The Bright Kid

 Yesterday, we went to a family gathering on my wife's side (well, of course on my wife's side, my own side of the family is kind of far). One of her aunts told me that the last time they had all been together like this was on our wedding day. There was one of the people there, the son of my wife's cousin, whom I hadn't seen in a while and was really eager to meet again. You see, when he was like two or three, he had become quite fond of me, a sweet little boy with an inquisitve mind. We always got aong well. Well, the sweet little boy just graduated from the University of Oxford this year and will start his very first real job this September in London. I am really impressed and feel so priviledged that he always liked me. We didn't have time to speak much, but we really enjoyed our catching up. So yeah, long story short, I'm the friend of a really bright kid.

Mafalda et Burocracia

Photo prise sur la page Facebook officielle de Mafalda l'année dernière Si comme moi vous avez la mélancolie facile ces temps-ci, il vous faut une dose de Mafalda pour vous faire rire, à tout le moins sourire. Ce gag est encore plus drôle maintenant que quand j'étais enfant. Et vous?

Garlic and a Wolfism

 I haven't shared a Wolfism in a long, long while, even though he says a few every week that are really funny and witty. So a new one was in order. He asked me recently this question, which I could not answer: "Daddy, why is garlic so famous?" If you have an answer, any answer, good or bad, please write it in the comments.

Un traitement radical contre l'insomnie

Nous sommes allés voir de la famille de ma femme aujourd'hui, une réunion qui était assez loin, donc on a dû faire du millage. Comme Wolfie et moi nous avons le mal des transports, nous avons pris du Gravol. Enfin, pas du Gravol, mais l'équivalent générique. Un à l'alle, un au retour, parce qu'on doit les prendre aux six heures. Et je suis claqué pas rien qu'un peu. Genre très solide. Petit loup aussi, même si c'est moins pire. Mettons que je serais prêt à me coucher maintenant (sauf que j'ai des choses à faire, alors ça n'arrivera pas tout de suite). Je ne devrais avoir aucun mal à m'endormir ce soir. Alors voici un petit conseil pratique pour ceux qui souffrent d'insomnie, comme c'est mon cas plus souvent qu'à mon tour: prenez du Gravol. Bon, pas à tous les soirs, sinon ça risque d'entraîner une dépendance. Cela dit, de temps en temps, quand vous sentez que le sommeil va vous fuir, ça devrait vous cogner suffisamment.

The Flying Scotsman

I took this pic at the NRM in York. It is of course the one and only Flying Scotsman, the legendary train which is one of the museum's many, many attractions. I have been wanting to see it again and share picture of it again. So here it is. Also, we will be doing more train travels in the near(ish) future, so I thought this was as good excuse as any to post more train pictures on the blog.

Les vacances du Salon du livre

 J'ai pris cette photo sur la page Facebook du Salon du Livre du Saguenay Lac-Saint-Jean. Une annonce bien simple qui m'est passé sous les yeux quand ils l'ont sortie en juin. Cela dit, il y a une chose qui me vient en tête quand je la vois. Comme le personnel du Salon du livre est en vacances jusqu'à aujourd'hui inclusivement, cela veut dire que dès demain, ils vont préparer l'édition 2025 et bientôt on verra de quoi elle aura l'air. J'ai hâte de voir.

Snake Alert!

 Here's some critter news which I wanted to share and blog about: there are snakes on the loose in England! To be more precise, the RSPCA has issued a warning about escaped pet snakes. You don't read that every day, not in this country in any case. There has been an increase in sighting of snakes, they even found bona fide pythons in Lincolnshire! Something came to my mind about the story: if some of these serpents remain in the wild and survive long enough, they might be mistaken for other creatures and we might have new cryptids. But this is my imagination talking. All the same, this country is now on a Snake Alert.

Orage (et un calembour atroce)

 Bon, enfin, on nous annonce de l'orage. On a eu droit à de la pluie, quelques bonnes averses même, la semaine dernière. Mais jusqu'ici, pas de vrai orage estival. Sauf que ça ne devrait pas niaiser aujourd'hui: alerte jaune d'orage, puis alerte orange pour plus tard, donc ils risquent d'être violents. Je l'espère un peu, j'ai toujours aimé les orages. Et j'aime ceux qui sont violents. Parce qu'il y a rage dans orage. Oui, je sais, c'est un calembour atroce. Un tout nouveau en plus, enfin je crois. Avoue que ça vous fait grincer des dents.

Tombola

There was a school fayre this afternoon at Wolfie's school, I went there right after work, for the last thirty minutes or so. I had time to enter a tombola: you buy tickets and you could buy a bottle of wine, of beer or of whatever drink, alcoholic or not. It was £2.00 for five tickets. At first, I only found a pound, so I asked: "Can I have two tickets and a half?" I think it deserves to be a great unknown line. Not my best, but it's been a while since I shared one funny line. Anyway, I found another pound in my pocket, so I got my five tickets, then I bought some more. In the end, we got a bottle of red wine, a soft drink and a bottle of non alcoholic coktail. Not bad.

Chutes de Val-Jalbert

Photo prise par mon père des chutes de Val-Jalbert. C'est tout ce que je voulais montrer.

The Violin Theft

Here's a bit of crime news I found out recently, which both shocked and fascinated me: a man was arrested for the theft of a £150,000 violin. First thing to say: wow! That is one expensive violin. To be honest, its value is not exactly surprising. There are expensive musical instruments out there, artifacts from another time still in working condition.This one is from the 18th century. It's just the sheer audacity of stealing a musical instrument that I find morally repellent to the extreme. It's one of the worst kind of thefts I can think of. Unfortunately, the violin has not been recovered as I am typing this. On another note, this could make for a great starting point for a crime novel. It already did, sort of, I mean I read one crime novel featuring a stolen violin. If you want to know which one check this link (otherwise: spoiler alert). And the theft happened in a London pub, because of course it did. So please keep your eyes open. Probably your ears too. I hope they find the violin.

Le chocolat aux bleuets arrive...

Voici une annonce d'intérêt public (pour ceux qui peuvent) glanée sur la page Facebook des Pères trappistes: leur chocolat aux bleuets sera bientôt disponible. Qui sait, il est peut-être déjà là au moment où vous lirez ceci. La page Facebook n'a pas précisé de date. Dans tous les cas, un grand produit régional est en chemin.

Jack (O'Lantern) in the box

I don't believe in destiny, that said sometimes there are things that create a certain synchronicity, like circumstances match your state of mind. I started my job a month and a half ago or so, I received my computer at the end of May. It was an old box, full of old plastic bags used to protect the cables and everything, and it also had paper and... confettis. Among them, some shining confettis shaped like Jack O'Lanterns. God knows what it was doing there, how it got in the box, but I think like ol' Stingy Jack is telling me that I should start reading horror stories for my Halloween countdown. What do you think?

Chaudronnée de pleurotes

 Lors du dernier séjour de mes parents au village fantôme de Val-Jalbert, mes parents ont mis les pieds dans le Restaurant du Moulin, qui est je crois le seul restaurant au village. Ils ont l'air de faire de la bonne bouffe, à voir les photos que mes parents m'ont envoyées. Dont cette "chaudronnée de pleurotes avec carottes sucrées en filament." Même moi qui ne suis pas amateur de champignons, j'essaierais bien.

Reading Mugs at The Little Bookshop

You may remember that I bought a "Go away, I'm reading" mug back in 2017. Well, I was happily surprised to find the same mugs in The Little Bookshop in Cookham, during our first and so far only visit there. I know they are available online as well, but it's nice to know we can buy reading accessories in the bookshop as well, and invest in an independent business without hoarding books. Now I won't buy more, because our cupboards are even more crammed than our bookshelves. That said, if my mug breaks, I know where to go to replace it.

Val-Jalbert

Mes parents ont récemment été au village fantôme de Val-Jalbert. Je sais, je sais, on l'appelle maintenant le village historique de Val-Jalbert, mais pour moi, ce sera toujours un village fantôme. Un de ceux qui hélas n'a pas d'histoire d'horreur à son nom (pas que je sache en tout cas), mais qui devrait. Enfin bref, je regarde cette photo et je crois qu'il devrait y avoir un fantôme ou deux qui s'y cache. Est-ce que Val-Jalbert fait quelque chose de spécial pour l'Halloween? Si non, il devrait. ENfin, dans tous les cas, je vais bloguer plus de photos du village envoyées par mon père.

Sunflowers

I saw a lovely sight yesterday, while we were getting Wolfie from school: in the front garden of one of the houses there, two sunflowers growing. When I was a very young child, I mean very young, before my youngest brother was even born, my father had two sunflowers like these growing in our then very bare garden. I loved them. For me, sunflowers is a sign of autumn, either autumn that has arrived, when they are fully grown, or autumn coming, when they are growing. So it is another sign that reminds me of my favourite season. It helps me to stay patient.

"La pièce qui tourne mal"

 Des fois, on donne à des choses des titres prédestinés. Enfin bref, j'ai appris dans la grosse Presse, grâce à mon frère PJ, qui m'a refilé la nouvelle, que le comédien Guillaume Lambert s'était blessé à Drummondville lors d'une représentation de... La pièce qui tourne mal. Ça ne s'invente pas. C'est pour ainsi dire tenter le sort. Blagues à part, je lui souhaite un prompt rétablissement. Autre détail anecdotique: j'ai déjà connu un Guillaume Lambert. Mais non, ce n'était pas le comédien.

Superman in Milton Keynes

 I know there is a new Superman movie in the theaters now, but I am not blogging about it. I haven't seen it and don't know know if and when I will. But something showed up on my newsfeed that made me want to blog about the superhero: this BBC article about Superman IV: The Quest for Peace. For two reason: first, it is the very first Superman movie I saw in cinema (and only one of two, I might add), on his release in 1987. Second, some of the film was filmed in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire. And I lived there for a little bit. Not very long, but I do know the town. I only ever watched the fourth Superman movie once, maybe twice, but I have been wanting to re-watch it ever since I learned about this little bit of trivia. I watch the pictures of the shooting and I can easily recongise the Milton Keynes' train station (doubling at the UN building I believe). It feel a bit surreal, knowing I have been where Superman was. Oh, and for the record I know the film is terrible.

Le 14 juillet au travail

 Aujourd'hui c'est le 14 juillet, donc la Fête nationale française. Un jour intéressant quand comme moi on s'intéresse à l'histoire et au moins un peu à la Révolution française. Je le souligne à chaque année. Mais ça veut aussi dire autre chose pour quelqu'un qui, comme moi, travaille au moins en partie en contact avec le marché français, mais vivant hors de France, ça veut dire une journée tranquille au travaille. Pas ncéessairement plus plaisante, parce que se tourner les pouces, c'est épuisant aussi. Alors aujourd'hui, je risque de trouver le temps long. Et ça se pourrait que ce soit tranquille demain aussi, pour des raisons évidentes.

Mental State: Spooky

Is it too early to think of Halloween? Is it? Of course it isn't! And I'm so glad to see that I'm not the only one to think like this. Anyway, I saw a meme yesterday on my feed and, well, it was this one. It's both very cute and very me. It may not be autumn yet, far from it, it certianly does not look like it, but I will very soon be reading horror stories and this will kickstart my countdown to Halloween. I need to think of something else than summertime, I am officially done with it.

Promesse de pluie

 J'ai pris cette photo il y a une semaine seulement, juste avant que la canicule nous tombe sur la frippe. Nous sortions d'une canicule et la température avait soudainement baissé de manière dramatique, à mon plus grand bonheur. Il a fini par pleuvoir, assez pour nous rafraîchir, mais pas assez pour faire verdir la nature: partout l'herbe est encore très jaune. Ils prévoient encore de la pluie dans quelques jours, mais je ne retiens pas mon souffle: je sais que je risque d'être déçu. C'est trop long l'été...

Spy Activities

I love Usborne books. And I always look for new and old books from them. A few weeks ago, in a local shop (though ironically not the local bookshop, I stumbled upon Lots of Spy Activities, a book of, well, activities and games for children. I didn't know they had such book. I did not buy it, I swear, I restrained myself. However, I took a picture of it, as a reminder, and to show it to Wolfie. I asked him if he wanted the book, and he said yes. So I think he might get it for his birthday.

Une voile

Photo prise par mon père à La baie en 2023, je faisais le ménage dans mes photos quand je l'ai trouvée. J'aimerais qu'il vente comme cette journée-là. Et être près de l'eau.

Sake

In recent years and for a number of trivial reasons I cannot be bothered to dwell on just now, I have started developing a certain interest about Japanese culture. This is kind of new, but you might have noticed it on this blog. So yes, a few days ago, looking at the stocks of alcohol we have, I was wondering if I should not try sake again, if I can find any good quality sake nearby. I say try again, because I did drink sake once, back in 1996(!), in a course about world's literature(!!). The teacher had given us samples to try at the end of a class. I had not been impressed then: I thought it had a papery taste. But my tastes in alcohol have evolved a lot since and I am wondering if I should give it another try. If you have any suggestions, please leave them in the comments. Also, tell me if you have any experience drinking sake.

Question existentielle (397)

 Question existentielle d'une importance vitale ces jours-ci:

-Comment survivre, mentalement et physiquement, à la canicule? 

Non mais c'est sérieux. 

Coolcation

Sometimes I discover new concepts, thanks to internet algorithms. A few days, I stumbled upon an article about the best coolcation destinationsin Europe. The term coolcation is self-explanatory, but I think it's the first time I ever came across it. According to AI, a coolcation is "vacation taken in a cooler climate to escape the summer heat". Which is exactly what I need right now. It is exactly what I need every summer, come to think of it. Anyway, be that as it may, it is a nice concept and the word of the day. I might come back to this article in the future. In the meantime, if you have any suggestions for coolcation destinations, please tell me in the comments. I need them.

Festival des vins de Saguenay

J'apprends au hasard qu'il y a un Festival des vins de Saguenay. Et que c'est commencé aujourd'hui. Alors, voilà, annonce d'intérêt public: c'est du 10 au 12 juillet.

Where is Café2U?

Some of my very long time readers might remember that a decade ago or so, I sometimes used to blog about Café2U. It was, it is, a franchise of coffee vans delivery coffee and other hot drinks at offices. We used to receive the visit of the van every few days, back in my old, old job. I mean the job I had between 2010 and 2017, so four employers' ago. I loved their very decadent hot chocolates and sometimes I treated myself with one cup of them (as I loathe coffee). Now that I work from home, I don't buy myself treats from coffee vans, but I see them sometimes around in the neighbourhood, going to the various business estates in our little town, while we are on the school run. But I haven't seen a Café2U van in a decade or so. I checked their website, and the company still exists. So where are the vans? If you know the business, if you once drank their coffee, or their chocolate, tell me in the comments.

Fraises en dessert

 Mon père a fait ce dessert il y a quelques temps. Enfin, je dis "faire"... Il a mélangé des fraises, de la crème, du sirop d'érable et du sucre d'érable. C'est simple, c'est bon.

New Scotland Yard, New Mr X

A few days ago, my wife said that we should play board games more often with Wolfie. We have a few, but we seldom take them out. And there are a lot which I would love to own. Among them, there is of course Scotland Yard, my all-time childhood favourite. I recently discovered that they have updated the look of the game, or at least the box, with a more modern take. It's a very contemporary London and Mr X looks far darker and more menacing, even though he sitll wears the rather anachronistic hat. He looks like he belongs to a spy thriller, which I guess Scotland Yard could be, as much as a crime adventure. Anyway, while I love the old fashioned look, I must say, I think the game's antagonist gives a proper sinister vibe.What do you think?

Du nouveau sur le Salon du livre

C'est encore tôt, peut-être, mais j'aime être prévoyant et faire de la publicité pour l'évènement d'avance. Alors donc, j'ai quelques nouvelles sur le Salon du Livre du Saguenay Lac-Saint-Jean, parce que je regarde de temps en temps leur page Facebook. La 61e édition sera du 25 au 28 septembre (jusqu'ici, tout est normal), mais dans un nouvel emplacement: au Place Centre-Ville de Jonquière. Oulà, pas certain... Il me semble que l'ancien Roussillon, c'était mieux. ais je suis un incorrigible nostalgique. Enfin bref, j'aimerais y être cette année, comme à chaque année. C'est un pèlerinage qui me manque.

The Chess Player's Bible

When I go to the local bookshop, I often find treasures. Actually, that's not true: I always find treasures. In fact, I find so many treasures that I cannot buy them all. So yeah, I stumbled upon The Chess Player's Bible in the children section, of all places. I blogged about chess recently, it's one game I used to be quite into as a child, but I stopped a while ago. I suggested to buy it to Wolfie, but he was not interested. A shame: one of his best friends loves chess and I know they've played a few times together. But anyway, I just thought it was nice to have it in the children books section.

Orchidées

Autre photo des orchidées de mon père, une photo que je n'ai pas partagée jusqu'ici. Enfin je ne crois pas.

Camping Night (and an autumnal promise)

Last Saturday, we went to Wolfie's school special camping night. We did not spend the night there, we just went so he could play with his friends, to have a few drinks and enjoy a barbecue. It's always a pleasant event. But this year, I enjoyed it for another reason. As you know, I long for the autumn to come and I have been waiting for its signs. After the heatwave we've had recently (and thre is another one coming), it felt like my favourite season was so far away. But last Saturday evening, the atmosphere was autumnal: the air had cooled down and there was a pleasant breeze that cooled things down a bit more. As if suddenly, we were in early September. It felt like it anyway. Even Wolfie said it felt autumnal. Now it means nothing about what's it going to be in two month's time, but I had a foretaste of what this year's auutmn could be, and it should help me get through the hot days ahead.

Mafalda siempre

Photo prise sur la page Facebook officielle de Mafalda. Enfant, je lisais Mafalda quand je sentais les vacances se terminer, ça me guérissait de ma mélancolie. Un peu. Adulte, je lis Mafalda pour me guérir de ma mélancolie quotidienne. Les vacances ne sont pas là encore, ni pour moi, ni pour Wolfie, ni pour ma femme, les jours se ressemblent. Mais heureusement, il y a Mafalda.

River & Rowing Museum (RIP)

My wife and I learned some very sad news recently: the River & Rowing Museum in Henley is closing down. We used to go there occasionally, before and after we became parents. The last time was in... January 2020. I had bought a yearly pass, having calculated that with only three visits, not only I would make up my investment, but save money on top of that. And as we don't live very far, it would be an excuse to visit the lovely town of Henley more often. Obviously, it was a gross miscalculation. The sad thing is, we never went back to the museum, even after the pandemic, even though we visited Henley a few times. And now, well, it is too late, or almost. The las day to visit it is the 21st of September, but visiting it might feel a tad too depressing.I guess I didn't like the place enough to go there again, but it is always heartbreaking when a museum closes down.

Les promenades au Parc Urbain

Photo prise par mon père au Parc de la Rivière-du-Moulin,communément appelé le Parc Urbain. À regarder les photos qu'il m'a envoyées, je me suis rappelé les nombreuses fois où j'y allais en famille. C'était vraiment comme avoir une forêt en ville et ça nourissait mon imagination fertile. Mais j'écrirai plus en détials sur le sujet un jour sans doute.

Lincoln Green

I recently learned something new recently, reading about Robin Hood. I think it does not come as something to your average Englishman, but hey, as anglophile as I have always been, I was not aware of this, or if I have been in the past, I had forgotten it. So yeah, anyway, the sort of green that wears Robin Hood and his Merry men is called Lincoln green. Please tell me you didn't know that, so I won't be too embarrassed. It is actually an authentic medieval colour, created in the Middle Ages, originating from Lincoln. Because yes, they had discovered colours back then and and they dyed their clothes when they could. It has always irritated me when Robin Hood doesn't wear green in some adaptations. You probably now the ones I'm referring to. Anyway, so Lincoln green is the word of the day.

Le phoque (près) de Montréal

Voici une nouvelle animalière et cute récente, que je n'ai pas eu le temps de mentionner jusqu'ici. Mais je voulais depuis un bout. Enfin bref, un jeune phoque a été aperçu près de Montréal, sur la plage d'Oka. Le Journal de Montréal a une vidéo et des photos ici, si vous voulez en voir plus. Bon, je n'ai pas grand chose à dire, à part que c'est inusité et mignon. J'espère que ça vous fera sourire. Et j'espère que le petit phoque va bien.

Shinkansen (Bullet Train)

I took this picture on our last visit at the National Railway Museum in York. It is a Shinkansen, also known as Bullet Train. An old version of it of course, the new ones look much leaner. When you enter this one, you can see a video about it and you can have a Shinkansen experience, as if you were traveling there in the 60s. I love old fashhion European luxury trainsand old steamies, but I have also developed inr ecent a fascination for this marvel of Japanese technology. It's just really gorgeous and impressive. If we ever visit Japan, I want to use the Shinkansen.

Plus sur la Divine à la cerise

Je blogue un peu plus sur la Divine à la cerise,le chocolat de ma région qui a un peu remplacé le défunt Cherry Blossom, et sur lequel j'ai blogué il y a quelques jours. Mon père a pris une photo de la Divine hors de sa boîte et on voit que ça a la forme d'une bête, un oiseau je crois. Mais je ne suis pas certain. Des fois je vois plus un poisson(?). Quant à savoir quel oiseau (ou quel poisson), c'est encore plus dur à dire. Mon père voit un canard. Vous? Bon, ce qui importe, c'est que ça remplace le Cherry Blossom.

Giant Chessboard

During our last trip to London, we went to a park. I can't remember the name now. But anyway, it had a few interesting things there, such as a giant chessboard, with its pieces. A grandfather and his granddaughter were playing it, but they allowed me to take a picture. Not the best shot, but it gives you an idea. I used to love playing chess as a child, but stopped playing when I reached teenage. I hope I can find another giant chessboard one day and it's free. So I can maybe play a game with it. I don't think I would be very good (I never was), but it would be thrilling.

Cadran solaire

Lors de notre dernier passage à Londres, nous avons visité un parc, dont le nom m'échappe au moment où j'écris ces lignes. Mais bref, il y avait un cadran solaire. Que j'ai décidé de prendre en photo, rien que parce que. Et en passant, quelqu'un sait comment lire un cadran solaire? Et est-ce que c'est fiable pour lire l'heure, ou c'est très imprécis? Ou alors maintenant on les place dans un lieu public juste pour faire joli?

The box of obsolete cables

I found this meme/cartoon on the internet a few months ago and I thought it was really funny, so I decided to share it. Do you have a box of obsolete cables? I do, well, not a box per se, but I do have a lot of obsolete cables. It comes with working with a computer, then another, then another, then a printer, then another... If there is ever a rise of the machines against mankind, I suspect it will start with a box of obsolete cables gaining consciousness.

Divine à la cerise (substitut du Cherry Blossom)

Le Cherry Blossom est mort, vive le... ben, heu, ce qui est un substitut du Cherry Blossom. Enfin bref, mon père a acheté cette Divine à la cerise, pendant régional du défunt Cherry Blossom. Je ne sais pas si ça goûte exactement la même chose, mais c'est quand même très proche, en plus gentrifié sans doute. Parce qu'on ne fait pas dans le cheap et dans le facile de par chez nous. Mais enfin bref, Hershey peut ben aller se faire f**tr*. On ira acheter nos friandises ailleurs.

Holy Cow Tea

As you may know, I am always on the lookout for new tea companies. I have also been trying to increase my intake of loose leaf tea, because it tastes better and I think is healthier. Not to mention fancier. So I recently discovered at a local fayre a new tea company, Holy Cow Tea. The very nice staff were giving samples to try, so I promised to stop by their stand and I did. Their range is a bit pricey, but I indulged myself because I needed something of quality and I love to support small local businesses. I use their Emporium Breakfast when I need a solid brew to start the day, which is always at the moment. So that's my new breakfast tea for now.

Jour du Déménagement (le mien, le vôtre)

 Nous sommes le 1er juillet aujourd'hui, ce qui, bien entendu, veut dire... le Jour du Déménagement. C'est le cas au Québec en tout cas. Incidemment, c'est le 1er juillet 2016, il y a quasiment dix ans, que nous sommes devenus propriétaires, quelques mois avant la naissance de petit loup. Nous avons emménagé dans la maison le lendemain, mais on a livré quelques boîtes la journée même. Je ne fais pas de grandes célébrations comme je le faisais lorsque l'on fêtait l'anniversaire de notre arrivée dans notre ancien appart. Surtout qu'aujourd'hui, l'anniversaire tombe en pleine semaine. Mais je trouve ça assez amusant que, même en Angleterre, j'ai "déménagé" à la même date qu'au Québec on déménage.