Category: Fourre-tout

Meat lovers, enjoy the bloody stuff while you can because it is on its way out. So says an outfit called Beyond Meat.

Beyond Meat manufactures a product that looks like meat, tastes like meat but does not contain one ounce of animal flesh. According to investigative reporters, this commodity looks and taste very close to the real McCoy.

It is fast growing in popularity, and it is now sold in a variety of grocery stores and burger joints.

I am not a vegetarian but I am glad to hear about this development. I am an animal lover and a staunch supporter of animal rights. Sometimes when I drive to Sonoma, I have somber thoughts about the cattle I see grazing in the hills.

Closer to home, across the freeway, there is a bunch of milk-producing cows living a seemingly carefree life. But do you know what happens to these gentle creatures once they stop producing their milk quota?
After many years of good service, they are sent to the slaughterhouse… which to me is an abhorrent thought.

If we migrate (as we should) to Beyond Meat we won’t need to raise large herds and waste a lot of grazing land. We will also improve human health, cut down on methane gas pollution, positively impact climate change, and amend animal welfare. We will also stop the horrible slaughter of 66 billion animals every year.

If you crave meat (as some people still crave tobacco) you will be able to satisfy your hankering for protein by eating Beyond Meat products; their primary source of protein comes from plain peas.

Beyond Burger aims to be cheaper than beef. For the time being it is more expensive than animal flesh, but as its reputation grows and its production increases it will definitely become cheaper than animal meat.

The product is already widely seen on the shelves of stores like Giant, Safeway, Natural Grocers, Jewel Osco, Food Lion, Mariano’s, Harris Tester and multiple burgers outlets.

A man can live and be healthy without killing animals for food; therefore, if he eats meat, he participates in taking animal life merely for the sake of his appetite. Leo Tolstoy

 As of now, I seldom eat beef and it would be no big deal for me to completely eliminate it.

Save the lives of millions of animals, defend our planet and decrease your chances of colorectal cancer by restricting animal meat from your diet.

Alain

I cannot say that I am a super busy person, but I seldom remember the minute details of my commitments. I know for instance that I have a dental appointment looming on the horizon, but I could not tell you when or at what time.

Similarly, I don’t remember birthdays, anniversaries, and other social functions and this does not sit well with my wife. She recalls (she says) every single episode of her life with frightening clarity. She recollects what she ate 3 years ago in a Parisian restaurant, and she remembers the waiter’s name.
I might remember the waitress (if she was comely), but that’s all.

In order to minimize marital strife, I have taken to use an electronic calendar. The application is present on my cell phone, my iPad and on my computer and it is a life saver.

The calendar has an elephant’s memory and will remind me in a timely fashion where I should go and whom I should see.

I have a memory like an elephant. In fact, elephants often consult me. Noël Coward

 This weakness of mine might have something to do with age but I don’t think so. I basically subscribe to Einstein’s theory who rightly said: “Never memorize what you can look up in books.”

 The beauty of an electronic calendar though is that you can summon it at any time without being mocked for it. Like a good butler, it is polite, deferential and precise. And I can also choose the accent of the speaking voice: American, British, Irish, Australian…
Probably due to an overdose of Downtown Abbey, I am personally partial to a woman’s upper-class British accent.

The only flaw with this application is that all these voices are too commanding for my sensitive nature. I would prefer a softer, mellower voice to keep me in the straight and narrow.
After all, one is more responsive to a pleasant voice than to barking commands.

I also favor such a calendar because I am a stickler for commitments. If I commit to some event, my word is my bond. I will be on time and I expect others to show the same courtesy.

The French and the Italians have a widely different notion of time. A rendez-vous to them indicates that they will show up… give or take an hour. I am not sure that any of them carry a watch… This is probably one of the reasons that prompted me to move to America.

When I was younger, I could remember anything, whether it had happened or not. Mark Twain

Today being a little older (and hopefully wiser) I use a talking calendar to remind me of pétanque events, and to take my meds on time.

Alain

Sunday proved to be a nice day in Lamorinda. A little fresh and foggy in the morning but bright and sunny in the afternoon.
The day started auspiciously with a comfortable ride to the East Bay offered by Christine Cragg. Thank you, Christine.

The folks in Lamorinda worked very hard to improve their field and they succeeded. The courts looked immaculate. The ground was newly covered with a fine gravel that looked good but proved challenging to the untrained. The boules were slowed and often sank in the fine pebbles; “au fer” and “plombés” were the only options.
Coffee and pastries were offered to the forty-eight (48) people who chose to participate.

This event was an interclub tournament and each Bay Area club sent a small formation. The format of the tourney was the same as in the past; 3 panaché doubles in the morning with teams from opposing clubs playing against each other.
In the afternoon, top-ranked players from each team were paired as triples to play in the Concours or Consolante.

Marin showed up with Sandra & Mark Shirkey, Mike O’Leary, Alain Efron, Robin Kehoe, Robin McDonnell, Francois Moser and Christine Cragg.
We all fairly quickly bit the dust. I personally played 4 games losing them all. My strongest showing was when I was paired with Mark Shirkey. We did well narrowly losing the game 10/13 to Hmong players.

Fresno showed up with a very strong formation. Hmong power was evident throughout the tournament with most of their players being able to shoot and point as well.

Sonoma also performed well, with an outstanding performance from Wolfie who hit many superb carreaux. But they ultimately succumbed to the superior firepower from the Hmong formation.

Both Concours and Consolante were awarded to Fresno teams. They are the new Spartans.

Concours:
1^st place: Michel Yang, By Vang and Chong Xiong
2^nd place: Teri Sirico, Maggie lane and Wolfie Kurz
3rd place: Holly Sammons, Mickey Coughlin, Manu LeBihan

Consolante:
1^st place: Nicholas Yang, Carl Motschielder and Thomas Moua
2^nd place: Gilbert Sonet, Beth Lysten and Serge Hanne

Alain

PS: I would be extremely grateful if somebody could provide me with the proper spelling of all the Hmong players.

Addendum
I was not aware that this tournament, using the Lamorinda field, was actually hosted by the dynamic Fresno gang. Thank you guys for a job well done. It is an honor to be humbled by such a spirited group.