Blue Monday: some thoughts

In case you didn't know, or maybe didn't notice, or didn't care (which is almost my case), today is Blue Monday. The most depressing day of the year, according to, well, pseudoscience. But I don't find this Monday more depressing than any other and I find it less depressing than other Mondays in the year. Of course, the day is still young, so I might feel differently in the evening, therefore touch wood. So far, so good. I don't find Blue Mondays depressing for the reasons stated in 2023. To sum it up here: I don't hate my job, I don't have to commute to go to work, I find the months of June and July more depressing than January and I only got back at work last week. Also, I have a few more holidays this month. So yeah, while no working Monday is great, and while I understand why some people dislike it, I don't feel particularly blue today.

Une certaine fascination pour le grenier

 J'en ferai peut-être une question existentielle, cela dit d'ici là quelqu'un peut m'expliquer la fascination des enfants pour le grenier? Quand j'ai dû ranger les décorations de Noël et ensuite d'autres cossins il y a quelques jours, Wolfie voulait absolument voir ce qu'il y avait là-haut. Ce n'est pas la première fois. J,ai même blogué sur le même sujet en 2020 et sa fascination pour notre grenier s'est développée depuis. J'avoue qu'enfant, j'étais aussi comme lui. Je n'ai jamais mis les pieds au grenier chez mes parents, mais j'ai toujours voulu. Ma femme m'a dit que c'était la même chose pour elle quand elle avait l'âge de petit loup. Je ne sais pas si c'est donc un trait de famille ou un truc générationnel. Tous les enfants aiment-ils les greniers, ou est-ce juste mon fils?

Blue Vinny Mac and Cheese

I was going through the pictures I took in Dorset during our last holidays. In Weymouth, to be precise. In this household, we love macaroni and cheese. My wife especially. But she loathe blue cheese. So she was devastated to learn that the one mac and cheese on the menu of the restaurant of the resort we were in was with Dorset Blue Vinny. Maybe I should say horrified. Be that as it may, since she would not try it, I did. Because I love to try local products when we go somewhere. And blue cheese and pasta is just my kind of thing. And I quite enjoyed it. The blue cheese really gave it a nice kick. As for my wife, well, at least she had the satisfaction that I had a veggie meal.

Un crabe

 J'ai pris cette photo à Weymouth dans le Dorset,dans un centre pour touristes qui est peut-être fermé maintenant. En tout cas le café à côté n'existe plus, ce qui m'a bien chagriné. Dans tous les cas, voici un crabe. Je ne sais pas si on peut dire empaillé quand il s'agit d'un crustacé, mais je l'ai trouvé impressionnant.

Weaponry

I blogged before about the artillery drawer: a place where I put most (but not all) of Wolfie's toy guns and other weapons and equipment for our "War Game", a mix of police, spy and, well, guerilla thriller where we fight an evil organisation run by King Cobra. Well, this is the amount of weaponry we have (most of it anyway) after months and months of playing and improving our stocks. It has handguns, revolvers, a rifle, a machine gun, grenades and plenty of other stuff. I'm very proud of it, so is Wolfie. I even started filling another drawer. Like I always said, having a son allows me to live a second childhood.

Pâté à la truite

 Des fois, mon père m'envoie des photos de ce qu'ils ont cuisiné comme repas. Il y a quelques semaines, ils ont fait un pâté à la truite. Je crois me rappeler qu'ils l'ont mangé avec mon frère PJ, chez eux pour les Fêtes. Je suis grand amateur de poisson, de truite et donc de pâté à la truite. C'est pour moi plus un poisson à manger l'été, ou au moins au printemps, je ne sais pas trop pourquoi. Quand même, j'en aurais bien mangé, que ce soit de saison ou pas. Et vous?

The cry of the red kite

We have a lot of red kites flying round here. Like a lot. When I first came here, I did not know what were these birds of prey flying so low and that had that such a distinctive cry. It felt like our quaint little English town was in the middle of the wilderness. A quick Google search helped me identify what I now call my neighbours. Or avian neighbours. But yes, they do cry rather loudly. Yesterday I heard one when I was in the garden. I found it in a nearby tree and managed to take a few snapshots. Not great ones, but here is one for you.

Neige

 Autre photo envoyée par mon père des neiges au Saguenay. Je crois que c'est la plus jolie depuis le début de l'hiver.

The Snail Torch

 My readers may know that I am a surprisingly loyal customer of Mountain Warehouse.I generally buy warm clothes there. But I also buy other things. Last time, I bought this cheap snail torch, because for some reason Wolfie seemed to like it. He gave me his usual Wolfism when he wants to buy something I don't think he needs (although it's usually a plush toy): "Oh but daddy, but daddy, I already gave him a name!" I gave it to him for three reasons: 1)because it was cheap, 2)because his pleading was cute and 3)because we can never have enough torches. At least when he needs one for his blanket fort, he will not use any of mine and waste their battery. And what is the name of the snail torch, you may ask? Honestly, I cannot remember.

La neige...

Des fois, mon père m'envoie des photos de la neige qui est de retour au Québec. Un peu tard, mais quand même, c'est l'hiver pour vrai là-bas. Sinon, ce billet est une excuse pour partager une photo hivernale. Mais ça en vaut la peine.

Bookshops on holidays

I took this image from Books Are My Bag. I was not sure if they were advertising books for tourists or books set in the place you were travelling. I turned out the link with the image leads to a search engine to find bookshops near you. Which is a pretty neat idea. I'd like to go on holiday at some point, I mean not a staycation, and maybe buy a book or three at the local bookshop. It could be a nice little holiday project, like a side quest.

Les poules de Pâques déjà?

 Photo trouvée sur la page Facebook des Pères trappistes il y a quelques jours. On y annonçait le retour de leurs petites poules de Pâques en vente sur les étalages de Jean Coutu. En janvier. Ma première question: déjà? Bon, j'imagine que je ne devrais pas trop m'étonner. Je le dis souvent: une fête chasse l'autre assez vite. Les décorations de Noël sortent dans les commerces aussitôt l'Halloween terminée, puis c'est le tour de la prochaine grosse fête dans l'année, donc Pâques. Qui arrive d'ailleurs assez tôt cette année. Mais quand même, je trouve ça prématuré. Et vous, qu'en pensez-vous?

An old railway signal box

 Here is a piece of sad news for railway lovers like myself: Cornwall's oldest railway signal box is closing. Okay, to be honest, I was there were any signal box left in this country and it is a surprise there was still one in function, even in a small Cornish village. All the same, it is a symbol of a bygone era that is going to close down. And I always loved signal boxes. I hope they do something with it, like that one in Devon. A café, a pub, a museum perhaps? Something to give this box not so much a second life as a second career. And old things can still look good, especially old buildings, especially railway buildings.

Nouvelle lectrice du Saguenay

Petite nouvelle dans la publication de Vraie Fiction: j'ai une nouvelle lectrice. Oui monsieur.Ou oui madame, car c'est une femme. Et du Saguenay en plus, sans doute de Chicoutimi. Elle a répondu gentiment à ma question sur ce billet, quand je demandais des adresses de cafés où aller à Chicoutimi. Pas que j'irai bientôt. Mais au moins là j'en ai deux, grâce à ses suggestions: un café et une maison de thé. Des endroits que je compte bien visiter avec ma femme et mon fils lors de notre prochain séjour, qui ne sera pas demain. Espérons qu'ils ne fermeront pas d'ici là. Dans tous les cas, bienvenue à Maryse sur Vraie Fiction et au plaisir de lire tes commentaires.

Another Clue/Cluedo?

My long time readers know my long time love and fascination for Clue. Or Cluedo, as it is called here in the UK and elsewhere. I have one version here, a present from my wife, but it's a Game of Thrones variation. We played it a few times, it's fun. But I miss the old classic version of my youth. And I also want to try the other versions there are. Anyway, to my great surprised, I saw yet another Cluedo in the local toy shop. It costs £29.99, not exactly cheap, but I am happy to encourage local businesses. I am not certain if it is a new version or the old one with a new cover. Basically, they changed the age and ethnicity of some of the characters. Otherwise it could be, as it says on the box, the classic mystery game. I have to say, this one looks better than the one I saw back in 2019. It looks less cartoonish. So many Clues, which one to choose?

Glaçons (et neige)

Photo prise en janvier dernier (je crois) par mon père, durant un hiver plus hivernal qu'il l'est cette année au Québec et qu'il l'est ici, à chaque année. Cela dit, on annonce de la glace ici aussi, enfin il y a danger de glace noire au sol. Il pourrait même y avoir de la neige cette semaine, ou dans les prochains jours. Je suis comme d'habitude sceptique. Je serais heureux s'il y avait de la neige, même si les Anglais la gèrent mal.

Free cocktails to take away

This weekend, we went for a quick stop (that ended up being not so quick, but I digress) before dinner. It was in the pub where I used to go about 15 years ago, back when we were renting. It used to be a run-down pub full of old people, but it was the nearest pub from the flat and I came to like the variety of drinks there. I think the last time I went there must have been ten years, if not more. Well, since then it got new owners and it has been completely revamped and gentrified. It also has a Chinese take away/restaurant attached to it, but that is the topic of another post. Let's just say for now that it was one of the reasons why we stopped there.

The advantage true advantage of this pub it that the guy in charge of cocktails and one of managers is also the father of one of Wolfie's friends. We actually sometimes get the girl to and back from school with us. So when we were waiting for our Chinese meal to be ready, my wife was pondering if she should take a cocktail, but she was driving. So I suggested we asked if wecould buy a cocktail and take it away. Daddy manager and cocktail maker said not only it was possible, but he would give it to us for free. A Christmas martini (don't ask) worth I believe £10.50. It was served in a plastic pint, not full but almost, with all the forth and everything, covered with a big sandwich bag. By some miracles, we got it home intact and not a drop of it was lost on the way home. It took my wife three evenings to drink it all. Moral of the story, it's great to be connected.

Les enseignants le lundi

 Une amie de la lointaine époque du cégep a partagé ce dessin de Jack Koch hier. Elle est bien entendu prof. J'ai cru opportun de partager ça aujourd'hui. J'ai quitté le merveilleux monde de l'éducation il y aura bientôt 14 ans et je ne m'ennuie pas du tout, surtout pas le lundi...

Back to work...

 Well, today is a day I have been dreading: I am back at work. Not that I don't like my job, but I always dread getting back to work after a long holiday, and I have been away for three weeks. Thankfully I don't have to go to the office as I'm working from home. It makes the transition easier. I will probably still be socially jetlagged. And I am already longing for my next holidays, whenever they may be. Yesterday, my mum told me something one of her former employees (now retired) used to tell her every time she got back at work: "I need to work so I can afford my next holidays". I think this deserves to be a great unknown line. In any case, I will keep that in mind today and for the rest of the week.

Remise sous la neige

Autre photo de la neige à Chicoutimi. Rien que parce que. Oh et il va peut-être neiger cette semaine ici. C'est un gros peut-être.