Rare Breeds, Totnes, Devon, England

Don't read comments by Gardagami

Gardagami has left a couple of comments on my blog, saying only here or here, with here being highlighted for clicking. Don't because then that will lead you to another place to try to give you a virus. I tried to report it to blogspot, but they were asking for an url and I don't know Gardagami's url and already deleted said comments off my blog? So it goes... In England now. Strange to be amongst the English speaking. They seem not at all different from us after being in France for six months, though they instantly know we don't belong here when we open our mouths. My aunt Mary and Simon have been showing us a fabulous time. They are fantastic hosts and fantastic cooks. Anja is writing a recipe book to remember our stay here. So far we have a delicious Easter ham, Pears and Custard, Bananas Simon, a Seafood Pasta, and Tortilla Soup ( which is the one meal Caleb and I have prepared so far.) Yesterday we saw a steam train and maybe seven kinds of owls, and a bunch of farm animals including baby guinea pigs which we were allowed to hold. Absolutely Fabulous in Merry old England.

Dali musee (Dolly Moo-zay)

Went to the Dali museum today which is conveniently located in our neighborhood.

Le Louvre Troisieme

Au jour dui etait mon troisieme fois en Le Louvre. Lynne and I went to the Louvre today. We went to the Italian Renaissance paintings which I'd seen before but this time it was more exciting because the alarm sounded telling us to evacuate the building tout suite- immediately. So like cows we all headed for the nearest exits which were blocked by staff directing us to some other exit we never found. We were pretty sure there was a reason -bomb threat- or something that made them sound the alarm repetitively and drive us toward the exit, but then we went to ask an employee of the museum, another English speaker had beat us to it so we just stood there and listened to their conversation. First the museum employee acted like she was completely unaware of the incessant alarm and announcements directing us to evacuate without going to coat check to pick up belongings along the way. Then she said it must have been a test. hmmm... Anyhow, we were very happy to continue our Louvre visit which was much more expansive, involving the Denon and Richelieu wings, than last time. That building is huge. We also exited through the pyramid this time which was fun. I of course was sure the bomb threat was due to Lynne's new passport which contains a chip so the terrorists can track her down from afar and the U.S. government can keep tabs on her. Because she lives on the wild side, she chose not to buy the protective cover to prevent terrorists from using their American-detection-devices to determine how many Americans are in a place and more importantly whether or not Lynne is there. This is my second exciting moment in my de-stressing vacation from my vacation. The first was when the bus at the Macon TGV station drove off with my suitcase. I of course hollered like a Banshee and the driver stopped, backed up, and I got my suit case out of the side compartment of the bus. Phew!!!

Points in Dying

Yesterday at the park we found a bone. Anja, nine years old, evaluated it and tried to figure out what kind of animal it was. Sofie, four years old, sat back on a bench in quiet reflection and then declared, "I don't see the point in dying." I tried to explain the circle of life and how the bone was going to decay into the ground and give back to the plants that feed and shelter us animals. Though my heart wasn't completely in it, I controlled myself by not going off on a tangent and talking about the atrocities of embalming. So I simply ended the conversation bluntly referring her to uncle Sean if she really wanted to know her options. I remember being afraid of dying when I was ten and I remember discussing the subject with ten year olds at the group home I worked at as they had so many questions at that age about evolution, death, and religion. When I was ten I would have liked to be encased in glass like an image of snow white I had in my head. I wanted there to be air in case I wasn't really dead and a lovely bed to lie on until I awoke again, by whatever means. Now I just don't want to be embalmed. I have heard of people being left out to be eaten by the vultures in certain areas or the more costly option like on "six feet under" of being buried in the ground without the box and the chemicals. Partly for the environmentally obvious reasons, but I don't want to have people handling my body after death especially in such grotesque ways, except of course for donated parts which I expect to be re-used if there's anything of value left when I'm done with them. I have to wonder what people will really do in the future with my brother's frozen head? I'm not afraid to refer Sofie to Sean though because that girl will always make up her own mind.

The Lighter Side of Paris

The boat in back is ours. We got this boat more than once. One receives a stick to shove it off and runs around the pond sending it in the direction you want it to go. Of course the wind has it's way in the end as is expected.


But it is fun to chase it about the garden or around the pond atleast. To the right is Anja in front of a display of delicious delicacies which I'm sure there will be even more of when I return to Paris just before Easter with Lynne and Kristin. To the right of that is a lovely statue that helped me get my bearings and find my way back to our place in the Marais more than once on this trip. Also on the light side, Sofie got a bit carried away riding the ponies in the jardin outside the louvre. She had two rides on ponies and one in a cart. On the hilarious side, we went looking for an actual money gram store of which there are five in Paris to cash the Money Gram-International Money Order I received from my father for Christmas which no bank in Cluny would cash. We found one and then were sent to the main office where we were informed that one can only cash an International Money Order in Les Etats Unis. They told me to send it back to my dad and have him forward me money via MoneyGram of course. I assured them that if I knew my father, he would never use MoneyGram again for anything, and thanked them kindly laughing all the while. This was funny to us, but could have been serious in other circumstances. And quite a run-around in which we were able to practice our francais skills asking for directions repetitively from many different people.

The Darker Side of Paris

Here are a few photos from our most recent visit to Paris. On the left is a Vache that probably had a Tati coat. No, It's a cow that is luring young children to come sit on it's peeling paint and I thought a certain someone in the family might be motivated to send me photos of idyllic Northern California this season, perhaps a shady knoll beneath a tree in a meadow full of tall grass with deer romping through, if she were to see this photo of a merry-go-round in the city. The Tati picture is where Caleb would shop if he had it to do over again. Not really. He is the one that stood guffawing on the street when we saw Tati Marriage. He felt taken by the Tati clothes he bought for Christmas that are now all in tatters (go figure) and couldn't help but photograph the Tati Marriage display, granted my wedding dress was from jcpenney and less than one hundred dollars. It only has to last one day. Maybe there is a place in the world for Tati Marriage, not so sure about Tati cows though. It has even lost a leg. Do you think any kid really does choose this animal over the others? Sofie sat on a perfectly lovely though also imperfect and likely leady rabbit. I think Anja chose the classic horse. What are you gonna do?

These are pictures taken from the Bateaux Mouche, which was a really great boat ride we took with these lovely people whose three week visit is now over. Kathrin had her birthday yesterday, safely back in Northern California. She said she was planning on Shell beach complete with the Indian dining experience it offers. The Bateaux Mouche is one of the few things I really want to do again with Kristin and Lynne when I meet them in Paris mid-March. The book Sofie is holding is "Princess Poppy; The Fashion Princess." Anja was reading,"Witch Week" on the boat so she missed some of the tour. And Sofie sat beside her studying her own book with the exact pose and expression seen here on Anja's face. Very cute. Sofie loves reading to herself, but doesn't know how to read yet. Sometimes I think she will start reading on her own and surprise us, but in reality she is probably a long way off? Now we are planning on our next great adventures, trying to decide which things to keep, send, etc.. as we will be moving on from Cluny sometime in April after returning from England where we will spend two weeks with family, in Totnes, Devon, and Bristol. Caleb's birthday is this Sunday so we are also trying to plan a dinner party for that on Sunday which I hope will be fabulous. Our German friends want to try some South American food. I'm not sure if we are the right people to do that for them. If we pull it off, it will probably be Californian- Mexican with a French flair. Anja who is reading over my shoulder has informed me that the man wants Tortilla soup for his birthday, so Tortilla soup it will be. Anja is my writing coach. She sits beside me chanting, "Publish, Publish, Publish Post."