Return to Isola

I mentioned it back in February: I had not read a book from Ed McBain's 87th Precinct serie for a while. And that was a shame, given that it's a great crime fiction series which made me discover the police procedural subgenre. And it's also almost a family tradition on my wife's side. So I decided to buy be The Mugger, the second novel. I will try to read the books in order of publication. Everytime I read the foreword, which you can see here, I have a shiver of pleasure. I'm glad to return to Isola. It's been a long time.

En avril...

 Vous connaissez le proverbe: "en avril, ne te découvre pas d'un fil". Ma mère me le répétait ad nauseam quand j'étais enfant, ce qui m'irritait fortement. Bref, il fait du temps doux ces temps-ci, sauf quand il se met à soudainement faire froid. Mais ça ne dure pas. Et ça devrait refroidir au cours de la semaine prochaine. Bref, je ne sais plus comment m'habiller. Je ne suis plus un enfant qui a hâte de voir arriver l'été et les températures estivales, alors je vais le dire tout de suite: je préfère les jours froids aux jours chauds, même et surtout en avril, alors j'espère que ma mère avait raison de me répéter ce proverbe et que je pourrai porter des chandails chauds pendant plusieurs semaines encore.

Last day at work

Today is my last day at work, as I am being made redundant. I could say it sucks, but since I was getting fed up working there, even though it's a good employer, I don't feel too sad. I am a little bit disappointed that I haven't found anything to replace it yet, but I have been talking to a few recruiters already and there are some options for me. In any case, I am not in any financial stress. So I will take it as holidays. Today will be bittersweet as I liked my colleagues, but I had simply stopped liking the job.

Cidre à l'érable

 Mes parents m'ont envoyé des photos du Joli Rouge, un cidre produit au Saguenay, le tout premier cidre produit dans la région. C'est aussi un cidre à l'érable. J'associe le cidre à l'automne, parce que les pommes, mais avec l'érable, ça lui donne un côté printannier.

Reading Past my Bedtime

 Sometimes, a friend post a meme on social and it speaks to me. This was the case of this one, which I saw a couple of days ago. The meme pretty much shows a big part of my youth.  This is very much how I spent a long part of my childhood nights: getting in trouble for reading too late. I used to hide a torch underneath the blankets and was often told off by my parents for doing so. Even now, my wife thinks I tend to read way too late.

Patates au porc

J'ai blogué il y a peu de temps sur les patates brunes que mes parents ont cuisiné. En fait, ce sont des patates jaunes. Dans ma jeunesse, elles étaient brunes. Voici le plat complet tel que je le mangeais lorsque j'étais enfant. Je préférais les patates au porc et de loin. Je ne suis oujours pas fan de porc, sous la plupart de ses formes. En fait, je le salais et le pouvrait beaucoup pour lui donner du goût. Enfin bref, même si ce n'était pas mon repas préféré quand j'étais enfant, ça me replonge quand même dans mon enfance de regarder cette photo.

Blood for Baal!

Today is April Fool's Day, which means, well, that I quote The Simpsons' episode So It Comes to This: A Simpsons Clip Show. Since then, I cannot take Baal, or Bael, or Ba'al, seriously. But anyway, we're the first of April, it's a good excuse as any to have a laugh:

Boisson d'Avril (encore)

Tradition sur ce blogue lors du premier avril: je Boisson d'avril de Groovy Aardvark. Un jour, il faudra bien parler du poisson d'avril, mais d'ici là, je suis la tradition du blogue. La boisson et non pas le poisson, pour ainsi dire.

About this last day of March

 Today is the last day of March, in case you haven't noticed. It is also a Monday, which generally makes it all the more frantic at work, at least when you work directly or indirectly in sales, which is my case. I never liked the last day of the month if it is a working day, especially when it falls on a Monday. But as I am being made redundant, it should be quieter. And I have interviews to keep me busy today and fairly upbeat about my situation. That's on the positive side of things. Unfortunately, today is not my last day of work: I still have to show up until Thursday. Then I will be on a sort of enforced holiday, until I find a new job. So it is a bittersweet end of the month for me.

Patates brunes

Mes parents ont cuisiné des patates brunes en fin de semaine. Des patates au porc, en fait. Mon père m'a envoyé des photos. Quand j'étais enfant, je n'aimais pas beaucoup le porc (c'est d'ailleurs toujours le cas), alors je mangeais surtout les patates, que j'aimais d'ailleurs beaucoup, juste parce qu'elles étaient très salées. Mais dans mon souvenir, elles étaient beaucoup plus brunes que celles-ci. Pour être honnête, elles sont un peu pâlottes. Mes parents m'ont dit qu'ils mettent moins de graisse dedans, donc elles sont plus jaunes que brunes.

Mother's Day

 Today is Mother's Day here in the UK' so happy Mother's Day to all mothers reading this (there are at least three). Two days ago, I was telling my wife I had to go to the shop and buy something for Mother's Day, she told me I should not worry: it's later in the year in Québec and in any case, my mother is on the other side of the Atlantic, so I cannot send her anything on time. And I said: "Well, yes, you're right, and anyway what other mother do I know here? I'll ask Wolfie if he'd like to give a Mother`s Day present to someone." And then my wife laughed because she knew she had said something silly. But all jokes and new great unknown lines aside, it kind of shows how motherly she is: she thinks about others before she thinks about herself.

Changement d'heure (misère!)

Je déteste ce moment dans l'année: à partir d'aujourd'hui, nous sommes à l'heure avancée. Au moins, ça arrive plus tard qu'en Amérique. On dit souvent "l'heure d'été", pour lui donner un nom plus positif, même si le changement vient au printemps. Pour moi, ça veut dire qu'il fait soleil trop tard et que je perds une heure de sommeil. En plus, ça me pousse à souffrir d'insomnie pour quelques semaines, le temps de m'ajuster. Mais dans les faits, je commence à me réajuster au mois de septembre, quand l'automne arrive et que l'on se rapproche de l'heure normale. Alors oui, en résumé je déteste cordialement l'heure avancée.

Gladiators

As it is getting closer to Easter, I tend to get into a Mediterranean mood and read and watch stuff about Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome, for some reason. Maybe because I associate Easter to old swords and sandals films that were often featured on television next to the Biblical ones when i was a child, I don't know. Anyway, I once received, either at my birthday or at Christmas, a book about Ancient Greek and Roman history(ies). I often read it during the Easter holidays. It had a few very impressive images, including this one, of gladiators fighting animals in the Coliseum. It's just intensely dramatic and, well, absolutely gorgeous, so I remember it to this day. My father took this picture, at my request.

Don Giovanni à l'Hôtel Chicoutimi

 Je re, re, re-plogue la production de Don Giovanni de Mozart par Opéra du Royaume. Un, si vous pouvez le voir, allez le voir, c'est en avril. Aussi, si vous n'êtes pas du Saguenay (ou vous n'êtes pas proche) vous pouvez obtenir 25% de rabais pour une chambre à l'Hôtel Chicoutimi en présentant votre billet d'opéra. Vous avez les détails dans l'image plus haut, avouez que je vous mâche le travail.

A portrait of Frankenstein's Monster

Here's a bit of literary horror news: the first ever image of Frankenstein's Monster in print is going to auction. You can see the image in the article and, well, it's not the one you are used to and, to be honest, is not very impressive, as in not very scary. Let's be honest: it's not the unnatural abomination that the creature was meant to be. Only the long black hair is truly faithful to the source material (although I don't think they were meant to be curly). In fact, I thought the monster looks more pathetic, even a tad comical than anything else. But people at the time might have had different standards, and it is easier to describe terror than give it a face for all to see. Anyway, that was the piece of Gothic horror news I wanted to share and there's only seven months until Halloween... Yes, I'm already thinking about it.

Nuée d'oiseaux (2)

 Autre photo prise par mon père de la nuée d'oiseaux.

About Navajas

 I blogged last year about the navaja, this Spanish knife that can be used as a weapon. Maybe it is its main utility. I have been fascinated by it since, well, since a long time. A morbid, sinister fascination, I must confess. I always thought it could be one great weapon for a character in a crime fiction story. Well, I recently stumbled upon this short YouTube video about navajas. And well, boy is the navaja one nasty weapon! I mean, I knew it already, but seeing one like this, of this size especially, it just makes me think if I ever write a story featuring it, it has to be used by a villain. And a borderline psychotic one at that. Because that is one vicious looking knife.

Mozart dans le Royaume

Comme vous le savez si vous suivez ce blogue, Opéra du Royaume va présenter Don Giovanni de Mozart en avril.Je plogue la production de temps en temps, parce que c'est une première régionale et parce que c'est mon opéra préféré de Mozart, qui est mon compositeur préféré. Vous pouvez lire une entrevue avec son directeur artistique ici. Ils font beaucoup de promotion de cette production à L'Opéra du Royaume, ce sera un évènement musical majeur.

Cub Coffee Sighting

A couple of weeks ago, we went downtown and we stopped at the local market. Sadly, as we arrived too late, everything was closing. Including the Cub Coffee van. Not that I drink coffee, mind you, but my wife does and she likes the idea of an ethical, vegan coffee company. She tried this brand once, back in 2022. Not since then, but we saw their distinctive trailer with the bear cub and the green colours from time to time driving round town. I don't know where they stop, probably in one of the business estates here. They don't only serve coffee, so I might buy something from them one day, just to encourage them. But truly, I just like Cub Coffee because of the bear cub. He's very cute.

Nuée d'oiseaux

Mon père m'a envoyé des photos d'une nuée d'oiseaux. On dirait un essaim. Sinon, c'est tout, je partage parce que c'est une photo assez saisissante. Qu'en pensez-vous?

The Milk Tank

You may remember (or probably not), back in 2022, when I saw a truck carrying a milk tank. I had never seen anything like this before, except in comic books, and I was sort of impressed. Well, I have seen it again a few days ago, again during the school run. I gave it the dramatic name of the milk tank, which might sound silly, but it's fitting. First, because that's what it is, a tank that carries milk. Second, because there is something badass and barbaric about milk, as I explained in this blog post, so it has some kind of sense to give it a military sounding name.

Harfang orange

 Petite nouvelle ornithologique qui a fait les manchettes et sur laquelleje voulais bloguer depuis quelques jours: un harfang des neiges au plumage orange a été aperçu aux États-Unis. Enfin, une partie de son plumage est orange. Il lui reste du blanc, mais c'est quand même très saisissant. Les scientifiques se perdent en conjecture sur les raisons de ce changement de couleur. J'adore le harfang des neiges, notamment parce que c'est l'oiseau emblématique du Québec. J'ai eu la chance d'en voir en vrai, dans son état sauvage, du temps où je vivais encore au Québec. Ils venaient parfois chasser les oiseaux dans nos mangeoires. C'est assez impressionnant. Le harfang "mutant", il l'est peut-être encore plus.

Almost a holiday

As you may know, I am being made redundant from my job. I will be unemployed in a little more than a week. So far, I had a few interviews, but nothing conclusive. At the office, I am not working very hard: I'm prioritising the job hunt and this gives me a good deal of free time. I am not really epected to perform either, because of the situation. So it is almost a holiday for me. When I am unemployed and Ijob hunt, my mother always tell me to take it as a holiday:  you check for new job, prepare interviews, do said interviews, then you relax. Which is what I am trying to do. Hopefully, on the long run it will not be disheartening.

Osso Buco

Mon père a cuisiné un osso bucco en fin de semaine. Ce qui veut dire "os troué" et bon, j'ai pas besoin d'expliquer ce que c'est: de la moelle d'os. J'en ai mangé de temps en temps. En repas principal, je me rappelle être resté sur ma faim. Celui-ci a quand même l'air copieux. Je me rappelle qu'une fois dans un restaurant à Montréal, j'ai pris un osso buco en entrée, assaaisonné de gros sel et ça valait la peine. Sinon, osso buco est notre mot du jour.

Hailstorm

Last weekend, on Saturday we had our first storm of the year, with thunder and everything. And not just any storm: a proper hailstorm. It is fitting for March, a month that tends to have bad weather. Even downright nasty weather, one would say. But I actually don't mind storms, as long as I can be dry and warm inside. I love how powerful and dramatic storms can be, I thoroughly enjoy them. I can spend ages just watching the rain or, in this particular case, the hail fall down, with the thunder rumbling. So yes, I enjoyed the one we had last Saturday and I hope we have more in the coming days.

Lire gréco-romain

Pâques est maintenant dans un peu moins d'un mois. Je ne sais pas trop pourquoi, mais quand Pâques s'en vient, je me mets en mode gréco-romain. Je m'explique: je me mets à lire sur la mythlogie et l'histoire grecque, sur la mythologie et l'histoire romaine, je regarde des documentaires sur le sujet, je regarde des peplums, etc. J'imagine que j'associe Pâques avec la Méditerranée. Enfin bref, il y avait un livre que je lisais enfant, La Grèce et Rome, qui justement décrivait la vie à l'époque de la Grèce et la Rome antiques. C'était l'un de mes livres de chevets alors que Pâques arrivait. J'ai demandé à mon père de m'envoyer des photos du bouquin afin de les partager ici, il a gentiment accepté de le faire. Ce sera le sujet de bien des billets dans les jours à venir. Ah, et cette image représente des guerriers troyens, je crois.

Dark Flood in the Library

Yesterday, Wolfie and I went to the local library to return some books. We spent a few minutes checking the shelves and was happily surprised to find Deon Meyer's The Dark Flood in paperback edition, proudly standing among their latest acquisitions in the genre. Now, I already own a copy since its release, so I didn't need to borrow it, but it's nice to see it all the same. It makes for a welcome change from the usual UK/US stuff. I don't need to borrow it, but I love my local library all the same.

Phoques sous l'eau

Je regardais hier les photos de notre séjour à Weymouth dans le Dorset,en 2023. Surtout dans le Sea Life Centre. Je suis porté à prendre beaucoup de photos dans les aquariums, je ne sais pas trop pourquoi. En fait si, j'ai une théorie: parce que c'est à l'aquarium de Québec qu'enfant j'ai eu mes premiers contacts avec la faune marine et j'en ai gardé une certaine fascination, pour ne pas dire une fascination certaine. Mes premiers souvenirs de touriste, c'est d'avoir regardé des phoques comme ceux-ci. Enfin, si je ne me trompe pas et si ce sont bien des phoques.

Playing with Trains

 I found this old fashioned engine driver hat in the online shop of the National Railway Museum in York. You may remember that I have been wanting to have a railway themed birthday. I have been wondering if I should not add this hat to the present wishlist, even though it's a children item. I guess Wolfie would wear it. But now, at leas half the presents I receive are truly for my son's enjoyment as well. And I love to have train themed games with him. And yes, I am living another childhood thanks to Wolfie. But playing with trains never gets old.

Coq de Pâques

 Je faisais du ménage dans mes photos hier sur mon ordi, j'ai trouvé une photo datant de 2022. Un chocolat des Pères trappistes acheté par mon père. Je sais qu'il est encore tôt, mais je pense qu'il serait temps que je me mette à acheter du chocolat, même si ce n'est pas aussi bon, ni aussi imposant, ici.

Mürren, Switzerland

Thanks to internet algorithms (who know me a bit too much sometimes), iIstubled upon this BBC Travel article about the Swiss village of Mürren. Which is so isolated and out of the way that it canbe accessed by cable car. This is just so mysterious and unheard of in our day and age. Apparently, the village is very picturesque. And I happen to love cable cars.I have been to Switzerland only once, for about 24 hours, and that was a long time ago. I thought the country, from what I have seen of it, looked beautiful, but otherwise I didn't have much of an impression of it. I have been wanting to revisit Switzerland, I think Mürren will be on my ever extending travel list. Although it might not be the easiest Swiss village to get to.

La Mi-Carême pour bientôt

Si Google ne se trompe pas, la Mi-Carême aura lieu dans moins d'une semaine, le jeudi 27 mars. Le festival lui-même, tel qu'il est encore fêté (pas dans beaucoup d'endroits, on s'entend), aurait lieu du 23 au 29 mars. Je ne connais pas grand-chose à la Mi-Carême, sauf que l'idée de s'amuser la nuit et de porter des masques de carnaval a quelque chose de délicieusement sinistre. Mais je sais qu'elle n'existe pratiquement plus. Cela dit, le site que je ploguais en 2016 semble encore exister. Mais sinon,il y a quelqu'un qui l'a déjà célébrée parmi vous? Des lecteurs des Maritimes, peut-être?

Spring Wreaths?

Today is the Spring equinox. I used to love it as a child, when spring was my favourite season. Not so much anymore. Anyway, this blog follows the seasons, at least when I am not just longing for autumn, so I thought I better mention it. Talking of springtime, I noticed something a few weeks ago wreaths on doors. Not Christmas wreaths or autumn wreaths, but what I guess must be called Spring or Springtime wreaths. I don't know, I don't think they look that great, might be the colours, a bit too light for my taste. What do you think? I guess there's a wreath for each season now.

Vivaldi pour l'équinoxe

C'est l'équinoxe du printemps aujourd'hui. Il fallait que je le souligne et, comme c'est la tradition, je partage une image du Petit Ménestrel tirée d'un album-disque racontant un conte allégorique inspiré des Quatre Saisons de Vivaldi. Ainsi que le Printemps, bien entendu. Par le passé, c'était ma saison préférée. Et ma Saison (je veux dire, de Vivaldi) préférée aussi. Maintenant, c'est moins le cas.

Frankenstein, the Classic Illustrated

We went to Marlow fairly recently, as a family outing. Marlow is known for a number of things, among them it is where Mary Shelley briefly lived and this is where she finished writing Frankenstein. We briefly stopped at the Marlow Museum as it was about to close down and saw that there were some book adaptations of the original novel. Among them, this Classics Illustrated comic book edition. At only £7.99, I thought it was a bargain and I had to buy it, even though I already have the original novel. Of course, I already read it and, while it's not perfect, I really enjoyed it. Mainly for the gory images, which give a nice visual accompaniement to the original story. Which is surprisingly faithfully rendered here, minus a weaker text. I think I will read it again in the weeks leading to Halloween. Because yes, I am already thinking about it.

Jeux de guerre

Petit loup a reçu beaucoup de soldats de plastique comme cadeaux au fil des ans. Parfois de moi, parfois d'amis. Il a alors inventé un jeu, mini-war, qu'il a voulu déplacer de sa chambre à la table de la cuisine. J'ai trouvé que c'était une excellente idée: ça lui fait faire autre chose que regarder un écran. Et aussi parce que j'ai toujours aimé jouer avec des soldats, ça me rappelle mon enfance. Alors j'ai déplié la table, j'ai ensuite mis la nappe de Noël dessus pour la protéger, et puis on a joué et Wolfie a gagné la guerre.

Black and Green

You may forgive me to come back to Saint Patrick's Day. It was only yesterday and I haven't completely taken it out of my heart and mind until next year. It is my favourite holiday this time of year. Anyway, yesterday on social media, I was sharing this picture from 2015, with the pint of Guinness and the disgusting looking pint of lager with green colouring. I first saw green coloured beer in Montreal, I found it disgusting then, I find it disgusting now. So I wrote: "General principle on Saint Patrick's Day: wear green, drink black. (No but seriously, who thought green beer was a good idea?)" I think it deserves to be a great unknown line.

Les Rhumes de mars

 Depuis la fin de semaine dernière, j'ai le rhume: mal de gorge, éternuements, toux, la totale, comme disent les Français. Il fallait que ça arrive: j'ai passé des mois en parfaite santé, il fallait donc que je me tape un rhume. En général, j'en ai un solide en janvier, juste après les Fêtes, et un en mars, juste parce que c'est un mois traître à la température changeante. Ou alors je l'ai attrapé de mon fils, qui pourtant n'a pas été malade, lui. Pas de chance, j'imagine que j'étais dû. Sinon, suis-je le seul à trouver que le mois de mars, c'est le mois du rhume et parfois de la grippe?

Valid Reasons to Celebrate Saint Paddy's Day

 I found this meme on social media yesterday and I wanted to share it here today. I am not Irish, but I may have some Irish ancentry, maybe. I do enjoy a Guinness. I also visited Dublin once in my life and have been wanting to go back ever since. I tried Tayto's more than once and enjoyed it. So yeah, I think I'm legit.

Drapeau irlandais

 Depuis le début de la journée, j'ai écouté de la musique irlandaise en regardant les photos de notre voyage à Belfast l'an dernier. Je me sens vaguement irlandais aujourd'hui. Je sais, ce n'est pas vraiment original, tout ce qu'il y a de pseudo-irlandais se manifeste lors de la Saint-Patrick, mais je pense avoir un peu légitimement le droit. Parce que selon l'un de mes oncles maternels, nous avons des ancêtres Ulster Scots, donc d'Irlande du Nord. Alors j'ai un certain attachement pour le drapeau irlandais.

Luck of the Irish

 Happy Saint Patrick's Day everyone! It is one of my favourite holidays, not only because I have many fond memories of of many Saint Paddy's, since I started observing it in Montreal nearly 30 years ago, but because I love Ireland and the Irish people. I took this picture during our holiday in Belfast. Not the most original, but I do find it fitting to start the celebrations with a friendly leprechaun and a pot of gold. I wish all my readers the luck of the Irish.

Gâteau à l'érable

Tradition de la fin de semaine: je fais du gâteau maison. Il me restait de l'essence d'érable, alors je l'ai fait à l'érable.

Smithwick's for St Paddy's

Saint Paddy's Day is tomorrow and I thought I would blog about Irish beers. I took this picture during last year's holiday in Belfast.But I drank Smithwick's countless times before, during my first year at uni here in the UK specifically, but also in Montreal from time to time. Ironically, I kind of stopped after a while. I just can't seem to see Smithwick's anywhere round here. Or maybe I was channelling my Irishness more then? It certainly was a big part of my earyly twenties. People tend to forget that there are other Irish beers than Guinness. If you don't like stouts, or you rather have something different for variety's sake On Saint Patrick's Day, I suggest this one.

Les dimanches télé de mon enfance

J'écris un nouveau billet nostalgique, avec un appel à tous, parce que mes souvenirs ne sont pas parfaits. Quelqu'un se rappelle des émission du dimanche matin à Radio Canada? Je veux dire, à part la Semaine sainte? Les émissions pour enfants, donc. Celle du dimanche, avec un animateur masculin, n'était pas aussi populaire que Samedi jeunes avec Lison (Lise Marchand), en tout cas je m'en rappelle moins: ni le titre, ni le nom du gars ne me reviennent. Je me rappelle aussi moins des dessins animés qui passaient, sauf je crois Astro, mais c'était après qu'il ait eu son heure de gloire l'année d'avant à Samedi jeunes. Je crois que l'émissiondu dimanche ramassait les restes et le réchauffé. Sinon, il y avait l'Évangile en papier et un truc plus sinistre, avec des mimes qui justement mimaient des paraboles. Enfin, si quelqu'un se rappelle de quoi que ce soit, qu'il me le dise dans les commentaires. J'aimerais affiner et éclairer mes souvenirs.

"Beware the Ides of March"

 Today is the 15th of March, the Ides of March. People who are into history will of course know that this is the anniversary of the assassination of Julius Caesar. That's how the Ides of March are most (in)famous for. The expression "Beware the Ides of March" is taken from Julius Caesar. Which I haven't seen, to my great shame. But anyway, every year, I go full on Roman and I blog about it. And I try to remember the lesson of that fateful date. I mentioned them in 2022 and again in 2024. I am sharing them again: "1)even the most powerful man in the world is vulnerable, especially when he made himself enemies, however subservient they may appear to be. 2)we must be wary of the power vacuum created after a coup d'état." So yeah, enjoy your 15th of March.

Pâques au Saglac

 Photo prise sur la page Facebook des Pères trappistes. Je la partage parce que justement, cela veut dire qu'ils préparent Pâques déjà. On n'a pas du chocolat de cette qualité ici et c'est dommage. J'ai songé à célébrer Pâques au Québec cette année, mais finalement ça n'arrivera pas. Je n'ai pas fêté Pâques au Québec depuis 2010, quant à Pâques au Saguenay, je crois que ça date de 2003 ou 2004.

Trespass

 You may remember I blogged before about Trespass, a outdoor clothing company I discovered in the Lake District when we went there back in 2010. The company itself is from Scotland. I only ever bought one thing from it, a jumper/fleece which is now all old and wornout. I bought it to keep me warm as I had onyl packed light clothes and temperatures had dropped dramatically and unexpectedly. I am wearing it as I am typing this.Every time I put it on, I think of the Lake District. Anyway, I recently discovered that there is a Trespass shop not too far from where we live. So I might get there one day to find a new item to wear out.

Mafalda siempre!

Nouveau gag pris de la page Facebook officielle de Mafalda. Je l'avais oublié et je le redécouvre. Ce que j'aime chez Mafalda, c'est souvent son irrévérence.

Monstrum on The Hat Man

Well, Monstrum has done it again today: they shared a fascinating video about the Hat Man. A critter I personally encountered at least twice in my life, although thankfully not in real life, I mean not when I was fully awake and conscious. I did not know this figure had a name and a history, or that other people had "seen" him too. I even blogged about one of these encounters in 2011. I have been wanting to write a horror story on the Hat Man ever since, maybe for Halloween. Well, I have time to think about it.

 

Chocolatine (mot du jour)

Les Anglais appellent les croissants au chocolat... pains au chocolat. Ce qui m'a toujours agacé. Au Québec, on les appelle chocolatine et ce, depuis toujours. En France, si je ne me trompe pas, ça dépend des régions. Mais dans tous les cas, comme un croissant n'est pas un pain, il ne peut pas être un pain au chocolat. Un pain au chocolat, c'est un pain avec du chocolat dedans, forcément. Et chocolatine est plus évocateur. J'ai donc décidé de faire la promotion du terme et de faire chocolatine notre mot du jour.

On Reading Late

 Sometimes I find funny things online and I share them here. My wife's cousin recently posted this on her Facebook wall and I had to take it. This is very me: night time is often the only time where the house is quiet enough so I can read, yet I am often exhausted after reading too much for too long. But no, I don't go to bed earlier.

Concerto en O Mineur...

Quand la Saint-Patrick approche, ça me donne envie de relire Corto Maltese d'Hugo Pratt. Pour être plus précis, son aventure en Irlande, Concert en O mineur pour harpe et nitroglycérine. Elle m'a fait découvrir le pays pour la première fois. Vous le retrouverez dans Les Celtiques. Ou en version dessin animé sur YouTube, en anglais, mais c'est mieux en bédé, et en noir et blanc. Enfin bref, ma bibliothèque chez mes parents est remplie d'aventures de Corto Maltese, il faudrait que je songe à garnir celle ici, histoire de le faire découvrir à petit loup.

Guinness: Out of Stock

It is Saint Patrick's Day in less than a week and I haven't really prepared for it. But this post is sort of about Saint Paddy's. Last Sunday, we stopped briefly at the local Travelodge. The place was empty but for one staff member, we thought about staying for a quick drink and a snack, but we decided against it, because the one staff member there was pretty much ignoring us. But this sight caught my attention: they were out of Guinness. Even though the place was, like I said, empty. Just like the barrel, I guess. This is not good. The Travelodge is maybe the nearest drinking place. It's nothing fancy and I never actually drank there, but for a quick pint on St Paddy's, it would actually be perfect. I guess I will have to either go further, or buy myself a can. Still, this is a sorry sight.

La pie chagrine

 Lorsque nous sommes allés chercher Wolfie à l'école vendredi dernier, nous avons aperçu une pie. J'adore les pies, je n'en avais jamais vu avant d'arriver en Angleterre. Nous étions un peu inquiet, car la pie semblait incapable de s'envoler et je pensais qu'elle avait une aile blessée. Mais elle s'est ramassée sur le toit de la maison du meilleur ami de Wolfie. Alors tout va bien. Quand on voit une pie, c'est "one for sorrow," comme le dit l'expression. Comme j'ai appris que j'allais perdre mon emploi vendredi dernier, j'ai trouvé que sa présence était assez appropriée.

Antarctica Cold

I haven't published a Wolfism in a long while and there are so many to share here. One my son said last year, which I thought was very funny: "Daddy, I'm cold. Not cold sick but like, Antarctica cold." As you may or may not know, Wolfie sometimes gets obsessed by Antarctica. Earth poles in general, really. And it reflects on his psyche and the way he expresses himself.

Bloquer dans les années 80

Une amie a partagé ce meme sur les réseaux sociaux. J'ai bien ri. J'étais trop jeune dans les années 80 pour bloquer mes amis comme ça, mais quand même.

Fauda Season 5 Updates

You may remember that I love the Israeli thriller series Fauda, by far the very best series I saw on Netflix.What I love about it, apart from the display of Krav Maga, is how genuine it is, with characters who are almost carbon copies of real life ones and far from the Hollywood clichés and stereotypes of action thrillers. The lead and show co-creator, Lior Raz, doesn't really look like a leading man, as we have been used to see them: he is short, balding, he has a bit of a belly. But he plays his role with seamless authenticity, mostly because he has been himself in the same situations as his character. Anyway, I have been wanting a fifth season since I finished bingeing it, back in 2023. Well, it seems that my prayers have been answered: season 5 should start filming in late April, according to Variety. That's very good news. I don't know when it will end up on Netflix, but I'm looking forward to it.

Important VS Urgent (Mafalda siempre)

 Je partage ce gag pris de la page Facebook officielle de Mafalda. Je ne crois pas l'avoir partagé avant. Peut-être que si, mais je ne crois pas. Enfin bref...

Stopping at the Travelodge

 Yesterday, our family went to a walk. As we were on our way back home, we stopped at the local Travelodge. We had only seen it from the outside before. Wolfie wanted to stop to a hotel for a drink, for some reason he finds this very fancy and very exciting. Travelodge hotels are far from posh, in fact they are as functional and bland as hotels can get, devoid of any personality or atmosphere, but they still have a bar/bistro/restaurant. And sometimes, even a bland place can have its sort of charm, paradoxically because of its lack of it. Especially for a young child. I used to see it this way when I was a child, in any case, when the blandest café seemed so special just because it was a place to stop by. I suspect this is how Wolfie sees things. So we stopped there. There was nobody, except one staff member, a young person who might have been a dummy. She never once acknowledged us. In the end, we decided to walk back home and get a drink there. I felt guilty for Wolfie, as if I had let him down.

Chronique du lundi

Comme vous devez le savoir si vous avez lu mon billet précédent en anglais, je vais perdre mon emploi dans un mois. Je m'y attendais, ce qui ne rend pas l'expérience plus plaisante, mais j'étais préparé. Et je suis raisonnablement optimiste: je vais déjà passer une entrevue cette semaine et je sais que des recruteurs veulent me parler. Un autre avantage à ma situation, c'est que je n'ai pas à faire du zèle au travail, ayant à prioriser la recherche d'emploi. Et donc, ça rend les lundis moins difficiles. Aujourd'hui, sans dire que je n'avais plus la mélancolie du lundi, j'étais quand même de meilleure humeur que je l'avais été ces derniers mois.

Redundancy again

Well, I have been expecting it for a while now, but it has been made official last Friday: I am being made redundant again. And unlike two years ago, when it turned out to be a false alarm, this is going to be for good. I should be devastated, I am not: my wife has a permanent job, we are at a secure place financially, furthermore I have already started looking and some recruiters have contacted me for positions when I would potentially be a good fit. And, while it is not like five years ago when I hated everything about my job and my employer, I had been unhappy at work for a while, so it is time for a change. I still have a month to go through until I am officially unemployed, but until then I can focus on job hunting and not stress too much about meeting targets and doing reports and so on.

Un gâteau

Bon, ça faisait des semaines que je promettaisà petit loup que j'allais lui faire un gâteau, il fallait bien que je tienne ma promesse. Alors vendredi soir, je m'y suis mis, avec son aide. Un gâteau simple à la vanille, avec du caramel entre les deux étages, rien que parce que ça fait différent de la confiture. Nous l'avons partagé avec des amis où nous étions invités pour la journée de samedi: ils offraient le lunch, nous avons offert le dessert. Ce fut épique de le transporter, il n'est pas parfaitement présentable, maisil est très mangeable. Nous étions sept dessus, dont deux enfants et un adolescent affamé. Il ne reste que la moitié de ça, c'est donc un succès.

Wismar and Nosferatu

 Halloween is a long time away, yet I often get in a spooky mood these days. I am already anticipating and preparing myself mentally. So I stumbled upon a BBC article about the city of Wismar, which was used for the filming of the original Nosferatu (and its remakes). Being a big fan of Dracula, which is of course the source material of the horror classic, I think I should visit the city one day. From the pictures I saw, it looks like a warm and friendly place, very quaint, utterly unsinister, but I guess that's what can make it eerie. I have been wanting to make horror pilgrimages in various places associated with classic scary stories. I haven't really made much if any headways, but Wismar is definitely on my list.

Plus sur DG

Comme vous le savez, Opéra du Royaume va présenter Don Giovanni de Mozart en avril. C'est une première régionale (rérionale?) et j'aimerais pouvoir y être, mais hélas... Je suis loin. Cela dit, je me tiens au courant sur la production, en plus d'en faire la promotion sur ce blogue. Parce que j'ai aumoins quelques lecteurs au Saguenay. Bon, alors, j'en ai appris plus: ils ont traduit le libretto original. Alors ce sera chanté en français. Je suis, je l'avoue, un peu dubitatif. Je pense qu'on peu suivre même si l'on ne parle pas italien. Et j'ai peur qu'on y perde au change. Mais bon, c'est quand même Mozart et mon opéra préféré, alors je ne bouderai pas mon plaisir pour autant. Enfin, je ne bouderais pas si je pouvais y être. Et c'est du 9 au 13 avril, pour ceux qui peuvent.

Aquila on Books

 I said it before, I will say it again: Wolfie received the best post in the family. You might know what it means. Yes, he received the March edition of Aquila Magazine a week ago already. I have wanted to blog about it since. This month's topic is books. Maybe because of World Book Day, which happens in March? In any case, it not only encourages literacy, but creativity as well. We didn't read much of it yet, but this will change this weekend. Oh how I wish I had grown up reading Aquila!

"Parent épuisé"

 Une amie sur Facebook (la femme d'un ami d'enfance de ma femme) a partagé ce meme, qui m'a bien fait rire.

Swordsticks in Carmen Sandiego

 I blogged recently about the Netflix series Carmen Sandiego, which I have been watching eagerly with Wolfie. We absolutely love it. I also love how it mixes old and new tropes. One of them is the sword cane, or swordstick, as it is also called. It is used by one of the villains (well of course), an snobby upperclass Brit (well of course). I blogged in August last year about swordsticks, because I love them as signature weapons. As not so many people use canes anymore, unless they are elderly, it is not very much featured in modern fiction, so I was glad to see it make a come back in a animated series. Sword canes mix danger and elegance, often with a heavy dose of deceit. Sometimes, little details like this make you enjoy a work of fiction more.

Est-ce le printemps?

 À l'automne, je considère que la saison commence avec le mois de septembre, pas avec l'équinoxe. En général, c'est la même chose pour le printemps: il commence avec mars, pas avec l'équinoxe. Mais cela dépend du mois de mars que l'on a. S'il est très froid et s'il neige (en Angleterre c'est rare, mais ça arrive), alors je dis que le printemps n'est pas encore arrivé et que l'hiver fait du temps supplémentaire. S'il fait plus doux, alors c'est bien le printemps, même avant l'équinoxe. Ces le cas ces temps-ci, à une nuance près: les nuits sont froides. La température se réchauffe en matinée. Morale de l'histoire: mars est un mois traître.

World Book Day, 2025

Today is World Book Day, something I try to comment on every year on this blog. It's held the first Thursday of March. If you have a child of school age in England, you must know World Book Day is a big deal here, because it promotes literacy and education. Pupils go to school wearing disguises of characters, special activitiesare organised by libraries and bookshops, etc. I hope Wolfie comes back from school with a voucher, that would be a good excuse to visit the local bookshop at some point this weekend. Not that I need an excuse, mind you, but it's nice to have an extra motivation. In any case, happy World Book Day everyone and tell me how you celebrate it.

Brouillard

 Nous avons eu du brouillard hier matin. J'ai donc pris quelques photos. Au moins, ce pays fait du beau brouillard.

Ash Wednesday 2025

 For those who don't know, it is Ash Wednesday today, the beginning of Lent. Back when I was a good little Catholic boy, it was a big deal. Now, it just means that Easter is slowly getting closer, yet is so very far away. I like waiting for holidays and celebrations, waiting for them is part of the fun, sometimes more fun than the actual day. So I kind of like Ash Wednesday just for that. But this year, I feel like Ash Wednesday is kind of dreary and gloomy, even more than when I was a young Catholic boy and it was meant to be a dark day, feeling as grey as ashes. Because it's been difficult at my job and Wednesday is often the worst day in my week.

Question existentielle (393)

 Nous sommes le mercredi des Cendres aujourd'hui. Dans pas si longtemps, mais le temps pour s'y rendre sera long, ce sera Pâques. Mais bon, je vais poser une question existentielle:

-Que représente le mercredi des Cendres pour vous? 

J'ai souvent blogué sur le sujet, mais je suis curieux de vos réponses.

Starbucks' Matcha Green Tea Latte

This post is a warning for those who might have the bright idea to try something new at Starbucks. Because yes, against my better judgment, we went to the local Starbucks this weekend. My wife suggested that I go for something seasonal, instead of keeping it safe and just having tea. I don't like tea with milk, something they always add in their special menu teas. I don't like Starbucks much in general in fact, I find some items on their menu tolerable, that's it. But I followed my wife's advice, again, against my better judgment. And I ordered a Matcha Green Tea Latte. The horror, the horror. Never drank anything so vile. As I explained to her when she asked for a review: "I can brew the same thing at home. I just need to mow the lawn, then throw the grass in boiling water." Wolfie found it so funny that he could not dirnk his hot chocolate without spitting it. So I think it deserves to be a new great unknown line. And keep away from Starbucks and their Matcha Green Tea Latte.

Mardi gras

Nous sommes aujourd'hui le Mardi gras. Ce que j'associe à la légende de Rose Latulipe. Ou Rose Latulippe, j'ai vu les deux épellationsJe partage donc pour l'occasion et une fois de nouveau la couverture du Baiser maléfique. Dois-je préciser quel personnage arrive sur son cheval? Dans tous les cas, lisez mes Conseils du Mardi gras, juste au cas où. On n'est jamais trop prudent.

87th Precinct: a new generation?

No, no, I'm not saying there will be continuations novels of Ed McBain's 87th Precinct series written by other writers. Although I'm sure there's fanfics somewhere. You may remember that back in 2020, I said that reading McBain was almost a sort of family tradition, as both my wife's parents liked to read him. Well, a few days ago, Wolfie, who likes to check my bookshelves from time to time, stumbled upon The Heckler. It's the novel that introduces the Deaf Man, mastermind criminal and the 87th Precinct nemesis. He got curious about it for some reason and asked me a few questions. So reading McBain might become an official family tradition after all, if one day we can have a new generation who enjoys it.

Le Mardi gras chez les Latulipe

Demain, c'est le Mardi gras, ce qui veut dire... ben, ce qui veut dire pour bien des Québécois comme moi que c'est le temps de se rappeler la légende de Rose Latulipe. Ma version préférée de l'histoire, vous la trouverez dans Le baiser maléfique. D'où j'ai pris cette image. Pour Rose Latulipe, aujourd'hui est sa dernière vraie journée heureuse, avant la tragédie. Alors si vous vous faites inviter par un monsieur Latulipe pour une soirée dansante du mardi gras afin de célébrer les fiançailles de sa fille, je vous conseille de ne pas y aller.

Face to face with Carmilla

Is it too early to think of Halloween and get in a spooky mood? Is it? Because if it is, I can't help it: fate makes me think of my favourite holiday. I was going to the local bookshop yesterday when I suddenly stumbled upon... Carmilla! Not the vampire, but the novel about the famous vampire. So yes, I was stopping by the bookshop,minding my own business, when I saw this. Okay, so I own already at least two versions of Carmilla, including the full anthology : In A Glass Darkly. So I behaved and did not buy this one. However tempted I was. And even though I am not so sure Le Fanu's most famous work can be classified as a "dark sapphic romance". Surely, it is first and foremost a solid, classic gothic horror story! I know it has a lesbian vampire in it, but that doesn't make it a romance. Be that as it may, I did not buy it, but what a cool cover! And suitably orange, which makes it perfect for Halloween. I almost regret not buying it. Almost.

Mélusine

J'ai une confession à faire: même si je suis médiéviste de formation, je connais très peu de choses sur la fée Mélusine, à part son nom et quelques grandes lignes de sa légende. Elle est une créature associée à l'eau et qu'elle a des pieds en queue de serpent quand elle prend son bain, grosso modo. Et j'y pensais récemment et je me suis dit qu'il fallait remédier à ça: je compte donc y remédier prochainement. Pas seulement en googlant son nom et en cherchant sur YouTube, ce serait trop facile. Je compte chercher des bouquins sur le sujet. Si vous en avez à me conseiller, faites-moi vos suggestions dans les commentaires.

Feeling (almost) Welsh

 Today is the first of March, which you are most likely aware of. It is the Feast of Saint David, which you may or may not know about. Saint David is, as you may or may not know, the patron saint of Wales. So this is Wales' national day. It's a special day for me, as I truly discovered Welsh culture during my first year in the UK and I have very fond memories of the first of March. See see this post for more details. So yeah, although I don't think I have an ounce of Welsh blood in my veins, on this day I often feel a tad Welsh, or at least (and most certainly) Celtic.

Un dodo

Mon fils est allé il y a une semaine au Musée de l'histoire naturelle de l'Université d'Oxford. J'étais au travail, alors il est allé avec sa mère et sa grand-mère, pour y rencontrer son cousin (le fils de ma belle-soeur). Je n'ai pas pu y être, donc, mais Wolfie a été généreux: il m'a acheté un petit dodo en toutou. Et il a même insisté pour que le dodo soit à moi et pas à lui ou à sa mère (au grand dam de celle-ci). Mais bon, il est pas mal mignon et il se porte bien, surtout pour un animal disparu depuis le XVIIe siècle.

Friday, Gloomy Friday

 Okay, so we are the very end of the month and it's Friday. February is a difficult month in my line of work, end of months are always difficult, when they come on a Friday they re generally worse. Accursed, accursed 28th of February. I never liked the month all that much, because it seems that every rubbish that happens at work always fall in late February, or thereabout. So two years ago I was at risk of being made redundant. In the end, I managed to get my job back at the last minute. I have been doing well since then, except in the last few months, where it has become more difficult, for various reasons. And now I am again at risk of redundancy. It's not as dire as before, because my wife has a job as well, so we don't depend of my salary. And I have learned to be prepared for the worst, since I got made redundant by the employer I hated during the Covid year. I know how to job hunt in difficult times and I am generally good at interviews. But it makes things a little bit more stressful all the same. I'd rather skip February sometimes.

Goldorak U

J'ai appris il y a quelques jours une bonne ouvelle pour les animateurs de dessins animés japonais nostalgiques. Et désolé si je suis en retard dans les nouvelles et si vous le savez déjà. Mais enfin bref: il y a une nouvelle série de Goldorak. Ca s'appelle Goldorak U. Au Québec, elle est disponible sur ICI Tou.tv Extra et elle pourra être visionnée à la télévision de Radio Can en automne. Goldorak n'a jamais été mon héros préféré, mais j'ai quand même passé des heures de plaisir à le regarder se battre contre des monstres robotiques abominables.

Two Spoons Tea

I recently learned the existence of a new tea company, or at least one I didn't know existed until, well, now: Two Spoons Tea. I love to try new teas and see what's on the offer. Because tea is, as you know, my favourite non-alcoholic drink. I will need to check where I can buy their products. I could of course do it online, if needs be. Or just suggests to my wife that she buys me some of their brews for my birthday. In any case, I will keep my eyes out for Two Spoons Tea.

Renard sur fond hivernal

 Je partage encore une fois une photo prise sur le lot de mes oncles. Rien que parce que c'est beau, un renard dans la neige.

Carmen Sandiego

 Oh the thing I rediscover since I am the father of a young boy. I am kind of late in the news, but Netflix made a TV series called Carmen Sandiego, based on the character at the core of the old educational video game series. I played the game in the 90s, when I was a teenager, mostly at a friend's place, on his computer, but also at school, when it was used so we would learn English. It hadn't really made a big impression on me. Maybe because I was not keen on games with blatant educational purposes? I remember the gameshow as well, which I thought was kind of nice, but a bit young for me. It was more something my little brothers watched. But anyway, out of curiosity, I checked the animated series on Netflix last Saturday, with Wolfie, and we got hooked right away. Now Carmen Sandiego switched from antagonist to protagonist and even hero, but she still operates outside the law and it's a neat little caper with a nice old fashioned aesthetic and a few surprisingly dark moments. The villains are true villains, not mere pantomimes. The educational aspect is still there, but it's been integrated to the plot and characters seamlessly. So Wolfie and I are enjoying it a lot. I'm also glad I can make him discover crime fiction.

Don Giovanni (plogue)

 J'ai fait l'annonce il y a environ un mois. Je la refais en rappel, parce que je reçois des notifications  à ce propos sur les réseaux sociaux: : Opéra du Royaume va présenter Don Giovanni de Mozart en avril. Mon opéra préféré, de mon compositeur préféré. Un retour dans ma région en avril n'est pas dans mes boîtes, hélas, mais allez le voir si vous pouvez. Opéra du Royaume fait de l'excellent travail d'habitude et ce sera une grande première régionale. Alors osez.

AB's B'day

 Today is the birthday of Anthony Burgess, my favourite writer. I try to commemorate every year. The big anniversary was in 2017, when he would have turned a hundred. be that as it may, I will try to do something special about him, like read passages of some of his best novels. One day, I hope to do another pilgrimage in Manchester, where he was born, and visit the Anthony Burgess Foundation there. It's been long overdue. Otherwise, it's also Vraie Fiction's blogging anniversary, which is entireyl accidental, yet very fitting.