Forget soda machines and dogmeat tacos -- they're serving up everything from venison to pork osso buco at my cafeteria, along with fresh pineapple, tuna tabouleh appetizers, and pistachio custard. Every meal is made up of four courses: an entrée, which is usually vegetable crudite (ha) or a salad; le plat, which unfortunately is always meat, but the accompanying veggies aren't always so bad; a dairy product, usually cheese (of all kinds! brie, morbier, chevre, fromage frais…) or yogurt; and a dessert, which may be a sweet concoction or just fresh fruit, or both. There are no other drinks besides water, which you get yourself from the fountain. You can choose not to take something, of course, but you can't take more of something else. Add all this to the steep hill that leads up to the cafeteria, and you will no longer wonder why France has a seeming dearth of obese youths.
Eating steamed green beans and cold couscous salad today made me reflect on the coveted hot lunch of my primary years. (Since by high school, I'd figured out it was gross.) Waffle fries, tacos, chicken nuggets, TATER TOTS, fish sticks, pizza… It astounds me that these things were available to us as delicate, pre-pubescent organisms who shouldn't be touching taco meat with a ten-foot lunch tray. Just thinking of all the BPA and ammonia-treated beef that has entered my body before I had the sense to reject it makes me wish for retroactive bulimia (like, really retroactive, since I guess bulimia is retroactive by nature).
Again with the adults -- who made this happen? Who decided to serve children the lowest grade meat possible? Who forgot to mention fresh vegetables? And why on earth aren't all trays, cups, and silverware in every cafeteria everywhere made of non-disposable materials?!?!?
Here's a theory: the Board of Education is in cahoots with the private insurance companies, who want children to develop health problems at an early age so that by the time they need medical help, they can be considered to have pre-existing conditions and not be offered coverage. Oh yeah!
I'm assuming these are the same people that are in the process of searching for loopholes in the new healthcare bill.
It's bad enough that adults scam each other without moral constraint; under no circumstances should children be involved in this mess.
28.3.10
Why Gerardmer?
Another film festival at Gerardmer this weekend, though much smaller than the sci-fi festival in January. Called "Rencontres du Cinema," the festival featured a handful films from around the world that were being projected for the first time in another country (after their own world premiere in their home countries, I'm guessing).
I went with Becca to go see "le film surprise" last night, which turned out to be the world premiere of Les Aventures Extraordinaires d'Adele Blanc-Sec, the latest film by Luc Besson, director of "The Fifth Element," "Taxi," and "The Transporter." He was there to present the film, said a little bonjour, yada yada yada; he told the audience the film was only finished yesterday, so there might be a couple technical problems. Ok, world premiere, cool. But what he neglected to tell the audience was how loosely-written, poorly-acted, and illogical the film was... maybe he included those in the "technical problem" category.
I'll give away the story since I'm hoping none of you ever see it: Adele Blanc-Sec, writer-explorer woman, travels to Egypt to find a mummy she thinks was an Egyptian doctor so she can carry it back to Paris to bring it to life and command it to cure her ailing sister, who is a vegetable due to a tennis accident. In the meantime, an old professor accidentally channels the spirit of a pterodactyl that's been living inside an egg inside the Louvre, lets the creature loose on Paris and the city goes crazy. The pterodactyl gets shot, and so the professor dies, but not before Adele can force him to channel the spirit of a mummy, who turns out to be an Egyptian engineer and can't cure her sister. The mummy awakens all the other mummies in the Louvre, they cure Adele's sister, and then all go on a grand tour of Paris. Adele, content to have cured her sister, goes off on a cruise, which turns out to be the Titanic, so Adele dies.
Sounds like a "South Park" episode or something, right?
I went with Becca to go see "le film surprise" last night, which turned out to be the world premiere of Les Aventures Extraordinaires d'Adele Blanc-Sec, the latest film by Luc Besson, director of "The Fifth Element," "Taxi," and "The Transporter." He was there to present the film, said a little bonjour, yada yada yada; he told the audience the film was only finished yesterday, so there might be a couple technical problems. Ok, world premiere, cool. But what he neglected to tell the audience was how loosely-written, poorly-acted, and illogical the film was... maybe he included those in the "technical problem" category.
I'll give away the story since I'm hoping none of you ever see it: Adele Blanc-Sec, writer-explorer woman, travels to Egypt to find a mummy she thinks was an Egyptian doctor so she can carry it back to Paris to bring it to life and command it to cure her ailing sister, who is a vegetable due to a tennis accident. In the meantime, an old professor accidentally channels the spirit of a pterodactyl that's been living inside an egg inside the Louvre, lets the creature loose on Paris and the city goes crazy. The pterodactyl gets shot, and so the professor dies, but not before Adele can force him to channel the spirit of a mummy, who turns out to be an Egyptian engineer and can't cure her sister. The mummy awakens all the other mummies in the Louvre, they cure Adele's sister, and then all go on a grand tour of Paris. Adele, content to have cured her sister, goes off on a cruise, which turns out to be the Titanic, so Adele dies.
Sounds like a "South Park" episode or something, right?
24.3.10
WWOOF and Triumph
The triumph first: I finished a New York Times Magazine crossword puzzle! Well, almost -- there are two squares that I couldn't figure out... but close enough. Only a handful of you out there know how momentous this occasion is for me. Now go watch the best documentary ever made, Wordplay.
And check out the theme of this puzzle, "Initial Offerings." Each themed clue is the name of someone famous, followed by some other name or thing that onomatopoetically spells out the initials of the famous person. Examples: Quentin Tarantino Cutie (Q.T.); Samuel Adams Essay (S.A.); Max Ernst Emmy (M.E.). Brilliant! I will never, ever get sick of this.
...................
I took some pictures of my Wednesday WWOOF farm today, an experience that is getting better by the week. My German is definitely improving (sehr gut!), I'm spending some quality time with the hosses, and learning some great French vocab (brouette: wheelbarrow; crottin: manure). There is another WWOOFeuse there at the moment, a trilingual Swiss girl named Julia who loves when I read aloud German children's books. As much as I regret the decision of not sleeping in almost regularly, my farm Wednesdays are always worth it. I'm going to miss the place a little.
And check out the theme of this puzzle, "Initial Offerings." Each themed clue is the name of someone famous, followed by some other name or thing that onomatopoetically spells out the initials of the famous person. Examples: Quentin Tarantino Cutie (Q.T.); Samuel Adams Essay (S.A.); Max Ernst Emmy (M.E.). Brilliant! I will never, ever get sick of this.
...................
I took some pictures of my Wednesday WWOOF farm today, an experience that is getting better by the week. My German is definitely improving (sehr gut!), I'm spending some quality time with the hosses, and learning some great French vocab (brouette: wheelbarrow; crottin: manure). There is another WWOOFeuse there at the moment, a trilingual Swiss girl named Julia who loves when I read aloud German children's books. As much as I regret the decision of not sleeping in almost regularly, my farm Wednesdays are always worth it. I'm going to miss the place a little.
The dogs! Scott and Connor
The stable
The Vosges...
Julia and one of the babies
lookin gross in my old glasses... curious baby horse
23.3.10
Le Grand Parcours
So the epic alpine event did occur after all. The first day was fine, if a bit melty (snow-wise), and the second day was canceled due to terrible weather; we climbed at the indoor facility instead. (You can see me in my Elton John pants.) Some pictures taken by the club's resident journaliste:
19.3.10
Cheese for Nicole
No, this isn't a retake on "Flowers for Algernon"; Nicole had asked me awhile ago to find a cheese called "epoisses," an intense, tangy cheese that the village-based Murray's Cheese Shop describes as "puddle-like" with a "succulent ooze."
A perfect after-dinner cheese, paired with a not too-strong wine, like a pinot noir... listen to me, talking about cheese like I know anything. Just don't eat it for breakfast.
A perfect after-dinner cheese, paired with a not too-strong wine, like a pinot noir... listen to me, talking about cheese like I know anything. Just don't eat it for breakfast.
17.3.10
Forgot it was St. Patty's Day
I can't wait for Electric Zoo 2010.
!!!!!
On another note, spring has somewhat begun to thaw the glacial landscape that is the Vosges, meaning two things: the Geromois are pissed (they want to keep skiing) and the dog feces are back on the sidewalks in full force.
I am a little disappointed too, actually, since I had Le Grand Parcours coming up this weekend: a massive national alpinisme event sponsored by the Club Alpin des Hautes-Vosges. Warm weather, however, takes the alpin out of the whole event, making the snow so heavy and wet that avalanches are a very real threat. So -- we'll see. But being "too warm" in the Vosges just means more frolicking in the woods for me, so I'm not too upset if it's canceled.
France also had its regional elections on Sunday, with somewhat striking results: a return from the right. Le Front National (FN) is one of France's most conservative parties (that gets anywhere in the polls, that is), and it's been gaining ground ever since Sarkozy took office. Check out this cool map from LeMonde.com:
My neighbor explained it to me this way: everyone just wants to be different from their parents. Our (my) generation of the French are more interested in specialized, private healthcare, for instance, as opposed to the (excellent) socialized system the French use today. There was a huge debate earlier in 2009 over whether to make the postal service privatized (which it will be); the autoroutes are already private. There are, of course, the already-conservative French who have, on top of their existing unfortunate political views, suffered greatly from la crise and are shying away from both the leftist Socialist Party (PS) and even Sarkozy's party (UMP).
But what's right for France (pun certainly not intended) is probably far-flung left for the United States, where school textbooks are written by Joel Osteen and a square meal means corn, beef, and BPA. The French can want more privatized health care, but at least they have it at all.
!!!!!
On another note, spring has somewhat begun to thaw the glacial landscape that is the Vosges, meaning two things: the Geromois are pissed (they want to keep skiing) and the dog feces are back on the sidewalks in full force.
I am a little disappointed too, actually, since I had Le Grand Parcours coming up this weekend: a massive national alpinisme event sponsored by the Club Alpin des Hautes-Vosges. Warm weather, however, takes the alpin out of the whole event, making the snow so heavy and wet that avalanches are a very real threat. So -- we'll see. But being "too warm" in the Vosges just means more frolicking in the woods for me, so I'm not too upset if it's canceled.
France also had its regional elections on Sunday, with somewhat striking results: a return from the right. Le Front National (FN) is one of France's most conservative parties (that gets anywhere in the polls, that is), and it's been gaining ground ever since Sarkozy took office. Check out this cool map from LeMonde.com:
My neighbor explained it to me this way: everyone just wants to be different from their parents. Our (my) generation of the French are more interested in specialized, private healthcare, for instance, as opposed to the (excellent) socialized system the French use today. There was a huge debate earlier in 2009 over whether to make the postal service privatized (which it will be); the autoroutes are already private. There are, of course, the already-conservative French who have, on top of their existing unfortunate political views, suffered greatly from la crise and are shying away from both the leftist Socialist Party (PS) and even Sarkozy's party (UMP).
But what's right for France (pun certainly not intended) is probably far-flung left for the United States, where school textbooks are written by Joel Osteen and a square meal means corn, beef, and BPA. The French can want more privatized health care, but at least they have it at all.
16.3.10
14.3.10
Once bitten, twice a moron
I went snowshoeing again today, and learned... again... that it was quite boring and is not really my "thing." It might just be the snowshoeing with middle-aged French people that got me the most -- stopping for a snack, arguing about the mountains or the direction of the wind, conversations about menopause...
For the first time, I felt really fed up (j'en ai marre!) with my social situation. Sure, I've missed having friends and being around young people, but my middle-aged colleagues haven't bothered me much thus far, and have been great educators as far as Vosgien traditions and winter sports were concerned. So maybe it was the sickness (I have a touch of la rhume), the boredom, or the sunshine that made that final thread holding my social sanity together snap, I don't know, but I kind of lost it a little yesterday. I felt displaced throughout the whole day, both in my element (playing around in nature) and out of it. I couldn't relate to half of the things my fellow snowshoers were talking about -- hot flashes, technology misunderstandings, their children -- although I certainly tried, at the very least getting a few new vocabulary words and expressions out of it.
Besides feeling like a silly little girl the whole day (who at least kicked all their butts when it came to fitness), I did learn a bit more about mountain life and Alsace, which is where we were hiking the whole day. We passed a couple of ferme auberges, which are just like normal auberges -- mountain lodging, essentially -- but which also function as farms in the summer. At least 65% of their food must come from their own farm, meaning that in the Vosges, these places serve up mostly meat, dairy (cheese!), tree fruits and vegetables (apples, cherries, chestnuts, hazlenuts), and sauerkraut (choucroute). Every winter, the farmers herd their beasts down into the valley where it's warmer, and re-herd them back up into the mountains in the spring. Like all French traditions (this one is actually stronger in Switzerland), the herding is accompanied by a massive festival:
For the first time, I felt really fed up (j'en ai marre!) with my social situation. Sure, I've missed having friends and being around young people, but my middle-aged colleagues haven't bothered me much thus far, and have been great educators as far as Vosgien traditions and winter sports were concerned. So maybe it was the sickness (I have a touch of la rhume), the boredom, or the sunshine that made that final thread holding my social sanity together snap, I don't know, but I kind of lost it a little yesterday. I felt displaced throughout the whole day, both in my element (playing around in nature) and out of it. I couldn't relate to half of the things my fellow snowshoers were talking about -- hot flashes, technology misunderstandings, their children -- although I certainly tried, at the very least getting a few new vocabulary words and expressions out of it.
Besides feeling like a silly little girl the whole day (who at least kicked all their butts when it came to fitness), I did learn a bit more about mountain life and Alsace, which is where we were hiking the whole day. We passed a couple of ferme auberges, which are just like normal auberges -- mountain lodging, essentially -- but which also function as farms in the summer. At least 65% of their food must come from their own farm, meaning that in the Vosges, these places serve up mostly meat, dairy (cheese!), tree fruits and vegetables (apples, cherries, chestnuts, hazlenuts), and sauerkraut (choucroute). Every winter, the farmers herd their beasts down into the valley where it's warmer, and re-herd them back up into the mountains in the spring. Like all French traditions (this one is actually stronger in Switzerland), the herding is accompanied by a massive festival:
I wish I took this.
Hopefully I'll be here to be able to attend one!
.............
The landscape of southern Alsace:
12.3.10
Small Triumphs
I made falafel from scratch and it came out perfectly. Use your brain for the measurements like I did and attempt the possible: chickpeas, cilantro, parsley, onion, garlic, salt, pepper, cumin, flour.
Both graduate school applications are DONE and SUBMITTED!
I found my score report today for the GRE and was pleasantly surprised: 98th percentile on both the verbal and analytical writing... 60th for the math (better than half, right?).
Told my students that Eurodisney isn't the only one.
.................
Funny conversation with my mom:
Me: They call me "Rachelle" at school.
Mom: Awwe, that's so pretty! I wish I named you that.
Me: Why didn't you?
Mom: I didn't know.
.................
Both graduate school applications are DONE and SUBMITTED!
I found my score report today for the GRE and was pleasantly surprised: 98th percentile on both the verbal and analytical writing... 60th for the math (better than half, right?).
Told my students that Eurodisney isn't the only one.
.................
Funny conversation with my mom:
Me: They call me "Rachelle" at school.
Mom: Awwe, that's so pretty! I wish I named you that.
Me: Why didn't you?
Mom: I didn't know.
.................
I found the humming obelisk from "Space Odyssey: 2001"! Nah... it's just La Defense (Paris, Feb. 2010)
Yeah... I'm listening to The Pharcyde (thanks, Don!).
.......................
Cool blog I found while looking for old pictures of Levittown (have to horrify the students somehow): Helquin Artifacts
.........................
Yeah... I'm listening to The Pharcyde (thanks, Don!).
.......................
Cool blog I found while looking for old pictures of Levittown (have to horrify the students somehow): Helquin Artifacts
10.3.10
Le Petit Poucet
We have the story; the French have a noun. A petit poucet is a child (the child) that ventures into a forest and leaves a trail of breadcrumbs behind. It's nice to be able to use a perfectly-defined noun ("t'es un petit pouce, toi!") instead of a weak comparison ("you're like that kid from the story where…"). Language score: love-one, France.
But the bourgeois metaphors aside, let's figure out linguistically why the French language has such a highfalutin reputation. Get out your GRE vocabulary list and tell me what these commonly-used (as in, commonly used by my 7 year-old students) French words mean:
ameliorer (v.)
inondation (n.)
panoplie (n.)
tempete (n.)
draconien (adj.)
puissance (n.)
exiger (v.)
egalement (adv.)
mendiant (n.)
lumiere (n.)
tenir (v.)
flegmatique (adj.)
quotidien (adj.)
essayer (v.)
os (n.)
pueril (adj.)
Maybe draconien and puerile are more Le Monde than l'ecole, but for the most part, these words are in very regular parlance (voila!). I've had students complain about being wet from l'inondation (attn: hyperbole) and sales clerks wish me a cheerful merci egalement, while I essay just about everything in attempts to ameliorer my French. But can't I just improve my French? No.
It almost bothers me that these words are used with such fluency by my students. For an anglophone, learning "fancy" vocabulary words is like discovering the key to another, more precise language -- but it isn't. Par contre, it's learning synonyms for words in our own language that are already in use by pre-pubescent French children, who I doubt are somehow thinking on a higher linguistic level than college-educated, English-speaking adults. It's simply their language.
Almost 12 years of study, and the language fascinates me more than ever (and improves my English)…
Unrelated language question: does anyone know a word that is the opposite of "steep" (as in, a hill)? The only one I could think of was "gentle," but that doesn't feel right to me. Other languages are encouraged.
In other news, my April (and final!) vacation is planned. I wanted to get the tickets and all that out of the way so I could freely enjoy my final month and a half in the Vosges… (I'm holding out on an emotional blog post; I can already feel the ostrich egg of tears beginning to grow in the back of my throat.)
My itinerary: Brussels for five days, Amsterdam for six, Luxembourg for three. Daytrips to Bruges, Antwerp, The Hague, Rotterdam, and perhaps some traditional Dutch fishing villages (as suggested by my Dutch friend Brenda; see below photo) are all possible. Besides the gastronomic delights I'm prepared to experience -- fries, beer, chocolate, waffles, cheese, and ahem, coffee-shops -- I'm also quite excited to hear some Belgian and Luxembourg French. Different vocabularies, accents, grammar, linguistic influences (e.g., Flemish, Dutch, Wallon, Luxembourgeois). A weekend trip to Basel (Switzerland) is on my back burner, too. I want to get to all the francophone countries in Europe!
Out of the mountains and into the low countries.
But the bourgeois metaphors aside, let's figure out linguistically why the French language has such a highfalutin reputation. Get out your GRE vocabulary list and tell me what these commonly-used (as in, commonly used by my 7 year-old students) French words mean:
ameliorer (v.)
inondation (n.)
panoplie (n.)
tempete (n.)
draconien (adj.)
puissance (n.)
exiger (v.)
egalement (adv.)
mendiant (n.)
lumiere (n.)
tenir (v.)
flegmatique (adj.)
quotidien (adj.)
essayer (v.)
os (n.)
pueril (adj.)
Maybe draconien and puerile are more Le Monde than l'ecole, but for the most part, these words are in very regular parlance (voila!). I've had students complain about being wet from l'inondation (attn: hyperbole) and sales clerks wish me a cheerful merci egalement, while I essay just about everything in attempts to ameliorer my French. But can't I just improve my French? No.
It almost bothers me that these words are used with such fluency by my students. For an anglophone, learning "fancy" vocabulary words is like discovering the key to another, more precise language -- but it isn't. Par contre, it's learning synonyms for words in our own language that are already in use by pre-pubescent French children, who I doubt are somehow thinking on a higher linguistic level than college-educated, English-speaking adults. It's simply their language.
Almost 12 years of study, and the language fascinates me more than ever (and improves my English)…
Unrelated language question: does anyone know a word that is the opposite of "steep" (as in, a hill)? The only one I could think of was "gentle," but that doesn't feel right to me. Other languages are encouraged.
In other news, my April (and final!) vacation is planned. I wanted to get the tickets and all that out of the way so I could freely enjoy my final month and a half in the Vosges… (I'm holding out on an emotional blog post; I can already feel the ostrich egg of tears beginning to grow in the back of my throat.)
My itinerary: Brussels for five days, Amsterdam for six, Luxembourg for three. Daytrips to Bruges, Antwerp, The Hague, Rotterdam, and perhaps some traditional Dutch fishing villages (as suggested by my Dutch friend Brenda; see below photo) are all possible. Besides the gastronomic delights I'm prepared to experience -- fries, beer, chocolate, waffles, cheese, and ahem, coffee-shops -- I'm also quite excited to hear some Belgian and Luxembourg French. Different vocabularies, accents, grammar, linguistic influences (e.g., Flemish, Dutch, Wallon, Luxembourgeois). A weekend trip to Basel (Switzerland) is on my back burner, too. I want to get to all the francophone countries in Europe!
Out of the mountains and into the low countries.
9.3.10
Setting in, getting on
Aside from vacation recovery and its subsequent re-planning (BeNeLux, here I come!), life has been blustery and regular. I went skiing three times last week, since we had a mouthful of SUPERB snow: cross-country on Wednesday and Sunday, downhill on Saturday with Danny (pictures to follow, pending Danny's e-mail). It's nice to know how well muscle memory works -- I haven't seen a a pair of skis since the epic DAHS Ski Trip of 2005.
I resent enjoying sports that by necessity are labeled bourgeois: tennis, skiing, horseback riding. Why couldn't I just have played soccer as a kid?
I resent enjoying sports that by necessity are labeled bourgeois: tennis, skiing, horseback riding. Why couldn't I just have played soccer as a kid?
2.3.10
C'est vrai?
So I know it's in French but if you want to translate it, here it is: http://sciences.blog.lemonde.fr/2010/03/02/depuis-le-seisme-au-chili-les-jours-ont-raccourci/#xtor=RSS-32280322
In sum, the earthquake in Chile was so large it threw off the rotation of the Earth and shortened our days by 1.26 microseconds! The 2004 earthquake in Sumatra did the same thing, by 6.8 microseconds.
I wonder if our days were a lot longer millions and millions of years ago?
How much does a microsecond affect plant life?
.....................
I saw the documentary "Oceans" today with my school -- go!! It's certainly a film with an agenda, but one that you'll at least agree with. (You can be sickened by Michael Moore, but when it comes to animals, I don't think anyone can argue.)
Some highlights: a baleen whale's tail emerging from the water (one of the most beautiful images I've ever seen, actually); a baby sea lion crying; a crab fighting a lobster and getting its arm ripped off.
[I didn't know this was a Disney production until I found this trailer! Kind of makes me like it less...]
From one of my students right before the film started, in French: "Rachelle, the movie is in French, will you be able to understand it?"
EDIT: the movie was created and directed by a French director and crew, but Disney "adapted" it for American audiences... gross.
In sum, the earthquake in Chile was so large it threw off the rotation of the Earth and shortened our days by 1.26 microseconds! The 2004 earthquake in Sumatra did the same thing, by 6.8 microseconds.
I wonder if our days were a lot longer millions and millions of years ago?
How much does a microsecond affect plant life?
.....................
I saw the documentary "Oceans" today with my school -- go!! It's certainly a film with an agenda, but one that you'll at least agree with. (You can be sickened by Michael Moore, but when it comes to animals, I don't think anyone can argue.)
Some highlights: a baleen whale's tail emerging from the water (one of the most beautiful images I've ever seen, actually); a baby sea lion crying; a crab fighting a lobster and getting its arm ripped off.
[I didn't know this was a Disney production until I found this trailer! Kind of makes me like it less...]
From one of my students right before the film started, in French: "Rachelle, the movie is in French, will you be able to understand it?"
EDIT: the movie was created and directed by a French director and crew, but Disney "adapted" it for American audiences... gross.
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