Tomasz Kot and me

I recently discovered one thing about Polish actor Tomasz Kot. I know very little about the man, in fact I have never seen (as far as I know) any movie or TV series with him in the cast. I learned of his existence when he was rumoured to be considered for the villain in the last Bond movie, which of course did not happen. But hey, him and me have one thing in common: we were born on the exact same date. Same day, same year. So we have the exact same age. And I just find this kind of a funny coincidence, if completely trivial.

Trains écolos en Allemagne

Voici une petite nouvelle dans la grosse Presse qui m'a bien fait plaisir: afin d'atteindre la carboneutralité, une compagnie ferroviaire allemande utilise de la vaisselle réutilisable dans ses trains. Je me réjouis de ça pas tant pour des raisons environnementales (quoique c'est bien), mais pour une raison de propreté. La quantité de déchets qu'on peut trouver dans un train me décourage toujours beaucoup. C'est mon moyen de transport préféré, alors qu'on améliore certains de ses aspects me réjouis beaucoup. Et j'espère ouvoir revisiter l'Allemagne et y voyager en train.

15 years of blogging

I forgot to mention something two days ago:the 25th of February was the date of my first post on this blog. I have been blogging for 15 years. To say that I enjoy it is an understatement: I love blogging. Not sure why. There are more modern channels/mediums on social media, but this is the one I love the most. It's like having a personal journal, but for anybody to read, if they are so inclined. When I started Vraie Fiction, I was unemployed, bored and thought I could use my free time like this. It was also a dreary, depressing February, like February often is, so I thought this could cheer me up. I guess it did. In any case, I have been blogging ever since and I try to write two posts daily, one in English and one in French, even if it is for trivial matters. So yeah, I hope you enjoy Vraie Fiction, in any case.

Le trappeur (santon)

Photo trouvée sur la page Facebook sur les Santons de Charlevoix. Je n'ai jamais acheté de santon, que ce soit de Charlevoix ou d'ailleurs, mais je veux corriger ça dès que possible. J'en ai vu une fois à l'aéroport de Dorval, ça coûtait les yeux de la tête, j'ai donc fini par ne pas en acheter. Je le regrette depuis. En fait, c'est peut-être parce que je vieillis, mais je songe à me constituer une collection de santons, de Charlevoix et d'ailleurs dès que j'en ai l'occasion. Mais pourquoi le trappeur? Ben parce qu'il est typiquement québécois, d'abord. On ne le confondrait pas pour un santon provençal, mettons. Ensuite parce que j'aime tout ce qui est forestier et il n'y a pas plus forestier qu'un trappeur.

Guerilla Sunday Roast

 Last week, we went to a petting zoo. We had decided to lunch there. As it was a Sunday and they were offering a Sunday roast, we bought a Sunday roast, the first in months. In fact, I cannot remember the last time I had one. My last post on the blog about a Sunday roast dates back from June 2021, which gives you an idea. It might have been the last time I ate one. So it had been long overdue. That said, I discovered something: eating  a Sunday roast out of cardboard, with wooden cutlery and no alcohol to go with it, well, it's not the optimal experience. It tasted okay, but it felt like we were having a bit of a guerilla meal.

Glacial...

Je me suis fait dire qu'il fait très froid au Québec. Je partage donc une photo pour illustrer. Ici c'est trop doux, hélas.

Duck Down Village

I'm sharing another picture taken in the Isle of Wight, in Robin Hill. It is a theme park which Wolfie really enjoyed (although to be honest I cannot remember a theme park he didn't like). One of my favourite sections was the Duck Down Village, because it looked like a cute little timeless idyllic village. Not sure exactly what made it si endearing, but it felt like a place made for and run by children. It seemed like adults were intruders there. We pretty much followed Wolfie exploring and doing his make belief games, making friends with other kids he will never meet again. Oh and I love ducks, so I find the name cool as well.

GOLDORAK: Le Festin des Loups

Petite nouvelle qui m'a donné un coup de nostalgie, il y a un jeu vidéo de Goldorak qui va sortir cette année. Bon, Goldorak n'était pas mon héros d'animé japonais préféré, cela dit j'adorais Goldorak quand même. Mes parents n'aimaient guère, trouvant cela bête et violent, voire glauque, sauf que moi je m'en balançais. J'avoue que j'ai eu des frissons en regardant le trailer.

Shanklin Train Station

I took this picture during one of our bus trips to or back from one of the attractions of the Isle of Wight. We went through Shanklin, but we did not stop there, to my wife's chagrin. She thought it looked like a nice seaside town. But I noticed its train station. I have a thing for quaint railway stations, I often find them full of charm and atmosphere. For me stopping at one of them, especially during a holiday, is an event in itself. Sadly we did not travel from this station, so I could not appreciate it. For all I know on the inside it might have been run down, ugly and dirty. Nevertheless, I thought its exterior was nice enough to be worth this snapshot.

Hermine

Je partage une photo prise à à Amazon World lors de notre séjour à l'Isle of Wight. Il y avait une section d'animaux empaillés que j'ai beaucoup aimée. Selon Google Translate, "stoat" se traduit par "hermine". Mon père avait une peau d'hermine quand j'étais enfant, une hermine toute blanche avec le bout de la queue noir, comme c'est le cas ici. C'est la première fois que j'en voie une rousse. Et ça me rappelle la peau d'hermine de mon enfance.

Mysterious Lost Glove

 We saw this glove last weekend in a parking. It was on the ground between an open gate and a fence. I did not pick it up, maybe I should have had because it was not so easy to see. It looks like a good quality glove, a thick warm glove for winter, the kind of winter glove I love to wear. I think it is a man's glove, but I might be wrong. I should have picked it up, I could have checked the label and find its brand. We never have enough good gloves, especially me: I get through them quickly. I hope the person who lost it finds it again. Anyway, so that's it, we did not solve the mystery of the lost glove.

Un chat dans la neige

Mon père m'a envoyé cette photo il y a quelques jours. Il n'aime guère les chats, mais il y en a toujours quelques uns qui viennent rôder sur le terrain. Ce qui me frappe avec celui-ci, c'est qu'il ressemble pas mal à Domino.

Fauda (Chaos)

I know Netflix has been heavily criticised recently for various reasons, that said I must admit that I find a lot of quality films and programs in there. I recently got hooked on Fauda, an Israeli spy and crime thriller. Fauda is also a Hebrew and Arabic term meaning chaos and that pretty much sums up the atmosphere of the show. The series started in 2015, so I am arriving quite late at the party, but I guess algorithms are what they are. I came to the series not expecting much, basically I started watching it hoping to see some cool action scenes featuring Krav Maga. And yes I got some of that too, but what I discovered was a realistic war drama pretty much devoided of manicheism. The antagonists may be ruthless terrorists, nevertheless they have families and loved ones. So you know where they are coming from and you can empathise with them. The action scenes are violent, suspenseful, frantic, but never glamourised.  So yes, I have only watched the first episode so far (therefore I might change my mind about its content after seeing more), but I think I might just binge this one. Shamelessly.

Le mercredi des Cendres au Diable

Nous sommes le mercredi des Cendres et comme l'an dernier je partage une image du Baiser maléfique. C'est de loin ma version préférée de la légende de Rose Latulipe, c'est aussi grâce au livre que j'ai découvert la légende et que j'ai développé une obsession pour celle-ci. J'ai partagé de nombreuses illustrations du bouquin sur ce blogue depuis l'an dernier, en espérant qu'elles vous hanteront et vous donneront envie d'en apprendre plus. Sinon, il est peut-être trop tard pour vous donner des conseils de prudence, néanmoins à tout hasard et par mesure de précaution: méfiez-vous toujours du Diable, il rôde encore sans doute aujourd'hui.

Monopoly Tokens

I found this meme online a few days ago and it got me thinking about the classic board game Monopoly. Maybe the most popular board game in history. It has never been my favourite board game, but it is one I often played through my childhood, with my friends and my brothers, although I was never very good at it. I don't remember winning once. That said, the meme got me thinking. My favourite Monopoly token has always been the top hat. I think I always played with it, at least when we used the original version. Not sure why, maybe because I found it fitting for a game where you played a businessman in a suit. In fact, of all the tokens it's the only one I genuinely like. And you, which one is your favourite and why?

Satan au Mardi gras

Nous sommes aujourd'hui le Mardi gras, que je souligne ici chaque année. J'associe le Mardi gras à la légende de Rose Latulipe. Elle me hante depuis que j'ai lu enfant Le baiser maléfique, une adaptation très sombre de la légende, où le mal finit par triompher (et quel triomphe!). Je vous en recommande la lecture. D'ici là, je partage une des superbes images du bouquin, avec un conseil de prudence: n'ouvrez la porte à personne ce soir, surtout si celui qui cogne est un bel homme élégamment vêtu.

Acting in the library

Here's a little bit of news that caught my attention and my interest recently: there is a playreaders group in the local library and they are looking for new members. The group meets once a month and they don't require you to have any acting experience or skills. I happen to have experience and I do hope some skills. I haven't done acting in more than a decade, but I miss it a lot, so I might actually try to join, if I can fit it in my family schedule. My wife told me to go for it. If I do, I will of course blog about it and thus keep you posted. I love the idea of acting in a library, among all the books. It is just a great setting, where two arts meet.

La "base" de nos jeux

Quand j'étais enfant, nous nousavions souvent, mes amis et moi, un endroit qui faisait office de camp, de base, de GQ, de camp (prononcez "campe") lors de nos jeux. C'était parfois un coin de terrain où l'on pouvait observer la rue sans être vus, ou une galerie (celle de mon voisin Patrice était énorme), parfois une remise. Petit loup en a aussi, mais pas vraiment dans notre voisinage. Cela dit, lors de notre dernière visite à une ferme pour enfants locale, il a pu profiter de ses camps suspendus dans l'aire de jeux. Il l'a utilisé extement comme nous utilisions nos galeries: un pied-à-terre, un camp où ses personnages se protègent des ennemis ou des monstres. Il y a des moments comme ça où j'envie mon fils.

Gyros (and a great unknown line)

Sometimes, we feel too lazy to cook. And sometimes we buy our meals from a food van. Which is what we did yesterday for dinner.We bought a gyros with halloumi in it. My wife had been curious about the stand so we decided that we'd try it. Also, we have a thing for all things Greek, see this post if you are wondering why. The gyros was okay, nothing great, but the staff was friendly and, from what I could tell, authentically Greek. It is because of our interaction with them that I wanted to blog about the whole experience. When I asked if I could pay the old fashioned way in cash, the cook replied: "Certainly, you can pay by cash, card or even bitcoins if you'd like." I thought it was funny and it deserves to be a great unknown line. Gotta love Mediterranean humour.

Bloc de glace

Mon père m'a envoyé cette photo d'un bloc de glace qui est tombé du solarium. Je ne sais pas si la photo lui rend vraiment justice, mais je crois qu'on voit qu'il est énorme.

Lego Mansion

As I mentioned in a January post, my son is obsessed about mansions. He wants to visit them, find them, he even wants us to buy one (!). Which gave me an idea: I suggested that he built his own mansion, using Lego pieces. Wolfie thought it was a brilliant idea and started working on it a few weeks ago. I took this picture when the project was in its infancy. We have a a huge box, present from my wife's brother, full of pieces, so that is being put to good use. Wolfie is the architect, but I do help and give suggestions from time to time. I must confess, this is quite an exciting building project.

Cymbidium

Je partage encore une fois une photo du cymbidium de mon père. Vous aimez les orchidées?

Jewellery Thefts

 Sometimes, I read crime news just for kick. Also, I love crime fiction, I try to write some and I think reading crime news is good for inspiration. So two bits of crime news came to my knowledge recently. The first story about a bungled burglary of a jewellery where the thief still managed to steal £23,400 worth of gold. The content of one tray. That's what caught my attention: the large amount of money that represented a fairly small quantity of items. The second story was about two brothers robbing a jewellery in Essex. They used masks of old men, which I thought was an interesting MO. I am reminded of two principles reading about these two stories. One, that jewels always make for great MacGuffins. They have been from the beginning of crime fiction and it is for a reason. And two, that jewelleries are great settings for crime drama.

Casse-tête cosmique

 Petit loup adore les puzzles. C'est un intérêt qu'il a depuis longtemps, mais depuis que j'en ai acheté un pour sa mère à Noël, il l'a pour ainsi dire redécouvert. Alors donc,  comme il est en relâche cette semaine et que nous n'allons nulle part, je lui ai suggéré de s'essayer sur un nouveau casse-tête. Sa mère lui a acheté celui-ci, que Wolfie a choisi lui même. J'imagine que l'image de science-fiction avec les couleurs l'a intéressé. 200 morceaux, pour les enfants de huit ans et plus. Mon fils n'en a que six. Il l'a terminé en deux jours, tout seul ou presque. Je suis très fier de lui.

Scenic train journeys

 Thanks to internet algorithms, I stumbled a few days ago on this article, about "Nine of the Most Beautiful and Affordable Journeys Around the World". It reminded me (although I did not really need to be reminded) that a journey can be a holiday in itself. Especially if one travels by train, still my favourite means of transport. I have been dreaming of a holiday that would consist of a train journey and I would love to try all of the ones listed in this article. The nearest one is probably the one between Glasgow and Mallaig, but I'm particularly curious about the Zermatt to St. Moritz one. There's just something about Swiss mountains that catches my attention. But before planning anything, I would need to convince the rest of the family. Wolfie would be easy. My wife, not so much.

Galettes

Photo prise par mes parents. Des galettes qu'ils ont fait il y a quelques temps. Au gruau, je crois. Ca faitun bail que je n'ai pas mangé ces galettes en particulier.

Giant tractor model

I took this picture at Hogshaw Farm a few months ago, the one and only time we went there. I hope we can go back one day. It's not next door, but it's really a nice petting zoo. It also had a building which was a sort of gaming area for children, with inflatable castles and also this tractor model. It almost looked real, but it was like a giant toy for Wolfie, who has been loving tractors since he's a toddler. This one is even cooler than a tree house. And I had the privilege to be Wolfie's play pal for his time there. So long story short, I cannot wait to go back to Hogshaw Farm.

Saint Valentin, le martyr

Je sais que la Saint-valentin était hier, mais j'ai trouvé ça sur la page Facebook d'un ami et j'ai décidé de ne pas attendre un an pour la partager. Il y a peut-être des célibataires parmi mes lecteurs et je sais que le 14 février n'est jamais facile pour eux. Donc...

Helicopter flying...

Because we don't live very far from Heathrow and Sandhurst, at least as the crows flie, we often hear and see planes and helicopters flying by. We don't always see them very well, but sometimes they are at low altitude. Like this helicopter, which I saw yesterday. I think it was a military one, not a civilian. It sure looks like an army vehicle. Therefore, it came from or went to Sandhurst. That's the best shot I could take. If you know about them, tell me what type of helicopter it is. I'm curious.I never get bored with helicopters, not sure why but I love them.

Santons danseurs

Je partage à nouveau une photo prise sur une page Facebook sur les Santons de Charlevoix. Ce sont des danseurs et je crois, à voir à roe blanche de la dame, peut-êtredes nouveaux mariés. Quoiqu'il y ait d'autres santons de mariés qui sont plus élégants. Dans tous les cas, je voudrais rajouter ces deux-là à ma collection, qui jusqu'ici est composée de zéro santons. En plus, je suis loin du Québec pour en acheter. Il faudrait bien repasser par Charlevoix un de ces quatre...

Be original: say it with trolls

Happy Valentine's Day to everyone celebrating it and to everyone who thinks it is a painful day too. I found the picture of this lovely couple on the Facebook page of the Arensbak Trolls, which from what I understand is now called Trolls of the 5 Arts Studio (but I prefer the old name). If you want to offer something original today, why not trolls like these ones? After all, love means never having to say you're ugly (as this movie says), and this lovely couple is so darn cute with their tails wrapped together like that.

Le Docte Rat

J'ai blogué le mois dernier sur sa version jeunesse, voici maintenant la version... moins jeune(?) de ce jeu de société que mes frères et moi aimions beaucoup. Je parle bien entendu du Docte Rat, jeu d'érudition fait au Québec. Nous n'y avons joué qu'une fois si je me rappelle, j'ai gagné, parce que je suis dur à battre dans les jeux d'érudition. Je rejouerais encore si on peut retrouver leDocte Rat quelque part. Ayant maintenant un doctorat, un vrai de vrai, j'imagine que je suis un docte rat.

The paratroopers' beret

Because I used to train in Krav Maga, something I want to go back to, I follow things directly or indirectly related to it online, such as the YouTube channel of the Israel Defense Forces. They have a few cool videos about the self-defence technique and it is always useful. They also have a few polls sometimes, which are always fun. One recently asked which of the berets of their forces was the best. I had no idea what to answer, so I asked Wolfie, who said he preferred the beret of the paratroopers, which is Burgundy red. Red is not really his favourite colour, so I wonder why he chose that one, but all the same, paratroopers are cool in a badass way, so I guess it reflects in their berets somehow. My son has good instincts.

Motivation du lundi

 Bon lundi tout le monde. Pour ceux qui travaillent et qui veulent se trouver de la motivation, voici un meme qu'un collègue français m'a envoyé la semaine dernière. Je crois que le meme est québécois, à cause du "pis". Dans tous les cas, je l'ai trouvé très comique et ça devrait vous tenir motivé.

Say it with a book

 Well, Valentine's Day is coming soon and that means a lot of people in relationship must find something for their loved ones. For those who either don't like chocolate or find it too predictable (for the record this is not the case of my wife), may I suggest a book or two? Bought at your local bookshop of course, if you have one. I know I would love to receive a book on Valentine's Day.

Muscadet

Petit voyage dans le monde de la nostalgie: j'ai acheté la semaine dernière un muscadet-sèvre-et-maine. Ou "muscadet de sèvre et maine sur lie" comme je le disais quand j'étais plus jeune. Je dis nostalgie, parce que c'est le premier vin que j'ai goûté, je devais avoir dix ans à peu près. Cette fois-ci, je l'ai partagé avec ma femme. Le vin blanc est à peu près le seul alcool qu'elle aime, avec certains cocktails. Elle a trouvé le muscadet un peu trop sec. Nous l'avons quand même terminé en une semaine.

Pub Sandwich

 There's club sandwiches, but here in the Uk, pubs give a whole array of sandwiches and they often make for quite nice treats at lunchtime. Take this one for instance: I tried it a few months ago, during an impromptu family visit in our local pub. Corned beef, cheese, on toasted bread. I think it had Dijon or American mustard too, I cannot remember. But with chips and a salad (which makes it almost healthy) it is an almost perfect lunch. I say almost perfect only because I know their roast beef sandwich is even better, but it is for another post.

La gratte...

Je suis tombé sur une vieille photo (enfin, vieille, elle date de février 2022) d'une gratte, envoyée par mon père à son petit fils. Parce que Wolfie est obsédé par bien des véhicules et aussi par tout ce qui est gratte, souffleuse, etc. On n'en voit pas ici, bien sûr, comme on ne voit pas de neige bien souvent. Je crois que cette fascination est un signe de sa nordicité et de ses racines québécoises.

New autumn mug

During my last staycation, my wife and I went to our local Costa for lunch. Service was average, food was average too, but I found a little bit of a treasure: this Autumn 2022 Limited Edition Cup. At £10.00, I think it was a bargain, so I bought it. We already have loads of mugs, but I thought this one would just be perfect, with its foxes (the autumnal animal in my mind) and the colours. When I long for my favourite season (which is pretty much every day from January onwards) I will drink from it.

Le retour du brouillard

Nous sommes gâtés ces temps-ci côté température, enfin pour ceux qui aiment ce genre de température. Toujours est-il que cette semaine, nous avons eu du brouillard deux fois plutôt qu'une et deux jours de suite: mardi et mercredi. Nous en avons eu aussi fin janvier. Vous devinerez que j'aime le brouillard. On pourrait croire qu'en Angleterre, le brouillard est très fréquent, mais c'est en fait un phénomène assez rare. J'aime l'ambiance d'une journée de brouillard, je trouve ça à la fois mystérieux et relaxant.

Cacti at school

In this week's science lessons in Wolfie's school, they will learn about cacti. I am curious about his reaction to it and he will think about them. When I was his age, I found cacti exotic and a tad mysterious, what with their capacity to survive a long time without water and to get hydrated thanks to them. My parents bought a few for me and my brothers, I cannot remember if they survived for long, we were lousy botanists. Or I was anyway. But I remember them to this day. I also remember that I asked for a cactus. I wonder if Wolfie will do like I did back then and ask us to go to a garden centre this weekend so we can purchase his own cactus.

Cochon qui vole

J'ai pris cette photo au zoo pour enfants Hogshaw Farm en octobre 2022. Je ne sais pas si dessous c'est une mangeoire ou c'est supposé représenter une maison, mais j'ai trouvé l'image assez drôle, alors j'ai pris la photo afin de la partager plus tard. Un cochon qui vole, c'est une absurdité, mais comme l'endroit s'appelle Hogshaw, c'est une image assez appropriée. Hog voulant bien entendu dire porc. Enfin bref...

Mysterious Nerf Gun

A few days ago, Wolfie and I walked through the secret passage,just for fun. If we have a secret passage, we might as well use it from time to time, it is a good exercise as any. We found among the dead leaves a small Nerf Guns. Not Wolfie's gun. Because he never had a Nerf Gun, for one. This gun most likely belongs to the neighbour who is a few months older than Wolfie and who tends to leaves his toys around the neighbourhood. We did not bother knocking at their door. That said, I have the intention to buy a Nerf Gun or two to Wolfie, because they are quite fun.

Trouver Total Khéops

 J'ai blogué lundi dernier sur l'écrivain Jean-Claude Izzo que je veux (re)découvrir. Surtout sa "trilogie marseillaise" dont j'ai lu le dernier roman (lequel heureusement pouvait se lire solo). Mais je vais commencer par le commencement et donc m'efforcer de trouver Total Khéops, le premier titre de sa trilogie. Je crois être capable de le trouver sur Amazon, mais j'espère ne pas avoir à en arriver là. J'espère aussi pouvoir trouver cette couverture, celle de la Série Noire classique, avec son élégance sobre. Mais bon, tant que j'ai le bouquin. C'est donc ma nouvelle quête littéraire.

A spies' coat of arms

This post is I hope the first of many about police, army and intelligence services around the world. And if you ask me why I am doing this, the answer is simple: just for fun. Anyway, you may know of many intelligence agencies around the world, but maybe not of the Norwegian Intelligence Service, or NIS. I know nothing about them either, except for the very first episode of The Sandbaggers, where they are depicted in a badlight,annoyingly sloppy spies that are borderline amateurs. That said, I wished you could see them in more spy thrillers for one trivial reason: they have a badass coat of arms. You can see on it Odin's ravens Huginn and Muninn (Thought and Memory) and any intelligence service that takes inspiration from Norse mythology is okay in my book. No matter what this coat of arms has to show up in fiction some day.

L'éléphant de Robin Hill

 Photo prise dans l'Isle of Wight, dans le parc de Robin Hill. C'est bien entendu un (faux) éléphant africain qui a l'air de la vraie affaire. Robin Hill, c'est comme un immense terrain de jeu pour un enfant comme Wolfie, où on a l'impression d'être dans un safari quelque part en Afrique plutôt que sur les côtes anglaises. Il faisait chaud comme en Afrique cette journée-là aussi,  ça ajoutait à l'illusion. Wolfie a un petit côté africain (son daddad vient de là), alors c'était parfois comme s'il découvrait ses racines.

Breakfast at the office

 I went to the office a few weeks ago. I work from home most of the time, but once in a blue moon I must show my face at work. But I do have good employers: there was breakfast available: croissants of different sorts, including, bananas, tea, coffee, orange and apple juices and jubilee plates and nakpins. I had a high sugar diet, but it keeps me more active.

Solea

 Je vais sans doute entreprendre une nouvelle quête de polar cette année. De polars en fait, publiés par Série Noire. Je veux parler de la trilogie marseillaise de Jean-Claude Izzo. Peu après sa publication en 1998, j'avais acheté Solea, sans savoir que c'était le troisième bouquin. Des années plus tard, j'ai acheté le roman à nouveau lors d'un séjour en France chez les parents de ma femme, parce que je n'avais rien à lire. Je me suis redu compte que c'était le roman que j'avais acheté une dizaine d'années plus tôt à Montréal. Je l'ai donc laissé à ma belle-mère. Plus tard, j'ai retrouvé la trilogie complète en un volume ici... mais traduite en anglais. Alors je vais essayer de relire le tout, mais dans la langue originale.

Wimpy lunch

 A few weeks ago, we went to have lunch at Wimpy, the posh fast food chain that is just a tad fancier than its more famous competitors. We were not planning to go there specifically, but when Wolfie saw the restaurant, he wanted to go there. I love their generous portion of chipsand their burger's special sauce is kinda nice too. It was just what the doctor ordered.

Question existentielle (379)

 Une question existentielle inspirée de la température au Québec:

-Devrait-on parler de températures québécoises au lieu de dire températures sibériennes, étant donné que nos hivers sont sans doute aussi froids?

Plastic toy soldiers

Yesterday, we went to the local toy shop. I love going there, maybe just as much as Wolfie. And I found these plastic toy soldiers. They look very similar to the ones I had when I was growing up. We used to play a lot with them. At £4.99, they are also pretty cheap, for 16 pieces, two sets of colours, therefore two factions. I was tempted to buy them, but decided against it. Instead, I suggested to my wife as a present for my birthday in a few months. I am really easy to please. The good thing about them is that I will share them with Wolfie, who developed a keen interest to military vehicles and machinery. They'll go well with my/our tank. And it would help support a local business.

Pommetier sous la neige

 Tiens j'ai retrouvé cette photo du pommetier en neige. C'est l'hiver, je la partage donc rien que parce que.

The end of Autumnwatch

I learned some sad news from my wife. You know how I love Autumnwatch, the show about British wildlife and how the season affects it. Well, it turns out that the BBC has cancelled the show after 17 years. Because of money issues. Well of course. Now I must confess: I had not been watching it all that much in recent years (my last entry about it dates back to 2015). I guess I was more trying to experience than waching it on a screen. All the same, this is borderline heartbreaking, as the show really helped raise awareness on a number of environmental issues and made many people like myself discover and love British wildlife.

Cabane à pêche de luxe

 Souvent, Le Quotidien couvre les chiens écrasés. En tout cas, ses articles sont assez triviaux. Mais bon, quand même, pour l'expatrié que je suis, le lire peut être assez plaisant. Donc, j'ai lu un de ses articles sur une cabane pour la pêche blanche construite de manière artisanale. Une cabane de luxe que son créateur va utiliser à La Baie. Je n'ai jamais fait de pêche blanche et je n'ai pas vraiment de patience pour la pêche, mais j'irais bien dans celle-là, rien que parce que ça a l'air vraiment confortable et plein de cachet.

Of Books and Censorship

I found this meme on one of the atheists pages I have been following on Facebook. I don't know author Judy Blume, but she is spot on here. This is how I was raised and this is how we are raising Wolfie.

Cymbidium en fleurs

Des fois mon père m'envoie des photos de son cymbidium. Je partage pour vous donner un peu de couleur, surtout si les journées sont grises là où vous êtes.

Things to do in February

 Well it's the beginning of the month and English Heritage wrote a post about five things to do in February. They had done the same in January, I am sure we'll have the same in the upcoming months. Anyway, we are always looking for things to keep Wolfie entertained, so I will be reading these suggestions eagerly. It will also be inspiring for some February walks. We are not very close for any site of the English Heritage, but I am sure we can find something at a decent distance we can go to.

La marmorte

Triste nouvelle: Fred, la marmotte de Val d'Espoir, est morte. Le Jour de la Marmotte y a donc été annulé, parce que c'est ledit Fred qui prophétisait. Ce qui veut aussi dire que l'hiver va être long. Je ne m'en plaindrai pas. Et ça veut aussi dire que je n'ai pas pu m'empêcher de commettre un autre calembour atroce dans le titre de ce billet: la marmorte. 'Scusez-la.

New Crime Coming from South Africa

I learned yesterday that there is a new crime novel by South African crime writer Deon Meyer that will be released this year. I say this year, but it will only be available in translation in 2024. Darnit. I know little about it, except whatever info we have form this promotional picture: its Afrikaans title is Leo, it will involve sober alcoholic police captain Benny Griessel, his partner Vaugh Cupido, both form the Hawks (cool name), and probably a plane. Oh and there will be trouble, but that was to be expected.

Un message de la marmotte

 Nous sommes la Chandeleur, qui est aussi le Jour de la Marmotte. Je n'aime pas le Jour de la Marmotte et j'ai trouvé important de partager ce message de la marmotte en question.

Gathering sticks

I mentioned this particular hobby of Wolfie last year. We went to a walk this weekend and Wolfie took the opportunity to renew his old activity/game: collecting sticks on the way. Now he has special criteria for them: they must be no longer than his arm's lenght. I have no idea why, but he's adamant about this. And what does he do with the sticks? Nothing.Sometimes he does not even bring them home. But for a while in our walks, he carries one stick or two, sometimes a bunch of them, for whatever reason. Somehow, it gives a sort of purpose to our walks.

Février

Je vais commencer mon billet par mon lieu commun: nous sommes le premier février. Un mois que je n'aime pas particulièrement, mais au moins il est court. J'aimerais que le soit autant. Je n'ai pas de vacances, selon mon expérience ce sera sans doute un peu lent au travail de toutes façons, il y a quelques célébrations et anniversaires à souligner (j'y reviendrai), mais en général, c'est plutôt tranquille. Et vous, comment prévoyez-vous votre moisde février? Que pensez-vous du mois en général?