This is the last day of July and am I glad the month is ending. I am one of these rare breeds of people who don't like summer (you know this by now) and July is the peak of summertime. It is generally when the temperature gets way too hot for comfort. Surely enough, July this year hs been the worst July I had in,well, decades, with the worst heatwave on record. It felt here like living through an inferno. Things might get bad come August, but generally it is not nearly as terrible (touch wood). Otherwise, this month has been expetedly exhausting, stressful and generally unpleasant. So yes, that was my month of July. How was yours?
Sunday 31 July 2022
Ending July
Ah les fraises (encore)...
Saturday 30 July 2022
Bloodfeud of Altheus
Mafalda siempre!
Friday 29 July 2022
50 Things to Try in Autumn
Chocolat aux bleuets: trouvez votre point de vente
Thursday 28 July 2022
Camping Jammies
A couple of years ago, my wife bought me pajama trousers in a new year sales. She bought it in the local FatFace before it closed down. For some strange reason in this country, they can sell pj trousers and the top separately. So anyway these pjays, or jammies as they often call it here in the UK (and if you didn't know that term before, keep it in mind, it is our new word of the day) quickly became my favourite pair of trousers. Even though they were not right in many little ways: a bit too long, a bit too wide, not quite warm enough for winter, a bit too warm for summer. Oh, and I always needed to find a tshirt or a top when I wanted to wear it. But I loved the design on it: it had images of tents, campfire, logs, fish, trees, as if the trousers were designed for camping trips. I never did proper camping, except a few nights in the back garden when I was a teenager. So the trousers are all worn out now, too worn out so I won't take them on our holiday, even though I am very tempted. It is funny, because I think it is the design that made me like them, even though I'm not into camping at all. And I feel like I never did my ol' jammies justice.
Spaghetti tunisien
Il est assez rare que je fais à manger, mais quand je le fais, c'est en général apprécié pour toute la famille. Enfin bref, j'ai préparé un spaghetti tunisien il y a quelques jours. Je crois que c'est le repas préféré de ma femme, enfin celui que je sais faire qu'elle préfère. Sauf qu'elle ne veut pas trop de harissa, Wolfie pas du tout, alors je rajoute la harissa dans ma portion. Et il faut que je fasse cuire les champignons, car ma femme ne les aime pas crus. C'est un peu plus d'ouvrage, mais bon. Mais enfin bref, je suis quand même assez fier de mes talents pour faire un spaghetti tunisien qui a de l'allure, alors je partage ici une photo rien que pour la food porn.
Wednesday 27 July 2022
What's in Any Old Iron
I recently finished reading Any Old Iron by Anthony Burgess. One of my favourite novels from my favourite writer. I first read it some 25 years ago or so. I had not forgotten how great it was, but I had forgotten a lot about it. It has many great lines, but one near the end struck me in particular. Here, the main character Reginald Morrow Jones sums up his experience with rediscovering in the middle of the XXth century legendary sword Excalibur: "I had to grasp a chunk of the romantic past and find it rusty. I had to fit myself to the modern age." This is, in essence, what nostalgia is all about. So I found it both moving and profound.
Cueillir les framboises
Tuesday 26 July 2022
Jigsaw Puzzle Tag
"C'est le raisin de chez-nous, fils du feu..."
Les lecteurs qui suivent mon blogue depuis quelques années savent que c'est la Sainte-Anne et qu'à Sainte-Anne, je cite Menaud maître-draveur, de Félix-Antoine Savard. Mon père a acheté ces bleuets sauvages il y a quelques jours. Tout ça pour dire que je me sens très Saguenéen aujourd'hui.
Monday 25 July 2022
Billy the Black Bear
Ah les fraises, les framboises, les bleuets...
Sunday 24 July 2022
Excalibeer
You may remember (or maybe not) that back in 2017, Rebellion Beer brewed an ale called Excalibur for September. Well, this year they released it again, but for July (a more fitting month for a blonde, by the way). As I had enjoyed it the first time and because I'm a medievalist, I thought it was only fitting for me to buy it again. So I ordered some. It should really be called Excalibeer. That said, if you remember my first post about it, or if you know a bit about the Arthurian legend, you will find three mistakes on the label. I listed them again here:
1)When King Arthur pulled the sword from the stone, he was a child or a teenager, a very young man at the most, not a full grown adult.
2)Obviously he was no king yet when he pulled the sword from the stone, therefore hehad no crown on his head. (That one must be the easiest)
3)The sword in the stone, contrary to popular belief and years of Hollywood misinformation, was not Excalibur, which he obtained in different circumstances.
Be that as it may, I still enjoyed drinking it.
Morille
Saturday 23 July 2022
The Coolest Chess Pieces
Vous rappelez-vous de Ruby le chat?
Friday 22 July 2022
Seeing the bats
I had not seen my elusive neighbours in a long while, not since a few months, maybe not since last year. But two nights ago, I saw them flying around in the night. I am talking about the bats of course. I was waiting for Domino to get home from his evening stroll and they were flying low. I think I even heard a few squeeks as well. I like the bats: I find them mysterious, a dash sinister (in a good way) and they eat insects. I hope to spot them again soon.
Un marque-page des Bouquinistes
Thursday 21 July 2022
Falling into Mount Vesuvius
Here's a bit of silly news that I heard about recently which discouraged me about mankind. You may not know about it, but I kinda like volcanoes, as long as they don't erupt and that we keep at a safe distance. My brothers and I were fascinated by them as children, PJ was borderline obsessed about volcanoes. So I have always been curious about seeing the legendary ones, such as Mount Vesuvius. Is there a volcano more famous than this one? Well, recently, an American tourist fell into it trying to take a selfie. I mean, really? That's all some people can think about? Taking a selfie next to nature's most terrible creation? Part of me thinks if Mount Vesuvius had to erupt again, now would be a good time. If you are superstitious, forget what I just said.
Première "gardienne"
Aujourd'hui, comme c'était le premier jour de vacances scolaires de petit loup et que sa mère et moi travaillons, nous avons pour la première fois demandé de l'aide d'une "gardienne" pour s'occuper de lui l'après-midi. Autrement dit, nous avons demandé l'aide de Blonde Tickler, la fille d'une amie qui reste à deux pas d'ici, littéralement. C'est pas vraiment une gardienne, parce que nous ne sommes pas partis de la maison, mais c'est tout comme. Wolfie a adoré son après-midi: il l'a passé à rire et à s'amuser. Alors bref, je crois bien qu'on a trouvé notre Mary Poppins.
The Wisdom of Steve Carella
Fontaine géante, prise 3
Wednesday 20 July 2022
Last Day of School
Today is Wolfie's last day of school until next September. In fact, it will only be a half day. After today, he is on holidays and no longer at Reception. It feels like his first day was yesterday. I am feeling a bit... conflicted. It has been a long year and often a rollercoaster, but in a way it went way too quickly. He made himself a lot of friends, way more than he did in preschool, seeing him finding his place among his peers and in his school has been very moving. Our baby grew up to be an amazing little boy and we are very proud of him. He accomplished so much in a single year. Yet I can't help but think... This is just too fast.
Des VTT dans la rue
Il y a quelques jours, quand le soir tombait et qu'on essayait de faire dormir petit loup, ma femme et moi (et petit loup: il en a perdu le sommeil) avons entendu un vrombissement pas très loin. C'était très bruyant. J'ai jeté un coup d'oeil à la fenêtre, je pensais que c'étaient des motos ou une voiture qui déconnait dans le stationnement du bureau derrière chez nous. mais non: c'étaient des quatre roues (le terme exact maintenant est VTT je crois) qui passaient deux rues plus loin. Des quatre roues. On n'est pas une très grande ville, à peine plus qu'un village, mais quand même, on ne vit pas en campagne! Voulez-vous bien me dire ce qu'ils crissaient là? Je n'ai jamais aimé les quatre roues ni les trois roues: j'ai toujours trouvé que c'étaient des véhicules vulgaires, colons et épais. Et je n'ai pas trop envie d'en voir dans les environs de notre quartier résidentiel.
Tuesday 19 July 2022
"Hotter than in Africa"
So we are in the worst heatwave in UK history at the moment. I hate it. Wolfie said coming back from school yesterday, with a bit of pride in his voice I must admit: "It is hotter than in Africa." He might actually be right. His maternal grandfather, who is South African, even told me that South African heat is far more bearable, because it is try, and not damp like this one. Hopefully we won't have to tolerate it much longer. And in any case, "hotter than in Africa" is a new Wolfism and the one that will define this week.
Notre ancien appart
Monday 18 July 2022
Like Melting Sugar
Taken from the best years of The Simpsons, my current state of mind:
Mafalda, Quino et le Google Doodle
"Keeping cool"
Des olives et des biscuits Ritz
Sunday 17 July 2022
Queen Sono
I know Netflix is in trouble these days, but you can still find interesting stuff on it worth watching. Recently, thanks to its algorythms, I stumbled upon Queen Sono, a South African spy/crime tv series. Just the kind of things I love to watch. I was not expecting much, but I was happily surprised. The series follow a female operative (Queen Sono) who is also the orphan daughter of an anti-Apartheid revolutionary. While at work she fights criminal organisations and terrorist groups, while struggling against the obstacles thrown at her by corrupted elements in the South African government (including the president), she investigates the murder of her mother 25 years earlier. There is also a Russian corporation of mercenaries that is more like a Russian mob who is manipulating events in Africa, an ex-boyfriend of Sono who has turned terrorist and a few other things going on. It is flawed, sometimes soap operaish, often far-fetched, but it has solid production value, nice plotting, great characters and it's great fun. I binged it. Sadly, the second season was cancelled due to Covid. I hope they shoot it soon, because I was just starting to enjoy it.
Anecdote sur le fromage
Saturday 16 July 2022
S.W.A.T. Police Playset
Un héron
Friday 15 July 2022
St Swithin's Day
Les Caramels du Chat
Thursday 14 July 2022
Did I see a raven?
I was walking to go and get Wolfie from school and passing by one of the town's allotments. And I saw a huge corvid. It was really big. I suspect it was a raven, but I cannot be sure as I am not really an ornithologist, not even an amateur one. Either that or a really big, oversized crow. But I think it was a raven. I tried to take a picture, but unfortunately it flew away before I could. I will keep my eyes open for next time.
Observations sur le 14 juillet vu d'ici
C'est mon second billet sur la Fête nationale française aujourd'hui. Après ma journée de travail sur le marché français, j'ai quelques observations à faire concernant le 14 juillet:
-J'ai vraiment rien eu à faire de la journée.
-Non, sérieusement. J'ai jamais autant glandé de la journée.
-Comme bien des Français prennent le 15 de congé, demain risque d'être aussi tranquille.
-Quand tu es francophone dans un milieu de travail anglophone, tes collègues vont faire comme si tu es Français le 14 juillet.
Sinon comment ça a été chez vous?
Ukrainian Voices
Two days ago, I was walking to Wolfie's school to pick him up and I heard a woman and her daughter speaking to each other. I think they were Ukrainian, it sounded Eastern European in any case. If I am not mistaken, they were the same Ukrainians we saw back in June. Apparently, Wolfie's school has a few pupils who are Ukrainian refugees, but we haven't been interacting with the families as of yet. One day, their voices might become familiar to us and Wolfie might become friend with some of them. But right now, knowingwhy they are here, their presence still seems a bit surreal.
14 juillet
Je le souligne à chaque année sur ce blogue, parfois je le célèbre un peu aussi. Nous sommes donc le 14 juillet, la Fête nationale française. Ce qui veut dire pour moi, dans un premier temps, une journée tranquille au travail: c'est jour férié en France et je travaille sur le marché français. Je vais prendre ça pépère. Le lendemain sera tranquille aussi: les Français prennent souvent le 15 de congé si le 14 tombe un jeudi. Quant à ce que je pense du 14 juillet en soi, lire ce billet de 2017. Je ne me sens pas souvent francophile, mais le républicanisme est une des choses que je trouve le plus admirable en France, avec la laïcité sans complexes.
Wednesday 13 July 2022
Amber Warning of Extreme Heat
I'm bracing myself the best I can: it's been hot these last few days, last Monday was a heatwave, now we have temperatures slightly below 30, but come the weekend and the heatwave will be in full force. In fact, we're BBC Weather is giving an amber warning of extreme heat for the weekend. 31 degree on Sunday, last time I checked, and 34 degree on Monday. This is no longer summertime, this is inferno and I hate it. It should go down afterwards, or at least I hope it will.
Fontaine géante, prise 2
Je partage une seconde fois (voir la première ici) une photo de la fontaine sur le Plateau prise par mon père. Construite sur une ancienne station-service, ça ne peut pas faire plus écolo. Je m'ennuie de Montréal et du Plateau ces temps-ci.
Tuesday 12 July 2022
The James Bond... Bingo?
Beau Bonhomme
Beau Bonhomme. Tu parles d'un nom pour un vin. Avec un nom pareil, j'aurais cru qu'il vient du Québec ou d'un pays francophone. Mais non: il vient d'Espagne. Je ne sais pas s'il est bon ou pas, à $13.70 à la SAQ, c'est cheap dans tous les cas. Mes parents ont bu ça avec du boudin noir. Je partage parce que j'aime le nom et l'étiquette. Faudra que je l'essaie un jour
Monday 11 July 2022
Gardening Wisdom (from my mother-in-law)
A few weeks ago, I was discussing gardening with my mother-in-law. She is a keen gardener and naturally talented at it, while I am absolutely hopeless. On my poor gardening skills, please read my post from the 5th of July. But she was generous enough to guide me with some general principles regarding the art of gardening, which I wanted to share here: "Gardening is not for the faint of heart, you must be brutal and merciless. It requires lot of cutting and killing. But it's mostly feeding the slugs." This was eye opening and it also deserves to be a new great unknown line.
Les pieds dans l'eau
Sunday 10 July 2022
Trees (A Ladybird Book)
Polixe, le nounours de la SQ
Saturday 9 July 2022
New Halloween Gnomes
P'tit Loup pour les vacances
Friday 8 July 2022
SPECTRE: the board game
You know I'm a fan of James Bond, both the novels and the films. Well, I learned not long ago that there was a board game based on the films that was being made: SPECTRE: The Board Game. You play an agent of the nefarious terrorist organisation. That sounds like a lot of fun. It will be released in August-September, but you can pre-order now. It looks absoluely gorgeous and I love board games, but at £50.00, given that I don't have many occasions to play to the games I have, I might ask for it for Christmas or my birthday or something.
Fontaine géante
Thursday 7 July 2022
Summer Reading Challenge
Ah! Les fraises...
Wednesday 6 July 2022
The School Walk
Because my wife has started working and her work schedule makes her unable to pick up Wolfie from school, I switched my break at work so I can go pick up Wolfie for the next two weeks or so. I walk to school to pick him up, then we walk back home. Going there is not too long, but it is exhausting and it hurts like hell: I must go up a hill. I used to walk in my old commutes, but not nearly that much. The way back is slower, because I must carry Wolfie sometimes when he gets tired. It also hurts more. As I am typing this, my legs are killing me. But I do want to keep on doing it for one reason: I haven't beene xercising much in the last two years. At the beginning of the pandemic, we did a fair deal of walking, then for some reason we slowly stopped. So I want to get back in shape and be strong again. But gosh does it hurt.
Le pommier des beaux-parents
Tuesday 5 July 2022
"Grow Your Own Pumpkins!"
1000 Bornes
Monday 4 July 2022
100 Things to do on a Journey
Fraises de l'Île
Sunday 3 July 2022
Crusader Set
I mentioned not very long ago that we went to a birthday party with Wolfie where he got a sword and shield made of blown balloons. That got him very exicted about, well, sword and shields and other toy weapons for make belief games. The kind of toys I loved when I was his age. Don't judge me: I think violent ake belief games are cathartic for children. For adults too, probably. So we went afterwards to the local toy shop. I did not buy any for now, but I might for his birthday. I was thinking about this "3 piece crusader set". It has a nice fancy sword with some gold on it, a shield and a neat little ax. Okay, so it is utterly unauthentic, but what the heck, at £9.99 it's a reasonable price. Although I know from experience that such toy don't last very long.
Zone de Lenteur, Montréal
Saturday 2 July 2022
McDLT
I found this picture on social media, an old advert from McDonald's, it triggered some old memories. Anybody remembers the McDLT? Or McD.L.T. as it said on the box. Back when I was a child and my parents were buying us McDonald's as a semi-regular weekend treat, they were quite fond of McDLTs. It was their go-to burger. I never understood the appeal: what was the point of paying for a burger you had to assemble yourself? Beside, when you add cheese on a burger, you want it to melt, not stay cool like the tomato and lettuce. And who found so important to keep lettuce and tomato cool on a burger anyway? No wonder it got discontinued. If any of you remember the McDLT, tell me if you tried it and if you enjoyed it. For the record, at the time I was a McNuggets eater, until I switched to a Quarter Pounder with Cheese. But that high-tech burger thing? Sheesh!
Un héron
Friday 1 July 2022
Lucozade
This week, I got the worst case of man flu, so much so that I had to take a day off work. My manager (the best manager I had in years, by the way) was very understanding and he ever suggested his go-to medicine for man flu: Lucozade. For those who don't know, it's an energy drink, very popular in the UK. For me, it's allmy wife could have, apart from water, when she was in Labour. I had it in the past when I was sick and frankly because of this I think it tastes of medicine. I don't know if it truly is good when you have a cold, or whatever else, but I tend to give some credit to it. Something tasting that nasty must have some virtues. So I might stock myself in Lucozade for next time.
Jour du Déménagement
Nous sommes le 1er juillet, ce qui au Québec veut dire, ne le nions pas, le Jour du Déménagement. Parce que, bon, Dominion Day, c'est pas très célébré, en tout cas pas chez les francophones, ne nous contons pas d'histoires. Incidemment, c'est un premier juillet que ma femme et moi sommes devenus propriétaires. C'est donc un peu notre Jour du Déménagement aussi, même si nous n'avons emménagé dans notre maison que le lendemain. Nous n'avons fait qu'amener quelques boîtes le 1er juillet 2016. Mais c'est quand même un jour à souligner, puisque nous avons cessés d'être locataires.