...the Ultimate Money Blog's column, Frugal French habits You can Try at Home. I'm a big advocate walking, paying with cash and not credit, and many other things mentioned, so I'm off to a French and frugal start.
...stumbling across little French-themed books at the C.A.T.S. Resale Shop for my nightstand. "Je fais un somme, donc je suis." I nap, therefore I am.
...stealing away a few moments for myself at my favorite French cafe, Macaron, with a soy coffee, $2.25 and flipping through their collection of French magazines like Elle and Paris Match. I don't understand most of what's in them still, but I'm having fun trying...
...how much better tap water tastes out of a cheerful pitcher. Instead of lemon, add slices of orange for a refreshing change, like they did at Macaron. In my opinion, how 'good' water tastes is often psychological.
...rainy evenings. Perfect excuse to get under a blanket, put on the comfy clothes, and watch dvd's from the library. I cannot wait to watch Food Beware, The French Organic Food Revolution.
...the feeling I have after sitting down to savor delicious, wholesome food (versus mindless eating). When walking down a New York City sidewalk with my friend, I pondered, is it possible to be in love with food? In Babette's Feast, one of my favorite films (non-vegetarian feast aside), a character talked about a chef who "Had the ability to transform dinner into a kind of love affair. A love affair that made no distinction between bodily appetite and spiritual appetite." Food fuels the body, but what you eat, and how you eat it, nourishes the soul. When I have a good meal, I'm tempted to do a happy dance just like my family's rescue dog does after he's eaten his.
...remembering sunny, warmer days: sunflowers from Old Hook Farm in the summertime.
Bon week-end tout le monde!
George Simenon's novellas are great for reading French. His prose is not overly complicated and technical. I don't know if Barnes and Noble carries his novellas, but certainly a French bookstore would.
ReplyDeleteLove David Lebovitz!
ReplyDeleteI agree with you on the water thing. I discovered that half of the reason I used to dislike drinking tap water was the temperature, so we refrigerate it in a Brita pitcher (the filtering may have something to do with it, too) and I love it. One of my favorite restaurants puts cucumber slices in their water--delicious!
Chessbuff, merci bien! I checked the BCCLS (http://www.bccls.org/) and it looks like they own a copy. I should investigate the library more for French-language texts. I've seen dual-text French-English books in Borders New York City.
ReplyDeleteI picked up The Little Prince when I was in Paris, so I can read the French version side by side with the English.
Even though I'm not very advanced with the language, it's still great fun embracing the cultural aspects.
Cate, I was served cucumber slices one time and it was so refreshing but I aways forget about it. Thanks for the reminder. I have a Brita pitcher at home too.