les chats française

Madeline belly up - Italian Ice in foreground

I thought it was high time I introduced Genevieve and Madeline. They're not French, but actually chats americain with noms francais. Madeline is 6 years old, fat, likes everyone, and spends most of her time belly up.Genevieve is 5 years old, slim and trim, loves only me and scared of everyone else. She spends most of her time on me when she's not pulling push pins out of the wall. They are both black and white and sweet all over. Madeline is named after the main character (a little French girl) in the book Madeleine. Yes, I spell my Madeline's name without the second 'e" so folks know it's pronounced with a long "i".

Genevieve removing push pin

sweet Genevieve napping on me

Madeleine in the book was once rescued by a very clever dog whom she adopted, and named Saint. Genevieve - Patron Saint of Paris! I've always loved that name, so it was perfect for Madeline's new kitten friend.

5 week old Genevieve

Madeline was not nearly as thrilled as I with new baby Genevieve. In fact she hated her guts. An arduous year passed before they learned to live with each other.

considering coming out

luring Freddie with treats

And then there's Freddie. I inherited Freddie when I moved into my present south Austin abode.

Freddie is an outdoor cat; his idea not mine. I forced him indoors during last winter's ice & snow episode, and he freaked. He was inside two days, and after getting him out from under the dry sink, he couldn't wait to go back outside in the snow. I give up.

Genevieve enjoying some fresh air

I've decided that only Genevieve will make the move to Paris with me. Of course, I'll miss Madeline, but she is quite easy-going and will be happy living with my sister or my friend Nicole (much to her husband's dismay).  Genevieve, on the other hand, would be traumatized beyond belief if I tried to leave her with someone. I would never consider such a thing as I could not bear to be without her. I can just see her, sitting in the window of my Paris apartment taking in all the new sights and sounds.

You may have guessed that Genevieve is my favorite. I can't help it, she just is. I could go on and on about my kittehs, but I shan't bore the non-cat lovers any further.

Nombres Francais
Tonight is the last cours de francais of the first session. It has been fantastique. The second session starts next Saturday!
Last week we learned how to write out numbers. Let me give you an example:
387 = tois-cent-quatre-vingt-sept.  How wild is that? When numbers get up into the thousands and millions, it is crazy! I can spit out my phone number fairly well if I do say so myself.

Goings On
There are all kinds of fab things to do this weekend in Austin and in Paris. Here are just a few.

Austin:
Gypsy Picnic Trailer Food Festival
Austin Film Festival
Texas Book Fair

Paris:
Salon du Chocolat
Le Journal D'une Fille Perdue (The Diary of a Lost Girl)
Exposition (Faux du Logis)

Profiter du week-end!
                                         

Go the Other Way!

80's Skate Party

roller skating 80's style

Changing directions in the middle of a song, couple's only, and racing madly around and around...

When is the last time you slipped into a pair of roller skates? Not only did I lace up a pair for the first time in almost 30 years, but decked out in full-blown 80s attire to boot! My outfit was pretty tame compared to others, but still a tad out of my comfort level. Sorry I don't have pictures of me and my cohorts to share; most are not worthy (or just too embarrassing). It was way fun, and I didn't fall once! Oh yeah, skating rink food hasn't changed a bit - blech.

Check out this 80s makeup tutorial: http://bit.ly/o5paZQ


Friday Night Skating in Paris!

The weekly Pari Roller, which began in 1994, is probably the biggest weekly skating event in the world. The fun begins at 10:00 pm on Friday nights when weather permits. Traffic is stopped, and 150 Pari Roller marshals skate among the masses - they are the ones in the bright yellow shirts. The skate fest lasts three hours, with a break for wine or snacks, and concludes at 1:00 am. The route changes slightly from week to week but covers over 18.5 miles through central Paris and along the Seine. Pari Roller also pays for the Paris "Protection Civile" which follows the skaters in two ambulances, in case a skater topples over and needs medical assistance.

skating through Paris

Get this - You can also become a member of Pari Roller; the membership fee includes an insurance plan adapted to roller skating, which is valid 7 days a week, 24 hours a day, wherever you are in the world!

More from France

"Is it a sign that we are more under the influence of the US, or that we have reached a certain level of maturity when it comes to women's rights, it's hard to tell. The fact is, that French female activists are now demanding that the term Mademoiselle be removed from official papers and forms. They claim that there is no male equivalent,  and that there is no reason to make the distinction between single and married women. They have a point, don't they?" - Paris Daily Photo 

I talked with Sylviane, my French teacher, about this, and she agrees that it is unfair and ridiculous to make the distinction between single and married women. It would be such a shame to see Mademoiselle disappear (in my opinion). I think instead they should ditch Madame and keep Mademoiselle. It sounds so lovely and so French.

In class this week we dove into "negation". The ne and pas surrounding the verb making the sentence negative. You've heard this one:  Je ne sais pas = I don't know. Je ne crois pa = I don't think so.  Here's another example with a bit of a twist: Elle n'est pas français = She is not French. We also learned the days of the week (I already knew them), reviewed numbers a bit more, and danced around the dreaded genders of nouns. This gender business has got to be the MOST difficult thing about learning French. I shall master it if it's the last thing I do. Vive la France! We also conjugated the verbs étre and avoir.  I can't believe there are only two classes left - quelle poisse (what a bummer).

Pets of the Week

Spent the weekend with more cuties belonging to my coworker, Amie. Betty, Maple, Charlie, and Sue were all super sweet and we had a good time. I'm not sure you will be able to grasp the enormity of Betty, but believe me she takes up half of a king size bed if not more.  Maple, Charlie, Sue and myself bunched up on the other half. I believe she is a Mastiff-horse mix.

Sue chilling listen to the rain

Sue kitty and Betty

Maple and Betty

super sweet Charlie

Well, that just about covers my week. I leave you with another random phrase drôlede petit:  tenir la langue = to stick out one's tongue (at someone)


Bonne semaine!

Related articles

• French Feminists Want To Ban The Word 'Mademoiselle' (huffingtonpost.com)
• Outdoor Roller Skating Returns To New York At High Line Park (wcbsfm.radio.com)

Bon appétit!

Bonjour mes amis!

Just a quickie post for now; I seem to be short on time and energy of late. French numbers are my latest challenge. I'll wait until Saturday after class to get into more detail. I fear I shall have to limit my use of numbers while in Paris. I can however get my phone number out of my mouth semi smoothly. This is of utterly no use here.

Restaurant week in underway in Austin - yummm. Thank goodness there is a part II beginning on the 2nd when funding is more readily available. And get this, last Sunday was the final day of Tous Au Restaurant in Paris! Is that cool or what?

I am back home to stay for two weeks. September has been one busy month; only 7 days at home. However, I was in very good company.

 

the girls

Murray

Josie

       

Zoe

I'm a pumpkin head!

Avoir la tete comme une citrouille! As in "a head that feels swollen from information overload" (see previous post).


I'm not sure what possessed me to get myself into such a learning frenzy with dance lessons, les cours de français, new computer skills, all at the same time - what is this the 18th century? I do, however, draw the line at embroidery. It is no longer necessary to be "accomplished" these days in order to attract some upstart from a snooty family. Not that I care about attracting upstarts. Isn't it a shame this thirst for knowledge didn't hit me twenty years ago? I more than likely would have been living in Paris for years by now. 

The funny thing is, and not in a ha ha way, this quest  I've embarked upon has somehow exacerbated my self-consciousness issue. I am terrified when I have to speak in my french class, and I am so tense during dance lessons, muscle relaxers are needed for my back the following day. I must find a cure for this affliction, my progress is being impeded.


While I'm at it, can I lose this Texas accent in a week or two? Wonder if the Eliza Doolittle method would work. .http://bit.ly/piSLPi 

There is a bit of encouraging news this week: I am able to pronounce l'alphabet français assez bien. I found several french alphabet songs for children on YouTube, but this is my favorite. http://www.youtube.com/watch?

I learned some quite useful tips in class on Saturday. I shall share a few of them with you. Ever wonder what that little squiggle is under the letter C, that looks like 2/3 of a 5? This is une cedilla. It changes the pronunciation of the letter C from a hard sound to a soft sound, as in garçon and française. In addition, the soft C always comes before e and i. The hard C always comes before a, o, u. I found this to be a delightful bit of information.

We conjugated our first verbs, and oh mon Dieu, is that going to take a lot of practice. Let's look at how to conjugate the verb parler (speak). There are six words, five spellings, four of which sound exactly the same, the last letters of the other two are not pronounced. Seriously? I just realized that I'm going to have to recite these and others next week. A wave of nausea just came over me. Oh self-confidence, why hath thou forsaken me?

Here is what's happening in Austin and Paris this weekend.

The third day of ACL (Austin City Limits) music festival is still going strong. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Er4vugx4n4o&feature=fvst

Que faire à Paris ce week-end? Heritage Days: discover Paris from a different angle - Pari... 



Consider yourself caught up. I shall leave you today with des phrases amusantes en français - bonne semaine!

Prendre son pied. =
Take his foot. (It was swell.)

Les carottes sont cuites. =
The carrots are cooked. (I've had it!)

C'est la finition des haricots. =
It's the finish of the green beans. (It's hopeless.)

Neighborhoods - Part II

I should have included these comparisons on the previous post. Maybe I just like looking at pictures. While on my photo walk; I realized, that I was making a scrapbook of places and memories in which I could look back upon when having a nostalgic episode (while living in Paris). Hopefully these episodes will be rare. I mustn't allow homesickness to interfere with my new life in Paris. There will be so many new memories to be made in Paris, the mere thought thrills me to no end.

You know the practice of adding "in bed" to the end of fortune cookie messages? I feel like I'm doing the same thing with "in Paris". Je ne peux pas l'aider.

Thank goodness for my new friends in Paris supplying me with fab photos. I say friends, even though I have never laid eyes on them. I met them electronically, and they are ever so friendly and most helpful. It will be so exciting to meet and get to know them. Won't it be fun the other way around when I'm living in Paris relying on my Austin peeps for photos?

Here we have a most significant comparison - the weather. What I wouldn't give to be in Paris NOW.

As much as I love Torchy's and Izzoz, imagining myself sitting at a typical Paris café makes me smile.

Torchy's Taco

Izzoz Tacos

parisdailyphoto.com - Eric Tenin

This church is right up the street from me, and man, can they belt out a tune! Their joyous voices can be heard two houses down.

Goodwill Baptist Church

And then there is cette belle église, Sainte Clotilde. Now that's what I call a comparison!

parisdailyphoto.com - Eric Tenin

                  Here we have different styles of graffiti. Quite different.

great photo op for tourists

Austin graffiti

parisdailyphoto.com - Eric Tenin

parisdailyphoto - Eric Tenin

I leave you with this little ditty 

Fun with French
Avoir la tete comme une citrouille = to have a pumpkin head, to have a migraine (or a head that feels swollen from information overload)  If you want to call someone a pumpkin head - tete de citrouille = head of pumpkin.

Remember en francais, the adjectives come after the noun (most of the time).

Neighborhoods

Walked outside to a cool and breezy morning and dashed back in to throw some clothes on, grab my camera and go for a walk. Had the best time taking pictures of my neighborhood. A bum offered to let me take his picture in a bathtub. What bathtub? I wasn't quite sure how to respond to that one. I was a bit hesitant to decline his offer since he was already drunk at 7:30 a.m.  I smiled, gave a cheerful "no thanks" and kept walking. I must say he could have greatly benefited from some soap and water.

"bathtub" man is seated

I hope both Austinites and Parisians will enjoy this short post. Yes, I have two Parisians following me and it thrills me to no end! Let me clarify that they are following my blog, but the other interpretation would be a bit thrilling as well. :-)

I have a few photographer friends and am trying to apply the tips they give me. I definitely need more practice, and a new camera would be a plus. I find that if I manage to get the entire subject in the frame, you can't make out what the sign says. In most cases, the signage is the best part!

how soon before they go broke?

great happy hour hang out

original location - my neighborhood

While giving Facebook a quick look, Soup Peddler's post caught my eye: "This is one of my favorite soups. Next to impossible to cook in the U.S. without access to the little "soupe de poisson" fish that make it to market in France. They were irresistible. Apart from anything else, you do not see them very often in this country. In the markets of France or Spain, though, a soup mix – lots of tiny fish, most of which, it has to be said, are good for little else – is commonplace."

Let's conclude with a comparison of sidewalk art in Austin and in Paris:

photo by me

paris daily photo - Eric Tenin

apartment hunting can be fun

This week has not been an award winner. Filled with frustrations, sadness, loss and calamities, I feel certain that this week will be much more to my liking.  A sure-fire way of cheering myself up is perusing Paris apartments online. I can spend hours (and often do) comparing  them and picturing which one is perfect for me.

Something about the rooftops of Paris.....

this could be the view from my future Paris apartment



or this -

Francophile: A person obsessed with everything French

Jacques avec rayures

I love Paris. I love France. I love frilly underpants. Sorry, couldn’t resist. Seriously, I love everything about Paris, and after my trip last summer, would very much like to live there. I hope you will tag along as I plot my next adventures in the City of Lights. 

Don't get me wrong, Austin is a fabulous city (not so much in the summer). There are always  fun things to do, people to see, happy hours to attend, and all my best peeps are here. Though I love Austin, I'm not what you would call proud to be from Texas. Let's just leave it at that. 

J’adore French history. How could you not be mad for the French Revolution with Marie, Louis, and their hoity friends? The excess, the parties, the clothes, the drama, the suspense, and let's not forget la guillotine! Oh mais oui, there will be French words and phrases popping up here and there. I'm afraid you will have to learn le Francais along with me! I would suggest having www.translategoogle.com (or translator of your choice) open at all times. It’s the only way my coworkers can read the majority of my emails. Learning French – let me just say that it is quite the challenge.  I have come a long way, but am far from being able to converse confidently with a genuine Parisian. I'm girding my loins to take a "real" French class next month at the Alliance Francaise d'Austin. The classes are small, so maybe I won't be so intimidated to speak out loud. The last aperitif  (happy hour) at Peche was a hoot. I didn't say much, but listening to everyone speaking French was magnifique!

Until next time, I leave you with a phrase (c'est facile) that's not the phrase, it means it's easy. Here is the phrase: une douche froide = a cold shower OR a letdown, a terrible disappointment.  Those funny French!

Austin's amazing bats