GELUKKIGE VERJAARDAG

© jijislief

LE CINEMA

© imdb

At the moment, it seems you can’t go to the cinema without tripping over Hugh Jackman/Scarlett Johansson. Recently, I have seen two (contrasting) films with them as leads. They were both eminently watchable films but ultimately disappointing. To say you have to suspend your disbelief is the very least you can say, especially about The Prestige. Still, it’s always good for my French and the seats are comfy!

SLOES AND HAWS (sp?)

Party season approaches and this is just a little reminder for a certain somebody (who I know has nothing better to do ;p ) to go out in his fields and gather the abundant autumn berries for steeping in alcohol ..

AU SECOURS

There are times when I do not maîtrise pas well le français. Last week was one of those times and I had to get almost everybody to répéter everything and my accent n’était pas très good. In fact, it seemed that I was talking (more) nonsense (than usual) when I told my friends about the ‘scratching of the deers’. Voilà the new phrase for a kidney transplant.

RUGBY BORE

© bbc

You may have been wondering why I hadn’t really mentioned last week-end’s rugby (on the other hand, you may have been very thankful for and relieved by this omission). However, what with the defeats of Stade Français, Italy AND France, it’s taken me a while to digest England’s increasing mediocrity on the rugby field. Now, I know our national stereotype is not to draw attention to ourselves but to display our brilliance in an understated way and how we like to get behind the underdog, etc., etc., but really, we are taking things to extremes these days. With less than a year to the World Cup and just a few months until the VI Nations, I’m not despairing yet but still, some socks need to pulled up ..

Never mind, this week-end brings other challenges: Italy play Canada, England meet South Africa (again), France are against Argentina and SF are at home to Castres.

ANOTHER BIRTHDAY BOY

Well, it would seem that I have given up sending birthday cards from France. This time I have no excuse since I wasn’t ill so I thought that a world-wide-web celebration of your birthday (since blog is sooo extensively read and appreciated!) is surely far more preferable to a boring French card with a Paris postmark. Donc: je te souhaite un super anniversaire avec tes chéris, plein de fun et de surprises. Amuse-toi bien ;p

FALLING LEAVES

It’s nearly the end of November and the colours of autumn are everywhere. And yet one thing puzzles me: from the window of my flat, I can see a row of trees whose branches are covered with yellow, and rapidly falling, leaves. So why, on the tree directly opposite me, are the leaves still vibrantly green and obstinately attached when it is exactly the same species as all the others in the road?

MONTPELLIER-SF

Words to describe tonight’s match: wet, slippy, muddy, autumnal, penalties, mistakes, unexciting, new players, defeat :(

MY FAVOURITE TIME OF DAY

HEY, I’M WITH IT ..

Apparently, there is something hip and trendy that (young) people do these days called ‘txt spk’ and about which I obviously have no idea. Especially in French. Like: when I get a text which ends with ‘à 2min’, and half an hour later I am wondering what’s taking them so long, it slowly begins to dawn on me that this phrase in long hand does not actually mean ‘see you in two minutes’ .. there’s really no hope for some people, is there? :/

HMMM ..

© telegraph

So, yesterday’s enthusiasm turns to some distress.

Italy, although they played bravely, lost to Australia (25-18). France had a thorough arse-whooping from New Zealand (47-3). England, well same score as the Italians without playing half as well. Without wishing to detract from Argentina’s victory, they were pretty mediocre too and made basic errors as well. But they at least played with passion and envy and hunger. We, on the other hand, were slow, inconsistent and have lost our clinical finishing. There were (very short-lived) flashes of inspiration but on the whole we look lost and without conviction as if we’ve had our stuffing knocked out of us. It’s going to take something special to turn us around before the VI Nations and the World Cup.

Still, at least Stade won their match against Agen (31-8). What’s that? You think I’m taking this rugby thing too seriously ;p

RUGBEEE!

Fantastic day in prospect tomorrow! Here’s what’s coming up:

SF-Agen at Jean Bouin, unfortunately without Mirco or any of the internationals :(
followed by
England-Argentina
then
France-New Zealand
then
either celebration of victories or drowning of sorrows!

SOME ANSWERS

- why, when I look in my wardrobe, do all my clothes seem so terribly unappealing at the moment? either: my clothes actually ARE unappealing ( ;p ) or I am in a bad mood and will find fault with anything

- am I slowly succumbing to carbon monoxide poisoning from the cars passing by my window? no, I am being a hypochondriac, you cannot even commit suicide any more with your car’s exhaust pipe

- will England ever win a rugby match again? yes, of course they will, they just might not win the RWC

- why does it take so long for former landladies to forward post? either: because everything happens for a reason or because they were reading it

- is it really so important to wear matching underwear? yes, absolutely. non-matching underwear means you are a slovenly trollop who pays no attention to detail

- am I going to turn into an old, cat-throwing lady? am I already an old, cat-throwing lady? no comment (just maybe substitute ‘cat’ with ‘bunny’)

- will I ever learn to swim? yes, but only if I obey the evil genius and stop wussing about

MUSINGS FOR TODAY

- why, when I look in my wardrobe, do all my clothes seem so terribly unappealing at the moment?

- am I slowly succumbing to carbon monoxide poisoning from the cars passing by my window?

- will England ever win a rugby match again?

- why does it take so long for former landladies to forward post?

- autumn weather/warm metros are not good for long hair

- why do the French test their air-raid sirens at 12 o’clock every first Wednesday of the month? I find it a bit spooky.

- is it really so important to wear matching underwear?

- am I going to turn into an old, cat-throwing lady? am I already an old, cat-throwing lady?

- renewing my card at the Louvre reminded me again how much I hate (with a passion, I can’t tell you how much, detest is not a strong enough word) having my photograph taken

- can you say ‘open your books, page 12’ or do you always need a preposition?

- will I ever learn to swim?

IN AWE

© eg

I'd just like it to be known officially that 'beloved tutor' is an evil genius. And while this master of the dark arts can be pretty scary at times, he can also perform amazingly kind tricks like magicking lots of free time out of thin air!

PERMIT ME ..

.. a bit of frivolity now and then ;p

ONE POINT

© stade.fr

So, the Top 14 resumed with Stade away to Perpignan. Unfortunately, their winning ways did not resume and they lost 11-10. Must do better. Hmm, I wonder how England will fare against New Zealand later today ..

A FOR ANCESTRAL

I think you know you’re getting old when you start mis-hearing things. Last night, during introductions to friends I hadn’t met before, there arose some confusion when I was introduced with what my ears heard as ‘une amie en sète’. While I was puzzling as to what this might mean (it has no meaning at all by the way), the person to whom I had been introduced had heard something QUITE different. I then noticed that they were looking quite quizzically at my tummy and hips and saying ‘Well, you wouldn’t know’. Thank goodness, my friend stepped in to prevent any further embarrassment by explaining that she had in fact introduced me as ‘une amie ancêtre’ (very old/ancestral friend) and not ‘une amie enceinte’ (pregnant friend). Oh, the hazards of foreign languages!

BIRTHDAY GIRL

© dita.net

Hope you have a wonderful birthday today, gorgeous girl, and sorry that I can’t be with you in person but I do have a genuine excuse in that I have a train to catch. But know I am thinking of you and will have a glass of red wine in your honour! And please don’t be too disappointed when you open the box to discover that I haven’t, in fact, bought you a biosnacky germinator (much as I know you really desire one ;p)

A TALE OF TWO CITIES

Well, here I am back on dry, stable land, tired, severely dehydrated but happy. And I've almost recovered from my illness; I just have an annoying little dry cough now instead of a loud, barking one. And I’ve never been through so many security procedures as on this trip but luckily there was no frisking (or should that be unluckily?). There was a new (for me) security ‘puffer’ experience where the machine blows air over you and then sniffs to see if you have traces of chemicals on you – I’m clean, by the way. So, one more security check and eurostar journey and then I’ll be back in Paris ready to tackle my pupils again!