Walpurgisnacht!

We are the last day of April, therefore tonight is Walpurgis Night. A night where witches gather to make a Sabbath, where devils (including the Devil himself) and ghosts roam free, etc. If it sounds like Halloween, it is because it is pretty much Halloween for springtime. For me, it is a sort of countdown to the countdown to Halloween, especially since the whole month of April has been surprisingly autumnal. It reminds me that there's only six months left until the big day.

Les Pères de Mistassini?

Tiens, c'est étrange: je viens de m'apercevoir (au moment d'écrire ces lignes) que la page Facebook des Pères trappistes s'est rebaptisée "La Chocolaterie des Pères de Mistassini." Quelqu'un peut m'expliquer pourquoi et qui a eu cette brillante idée? Parce qu'elle n'est pas brillante, l'idée, justement. Surtout qu'il est un peu tard pour changer de branding, comme on dit... Mais on dirait que les étiquettes n'ont pas changé, du moins pour le moment.

Golda Schultz as Fiordiligi

This should be a treat: I learned through social media that South African soprano Golda Schultz (maybe my favourite soprano) will be making her Royal Opera House debut as Fiordiligi in (well of course) Cosi fan tutte by Mozart. Now how cool is that? This is what she had to say about it when she made the announcement: 

"FINALLY this is a debut I never thought would come my way! Royal Opera Covent Garden- I’m on my way! Singing the glorious music of Mozart with a cast of brilliant singers. Grateful doesn’t even begin to describe what I feel.I sang an audition on that stage in December 2010 and I bombed. I cracked on notes, had to restart in front of their executive casting staff- your basic horror audition story for any young artist! But I picked myself up. Went back to the drawing board and promised myself that I would forgive myself my mistakes, forgive myself my anxiety and keep moving forward. I did and now because I took the steps to move through the “failure” I am getting an opportunity to share music I love with another audience. I get to make music with some great friends and hopefully make new ones. So come on London! Can’t wait to be there next June."

I admire her even more that she opened about a past failure and showed her vulnerability so openly. But with vulnerability comes resilience, discipline and an incredible commitment to her art. She proved time and again, in other productions, that she is a natural and accomplished Mozartian singer. So now I will need to find a way to watch this production. Probably not in London itself, but I think I can probably find a cinema that will show the live performance or I will stream it. Either way, I am so glad she is coming here.

Saurien(s)

C'est une autre photo prise à à Amazon World lors de nos vacances à l'Isle of Wight que je partage aujourd'hui. C'est un caïman, enfin je crois. Je suis incapable de faire la différence (et toutes les nuances qui s'imposent) entre un alligator, un caïman et un crocodile, sans compter leurs autres cousins. Pour (re)commettre un calembour atroce, j'en saurien. J'imagine que, venant de l'Amazonie, ça doit être un caïman, peut-être un caïman à lunettes, selon mes notes. Dans tous les cas, ça m'impressionne toujours de les voir, même en captivité.

Cape Elizabeth, Maine

I saw recently a very picturesque picture on my WIndows 10 screen saver. It was of Cape Elizabeth, Maine. You could see the Portland Head Light, a historical lighthouse which I think I have seen before, somewhere, but knew nothing about. It made a strong impression on me, but also on Wolfie, who also loved the look ofthe lighthouse. So yes, short story short, we want to go there one day. I don't know if it will look as nice as the screen saver picture, but I really want to visit it now. Anybody among you have visited it? Or anybody lived/is living there? Please leave a comment and let me know.

Quanard?

Tu parles d'une décision stupide: le canard du Québec a été rebaptisé/sera rebaptisé quanard dans les épiceries. Parce que, bon, marketing oblige, faut savoir d'où il vient. Mon frère PJ m'a appris la nouvelle, il a d'abord cru à un quanular. Son calembour atroce, pas le mien. Mon frère Andrew a dit: quâlisse. Moi, je n'ai rien à ajouter, c'est assez atroce comme décision... quatastrophique?

Whatever happened to George Pelecanos?

Long time readers of this blog know that I am a fan of US crime writer George Pelecanos. I have been since my wife (then girlfriend) bought me one of his novels back in 2006. Well, it struck me recently that he hasn't published anything since The Man Who Came Uptown in 2018. I read it in early 2020, enjoyed it tremendously and waited for his next book. And waited. And waited. Because Pelecanos hasn't published anything since then. His webpage does not say anything about any new publication and doesn't seem to have been updated in a while. He might be busy on Tv projects, but I do hope he will write more crime novels, because I miss his work.

Dites smoothie

Lors de notre dernière visite dans l'un de nos cafés locaux, je n'ai pas pris de boisson chaude mais un smoothie. Nous n'en faisons plus ici (la machine que j'avais achetée à ma femme a scrappé vite), mais lorsque je sors et qu'il n'y a pas beaucoup (ou plus du tout) de fruits à la maison, je bois un smoothie. J'imagine que ce n'est pas si santé que ça, mais au moins ça me donne des vitamines. Et je me sens moins coupable de boire ça devant petit loup qu'un cola, mettons.

Jammie Dodgers Cake

Some of readers may know Jammie Dodgers, a biscuit that is a British staple. The Brits love Jammie Dodgers, it's almost a cake made into a biscuit, what with its jam and cream sandwiched between two biscuits. They are unsuprisingly quite addictive. We seldom buy them, I don't want to be more of a sugar junkie that I already am. That said, we found out in one of our local cafés, among their selection of desserts a Jammie Dodger cake. Wolfie chose it as his dessert and I thought I would try it to. We had to try it. It is as good or as bad as you would expect it to be. I think it is even better as a cake.

Le proverbe d'avril

"En avril, ne te découvre pas d'un fil," me disait ma mère quand j'étais enfant et je m'impatientais de pouvoir m'habiller plus légèrement. Le proverbe m'agaçait énormément. L'ennui, c'est qu'avril est toujours assez bipolaire comme mois. L'accent est souvent sur le polaire, d'ailleurs. Ces temps-ci, je ne sais plus quoi mettre, la température montant de 2 à 14 et retombant à 2 dans le temps de le dire. Contrairement à mon enfance, je ne suis pas impatient pour le temps doux: je déteste la chaleur et j'aime porter des vêtements chauds et comfortables. Alors je garde en tête le proverbe d'avril qui m'agaçait tant alors que j'étais enfant. Je me dis que je suis prudent, pas frileux. Et vous, qu'en pensez-vous?

Farewell Harry

Sad news today: I learned that Harry Belafonte died ar 96. At this age, it may not be a tragedy, but it is very sad all the same. He was one of my favourite singers and a wonderful human being. I think sharing this song is a fitting tribute. Farewell Harry.

Entre chien et loup...

J'écris ces lignes et il sera bientôt neuf heures du soir. Si la nuit est presque tombée, le soleil n'est pas entièrement couché. Il y a une quarantaine de minutes environ, peut-être même un peu moins, c'était entre chien et loup, comme on dit au Québec. Il se fait tard de plus en plus tard et je préfère quand il se fait tard tôt.

About umbrellas

There is something you probably don't know about me: I don't like umbrellas much. I find them cumbersome. When it rains, I rather have a good coat with a reliable hood and keep my hands free. But anyway, long story short it was raining a lot yesterday afternoon. So when we went to pick up Wolfie from school, a lot of parents held umbrellas. We talked to the mother of one of Wolfie's friends and she was telling us that she used to have a very fancy umbrella that her son destroyed, using it as a parachute while he played in a trampoline. I don't know the details, but that's the gist of it. And since then, she only bought and used cheap umbrellas. I told her: "Well, if it is any consolation, umbrellas never last long in this country anyway." Which is a new great unknown line, I think. It is also absolutely true: the last one I had here got rusty after a year.

Mystérieuses lunettes

 Des fois, on trouve les choses les plus inusitées lorsqu'on prend une marche. Enfin bref, lors de notre dernière promenade familiale, il y a une semaine ou deux (je sais, on devrait marcher plus souvent), nous sommes tombés sur une paire de lunettes, sur le sol à l'intersection de deux rues Des lunettes assez grosses, peut-être un peu des barniques, avec des motifs de léopard sur la monture. Je trouve les motifs léopard toujours un peu ridicules, sur n'importe quoi. Mais enfin bref, on les a placées sur un panneau et nous avons continué notre chemin. Je sais pas si sa propriétaire (je crois que c'est une femme, la monture n'était vraiment pas masculine) l'a retrouvée. Il n'y a pas de morale à cette histoire.

Camo coats

I noticed something recently during some of our school runs: a lot of the mothers wear camouflage coats. Not stuff taken from army surplus shop, at least I don't think so. The fabric looks a bit too... smooth or delicate to be proper army stuff. But I wonder why. When I was a kid, some children had camouflage coats and jackets, or pseudo army vests of some kind. While I always loved green coloured, I never liked the camo look all that much. Now women wear them, and mothers more specifically. I wonder why or how it became fashionable all of a sudden.And I also wonder if it will last or if it will just be a fad.

Deuxième orage

Hier, nous avons eu droit à notre deuxième orage de l'année (à moins que je ne me trompe). Le premier était plus tôt en avril. Celui-ci était moins impressionnant, moins pluvieux en tout cas, mais on a entendu quelques coups de tonnerre. Si je ne me trompe pas, ça veut dire que la température va baisser un peu. Pas qu'il fasse déjà particulièrement chaud. Mais enfin bref, c'est quand même tôt dans l'année pour un orage.

Saint George's Day

Happy Saint George's Day everyone! Especially to all my English readers. I never know how to celebrate. Not many places do in england, ironically enough. It is a shame, as a patron saint reknown for fighting a dragon should be inspiring for a national day. I can only dream of the things I'd do with it if I had the time, the know-how and the money. I might watch a few YouTube movies about Saint George or something. Maybe read the legend to Wolfie. But in any case, happy Saint George's Day again and beware fire breathing lizards.

Banquette en sacs de café

Je n'aime pas le café (mais alors là pas du tout), cela dit j'aime les cafés. Je veux dire les endroits où on peut en boire, bien que moi, j'y bois de tout sauf ça. Et j'aime surtout les cafés indépendants. Il y en a un pas très loin d'ici, nous n'y sommes allés que deux fois jusqu'ici, mais il est très sympathique. Avec des meubles assez originaux, voyez par vous même avec cette banquette.

16 Soldiers...

I blogged about it in February: I have been wanting these toy soldiers for my birthday since I saw them at the local toy shop. A classic sort of toy, these soldiers are very much like the ones I had growing up. Well, my wife heard me and I got this among this year's birthday presents. 16 soldiers, eight in dark green uniform, the others sand coloured. Wolfie asked me which ones are the good guys. They can be from the same army, in two different terrains, but yes, I think they will be enemies, that should make our games more exciting. The dark green will be on the same team as my/our tank. I might buy more in the future.

Comment personnaliser un gâteau acheté

Pour ma fête, parce que je me sentais vache et parce que je ne voulais pas le manquer, j'ai acheté un gâteau à Cook, au lieu de le faire moi même. Afin de le personnaliser, je l'ai couvert de Smarties, avec deux ou trois autres trucs achetés au magasin de bonbons local. Avec des macarons au chocolat, pour varier un peu. Ce n'est peut-être pas très élaboré, mais au moins comme ça il n'est pas tout à fait comme l'année dernière. Et je sais que le prochain gâteau de fête sera différent. Je ne sais pas comment je vais le personnaliser, mais il sera différent.

"Penblwydd Hapus"

It was my birthday yesterday and as per usual I received a lot of good wishes via social media, particularly Facebook. One of my friends is Welsh, we went to the same university here. She wrote in her message on my wall "Penblwydd Hapus",which of course means "happy birthday" in Welsh. I never knew that. Now I have absolutely no idea how to pronounce it, nevertheless I am glad to know a bit more Welsh than I did before. Moral of the story: I am getting older and wiser. Sort of.

Les cadeaux et l'emballage

C'était ma fête hier et j'ai eu quelques cadeaux. C'est une tradition maintenant: mes cadeaux de fête sont emballés avec un emballage très... enfin, très papa, homme de quarante ans et plus, très fait sur mesure pour moi et pour bien des hommes comme moi. Sauf pour un cadeau dans du papier bleu rayé, le reste a des motifs de bouteilles de bières. Ce n'est pas la première fois: j'ai des cadeaux emballés dans du "papier avec des bières" depuis quelques années déjà pour ma fête. C'est pour ça que je dis que c'est vraiment devenu une tradition. J'espère juste que je ne verrai pas les cadeaux de petit loup dans le même emballage de sitôt...

46

Today is my birthday, I am 46 today. Not sure if I should be happy about it or drown my sorrow: I am over the first half of my fourties, so I have less years to spend in that decade than years spent. Time goes way too fast, especially for someone like me who is nostalgic. Thankfully, I am blessed with a family, a wife who I know is going to spoil me (she always does)  and a little boy who turns every one of daddy's birthday into a true celebration. Wolfie makes me forget that I am getting on in years. In fact, with him, I don't mind getting old, as long as he does not grow up too quickly.

"Marquise si mon visage..."

J'ai 46 ans aujourd'hui. Par conséquent: le vieux Corneille, les Stances à Marquise, Georges Brassens et tout le reste.

Treacherous April

I make this comment every year, pretty much,on this blog: April is a treacherous month. This year, it started like March, cold and damp, then it got warmer, only just sometimes, temperatures do drop in the evening, then it is warm again, but never summery. Just like a warm(ish) Spring. I don't like too warm anyway and I would be happy to wear heavy clothes until May, but now I just don't know what to put on. And yes, I make this comment every year too. But something did change: when I was younger, I wanted April to be warm and sunny. Now I hope cold temperatures last as long as possible and I want Spring to feel autumnal.

Une observation sur le Boulevard Talbot

Petit billet de nouvelles régionales, ou de nouvelles rérionales. Grâce aux réseaux sociaux, j'ai appris qu'il se conduisait quelque chose sur le Boulevard Talbot, à Chicoutimi. Un nouveau commerce, je ne sais pas lequel (ça a peut-être été révélé depuis le moment où j'écris ces lignes). Cela dit, ça m'a rappelé une chose, une seule: le Boulevard Talbot est vraiment mais vraiment laid. Y aurait-il moyen de le renipper complètement? Chicoutimi n'est pas une belle ville, peu s'en faut, en tout cas elle ne l'est pas partout. Mais ça améliorerait vraiment les choses s'ils arrangeaient Talbot.

The growing arsenal

I blogged last week about one of the drawers of my desk, where Wolfie and I stashed toy guns, ammos and police/spy equipment for an ongoing make believe game we have been playing. Well, the arsenal has been increasing steadily: we found a few more guns and a rifle to add to the collection, as well as one walkie-talkie and a longview. Okay, so the longview is a bit... antique, but the rest can come in very handy. Wolfie is particularly fond of the rifle. Moral of the story: since I am a dad I am unable to grow up.

Singe au musée

Mon père m'a envoyé il y a quelques mois des photos prises au Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec. Dont celle-ci. C'est peut-être un bonobo, un chimpanzée, voire un gorille, bien qu'il me semble un peu maigre pour être un gorille. Qu'en pensez-vous? Je le trouve très authentique, dans tous les cas.

Blackout

 Something happened yesterday while we were on lunch break: there was a blackout in our neighbourhood. It can create a serious problem when you work from home, like my wife and I do. And it was my wife's first day at work, which she found embarrassing. We received a text from our electricity provider saying that they were expecting to have things fixed by 5:00PM (or 17:00 as they say, which sounds way later). Far too late. I was texting my manager asking himif he wanted me to go downtown in a café when we got power back. I must say, I almost regretted it. I thought going out of the house for the rest of the afternoon might have been fun. In any case, I had a longer break and that's not necessarily a bad thing.

Question existentielle (381)

 Une question existentielle inspirée d'une chronique récente de Patrick Lagacé:

-Êtes-vous pour ou contre les écureuils?

Gold Divers

A few days ago, we were flicking through channels when we stumbled a reality tv program called Gold Divers. This is the UK title. The original title is Bering Sea Gold, but I don't find it nearly as good or evocative. We watched it a few minutes, five tops, as it had big machinery and this got Wolfie interested for a little bit. I don't know if it is any good, I find reality TV pretty rubbish in general. There was a lot of bleeped swearing in it. But anyway, what I liked about it is the premisse: the show is about, as it says in the evocative British title, people digging gold in water. Shallow water, sea and even ocean. Now this premisse is fascinating and I would say way too good for reality TV. Gold is one of these perfects MacGuffins and I am surprised that nobody thought about a story in a nautical environment with gold divers, who could be the target of brigands or pirates. There's room for a lot of drama there. I think I might just watch more of this show.

Cornets à l'érable

Mon père m'a envoyé cette photo il y a quelques jours. Je crois qu'il a acheté ça au marché Jean-Talon, je me trompe peut-être. C'est un classique des sucreries québécoises, que je n'ai trouvé nulle part ailleurs: des cornets à l'érable. Quand il a pris la photo, mes parents en avaient déjà mangé deux. Ca vous montre à quel point c'est irrésistible. Il y a pleins dedessert à l'érable qui le sont, c'en est un parmi d'autres, mais c'est vraiment bien pensé je trouve. Et une question pour mes lecteurs: en avez-vous trouvé ailleurs qu'au Québec?

Wooden Fortress

There is a petting zoo our family often goes to, I blogged a few times about it. It has the nicest play areas. AMong them, a wooden fortress that Wolfie (and me) love very much. When it is not on a bank holiday, the place is often virtually deserted, so we can play there without stepping on anyone's toes. There are other play areas Wolfie prefers (or where he spends more time), but the fortress is by far my favourite, because of its size and all its dramatic potential. It can be a castle (medieval or not), an army outpost, a HQ for a small group of fighters, etc. They could have used another colour than white for the flag, but otherwise it is pretty much perfect.

Jouets de bois (Richard Émond)

Je suis (re)tombé il y a  quelques jours sur les photos prises par mon père des jouets artisanaux Richard Émond. J'avais les mêmes petits bonhommes quand j'étais enfant, mais celui-ci (appelé le petit Cachottier) est un cadeau de mes parents à petit loup. Quoique je crois qu'il appartient vraiment à tous les petits enfants, comme il est resté chez eux. tout ça pour dire 'ai hâte de voir tous les petits cousins jouer avec entre eux.

LGB Locomotive

Sometimes life gives you nice surprises. Last week, we went with Wolfie to an activity centre. It was in one of the nearby(ish) big towns. The centre was a bit small, but Wolfie had lots of fun there. And daddy found out something he liked very much too: in the shop area at the entrance, there was a LGB train running near the ceiling. A single locomotive, but still. It gave the place an extra charm. I explained to the lady who owned the place our family history with LGB trains, a history that now has three generations. We had a conversation about model trains, she did not know LGB was such a high quality brand, only that they were quite expensive (that's why she has only one). I also learned where to buy their products round here now. Well, not next door, but not too far. So this locomotive alone was worth the visit.

Après le verglas

Ma mère a pris cettephoto lors d'une promenade au parc Laurier. Il fait doux à Montréal, mais la tempête de verglas a laissé des traces. On dirait un paysage un brin post-apocalyptique, surtout qu'il n'y a plus de neige ou de glace.

Foxes of London

Here is a little bit of wildlife and city news, all rolled together. So I recently read this article about London's foxes. Appa ently, they are getting bolder and bolder and far less shy towards humans. I'm not a Londoner, I'm not sure I could ever be one, but I always loved foxes and I think I would enjoy living in close proximity with them. Of course, we have foxes here in our little English town. While they can be bold and be seen sneaking in gardens, sometimes even on the high streets, they generally keep away from humans. But I would love to befriend a fox, like some people in London have been doing. And you, would you socialize with a fox?

Cognac (calembour atroce)

J'ai pensé à un nouveau calembour, il est vraiment atrocieux, mais je me sens le devoir de le commettre et de l'immortaliser ici. Retenez votre souffle et bouchez-vous le nez. Fermez les yeux maintenant si vous ne voulez pas voir cette abomination. Enfin bref, le voici: le cognac, ben ça cogne. Je sais, je sais. Vous avez déjà une violente migraine rien que de lire ça.

Monstrum on Unicorns

Monstrum has recently released a YouTube video on unicorns. They are maybe one of the most popular mythical creatures today, especially the fluffy and colourful kind. Unicorns are often, too often, sickeningly cute. Monstrum sets the record straight and shows a darker side of unicorns, sometimes an even downright sinister one. Personally, I prefer the unicorns of old, those we can find in heraldry, both majestic and mysterious. What about you?

Le barbier

Photo prise par ma mère à Montréal lors d'une de ses marches, je crois que c'est quelque part sur le Plateau Mont-Royal (je me trompe peut-être). J'aime bien ce genre de fresque, elle donne une certaine impression du Montréal d'autrefois.

Weaponry in the drawer

You may remember that Wolfie and I have an ongoing make believe game where we play secret police. The missions and the nature of our work as cops/spies are somewhat obscure, but we have great fun and I hope it will inspire my own writing. I also have now the chance to experience an old cliché in crime fiction: the fun in the drawer. TV Tropes has an entry on Hidden Supplies and I guess this is what Wolfie and I have now. Basically, we used an empty drawer from my desk and put an array of toy guns and other equipment: ammo, badges, handcuffs, the lot. It is now where we tidy his police and army related toys, so the supplies have increased since I took that picture. I love it, it makes my mundane life more exciting: I just open the drawer and take a look at its content, so I can imagine all sorts of cool stories and characters. For Wolfie, it gives him easy access to prop when he feels bored and doesn't know what to do. It never ceases to make him creative.

Berger (santon)

Je partage encore une figurine trouvée sur la page Facebook sur les Santons de Charlevoix. Je voulais la partager dans le temps de Pâques, mais je n'ai pas eu l'occasion. C'est un berger avec son mouton (avec son agneau?). Ca aurait été un beau santon pascal, je trouve. Moins pour Noël, je ne sais pas trop pourquoi. Il est un brin trop moderne pour la crèche et la Nativité. Me semble qu'il est habillé pour un jour d'avril un peu trop frais pour la saison. Un jour d'avril, en fait. Avec l'agneau qui se protège du vent et de la pluie derrière lui. Mais enfin bref, je n'ai pas encore une seule figurine dans ma collection de santons. Faudra bien la commencer un jour.

Tea bags: in or out?

I recently stumbled on an article that dates back to December 2022. It is about tea bags: should they be kept in the cup or taken out? First world problem, I know. For the Philistine yet enthusiastic tea drinker that I am, the question has some interest. Personally, I don't keep the tea bag in. And I never ever squeeze it (which is wise: according to the article it makes the brew far too bitter). The article also gives some recommendations regarding brewing time and temperatures, according to what kind of tea you drink. Anyway, I cannot end this post ignoring my brother PJ two cents on the tea bag debate in general and this article in particular. He thinks one should stay away from tea bags altogether. I think he's right.

Mystérieux cercle de bûches

Lors de notre dernière promenade hier, nous sommes tombés sur ce cercle de bûches, que nous n'avions pas vu avant. Un demi-cercle en fait, en tout cas un cercle incomplet, puisqu'il longe un mur. Avec un tout jeune arbre au milieu. Je ne sais pas trop pourquoi, il m'intrigue. Quelqu'un a une hypothèse pour la raison de sa présence?

"Easter rich"

We ended buying a lot of chocolates for Easter. It was not intentional, but I thought we started early. In this country, buying last minutes for Easter often means seriously lacking choice, as things go off the shelves quickly. But we did not lack chocolates this year, even not taking into account the cake I baked. Wolfie commented on it today: "We have lots of chocolate... Are we Easter rich?" I think we are indeed Easter rich. And that is a new Wolfism.

Un coin (et ce que l'on peut en dire)

Mon père m'a envoyé cette photo. Un coin de l'appart à Montréal. Je me demandais la raison, c'était bien entendu une erreur: il a pris la photo ou alors son petit-fils (le cousin de Wolfie) l'a prise pour lui, puis il me l'a envoyée quand il voulait m'envoyer celle-ci. Cela dit, j'ai trouvé ça intéressant en ce qui ça montre ces petits riens qui font l'existence. Première observation: l'appart est pas mal plus vide et spacieux que notre maison. Deuxième observation: y'a encore de la neige en avril.

Wolfie's Manor

You can see here a drawing made by Wolfie of his dream home. Or rather, his dream mansion, as he wants to live in a mansion, not a mere house. I call it Wolfie's Manor, because I prefer to call such place a manor and not a mansion. But I digress. It does not exist, except in his imagination. And mine too. It is part of his make believe games, where we play spies and/or police, or secret police officers. It's not quite clear. As I mentioned here, it is a safe house. It is also the good guys' base and officious HQ. You can see at the left it has a helipad and at the right there is a dock, for quick escapes. It might also have a ghost or two. Wolfie wants us to find a proper name for his manor, so I welcome any suggestion you may have. Please give them in the comments section.

Oeuf de Pâques

Photo prise par mon père. C'est un oeuf au chocolat noir d'Eddy Laurent. Avec des jonquilles derrière. Le jaune et le vert, ce sont les couleurs de Pâques. Même si la fête est terminée, les réserves de chocolat font en sorte que j'ai rarement un vrai blues d'après Pâques.

Mozart for Easter

Well, first, happy Easter everyone! How are you celebrating where you are? We are doing various things, but to me Easter is also celebrated musically. I have a complete Easter playlist which I intend to listen to during the day. Including of course y Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. He's my go-to composer for Easter. For pretty much every special day, come to think of it. So anyway, I am sharing today the full Exsultate, jubilate sung by Jeanine de Bique, one of my favourite sopranos. It's just perfect for Easter day.

Le gâteau de Pâques

Joyeuse Pâques tout le monde! Nous avons décidé de faire quelque chose de différent cette année: j'ai fait un gâteau. Pas un gâteau en forme de lapin, ça aurait fini en gâtastrophe, alors j'ai plutôt décoré un gâteau au chocolat avec un lapin et des oeufs de Pâques. Je voulais faire une ganache, mais petit loup a insisté pour que je fasse plutôt un glaçage vert, pour le gazon. Sinon vous en pensez quoi?

Medusa the Gorgon

This image was taken from Gods, Men and Monsters from the Greek Myths. We had many of them growing up. For some reasons, I associate Greek mythology with Easter. Maybe because I find it a more Mediterranean holiday? Be that as it may, I thought I shared this picture on the blog today. Medusa is by far my favourite monster that was created by the Ancient Greek's imagination and this is one of the best rendition of Medusa, so all the more reason to share it. She is absolutely terrifying.

Veille de Pâques

Photo trouvée sur la page Facebook des Pères trappistes. Il vous reste encore aujourd'hui pour acheter leurs chocolats, si bien entendu vous le pouvez. Ici, le choix de chocolats n'est vraiment pas vargeux en comparaison, je dis ça comme ça.

Fish and Chips for Good Friday

First I want to wish a happy Good Friday to my readers. Even though it is meant to be an austere day. It is not austere to me, in any case. As it is Good Friday, I am going to have fish and chips today. You know, because fasting and all that. I don't know where I will buy the fish and chips. I had the ones on that picture in a pub of Sandown on the Isle of Wight. Not sure if I can find a cod as good as the one we can find on an island, but there's plenty of decent chippy shops round here. And I haven't eaten fish and chips in months, so it is long overdue.

Jeudredi Saint

Hier en après-midi, le ciel s'est soudainement couvert de nuages noirs. Nous avons ensuite entendu un coup de tonnerre. Il s'est ensuite mis à grêler. La photo que j'ai prise ne lui rend pas justice, ça tombait comme des billes de glace. J'adore les orages, tant que je suis au sec à l'intérieur. J'ai simplement trouvé ça étrange que ça arrive un Jeudi saint et non pas un Vendredi saint, ça aurait été plus circonstanciel. Alors nous avons eu un Jeudredi saint.

A certain French attitude, in a nutshell

Wolfie saw a picture of something set on fire during the current French pension reform protests. He asked his mother what was happening and why. She replied: "Well, sometimes the French break things when they get angry at something for some reason." I think it describes pretty well a certain French attitude. In any case, it deserves to be a new great unknown line.

Crise du verglas 2.0

Bon, bien le Québec a un drôle de printemps: il y a beaucoup de verglas, assez pour causer des pannes d'électricité et un joyeux bordel pas si tant joyeux à Montréal. Je lis (rapidement) les nouvelles et ça me rappelle la Crise du verglas de 1998. C'est la Crise du Verglas 2.0, en quelque sorte.

First day (back) at work

Good and surprising news: today I am back at work and in more ways than one. You may remember that I am being made redundant. On Monday, I was officially unemployed. Well, Monday afternoon, I received a text from my former employer, telling me they had a new client and thus a new position was available for me. By any praxctical means, my redundancy was, so to speak, cancelled. So today I am back at work. It's the same job, bu for a very different solution, so in a way it is completely new to me. All the same, after the uncertainties of last month, I am very happy.

Les glaçons du printemps

 Photo prise par mes parents. C'est le printemps au Saguenay...

A Safe House

 The things you learn thanks to a young boy's imagination. Last weekend, Wolfie and I were playing one of his favourite new make belief games: we were two cops/spies (it is never clear) trying to keep away from "a city full of badguys". Don't ask me how it works, but we have to go through secret passages, hidden pathways, a boat and two or three other means of transport to get somewhere safe, sometimes shooting a villain or two. It was quite fun, but at the end of the afternoon, we had to go to a safe place, so I asked Wolfie what would be our safe house. He of course asked me what is a safe house, so I had to explain the best I can. I then did a bit of research about safe houses, at his request, and found this article on howstuffworks.com which I found fascinating. So now I know the requirements for a good safe house and I should use it in my writings. I think there is at least one story to be written about it. But anyway, for Wolfie's game, he has decided that his mansion (our home) is the safe house. And we are looking for a name for it, but that is for another post.

Pâques à York

Photo prise par mon père à York, lors de la visite de mes parents à York Minster. Je l'ai retrouvée il y a peu de temps et comme Pâques arrive bientôt, je me suis dit que ce serait une excuse comme une autre pour la partager. La messe (protestante) de Pâques à York Minster est souvent présentée par la BBC.

Hot Cross Buns

I bought this at M&S recently, a couple of packs. You will easily recognise hot cross buns. We have traditional ones and a number of iointeresting varieties. It will be our main breakfast for the upcoming week, until Easter. Because Wolfie loves hot cross buns and because I live in an English household and this is a very English tradition.

Quand on parle de l'oie...

Je bloguais récemment à propos de Canada Goose. Or, j'apprenais hier que la compagnie fermait son usine de Boisbriand. Quand on parle du loup, ou dans ce cas-ci de l'oie... Cela dit, je suis triste pour les travailleurs de Boisbriand, je sais ce que c'est que de tomber au chômage, je suis dans la même situation qu'eux aujourd'hui. J'espère qu'ils se trouveront tous du travail dans les plus brefs délais.

Strange Holy Monday

Today is Holy Monday. It is a strange one for me and I'm not sure if I should be happy about it or not. On the plus side, Wolfie is on holiday, so I will be spending a lot of time with him this week. When I was his age, it was a school day although not an usual one: the teachers were going full Catholic on us for the whole Holy Week. The problem for this Holy Monday is that I am officially unemployed as of today and as I am typing this I have no job to fall back on. I have one interview lined up and I need to keep on job hunting, so it will not be a proper holiday for me. Usually, I am just eager for the week to be over so I can enjoy Easter. Now my feelings are ambivalent.

Muffins gruau et bananes

Mon frère PJ a fait il y a peu de temps des muffins. Pas les muffins au gruau de notre grand-mère, mais des muffins au gruau et aux bananes, parce qu'il lui restait des bananes à terminer. Je pense que je vais les essayer moi aussi, parce que petit loup devrait aimer.

Canada Goose in London

Interesting sight when we were walking in London: we saw the ensign of a Canada Goose shop. Interesting, because I don't think I have ever seen one in Canada. Come to think of it, I have rarely seen anyone wearing their clothes in Canada. We did not go in. I was curious about their pricing, probably prohibitive (especially in London), but in the end, I don't see the point: I'm more of a Kanuk ind of guy (which I blogged about before, by the way). Cheaper, but just as good, from what I have been told. And Québec made. Also, as much as I like geese, I find them kind of meh as the symbol of a brand. Why not Canada Bear, or Canada Wolverine? Canada Moose even. I don't know. If you have any Canada Goose products, tell me about your experience with the brand and what you think of it.

Dimanche des Rameaux

Petite mention ici: nous sommes aujourd'hui le Dimanche des Rameaux. C'est le début de la Semaine sainte et il reste donc une semaine avant Pâques. Surprise hier: petit loup avait appris ce que c'était à l'école. Surprise, parce qu'il n'est pas dans une école confessionnelle, mais bon, la laïcité en Angleterre, c'est une vue de l'esprit. Moi j'ai eu une enfance catholique, c'est pour ça que je le sais. Dans lesfaits, ça veut surtout dire que Pâques est proche et que la famille ici commence à s'impatienter.

THE Dream Home

I found this meme online. The picture is most likely photoshopped, but I don't care: I agree completely with its message: I need this in my life too. Everything is so perfect: the fireplace, the big living room, the gigantic eye shaped windows showing woodlands in lieu of garden, the architecture, the colours, everything. I know it does not exist and if it did it would be beyond my incomes, even if I was to win the lottery. It's like a home owner's wild dream. All the same: I want this house so very badly.

Boisson d'Avril

De l'Écosse au Lac Champlain
Y'a des images mais on voit rien
Pendant qu'les crédules font la file
D'autres sirotent leur boisson d'avril

 Parce que nous sommes le premier avril et parce que ça faisait un bail que je n'avais pas partagé Boisson d'avril de Groovy Aardvark, ben, je partage la chanson.