I never listened to country music before picking up Elvis Costello's "Blue" but those old classics from Hank Williams Sr and George Jones are really great. "Move it on over" sounds much more like an early rock song, but perhaps someone out there knows more about that history. So many great songs by Hank Williams Sr. Check out the video.
Joelle came home last night with a little bouquet of the traditional gift for 1 May and everyone will be selling them all over the place today. (I believe they are called lily of the valley in English.) Here's a link with more details on the holiday and while you are there, check out the link for the Melt-in-Your-Mouth Chocolate Cake. Hands down, the easiest, tastiest chocolate cake you will ever make. Of course, lots of other great stuff about food and France over there.
About the only thing he didn't create was the iPod, but then again, hmmmmm. What an amazing mind.
A 36-year-old Swiss amateur parachutist made a successful 650-metre (2,130-foot) drop Saturday using a replica of a parachute designed more than 500 years ago by Leonardo da Vinci.
"I came down... smack in the middle of the tarmac at Payerne military airport," said Olivier Vietti-Teppa. "A perfect jump."
Vietti-Teppa is the first person to have made it safely to the ground with the Leonardo model.
Last April was pretty much perfect, from the start to the finish but so far this April has been so-so. Since I have not yet made it beyond my coffee, here's a photo from the Luxembourg Gardens last April with my French godson, Pierre-Francois. Despite the look on his face, he hated to leave that merry-go-round. Every time it slowed down he would push it again, dive in and hold on for dear life. Over and over and over. Anyone visiting Paris with kids really needs to head into the park which was created for children. Besides the fenced in area with this fun stuff, they have pedal-powered go karts, pony rides, a pond with cute little sailboats and much more. Even for adults, it's the perfect spot for strolling through the gardens, reading or of course, people watching.
A suit that washes in the shower? And it looks pressed the next morning? A the first software company where I worked we had something like this that we named 'the developers suit' and would get pulled out of the closet any time an unexpected visitor arrived and a developer had to dress up. In between uses it was used for tug-of-war games and could be tied into knots and then spring back into action without a wrinkle. Back then we just called it polyester.
The suit, made under licence in Japan, is the first to pull off a long-sought coup that could spell the end of dry-cleaning bills for white-collar workers.
It is billed as the first two-piece that can be washed in the shower each evening and be ready to wear again in the morning – with no ironing required. And amazingly, after a rigorous road test, it appears to fulfill that pledge.
This gelato is from a charming little shop in the town of Menton, France which is sort of like Florida for the French. It's the last town before the border with Italy and used to be part of Italy a hundred plus years ago so there are always quite a few Italians in town. Lots of tasty Franco-Italian food in the area and of course, gelato.
One of the most amazing moments in his brilliant career. Many credit Attenborough with bringing these wonderful animals to the attention of the west which has helped save them from what would have been extinction years ago. Even today the gorillas are in jeopardy once again due to conflict in the region. Pity to see Attenborough retiring.
Forget about the bad quality and don't worry about there not being any English in the video. This video is from a group of Spaniards traveling from the capital Vientienne up to Vang Vieng, Laos. I took this route in the opposite direction a few years ago and will never forget the 1950's leftover, Korean public bus that was missing seats. Most of us either stood (for hours) or sat in tiny little plastic stools. On my trip, the motorcycles and animals were strapped to the top of the bus and not inside though this group mentions the animals who are inside. Vang Vieng has some of the most beautiful countryside in the world and the people of Laos are so laid back and friendly.
On a side note, for anyone visiting Vang Vieng, you will notice the odd looking 'bus terminal' that resembles a gravel landing strip. It was a CIA airfield during the secret war. Today, it's a bustling town that caters to backpacking river rafters.
Yesterday morning was comedy, today it's the real thing. Two American greats, Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie, play Hot House. What an amazing period for jazz in America.
This is from a funny 1990's BBC show, The Fast Show. Every time I saw 'Jazz Club' skits I was reminded of watching the real thing back in the '70s. My father loved jazz so during the weekend we always listened to the Temple University radio station in the house and on occasion would see what I thought was an odd TV show about jazz. I still love bebop though "modern" jazz never did much for me. What was the name of that old jazz show?
The 3rd season of Blackadder was one of the best, with this episode being one of the best of that season. If you enjoy this (part 2/4) keep clicking to see the rest. The election day report in 3/4 is excellent. What British programs lacked in production polish (as you find with American TV shows) they outdid themselves with quality writing and great actors.
More window shopping from the shops around Madeleine. The French love bûche (translates to "log") for Christmas. I admit, I'm not a big fan of them though a few of these just might tempt me. La Maison du Chocolat options looked the best, with one even being filled with chestnut creme filling, along with chocolate.
What is your favorite holiday dessert? More bûche, after the jump.
Some of my most amusing childhood memories from the holidays involve one of our dogs. There's always the classic moment when the family pooch would explore the dinner table, especially the butter dish, before we sat down. They always loved a good stick of butter. If only they had a chance to taste a lovely butter from Normandy.
My favorite though was the year when my mom decided to set up an "old fashioned" Christmas tree. We made strings of popcorn and cranberries and used that instead of strings of tinsel. Upon arriving home on Christmas eve after visits with cousins in Philly, we found the tree on it's side and "Happy" the dog finishing the last few morsels of popcorn that she pulled down from the tree. The living room scene of a downed tree, broken Christmas decorations and cranberry pieces was quite the spectacle. I think Santa received a beer that year instead of milk and cookies.
What are your favorite, funny Christmas stories that involved a family pet?
Truffles! During our window gazing walk, we caught a glimpse of these little beauties. The black truffles were going for €2990 per kilo (roughly $4,300/kilo or $2,100 per pound) and the white truffles a cool €13,990 per kilo or $20,000/kilo, $10,000 per pound. I hear the black truffles cost between €500 - €800 per kilo in the south though somehow, I just don't see them slipping into our budget.
During the holidays, Parisians love to give gifts of chocolates and special candies. Joelle and I did a bit of window shopping last night to see what the big names had on offer this year. The big names on and around Place de la Madeleine were packed with shoppers. The most fashionable names (to foreigners, at least) include Hediard and Fauchon. Superior quality is just around the corner at La Maison du Chocolat where the lines ran outside. La Maison even had a friendly person managing the flow and offering free chocolate! Who says the French aren't friendly?
Thanks to Americablog readers for the the holiday gift! We won't be breaking the bank at any of the posh stores listed here though we are now planning our Christmas Eve dinner, which will be tonight. (I guess that makes it a Christmas Eve, Eve dinner.) We bought our 7 euro ballet tickets last night so we'll be at the Opera Garnier for Christmas Eve. Our special dinner will be fresh fish (to be decided when we see what is available later today), snow peas and our favorite Roederer sparkling wine from California that a friend kindly brought over from California. Since it's a Franco-American product (like the two of us) we love toasting with it on special occasions, including at our wedding here in France a few years ago.
He may be portly. He may have an old fashioned sleigh. He may be a bit old and those reindeer don't look fast but looks can be deceiving. Try doing this when you have gray in your beard and it's cold outside.
But Sweco's report on Santa's most efficient route -- which takes into account factors like geographic density and the fewest detours -- shows that he wouldn't be able to make his round-the-world trip from there in time.
"He has 34 microseconds at each stop" to slide down the chimney, drop off the presents, nibble on his cookies and milk and hop back on his sleigh, Larsson said.
Santa's reindeer must travel at a speed of 5,800 kilometers (3,604 miles) per second to make the trip on time.
Extended family, of sorts, visited today and delivered this lovely little "marmite" made of chocolate that is given at this time of the year in Geneva. The complete story is linked here but the quick story is about the attempted attack by the people of Savoy on Geneva. During the attack on 11 December 1602, Madame Cheynel stopped the attack by dumping a marmite (or cauldron) of hot soup on the Savoyard as they climbed the walls, triggering a large commotion, which helped alert the people of Geneva who then stopped this attack. (If you look closely in the photo, you can see a little mushroom.)
Today, the people of Geneva celebrate the moment with these cute little marmite that are made of chocolate and stuffed with "vegetable" candies. To celebrate the holiday, families and friends will take a sword (not so sure where they find one today) and smash open the marmite and eat the goodies inside. For larger groups they would probably have a bigger cauldron, with even more tasty treats.
