Kristin Espinasse's Blog, page 37
August 7, 2018
Gérer, débrouiller: How to Let Go...and Grow.
Midsummer night in La Ciotat. Families at their pop-up picnic tables, people swimming into the night, and the historic shipyard in the background, beneath a mauve sky. I'm going to bottle up this peaceful scene and shake it out in bits--in the kitchen, in the bedroom--wherever there's conflict....
Two words today: gérer and débrouiller
: to manage and to sort things out
Audio File: Click here to listen to the following sentence
Il faut arrêter d'éssayer de gérer les gens et plûtot les...
August 2, 2018
Faire bon ménage? Golden retriever and chickens & CONTROL JUICE (is it fueling you, too?)
If you take one thing away from today's post (about letting go...), let it be this: Control Juice is for wet chickens, or scaredy-cats. (Le jus de contrôle c'est pour les poules mouillés). Let go of your fear--and your controlling nature will disappear.
Faire bon ménage
: to get along
Click here to listen to Jean-Marc read the following sentence
Faire bon ménage signifie bien s'entendre. Cette locution peut qualifier une bonne entente, une relation équilibrée entre deux personnes ou a...
July 27, 2018
Grignoter & Cochonnerie: What it really means when your family says, "There's nothing to eat in this fridge!"
Thank you very much for clicking on the flyer above, from my friend and sponsor, Tess ! Several of you have enjoyed her Paint in Provence tours. Hopefully more readers will discover Tess's colorful Provence!
Today's Word: cochonnerie
: junk food
: mess, crap, rubbish, junk
Click here to listen to Jean-Marc pronounce these French words:
Les bonbons, les restaurants de nourriture rapide, les boissons sucrées sont souvent des cochonneries.Candy, fast-food restaurants, soda pop...ar...
July 23, 2018
It's all the rage, in French: Beer & Tarts (Tarte à la tomate et à la moutarde) A sure favorite so don't miss this!
Today's expression is inspired by a few choice words in the (clickable) flyer above. Thanks, Julie, Daniel and Arthur, of L'Ecole de la Bière in Nice, for a cool phrase to share in French.
faire fureur
: to be all the rage
Cela fait fureur. It's all the rage. Click the link below, to listen to this sentence
Faire fureur
A DAY IN A FRENCH LIFE
by Kristi Espinasse
Mom arrives tomorrow. Demain! I need to tidy her room (she'll take Max's until we can move her into the wine cellar). I...
July 20, 2018
Seeing spots? Relax, those are floaters! Les corps flottants et le champ visuel....
The unique sights, smells, and sounds of Paris are the luminous backdrop to these eleven tales, whose colorful characters are lured to the City of Light and Love, like moths to a flame. Available in paperback, here, or for immediate download on your Kindle, here.
Today's word: une tache
: spot
: stain, mark
une tache de rousseur = freckle
une tâche de vin = wine stain
The English translation follows below, in bold. Click to listen to the French:
Les corps flottants sont des taches...
July 16, 2018
Move Mom into the wine cellar? + France wins!
Notice the cushion on the bench, left. More in today's story!
Today's Word: le but
: goal
Click here to listen to Jean-Marc read the following words:
Le but. Hier soir La France a marqué quatre buts pour gagner la finale de la Coupe du Monde de football. Goal. Last night France scored four goals to win the soccer World Cup.
A DAY IN A FRENCH LIFE
Homeless Wine and Homeless Widows
(and the World Cup Win!)
by Kristi Espinasse
There is no tranquil place to write today, so I'll di...
July 13, 2018
When an expat's expat parent comes to live with daughter in France: After 25 years in Mexico, Mom is moving in!
Au revoir Mexique. Our Mom is about to begin a new chapter in France!
On ne s'ennuie jamais
: never a dull moment
Click here to listen to on ne s'ennuie jamais
A DAY IN A FRENCH LIFE
A blow to her wings, not to her spirit!
by Kristi Espinasse
My mom has been an expat in Mexico for 25 years (the same amount of time I've been in France). Now, following a recent coup dans l'aile, or blow to her wings, Jules will be moving into our nest and we are going to take things jour par jour (jus...
July 10, 2018
Even Cheese Puffs sound elegant in French: Gougères recipe and post by Ann Mah, author of The Lost Vintage
Our family lived on two French vineyards during the last 10 years, beginning in this 2007 post. Ann Mah's book brought it all back--the sights, the sounds, and the scents--especially the beauty, the history, and the passion behind it all. I learned more about wine reading Ann's book, in addition to details of WWII (like the humiliating punishment for collaboration horizontale--or sleeping with the enemy!). The novel's modern-day narrator, Kate, is curious, funloving, and determined to pass h...
July 6, 2018
A slang way to say "water" and when the French can't get good wine they make it in the hallway!
Jean-Marc and I celebrated our 24th wedding anniversary by picking up a fleet of ordures (garbage) along with other volunteers. We joined Amélie (left of center, beside JM) in her One Footprint on the World initiative. I have never met so many joyful litter-pickers. (Facebook page here.)
Speaking of doings, a lot of stories are streaming by--a fleet of daily happenings both big and small. Both our daughter and son live with us for the moment, and soon we will have another family member onbo...
July 2, 2018
It began with tattoos... (our mother-daughter escapade to Cap Ferrat) + un attrape-rêve
Do you own a dreamcatcher? We kept seeing these attrape-rêves last week--in the most unexpected places: La Ciotat, near Cannes, and again in Villefranche-sur-Mer. Coincidence? (photo of our daughter)
un attrape-rêve (also un capteur de rêves)
: dreamcatcher
Selon la croyance populaire, le capteur de rêve empêche les mauvais rêves d'envahir le sommeil de son détenteur. Agissant comme un filtre, il capte les songes envoyés par les esprits, conserve les belles images de la nuit et brûle le...
