French "Smith"

2011-03-07T08:58:00.000-08:00

We are having dinner tonight at a woman's apartment. She gave us all the directions that we need. We hope.

In Paris, you need the person's street address, the person's phone number (for emergencies), the front door code and the person's last name to get into the inner door of the building. There are normally two locked doors, one on the street (where you punch in a code) and one inside the building that leads to a staircase or elevator. The second door usually has a buzzer that buzzes the person's apartment, you talk to them and if you're invited, they buzz you in.

For large buildings, you also need to know which building they live in which is usually designated A, B, C, etc.

Tonight we're thinking there might be a problem. We're going to visit a person named Dupuis who lives in a large building. Dupuis in France is the equivalent of Smith or Brown in the US. The woman told us that there are three Dupuis families in her building. And she lives in Building B. Imagine how many are spread over A-D combined.

Other common names seem to all start with D -- Dupont, Dugas.

We're leaving a little bit early just to sort through the Dupuis buttons on the inner courtyard door. Maybe they should have names like Dupuis-1 (the first Dupuis to live there) through Dupuis-3. That would work nicely.

Wish us luck. It's cold outside and we'll be buzzing every Dupuis in the building until we find the place that's got dinner cooking. Or until one of the other Dupuis families calls the police on the crazy couple carrying flowers that's buzzing every door.

Things Disappear

2011-03-03T08:54:00.000-08:00

While we're in one place, things disappear from the other place. They are things that I like, that I rely on. I get on a plane and "poof" it's gone!

Restaurants and shops are the businesses that do the disappearing act the most often. But there's also the beloved hair stylist or esthéticien that moves away.

This time, I've lost two things important to my pleasure, although not my daily well-being.

L'etudiant, a dive restaurant and bar with great, inexpensive food has changed hands. We went by the other night and they were painting the inside white. White is the only color that wasn't present in the old, beloved L'etudiant. Cracked brown plastic booths, mosaic tiled floor, a wooden rustic old bar created the atmosphere of the place. I'm sure the prices will go up and the quality will go down.

But, the thing that has caused the most grief so far is the loss of my tennis racquet stringer. First match in Paris and I broke a string. I didn't think much about it at the time because we had a good stringer at a shop in Montparnasse called Roissy Sports. The next day, we went to the store and it was closed, "Fermeture Travail".

I went home and called their number and a man answered and informed me that the store will be closed until June (read November) and that the stringer was at his house and not working. Yikes. This lead to a flurry of internet searches and a few failed trips around Paris. The worst was at Decathalon at Madeline where the woman stringer suggested the "bas de gamme" stings (low quality) at a price of Euro 42.95. We dashed out of the store since a good string should cost less than 20.

Another search yielded something quite surprising, a tennis shop in our neighborhood on a street that we go down all the time. I called and yes, he was there! We went, dropped off the racquet and found out he could string it in one hour for Euro 15.

Now if I can find a restaurant to replace L'etudiant, I'll be even. There's even a cute boutique that took the place of a beloved card shop in the neighborhood.

Imperfect

2011-03-02T00:46:00.000-08:00

Not me, what a silly thought!

The verb tense -- "imparfait". It's driving me crazy this week.

I'm in school these days to try to improve my french. Yes, I can communicate, understand, read and write, but it's not pretty, not elegant, in a word, imperfect.

The first few classes were a breeze. Even though I'm at least twice the age of the next oldest pupil, I seem to be keeping up, even achieving at a high level.

Until yesterday. A worksheet was introduced. We had to read a long paragraph with a description of a person's choice of education and career, based on experiences as a child. Easy enough. I understand it all. We were asked to place the activities and occurrences in the order in which they happened. Since some happened at the same or almost the same time, this was a little bit challenging but I whipped through that exercise with flying colors.

Then, the XXXX started to happen. Below this activity, on the same page it asked us to put other events on a timeline, with the verb and verb tense below. I froze. All at once, I was reading Chinese. My mind was spinning, out of control. When this happens, nothing enters or exits, it's a free-fall. The teacher came to the rescue, patiently explained it, I pretended to understand but was still in free-fall.

She gave us homework, also incomprehensible. I've re-done it at least 10 times, I've gone through an entire eraser on the end of my pencil.

Out come the books. I've applied myself to the theory, the rules of this verb tense. Terry thinks it's easy. I hear others use it with ease. Of course, I don't know if they're using it correctly or not, since I don't understand it at all. I'll be studying this today, trying to make sense out of the imperfect.

Another Line

2011-02-12T23:51:00.001-08:00

I'm still not completely "over" my day at the DMV last week.

I am very impatient when I have to wait for something. Standing in a line is even worse than waiting while sitting down. They are both bad, a waste of time.

It's a weekend. We should know better than to go to a temporary exposition, especially one that is about to close. I've wanted to see the Henry Moore at the Rodin since last December. It will close soon, so off we went on a rainy Saturday.

We always get a bit lost when going to the Rodin. It is always my fault, according to Terry. We even question whether the signs are pointing in the wrong direction, it is a possibility...

Finally we find it. We can see the line before we can see the museum itself. It's the after lunch crowd, fully fortified and ready for the afternoon. Our spartan lunch (alcohol-free) will not keep us warm, I fear.

We hike to the end of the line. It's raining lightly. We wait. Didn't I just do this in California a few days ago. Is it worth it? Obviously it is for the 30+ people happily chattering in front of us.

More people arrive and the line gets longer. But, it moves fairly quickly. Perhaps it is just security? When we get to the door, we realize there is no security, only crowd control. They have one cashier at the desk. Kind of like the DMV.

Department of Motor Vehicles

2011-02-07T12:17:00.000-08:00

It seems that some types of circumstances are universal worldwide, unfortunately.

One of them is dealing with civil servants. The State of California has been in financial trouble for several years. To help offset this crisis, state offices are closed for "furlough" days several times a month.

The already overburdened, overcrowded offices are now teeming with indignant, stressed-out customers trying to deal with the unhappy, underpaid, typically lazy civil servants.

I try to never deal with any of these offices. With the internet, until today, I've been successful.

Saturday (doesn't it always happen on a weekend) I got a notice from the DMV that I have to appear in person to renew my driver's license. Evidently, they are issuing new licenses with fingerprints and they wanted an up-to-date photo. I also needed to take a vision exam.

I didn't realize that if I am out of the country, I could have gotten an extension for up to one year. I guess you have to read the small print on page 14 of the 94 page document, "California Driver Handbook".

I cleared my calendar this morning, got up early and arrived at the DMV (a 40 minute drive) at 8 AM, opening time. I was about 200th in a long line (people without appointments) that snaked around the building. There were so many people that I couldn't find a spot to park in the lot and had to drive around on side streets until I found a place to park.

I got in line. Luckily it was warm, unlike France, where we are always standing outside the Prefecture de Police in sub-zero temperatures. But, it was early in the morning and the sun was low and right in our eyes.

The line was moving, slowly, but we made progress. I was inside the building by 10 AM, fifth in line to "take a number". At this point, a worker made an announcement that the computer systems, state-wide, were "down" and it would be at least 15-20 minutes before they could process anyone.

I thought that there would be a rush for the door, but no, no one budged and no one complained. We waited. Spanish was the predominant language, so I couldn't talk to my line-mates. There was even a homeless man with all his stuff in wheeled carts in line. I have no idea why he was there, since he obviously didn't have a car or all his worldly possessions would have been safely locked up.

We wait. My feet hurt, my back is in spasms. I'm missing my workout, I'm in hell.

Just when I think I can't take it any more, the system is restored. But, they don't start issuing numbers to our line. They clear the appointment line first, so we have to wait another 10 minutes for that.

Finally I get a number. I enter and sit down with about 100 people. We're sitting on little plastic chairs. Numbers are called but not quickly. I wait and wait. I pace around. No one else is pacing, they are all sitting quietly.

After another 20 minutes or so, my number is called. Everything goes smoothly, I pass the vision test, pay my $31. My last stop is the photo station.

I arrive at the photo station which is at the other side of the office. No one is there taking pictures. I wait awhile, no one comes, no one notices the line that is forming behind me of people that need their pictures taken. I call out to the people in the office, I can see them. Just like a French waiter, they see me but don't acknowledge me. I am now seething. I call and call. There are five people standing around, about five feet from me, laughing, talking, drinking coffee, telling about their weekend. Finally I get someone's attention and ask where is the photo person. He tells me that he'll go find them, but he goes back to talking. I scream some more. Finally, he comes over (it's obviously his post that was vacant) and takes my picture.

I'm outta there.

A Day of Frustrations

2011-01-31T17:27:00.000-08:00

Air France is now Delta in the US. I hate to use the word "transparent", especially since the transition has been anything but. Today I got an email, in French, from Air France. It said that I needed to "click here" and enter my passport info and other sensitive data.

Afraid of "phishing", I knew I had to call the airline. First I tried Air France. All lines were busy and, as usual, after a 20 minute wait they hung up on me. I tried Delta and got a recording saying that their systems were overloaded with calls, try back later. I tried Flying Blue, the frequent flyer program for Air France, long wait. So, I gave up.

But, the letter said that I had to provide this info 72 hours in advance or we couldn't fly. But, I can't call you and I'm not entering all this stuff into an unknown site.

I went to the gym, did a few things and tried back later. After another 10+ minute wait, I got a woman on the phone who said, indeed, I needed to enter this info on line, they can't do it on the phone. Ick. So, I got out the documents, went on line (not by clicking "here"), but by trying to find it on the web site. Of course, it was buried and I had to go through about seven screens to get to the right place. I entered the info, and printed it, just in case.

The afternoon wasn't much better. My iPHONE wouldn't sync with my computer and I need to keep it all up to date. A call to an Apple "genius" required another 10+ minutes on hold while they figured it out and another 10+ minutes downloading new software.

It's starting to get dark now and I am happy to report that order has been restored and all these things have been fixed. What's in store tomorrow? I'm afraid to ask.

Speaking French Non-Stop

2011-01-25T17:05:00.001-08:00

It is rare to hear French in Southern California but in the last two days, I've had two encounters with francophones.

In both cases, it was a surprise. Just now I was walking down the street and a woman was in the middle of taking a photo. I paused for a second but when she didn't move, I said, "Excuse Me" to the woman so that she wouldn't get my profile in her sunset shot. She replied, "Allez-y" to my surprise.

My head swiveled around, I smiled and replied with no hesitation, "Bienvenue a ma belle ville". This caused a flurry of conversation and laughing with her group but no other reply to me, so I continued on my way.

The day before I was at the gym and I passed by two women speaking french to each other. Automatically, I blerted out, "Par-don". They both laughed and remarked in English to me and we all thought it was funny that I automatically went into French with them. They turned out to be American and were much friendlier than the French group, surprise, surprise!

The best part of these exchanges is that I'm now responding, almost automatically in French, even when I'm in the US. Hurray!

Everyone Knows About French Strikes

2011-01-16T14:47:00.001-08:00

France is famous. For many things, the food, the wine, the art.

I've run into several people recently who remark quickly about the strikes in France. Every visitor to France seems to have a story. Or many.

We've started to take them for granted. A little annoying but normally they don't cause us too many problems.

Visitors have problems getting to and from the airport during a strike. Their favorite museum could be closed due to a strike. Planes might not run. Walking down the street becomes a bit hazardous if you run into a demonstration. It even seems that there is less food in the grocery stores.

We all realize it's part of the culture of France. But it's not among the most charming attributes of a wonderful country.

It's Been 30 Years

2011-01-14T12:51:00.001-08:00

Our city started a project to put the utilities underground many years ago. We knew it wouldn't happen quickly but we've been waiting almost 30 years for this day.

It looks like the pole is coming down right now!

Also, check out what a beautiful day it is, 80 and sunny. It's not normal for January but we'll take it.

Pot Holders

2011-01-13T16:09:00.000-08:00

My pot holders (oven mitts to some, gant isolant to others) were "over the hill" at Christmas time. Stained, burned, generally not fit for everyday use, let alone a party.

It's not that I don't want new ones, it's just that I forget I need them immediately after I put them away. Aghast the next time I take them out, I vow to replace them. I've done this again and again.

Until today. I guess it pays to shop sometimes. I mean "SHOP". Walk around a store from one end to the other, looking at everything. Needs get remembered. Like pot holders. I scored some this afternoon, brought them home and put the old ones out of their misery. What a relief. I'm having guests for dinner this weekend and I won't have to hide them between uses.

The French Have A Way of Complicating Things

2011-01-12T12:47:00.000-08:00

Our apartment was broken into last month.

They broke the door and the lock but didn't get in. Of course, the door was left partially open for days because our neighbors and the concierge either didn't notice it or didn't do anything if they saw it. We'll never know for sure. It couldn't have been quiet.

Now, the hard part -- fixing it and getting our insurance to pay for it.

Fixing it should be easy. The first guy who came out to fix the lock and the door didn't align the door properly. The door would only open a little bit and even that put big scratches in the hardwood floor.

He came back to fix it. In fixing his first work, he burned two patches in the hardwood floor with a blow torch.

The door is fixed. The floor is a wreck.

Insurance should pay for the door and the lock, but it's the locksmith's insurance that has to pay for the floor damage, I think. Hard to say for sure.

First we'll have to prove that we didn't burn the holes in the floor using a blow torch. Kinda hard to imagine since we don't own a blow torch. Next we have to prove that the scratches weren't there before the door was fixed. Harder to prove but still shouldn't be a problem.

Also, we'll have to get the floor fixed. How many steps should this take? Not many. But, I'm sure it will take multiple visits and steps. Since it's right at the front door, we won't be able to go in or out and we probably won't be able to close the door.

I'm sure this is the tip of the "complication" iceberg. We're just happy the damage was as small as it was.

We'll be waiting for the check from the insurance company since we had to pay for the work "up front".

Band Aids and Other Household Supplies

2011-01-08T15:33:00.000-08:00

Last month, I sliced a big chuck of skin off my index finger knuckle. It bled like crazy. Of course, I was in the middle of cooking a big dinner for Terry's birthday. Not wanting to put a damper on the festivities, I tried to bandage it up and press on. Don't they use duct tape in professional kitchens?

The show must go on. I went to the bathroom cupboard, which was almost bare. We had about five band-aids, all of them tiny; totally insufficient for this job. Isn't that always the case? It's almost impossible to supply the house with every possible product for every possible eventuality and need. Band aids seem like an easy thing to keep on hand, but only if the person who uses the last one remembers to add it to the shopping list. And, in the heat of bandaging something up, the last thing you think about is the grocery list.

I put a big piece of gauze over the cut and then taped my finger up.

Within five minutes blood was coming out both sides. A lot of blood. So, I put an even bigger piece of gauze over the original one and re-taped it up. It held.

The next day, the whole thing came off and the bleeding started up where it left off. So, I replaced my improvised band aid and pressed on with family fun. Still no band aids in the house.

Days went by like this. I never thought to buy band aids because I was using my improvised band aid. Finally the cut healed.

I never bought band aids. Today, Terry sliced his finger on a tape dispenser. Almost as bad as mine but not quite. He used the same basic method of tape and gauze. Seems to be catching around here.

But, this afternoon, I decided to go to the store and stock up. Now, we've got every possible size, shape and color of band aid, all in bathroom cabinet, ready for the next mishap.

What else is missing for the medicine cabinet? We'll never know until we need it, I fear.

Heating

2011-01-03T09:21:00.000-08:00

It's cold everywhere right now.

Inside it's warm. It's great to have a warm home, warm water for a shower. I take these things for granted.

Living in Southern California most of my life, I thought that everyone used the same system(s) to heat the house, heat water, wash dishes and laundry. We have a balloon water heater that holds a large capacity of water. It keeps the water constantly warm so that when you need it you get it. Hot water is not instantaneous since it has to travel from the tank through the pipes to the needed spigot. But, eventually it is nice and warm. Since most of the time there are only two of us at home, we don't run out of hot water. But if we have visitors, we have to remember that the amount of water is limited by the size of the tank and not immediately replaced. So, if four or five people take a long hot shower while the dishwasher and the clothes washer are going, we will be out of hot water. Don't take the last shower or you'll be out of luck.

The dishwasher and the clothes washer rely on water heated by the hot water heater so they use up their share.

In France, there are many systems for heating and hot water. On rue de Seine, we had electric heaters on walls that you turned on individually. We had a balloon for hot water in the closet. The place was so small that we never ran out of hot water and we rarely turned on a heater. If it was cold, by the time I'd finished cooking dinner, the place was nice and warm. Even candles helped.

Now we have a "chaudiere". It is one of these instant hot water things. It is used for both hot water and heating the apartment. It works really well. It is economical since it doesn't heat the water until you need it. Water is instantly hot. Warmth starts coming out of the radiators the minute you turn them on. We never have to worry about who will get the last shower since the water will be hot whenever it is needed.

The most unusual thing about french appliances is that both the dishwasher and the clothes washer use only cold water. The machines heat the water during use. You can tell the machine how hot you want the water to be. So, these machines don't compete with showers either.

I think the French have been much more conscious of their usage of gas and electricity. Lights are not on in the hallways of buildings. You have to turn them on. Then they are on timers. You're left with enough time to go up about three flights of stairs and then the hallway goes dark again and you have to turn the lights back on again. People don't leave lights on when they leave a room. Lights switches (no idea why) are often on the outside of the bathroom.

I wonder how long it would take for the US to change to these systems. It seems that it would save a lot of energy consumption with an added benefit that everyone would always have a warm shower.

The Christmas Decorations Are Down A Little Bit Early

2010-12-31T08:13:00.000-08:00

I had some time yesterday and decided to take the Christmas decorations down. It's a bit earlier than usual.

Every year, I love the tradition of getting them out and putting them up. It's festive. I've collected these decorations over many years. Each item is special.

With the fireplace crackling (it's been cold) and the decorations up, it really seems like Christmas.

This year, ever since the day after Christmas, the decorations started to seem bothersome. Too much stuff. I prefer less clutter. So, down they came and back into their boxes.

I'm quite organized. I label the boxes and try to put "like" things together. It's never perfect but it's much easier to decorate next year if I know what's in each box.

I stopped at the market and bought some tulips which now are my only decorations. They haven't opened yet, but they will last for at least a week. It still looks a bit empty but we'll get used to it, we have 11 months until the next round of decorations.

"That's As Close As I'm Getting"

2010-12-27T14:51:00.000-08:00

Chloe won't admit it, but she's afraid of Christmas decorations that are at eye-level. Every elf, candy cane and pointsettia got a round of barking, hackles up or running away.

Rough time of year!

Rosé Champagne

2010-12-26T13:45:00.000-08:00

I've experimented with rosé champagne in France on several occasions and never been disappointed.

When faced with the difficult task of selecting a glass of champagne for my Christmas meal yesterday, I took a chance on Etoile sparkling rosé wine. Yum! It was incredible.

Happy Holidays

2010-12-26T13:38:00.000-08:00

It's never hit me quite like it has this year.

Yesterday was Christmas Day. Why not just say, "Merry Christmas"? There wasn't another holiday yesterday. So, why say "Happy Holidays"? Is this phrase supposed to include New Year's Day, which is next week? Although it is politically correct to say Happy New Year it is generally considered more "correct" to say Happy Holidays for Christmas.

I disagree. You don't have to say anything if you don't want to acknowledge a Christian holiday. And, on the other side of this, if it's Hanukkah, I might say, "Happy Hanukkah" although I guess I'd be saying it for 8 days. I wouldn't say, Happy Holidays.

While I was out walking yesterday morning, everyone I encountered said "Merry Christmas" to me and I replied in kind.

I don't think it's insensitive or incorrect to acknowledge a holiday for what it is.

Exercise In the Snow

2010-12-17T13:00:00.000-08:00

Normally I prefer to exercise by going around the inside of the fence. Due to snow and probably ice, the Luxembourg Gardens was closed.

That's never stopped me before. Nor did it stop the "regulars" that I see every day when I'm out. We were all out, circling the outside of the fence, trying to stay inside the sandy areas to avoid ending up on the ground. It's not even that cold, it's just snow.

And, it's beautiful. I try to imagine being a princess inside the chateau looking out at this Winter scene. Of course, my imagination doesn't take me to the part of 15th century with no running water, electricity or toilets. That's not the dream.

Instead, I'm in a red velvet dress, low cut. My hair is up in the newest french style. Red velvet shoes, almost Pope-like adorn my feet. Jewels are everywhere including pearls, diamonds, rubies in gold. I'm warmed by the enormous fire in every room.

Quite different from the bundled up girl in ASICs shoes slowly making her way around the outside of the fence on a snowy December day.

Nespresso Came Through For Me

2010-12-14T08:17:00.000-08:00

The day after our 11 hour flight, we needed coffee badly.

We turned on the Nespresso, put in a pod, pushed the button and nothing happened.

In our brain-dead, jet-lagged state, we repeated the same action a second time without really investigating. Suddenly brown liquid started pouring out the bottom of the machine, not into the cup. A coffee flood in the kitchen is not what I needed at this moment.

It took all my emotional strength to not throw myself on the floor and have a tantrum. Is it too much to ask to have a cup of nice, freshly brewed coffee? Evidently.

Necessity required a phone call. I went to the internet found the number for Nespresso and called. I was connected instantly with a nice man who said he could help. I was not optimistic, but he was my only hope.

We went into the kitchen, he was on the phone with me and he put me through a number of steps. Finally, it worked. He reported that it was just an air bubble, call anytime. And, he told me that if it ever really breaks, they have a program to send a new one. Customer service exists, at least at Nespresso.

La Neige

2010-12-09T23:36:00.000-08:00

This photo was taken out of our window on Wednesday. It snowed all day.

Snow is beautiful. I love it.

Having grown up in Southern California, snow is unique.

Before coming to Paris, I didn't even have a true winter coat. Now I have about five of them, long ones, short ones, dressy ones, casual ones, even the huge full-length down coat (with a hood) that's gotten a lot of action in the past week.

A Birthday at 37,000 feet

2010-12-09T01:40:00.000-08:00

We missed our flight due to the snow. We've heard that this was the worst snowstorm in Il de France since 1987.

The cab company called to tell us that the cab wasn't coming.

We momentarily toyed with the idea of consolidating enough stuff to hold us over into one suitcase and making a dash for the RER. But the fear (we watched the news all morning) that we'd be stuck at the airport, sleeping on the ground with one of those ugly blue blankets made the decision easy.

After being put on hold by Air France for 30 minutes, they announced that we'd been on hold for too long and terminated the call. Great! So, we called back and finally got someone. I don't know how it will all turn out because they charge for the call and we were on hold, in total, for over an hour.

Travel plans in the winter are notoriously fragile. We're now spending the morning re-grouping, canceling and re-scheduling.

One date that can't be changed is Terry's birthday. Instead of a sushi dinner and a movie, he'll be crammed into an Air France seat at 37,000 feet. The only thing that will make this bearable is that they still serve French champagne, even in coach.

What is the translation for "Aller Retour?"

2010-12-08T08:58:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, Pierre asked me (not knowing about this blog) what is the translation for "aller retour". When I told him, "round trip" he didn't believe me. It's too boring sounding, not at all magical. Round trip? Yes, Pierre, I'm afraid it's true.

Then he asked for the translation of "retour". I told him, "return". So, why can't you translate "aller retour" literally, to go, to return, hence a round trip.

It's another one of those things that just doesn't translate very well.

Looking Back

2010-12-05T07:01:00.000-08:00

It's cold and dark outside. It's only 4 PM but I'm not motivated to go outside at all. So, I'm doing indoor stuff this afternoon. Did a little bit of organizing and cleaning (collectively known as "nesting") and now I'm on the computer, backing up, organizing, cleaning out. I feel so much better after I've done this.

I've downloaded all the photos from my camera and my phone(s) (don't ask...) this afternoon. Looking at them is like a review of the last few months of my life. I can see the weather change from summer to winter, the activities I'd already forgotten about, the things I do every day.

I have pictures of summer artichokes, horses at the Republican Guard headquarters, a trip to La Defense, a long line to buy honey at the beehives of the Luxembourg Gardens. I have plenty of photos of the strikes in Paris, lines of gendarmes, the frenzy of demonstrators with their noise music and huge balloons. I have some photos of the WICE Open House and more recently our Noël Sing-Along last week. The street light that illuminated our bedroom when it was removed (a good thing), Cecile's cooking class.

Digitial photos are great. I tend to take a lot more photos. Any that aren't good, I delete immediately. I store them on my computer although I keep a lot on my phone and camera too. Friends show each other photos from their phones. The only thing I don't do any more is print them. I really should. But that's another project.

The Last Concert of The Season

2010-11-28T05:42:00.000-08:00

The Organ At St Sulpice

Conferences, art exhibits, concerts, they're everywhere in Paris. It's exhausting. I choose carefully. If I try something new and it's a hit, I go again and again.

The organ concerts at St Sulpice are on this list and today is the last one until February. They don't follow the normal concert schedule during Lent and Advent.

This organ is in the back of the church. People turn the chairs around to "see" the organ, even if there's nothing to see. There is a smaller organ at the other end. I think they use this with the choir.

The large organ was inaugurated in 1862 and is classified as a "Monument Historique".

Today we will hear Pierre Arditi and Sophie-Veronique Caucher - Chopin.

Dressing in Layers

2010-11-28T00:57:00.001-08:00

The weather here is really cold. It's dry, a little bit windy. It snowed on Friday afternoon but it was a wet snow and it didn't stay on the ground.

Like a little kid, I went out and jumped around, then took the long way home from Odile's apartment just so I could enjoy the snow.

To go out in this weather, I need to plan. Layers are required. I forget this every year until the first time I go out and the cold comes right through the cashmere sweater and lined wool coat. Dressing in layers is an art. Trying not to look like a snowman, it's best to have multiple thin but warm layers.

I start with a silk camisole. If it gets much colder, I'll have to switch to a long-sleeved silk undershirt. Then I add a sweater with some kind of high neckline. Then I add a cardigan, buttoned. Next a coat. Right now it's a full-length down coat. On top of this, a cashmere scarf and lined gloves.

All of this doesn't keep me completely warm, it just prevents hypothermia.

I guess if we were going from a heated apartment to a heated car to a heated restaurant, theatre or another apartment this wouldn't be necessary, but last night we walked to and from the metro and a long way to the restaurant.

Counting Down

2010-11-15T08:48:00.000-08:00

This is last year's haul. I'm already starting to stress out. I have to go to about five stores, all in different parts of town to find my Thanksgiving necessities. I also have to get a few new things -- serving dishes, some napkins, maybe some new water glasses. I also saw some great china at a second hand shop and probably would have bought the lot right then except the shop had an "fermeture exceptionelle" at 2 in the afternoon on Friday. I haven't gone back because they are only open from 2 PM to 7 PM Tuesday through Friday. Philosophical question of the day: If they're closed during the few hours that they're supposed to be open, are they ever really open? I'm not taking any chances when I'm so busy.

Cranberries are unheard of in France. They have these tiny little bitter things that they think are cranberries but they're not. So, when I find them in the "Ocean Spray" familiar plastic package, I buy two packages, just to be sure I've got enough. Stuffing is for tomatoes. What's a sweet potato? Last year I served corn muffins and the french had such a hard time with them (they broke them into tiny pieces, tried to put the meat or gravy on it, etc) that this menu item has been replaced with a baguette this year.

The most interesting part of the traditional Thanksgiving meal is that it is basically served on one plate. In France, meals are comprised of many small courses, served on small plates. Last year, I had to go out and buy American sized plates for this meal. I had to measure my dishwasher because it is smaller and I wanted to make sure the plates fit. I have to warn the guests that this is the meal except for dessert so they can judge their portions properly.

I also had to measure my oven and the pan intended for the turkey. The turkey has to be able to fit in the pan and the pan has to fit in the oven. In the US, we never worry about this kind of thing.

Making pumpkin pie requires research. Last year, I wrote down my ingredients so that I didn't have to recreate the wheel this year. The flour, sugar and butter are different. I can find the pumpkin and the milk. The whipping cream is another story. I bought something called "fleurette" and when I whipped it, it grew exponentially. I had so much fleurette (whipped) that I had to put it in a plastic bag and throw it away. (We don't have garbage disposals in France either).

Wish me luck. The best part of the meal is that we can sip real French champagne, which, by the way, tastes great with turkey.

American Healthcare

2010-11-08T02:42:00.001-08:00

The French don't understand why a rich country like the US isn't able or willing to provide affordable health care for it's citizens. I agree.

I was angry when the Obama health care proposal became so watered down before it was voted in. Now it seems that one of the first things that the newly elected Republicans will do is try to stop funding for this bill or repeal it all together.

What are the 40+ MILLION Americans without health care going to do? What are senior citizens who can't afford their medications going to do? What am I going to do?

My insurance costs have skyrocketed in recent years. I think the insurance companies were trying to get in "under the wire". But now with changes coming again, I'm afraid to change my plan. They could cancel me completely and I would be among those 40 million.

Now that I've seen how it works in France (called a "European Nanny State" in the newspaper a few days ago) I can't believe that the US isn't anxious to adopt something similar. It's not perfect, but it's better than nothing. Everyone can afford to go to the doctor if they're sick, they can afford the medicines they need. They can see a physical therapist for more than 10 visits for something as serious as a joint replacement.

It would require a change of attitude, that's all.

Trick or Treat

2010-11-01T05:56:00.000-07:00

Well, it finally happened.

After eight Halloweens in Paris, without a sign of a child in costume, we heard that familiar "whoosh" outside our door last night. Terry opened the door, but I wasn't prepared, I didn't buy any candy. The last thing we need is a bag of Halloween candy hanging around the house. Up the stairs, empty-handed, the two witches left us.

Then I realized a hidden treasure. I'd brought Hershey's kisses to Paris to show French people a treat that we have in the US. But the bag hasn't been very popular so it rested in the freezer for a "rainy day". Ha! I told Terry who re-opened the door and called out to our witches. They came, he gave them each a handful of treats and they thanked us and left, whoosh, just as they came. Terry said they had a couple of treats in their plastic jack-o-lanterns, not much of a haul.

So, next year I'll be prepared and the bag of candy will rest, in the freezer, with the Hershey's kisses for eight more years.

It's Starting To Annoy Me

2010-10-28T07:18:00.001-07:00

Trash that is!

We've had intermittent trash pick up and mail delivery since the first few days of the "reform rebellion" in France. The reform, which is about to be signed into law, is set to change the retirement age from 60 to 62, in a country where workers already work 35 hours per week. So, we're being punished by those who want to retire at 60. It seems small but the trash is accumulating at a rapid rate. I've even seen guardiennes from one building dropping trash off in another's pile. It's war!

I am getting afraid to open my windows, it's going to get icky out there. Rats, just in time for Halloween, will start to feel welcome.

Double Success

2010-10-19T04:15:00.001-07:00

Finding pumpkins and getting the "Carte de Sejour" all in one morning.

The most dreaded day of the year is the day that we have to go to the Prefecture de Police to renew our "carte de sejour" which is a temporary residence permit. I prepare obsessively, yet our experience has always been difficult. There is always some subtle thing that is missing. And, if not, the "foncitionnaire" (civil servant) has the right to request just about anything they want from us. We usually leave the office exhausted and dejected.

The normal preparation and review took place during the last week. Hundreds of copies were made. Files were organized. Spreadsheets were done and then re-done. We always think we're in good shape.

Today, we were worried about the transportation strike, so we got up even earlier than usual, dressed, grabbed the huge stack of paperwork and left. No problems on the metro. No newspaper, but that's normal during a strike. We got to the office at the Prefecture. Terry got two seats (premium, since standing for an hour or more is not fun) while I waited in line several people back while a woman was arguing vigorously and rapidly in french. Trying, unsuccessfully to break a rule, I'm sure.

We waited and waited. There is one woman, guichet #5, who has consistently given us a hard time. We were hoping to get another person.

It's hot inside. It's raining outside. More and more people come in. Finally an American couple with a lawyer come in, demand that we vacate the seat next to us (our stuff was on it rather than the floor). Then, they proceeded to speak, very loudly. Then man was sitting next to me and had oozed into my seat. I pushed back a little but he just didn't fit in the assigned seat.

We waited and waited. What are they doing down there? Torturing others. Maybe they'll get it out of their systems by the time our numbers are called... We can only hope. Eventually one of our numbers is called. We both sit down opposite a woman who starts working on Terry's file. Abruptly, she looks up and tells me to go across the way to meet with her associate, the "difficult" one. Think positively, smile, I say to myself. Maybe she doesn't remember me, but I certainly remember her.

What does all this have to do with pumpkins?

We got out of there pretty quickly this year, each holding our receipt for the renewed "carte de sejour". They really didn't give us any trouble at all, didn't reject anything, didn't make us jump through any hoops, provide any explanations.

Out we went into the rain. Right opposite the "Prefecture" is the flower market at Cite. Prime shopping for pumpkins. The first market we went to had nothing. The second one had a nice big one for Euro 3. When I only had a Euro 20 note, she promptly only gave me Euro 16 in change, then insisted that it cost Euro 4 instead. Small price to pay. Then next shop had even more -- small pumpkins, gourds, Indian corn! I'm rich in "harvest" decorations and we got our "carte de sejour" renewed. Double success.

The Pumpkin Search

2010-10-17T08:38:00.000-07:00

This is my 2008 pumpkin

Every year, it's the same thing. I start out on October 1, invigorated and ready to find pumpkins for my Fall decorations.

It is now October 17th and I don't have one. That's why I had to use the picture of my 2008 pumpkin in this post.

In the US, the pumpkins start to show up in the stores at the end of August. In September, it is easy to buy them, along with candy and costumes. Not so in France. Pumpkins are to be eaten. I can buy a nice slice of pumpkin in the grocery store, but not a whole one. A whole one is huge and really doesn't look like the normal, orange pumpkins in the US. It's more of a large, pumpkin-shaped squash. So, I've been happily eating pumpkin in soup, steamed and baked pumpkin for more than a month. I eat it because I like it, I think it is very high in nutrients and it is filling while being low in calories.

So, why can't I find one to put on my table? I don't even want to carve it for Halloween, I want to keep it through Thanksgiving as part of my "harvest" scenery.

Every year I find the pumpkin in a different spot. Every year, I go to all the places I've found a pumpkin in the past, but the same store never has pumpkins twice. I have no idea why this happens. I saw some pumpkins at a florist a couple of weeks ago, but by the time I got back, they were gone. They were good ones, too. American-looking, orange, big and misshapen.

Tuesday I'm hitting the flower, plant and bird market at Cite. That's my last hope! Wish me luck.

Where Do All These Leaves Go?

2010-10-13T09:32:00.001-07:00

We know where they all come from -- the trees -- which will soon be bare for months and months.

The gardeners can't keep up with the falling leaves. They are everywhere. Luckily it's not raining or the ground would be a natural compost heap. Dogs love the smell, I can see them, walking, nose down, enjoying the smells of Autumn. Crunch, scrape, crackle, I walk through them every day, crushing them when they are dry enough. I think they are beautiful, but they have to go!

No, this is not a haystack, it's a leaf bin. This is actually a metal wire cage that the gardeners fill up with leaves. I think they burn them, but I'm not sure. This one is filled to the brim, so I know they have to do something with them. We'll smell it if they burn them, a lovely smell, not like burning wood but still fresh.

And, here's another load coming. They need heavy machines to keep up with the workload that nature leave us every year.

Why Is Everyone Speaking English To Me?

2010-10-13T09:32:00.000-07:00

I have good days in French (the language) and bad days. I think everyone learning a new language goes through this. I think I'm making steady progress toward fluency.

Some days, though, the rest of the world doesn't see it that way. Today was one of those days.

There are days when I encounter a french person who wants to practice their English, that's fine. Sometimes when someone starts to talk to me and I reply, all those American-English accented words tumble out. I'm sure they can understand me, since I can understand french people speaking English quite easily. But, they insist on speaking in English.

Today my downstairs neighbor caught me in the hall because he thought he got our tax bill by mistake. When I answered him that it wasn't ours, he started speaking about it in English, as if I hadn't understood what he said in french even though we'd finished the conversation. He got half way through the sentence and got stuck (a familiar feeling). So, I finished in french with him. When he answered it was again in English. Hmmm!

The grocery store was on the list of chores. They know me there and know that I am English speaking. Today I asked a question and the woman answered in french and then decided to try to translate it into English for me. Very cute, but not necessary.

Tail between my legs, English thoughts coursing through my brain, I'm at home now.

Our Street Light

2010-10-03T01:01:00.001-07:00

Here's the street light. This photo was taken last Spring.

It's GONE! Here's the guy in the bucket -- too bad you can't see his face, he certainly could see mine (through the window)

There has been an on-going project on our street to replace the street lights. It started last Spring. I took the first photo of our street light, just in case they somehow (!) messed it up, I wanted photographic proof.

New street lights with bright yellow bulbs were installed up and down the street during the summer. Our old, white light remained right outside our window, unlit. We didn't know what to think and it seemed like the project was completed. Still, we were happy, the bothersome light right outside our window was dark.

Surprise, surprise. Last week the unimaginable happened. A guy in a little bucket, suspended on a mechanical arm was hoisted up the side of the building and the light was removed.

Of course, the guy showed up right outside our bedroom window when I was in the middle of changing clothes. Stark naked, I looked up and there was a guy in a bucket looking right in at me. A small price to pay for removal of a bothersome street light.

Fête du Miel au jardin du Luxembourg

2010-09-25T07:29:00.001-07:00

It's worth waiting for!

I had to get out early this morning and get in this line. Last year I lost out because I came too late in the day.

We were all waiting to buy honey today. It's special honey that you can only buy once a year and only if you get in line early. I was about 100 back and I arrived 30 minutes before it opened. By the time I left with my five 500g containers of honey, the line was about 200 long behind me. It's the honey made by the bees of the Luxembourg gardens.

I haven't tried it yet, it looks like ordinary honey to me, but I'm sure it is a mixture of all the marvelous plants that I pass by every day.

The Strike

2010-09-24T01:07:00.000-07:00

We're always prepared for the worst.

A few years ago, the strikes went on for 10 days or so and it became a little bit old. Normally, the strike lasts for one day and it's over.

Yesterday was the second strike in September. Workers and unions are very unhappy about a number of things, but mostly that the French government is trying to add two years to the retirement age -- from 60 to 62. The system will go broke if everyone continues to live longer and longer but still retire at 60, so something has to be done.

The workers don't think so -- let someone else (maybe their children) pay.

The strike was scheduled to be a big one. The unions always try to make it sound worse than it is (more people demonstrating, etc), the government always tries to downplay it.

Life goes on. The French don't complain very much, even if it their day is disturbed. It's part of life here.

We have learned that sometimes a strike will mess up our day's plans. One time during a strike, we got to the tennis club, played tennis but on the way home (one hour on the metro if there are no problems) the entire metro line was stopped and we had to figure out an alternative to get home, unfortunately carrying all our tennis stuff.

Yesterday we played tennis again. We looked on the RATP website to see which metro lines might be the best to use. We plotted the best route. We left early since tennis courts in Paris are not readily available, if we miss our reservation time, we lose our court.

We got to the first metro, line 12. It arrived in one minute and it was empty. We got to the second stop, ditto. The third line, the same. We arrived 30 minutes early.

The way home was just as easy. We wondered where everyone was. Finally above ground after an easy metro ride, we Rounded the corner and there it was -- a HUGE demonstration. We walked right by it, locked our door and watched it on the news.

A Green Lemon

2010-09-20T09:00:00.000-07:00

There are millions of ways to get tripped up in the French language. The most obvious is that all nouns are either masculine or feminine and there are no rules to help out with figuring it out. You must memorize them. What goes along with this is that adjectives must (in most cases, don't ask...) agree with the noun in gender and number. The number is easy, one or more than one.

But, there are many words that we English mother tongue French speakers must watch for and worry about.

Today I sent my sister a postcard with citrus fruit pictures on it and the names of each item. The tricky one in the group is "citron vert" which is a lime. But, the word for it means "green lemon". Purely from the standpoint of taste I know that a lime is not a green lemon. Another crazy one is raisin. In french, that means grapes. Prune means plum. Luckily when I grocery shop I can usually look at the item and figure it out. The only time I have a problem is when I need to ask someone where something is.

Other words that are similar or difficult in the grocery store: poire (pear), poireau(x), leek (note the plural, another difficulty), poivre (pepper), poivron (pepper as in green or red), potiron (pumpkin). I didn't have to search very far in the dictionary to make a great soup (potage).

Les Journeés du Patrimoine

2010-09-19T07:01:00.000-07:00

This year's "Heritage Days" in Paris was a big bust for me.

I am the kind of person, I'm a little embarrassed to admit it, but it's true, that if I go to a restaurant and find a particular dish that I like, I will order it every time I go back to that restaurant. I often think of the restaurant in terms of that meal. I know it's a little bit limiting but there's nothing worse than taking a risk on a new dish and being disappointed, especially when I could have had the meal I knew would be good.

I guess it's the same thing with activities. In the past, I've gone to the greenhouses at the Luxembourg Gardens first thing on Saturday morning, Day 1 of the Journées du Patrimoine. I don't have to stand in line, I get to look at everything thoroughly and I enjoy this activity.

Terry wanted to break with tradition. We have never seen l'Assemblée Nationale. It is nearby, why not? So, I broke with my Plan A and went with him. I was prepared for the line out front.

Yes, it was cold. Yes, there were a lot of gendarmes, which worried me, because the terror threat is high in France right now. The line moved pretty quickly, no one crowded, pushed or tried to cut in front of us. So far, so good.

We entered the grounds and it was beautiful. The first few rooms we saw were opulent, each one with a theme. Chandeliers were everywhere.

The rooms weren't crowded. We thought we'd gotten lucky. But, it was not meant to be.

About half way through, we were herded into a line, and herded into a garden, single-file. The line didn't move. We were standing on cold cement. We couldn't leave if we wanted to, we were between metal barriers. Maybe it will end soon, we thought. We figured that the line was for the Hemicycle, the debating room.

We plodded along. Smart people brought sandwiches and were munching while in line. We were out of luck. No snacks of any kind. We went on this way for close to an hour, finally got to the debating room. The big hang up was the photo-taking. Every person lingered taking dozens of photos of the interior. And, it is small! We pushed past everyone, raced through the last few rooms which were pedestrian anyway and grabbed the metro back home.

Even though I was tired, I thought I'd make it over to the greenhouses before they closed at 5:30PM. I raced across the Luxembourg Gardens, it was a gorgeous afternoon, with the sun shining through the leaves of the trees. When I got within sight of the greenhouses, I knew I'd made a mistake. The line to enter was huge.

I did not have the patience, tenacity and physical resilience to stand in another long line, I left.

Next year, you will not find me at any monument with a long line, I'll be at the greenhouses when they open to enjoy myself in the way I choose.

A New Market

2010-09-13T06:12:00.000-07:00

Our Paris neighborhood is wonderful in many ways. The best part is our proximity to the Luxembourg Gardens, which is less than one block away. When we first moved here, I craved green space and being in nature. Now, I take it for granted, watching the seasons change, the gardeners working and the other joggers every day.

One thing we are lacking is grocery stores. There is a small, dirty Franprix that is about a 5-10 minute walk. The other direction there is a larger one, but it is still fairly small. The best store around is Monoprix, but that is a 15 minute walk to the store and a 20 minute walk (heavy cart) home. So, with the shopping included, I have to allow two hours to go to Monoprix.

After we arrived I needed some things at the store so I decided to go to the larger Franprix on Saturday afternoon. The stores in our area are closed on Sunday, so my motivation was high. Terry went with me to make sure that I bought all the things that he wants that I don't ordinarily buy unless he is there -- juice, cookies, crackers.

Things change in both locations whenever we're gone, even if we're only gone for a few weeks. New neighbors move in, the old ones leave without a trace. Stores go out of business, restaurants are remodeled. The mailman is new.

I'm used to being surprised by new things. As we were walking toward the store, I noticed a sign that I'd never seen before -- G20. That's a grocery store! The front of the store looked small, so I told Terry that we'd go in briefly and if it wasn't any good, we'd just continue on. We have plenty of little stores and "alimentation" places already. But, this is really a grocery store. It's not as big as Monoprix, but it is clean and serviceable and it is one block from our apartment. The employees are nice, helpful, unlike some of the other stores. It is clean and tidy. It has fundamentally everything I need for daily living.

I've already been there twice.

Labor Day Comes Twice A Year

2010-09-04T08:43:00.000-07:00

For me, that is...

Labor Day in the US is the same holiday as May Day in France (and most other countries I might add).

This is Labor Day weekend in the US. I'd almost forgotten about it until I tried to drive somewhere around noon yesterday and the street (Sepulveda Blvd) was a parking lot. At first I worried that there was an accident but then it occurred to me that everyone was leaving work early. And at the same time. It's Labor Day weekend in the US.

Typically I am in the US for the summer months.

I try to avoid the major holidays in both the US and France. They all seem to involve crowds, traffic, noisy nights and a general disruption of my life. I am usually successful in missing most of the summer holidays by being strategic when I select my travel dates.

In the US, I miss Memorial Day (traditional start of the Summer) and the Fourth of July (Independence Day). In France I miss le 14 Juillet (la fête nationale) and l'Assomption (August 15).

The only holiday I can't seem to avoid is Labor Day. I'm not ready to miss the last few glorious days of summer in Manhattan Beach to go back to Paris in early September.

I will be staying home this weekend, hoping that it's not too noisy at 2 AM when the bars close.

The irony of this is that Labor Day in France is May 1. I am always in Paris in May.

Nearly all businesses celebrate May Day. Depending on what day of the week it lands, the holiday disruption could go on for days. If it falls on nearly any day but Wednesday, everyone will try to take off the days surrounding the holiday. If May Day is on a Friday, people will take Thursday through Sunday. If it falls on a Tuesday, forget getting anything done from Saturday until Wednesday morning. At least Labor Day in the US is always Monday so that everyone can plan the long weekend consistently.

So, I am unlucky enough to have to endure May Day/Labor Day twice a year. I guess it makes up for all the other holidays I've managed to avoid.

What To Pack

2010-08-29T12:10:00.000-07:00

Our Air France flight allows only one checked bag of 23kg or less. We can pay for extra bags, of course. Each extra bag is $55. Bags weighing over 23kg are OK for an extra $110 for each overweight bag. I did the math and decided that it is much cheaper to pack a lot of medium-heavy bags. Our only scale is on the top floor of our house. It is not portable, so I will be banging the suitcases up and down the stairs to make sure they are not overweight. Maybe I should invest in a normal small scale at Target.

I am used to bringing two very large and heavy bags each way. Luckily I brought mostly summer clothes with me. But, there will be new purchases, supplies and gifts to bring. I need my regular luggage allowance.

For awhile, earlier this summer, I'd made a resolution to limit my packing to one 23kg bag. I was optimistic that I could pull this off. I don't need shoes, I have them in Paris. I don't need books, I have a Kindle. I don't need to shop this summer... whoa! I have to draw the line somewhere and this is it.

The fall clothes are just coming out now. It's hard to tell what I will want to wear in November, but I have to try to picture it. The better I am at visualizing myself in the fall, the more shopping I do. The result is that the one bag is now a fantasy that can never be fulfilled.

On The Way To The Cafe Yesterday

2010-08-26T16:44:00.001-07:00

When I'm in the US, I try to practice speaking french. It's difficult because there aren't many native french speakers in Southern California. I don't want to practice with other Anglophones because I will pick up their accent (just like mine so that's easy) and reproduce their grammar errors.

An ex-teacher of mine, Nadine, now gives private lessons in a cafe in Redondo Beach. I share the lesson with a fellow french student, Jean. We speak only in french. We enjoy each other's company, share stories and ideas. It is very convivial.

The cafe, the Coffee Cartel has been around forever. Instead of cafe chairs there are big, overstuffed, kinda dirty couches to sit on. There are no servers, you order your drink at the counter and take it to a couch. Most of the people in the cafe are young, tattooed, and using computers. Wifi must be free with the coffee.

This is our meeting place. It's close to the beach, relaxed.

Jean and I carpool to the cafe. We've known each other for a long time but only get together for our lessons even though she lives a few blocks away.

Yesterday she was telling me (in English and French) about her recent trip to Mammoth.

She went with her son's family. During the trip, they visited a ghost town called Bodie. We took the kids there, maybe 25 years ago and I remembered it very well. It is a place that was abandoned when the California Gold Rush ended. There are still bottles in the pharmacy and the saloon, furniture in some of the little houses, it is a snapshot of what life must have been like 150 year ago in California.

As we talked I realized something. While the US has a much shorter history than Europe, we have some very interesting historical events. I'm most familiar with California history. As we drove, we discussed our history. The California missions are wonderful. The Gold Rush, the railroads, the ranchos. I'd forgotten about this until our drive to the cafe.

Margaritas?

2010-08-23T14:43:00.000-07:00

It's been sunny and warm in California -- finally -- after six weeks of gloom.

Saturday night called for margaritas after a day at the beach. We bought the ingredients -- that's easy. But, we'd forgotten where are margaritas glasses were stored. It's been ages since we've had margaritas. We're more on the french champagne circuit these days and I know instantly where the champagne glasses are.

A trip to the garage was needed. I keep many of our older glasses stored in boxes in our storage room. I went through box after box and finally found the margarita glass box, buried about six deep.

I brought the box upstairs and started to unwrap the contents. Eventually I found three of one kind and two of another. At some point in the past, we must have broken a lot of margarita glasses. As I took them out of the newspaper they were wrapped in, I looked at the date on the yellowed LA Times pages. Evidently the last time we used these margarita glasses was in 1993 and 1994. Could it be possible that we haven't made a margarita since then?

How Do The Pros Do It?

2010-08-14T12:54:00.000-07:00

Changing locations involves a lot more than packing a suitcase and canceling the newspaper. We are constantly adjusting. Food, language, activities all differ. Even the time of day when we do things is different. In the US, we eat dinner earlier. Errands take much longer in France. We just adjust.

One of the things that is the hardest to adjust to is the different types of tennis courts. In Manhattan Beach, we only have hard tennis courts. It's what we learned to play tennis on. This type of court is faster (the ball hits the ground and then comes up faster and usually lower), it is usually green. In France the courts are usually red clay although we've seen a variety of other types of courts, usually in a public park. Red clay is very gentle on the body, the ball bounces up higher, giving you more time to plan your attack. But hitting it really hard doesn't insure that the other person won't get it because the court slows it down.

Every time we change locations, we have to figure out how to play tennis all over again. We look like beginners the first couple of times we play in each location, slashing at the ball, overrunning it (running past it), actually swinging and missing. You have to hope no one's watching when that happens.

It's also easier to fall down on the red clay because it is slippery. But if you fall you don't get hurt, where if you fall on a hard court (cement) it will definately hurt.

Tennis pros play on all kinds of surfaces and seem to be able to play on anything. I watch the players week after week, on grass, on hard courts on clay. They always play well, they never swing and miss. How do they do it?

Health Insurance

2010-07-15T13:43:00.000-07:00

We had hoped that Obama's healthcare reform would help us with our health insurance needs. Every year, the premium goes up and the coverage decreases. It's now to the point where we might be better off having only the most catastrophic coverage since we spend more in premiums than we ever incur in actual medical costs. This is combined with the need to have a second policy for France. Our US policies don't cover us outside the US.

We've been buying French insurance for a few years that covers the essentials for our trips. We've actually had to use it once, but, again, the premium costs exceed any medical costs that we've incurred.

So, I'm in the process of looking at the whole thing from a different point of view. Knowing that we need insurance in both places doesn't mean that we have to continue doing the same old thing. I'm investigating worldwide coverage through the insurer who has done our travel health in the past.

This is a lot of work, though. Analyzing co-pays, maximum lifetimes, exclusions, pre-existing conditions...It's all so complicated.

This has been on my desk for almost two weeks and I"m almost ready to take the step toward paying much less money to Anthem. I'll still be covered, but only for a REAL illness, not the everyday visit to the doctor for a sore throat. Typically I don't go to the doctor for that anyway. We'll see.

The Getaway

2010-07-03T11:17:00.000-07:00

We did not have a smooth getaway yesterday. As usual, the unexpected happened. Again and again. I didn't breathe a sign of relief until we locked the front door last night.

It all started first thing. When we called for a cab, we were told that none were available between 7 AM and 10 AM. Hmmm. They would book our reservation but nothing was guaranteed. Having no other way to the airport, we decided to take our chances.

Our bags were packed and we headed out the door about 30 minutes early, leaving in plenty of time. When we pushed the button for the elevator (lots of heavy bags), nothing happened. The elevator is fairly new, maybe five years old and it has never been broken. But, it wasn't coming. Terry rushed up the stairs to find our guardienne, Maria, huddled on the floor of the elevator. It is glass so he could see her. She said that she'd been stuck for over an hour between floors. Yikes! So, we dashed down the stairs and started pulling the suitcases down, one at a time.

As we got outside with the first load, we saw the elevator repairman going up the stairs. He said he'd have it fixed quickly. Sure enough, in five minutes, Maria came running down the stairs, mumbling in Portuguese but smiling. Crisis solved.

So, I jumped in the elevator with one suitcase, pused the "0" buttom, the elevator started to go down, then with a clang, it stopped between floors.

One more detail, at 9 AM, it was already about 90 degrees and humid.

I yelled at the repairman who yelled back not to get in the elevator, it's not fixed. DAH! I said I was stuck. Eventually, the elevator started to move up. It stopped on the 5th floor and the elevator repair guy started to yell at me, but I grabbed the suitcase, now having to pull it down five flights of stairs.

We got all the bags onto the sidewalk. We have a one-lane, one-way street. Just then, a huge truck pulled in front of our building and stopped, put on his blinkers and the driver jumped out. Terry went and yelled at him to move the truck, as did a guardienne from another building. He wasn't moving it. Now the cab can't/won't get down the street to us.

Panic averted as the cab came, put our stuff in the car, the truck moved and we were off.

The autoroute was a mess and it took more than an hour to get to the airport. We got there, found the line to check in and it was about 100 people long. We waited, no movement. There were two people working behind the counter, there were loads of people, wheelchairs, luggage. Everyone is going somewhere. Or nowhere.

We changed lines, thinking we'd found a better one, but no luck, two workers, big problems. We eventually got through it, got to security. We'd left three hours at the airport and now we had one hour left before our flight left. I put all my stuff into the plastic bins, went through without a beep but then a woman looking at the stuff in the machine told me to send my bag through again. I started to take it back and a guy barred my way. One woman told me to stay, the other one told me I hadn't passed. We went back and forth about four or five times before they finally let me take the bag back, take more things out of it and then pass through again. I must look suspicious (probably because I was so sweaty from all the commotion) because then they really searched me thoroughly.

We passed, hit the terminal. Inside, it was about 100 degrees, but our flight would be leaving soon. We thought.

The plane was supposed to board at 12:45 but at 12:40 they said that there was a delay, it would board at 1 PM. This went on, in 15 minute increments for two hours. In the heat for two hours, waiting for the plane to board. Luckily we'd grabbed a snack because the 1:30 flight didn't take off until almost 4 PM.

In the air, our luck of the day was consistent. A woman with three children sat one row away. The entire flight, they all yelled at each other, trashed the entire area and the baby cried.

We got all our suitcases, so that's a relief, but the Immigration Officer flagged our Customs Declaration with a BIG BLUE "A". We didn't know what that meant, but it means "agriculture". We'd need to have our bags checked for contraband food. This last drama of the day involved the only nice person along the way. He kiddingly told us that if we had any contraband from France (the usual pate, cheese, etc) we should dump it now. We didn't, our bags passed and we were free from this horrible day.

Regime

2010-07-01T06:52:00.000-07:00

These happy women have been dancing in the Luxembourg Gardens for several weeks now. I went this morning to visit them and try to take a better photo, but the workers were taking them away.

They are happy, joyous and beautiful. They are alive with action. They are naked. (Remember this is France).

The best thing about them is that they're not afraid to show their "stuff". And, there's a lot of it. Bellies, boobs, butts. All beautiful, curvey, voluptuous. Womanly.

But, not our culture's ideal. (... meaning both the US and France). In both countries, thin is the standard. Young is also good. I even think that thin women, as a general rule, look better and healthier, their clothes certainly fit better.

So why didn't the artist create a sculpture with thin women dancing? I can only guess.

I personally don't think this would be as interesting or as beautiful if there were runway models depicted in this dance.

But, this brings up the topic that's ever-present, in every ad and pharmacie window right now, probably on most people's mind -- weight loss or body improvement.

There are tons of products in pharmacies in France for cellulite, stomach fat, dieting. The push is on to look less like these women as we pull out our bathing suits and head for the beach.

Reporter Sans Frontieres

2010-06-29T02:29:00.000-07:00

Out with my iPHONE for my morning exercise in the Luxembourg Gardens, I came across this scene. I feel like a reporter myself sometimes. When I see something newsworthy, I try to capture it. It seems like every day something is going on here on the blvd. St Michel side of the "jardin".

Today, a group of reporters were out to bring awareness to the issue of reporters who have been captured and held hostage for political purposes. Some have been held for a long time.

I think this will be on the news tonight, as there were several camera crews capturing this.

I feel like a reporter sans frontieres myself, equipped with my iPHONE and ready for whatever is happening.

Gay Pride In Paris

2010-06-26T08:18:00.000-07:00

This is a big deal in Paris every year, but I've never seen it before. Today, just by chance, we heard music and walked toward it and, Voila!, Gay Pride. They had floats of a sort with balloons and music. Everyone was dancing, singing, parading.

Le Parisien says that between 500,000 to 700,000 people participated but we only saw a small part of the crowd that passed by us. Quite a show.

Fete de la Musique

2010-06-26T03:54:00.001-07:00

I think, after all these years, I've finally found my personal "rhythm" for the Fete de la Musique.

While I would want to think that I would enjoy going out at night and mixing with the young people in the street, this is just not fun for me. The last time we went out on the night of the Fete and stopped to listen to a street band, a group of drunk young men started to drop their pants while dancing. This is just not what I had in mind.

I prefer to sit and listen to some nice music in a pretty setting.

So, once again I chose the Luxembourg Gardens. There were two different venues for music and we spent a lot of time at both of them. On one side of the garden, groups performed traditional songs and dances of different regions. There were five or six regions represented and it was charming.

The other side of the garden hosted groups from Latin America, including Peru (maybe the guys in the Metro?), Bolivia, Paraguay, etc. Amazing music, the young and the old were dancing and enjoying the event.

The Mouse in the Grocery Store

2010-06-01T03:55:00.000-07:00

I'm sure that in the US, if someone spotted a mouse running around the aisles, the entire store would be closed by the health department. I'm sure they have their share of rodents, but we never see them.

Yesterday we were in Franprix at lunchtime. A mistake in itself. There were lots of people in line, all with their lunch items. Suddenly there was a commotion. Everyone was assembled in a circle, laughing, pointing, talking.

The object of their interest was a tiny tiny grey mouse who was obviously scared to death by all of us. It was confused, running around, trying to find a place to hide.

The cashier asked me what was all the excitement about, so I told her it was a small mouse.

What would I expect to happen? Of course, I would expect her to pick up her phone, call the manager and fix (ick) the problem. But, she did nothing of the kind. She rolled her eyes a bit, yawned and remarked, "C'est normal".

And, I think she's right. What better place for a mouse to live than the grocery store?

Taxi Bleu

2010-05-27T04:08:00.001-07:00

Another transportation strike is taking place today and it is raining. Not the little french rain that lasts for five minutes and then gets sunny, it's been raining all day, fairly steadily.

We have a cocktail party tonight. It's a dress-up activity. We've decided to take a taxi. We may take the metro home, we'll decide later.

There are two main taxi companies in Paris - G7 and Taxi Bleu. Taxis are not always available and on the day of a strike, there is a huge demand. Terry decided to call for the cab yesterday to assure that we'd have one. First he called Taxi Bleu. It was an automated system and he didn't feel completely sure that the taxi would come, since he didn't talk to a person. So, he booked a second cab with G7. Very bad move if two cabs arrive at the same time. You can only get in one of them and the other one is furious, as you can imagine.

I asked Terry to cancel one of the taxis. He tried and tried, but since it's the day of a strike, the lines are busy, even on the automated system. It's getting later and later in the afternoon and we haven't canceled one of the taxis yet. I decided to put my new cordless phone with a speaker phone to work. I dialed the number and got put into the recording/music system to wait for an operator. I walked around the apartment with the phone, did my chores, listened to the recording. The phone was my companion for a very long time.

Eventually an operator got on the phone. I started to explain that we needed to cancel the cab and when I got to the end of the sentence, I completely blanked on the work "cancel" in french, which is "annuler". Luckily the woman clairvoyanced what I needed, just as Terry rushed in the room to save me.

The taxi is canceled. Let's just hope the second one shows up.

May

2010-05-12T03:34:00.001-07:00

May is not the easiest month to be in France. There are five (5) holidays in May. The first two this year, May 1 and May 8 were on Saturdays. This is both good and bad. I would guess that for the people that work Monday through Friday, a Saturday holiday is a nightmare. No day off, but the one day a week reserved for errands and shopping, Saturday, everything was closed. Yikes! That's worse than a holiday on Sunday.

While there were more closures on May 1 (everything was closed, even museums), the May 8 holiday had a lot of demonstrations which interrupted traffic.

Tomorrow is another holiday. Being that it is on a Thursday, all of France is in transit today and tomorrow and they will be again on Sunday. Traffic will be a disaster because everyone takes off on Friday to make a four day weekend.

The other two holidays are more than a week away, so there's a little time to re-group between holidays.

May is a big month in the US too, with Memorial Day at the end of the month. Many people take off on the Friday before Memorial Day to make it a four-day weekend. It is also the official start of summer, although Manhattan Beach is normally shrouded in "June Gloom" (fog and clouds) until the 4th of July. Luckily we only have one holiday in the month and we've had the intelligence to put it on a Monday so everyone knows they'll get a day off.

As I scramble to get bread (bakery will be closed until Monday they told me), check my activities to make sure things are open, I'm grateful that May is only 1/12th of the year.