Category: Fourre-tout

Yesterday, in the waning days of 2018, La Pétanque Marinière hosted its last Concours of the season. Such an event held in December is always iffy, but fortunately, it did not rain and we were able to proceed as planned.

It did not rain but the entire area was saturated by a dense blanket of fog that lingered for the entire day. It was not extremely cold, but the humidity in the air made the temperature seem much colder than it really was. Confined under a few layers of clothing, I played under par.
The ground was still very mushy and it took an extra effort to position one’s boule properly.

This situation did not prevent 28 players from all over the Bay Area to come to Marin to strut their stuff.

Mark and Sandra Shirkey, assisted by Noel Marcovecchio, oversaw the tournament and by 9:30 am, 14 doublettes were assembled and ready to compete.

The format of this contest was “a la mêlée” and I was extremely lucky (this time) to be paired with Nancy Jencks, the Petaluma southpaw wonder. Her pointing accuracy was remarkable and she contributed mightily to the outcome of this contest.

Three (1 hour) timed games were played in the morning to determine who would end up in the Concours or the Consolante. After winning 2 out of 3 games in the morning we qualified for the Concours.

Due mainly to Nancy’s supernatural pointing accuracy, we defeated all of our opponents in the afternoon and finally faced Donna Von Edelkrantz and young Steve Dudgeon in the Finals. Again, Nancy overwhelmed them with her magic touch and we emerged the winners of that concours.
A nice Christmas present for both of us.

Between games, I managed to take some pictures which reflect pretty accurately the mood and atmosphere of this contest; I certainly hope that you will like them.

While playing in the finals, I asked Noel to take a few pictures of me and you might notice a few seldom-seen shots of the photographer been photographed.

In the accompanying photo album, you will also see the winners of the Fall League, namely Liza Moran and Shannon Tracy for the first place, and Mark and Sandra Shirkey for the second place.
Jacques Gautier and Charlie Davantes took 1^st place in la Consolante.

In the Concours:
1^st place: Nancy Jencks & Alain Efron
2^nd place: Donna Von Edelkrantz & Steve Dudgeon
3^rd place: Mark Shirkey & Susan Wyatt

In the Consolante:
1^st place: Tim & Larry

Alain

PS: Feel free to download any of my pictures, but when posting any of them on social media, please include photo credit (Photos by Alain Efron). Thank you. 

Le Père Noel was worried. Despite reassuring press releases, all was not well at the North Pole.

Christmas was fast approaching and the toy production was hopelessly behind schedule. Le Père Noel’ workshop was in great turmoil with elves complaining about long working hours and inadequate benefits. They bitched regarding an outdated computer system and balked at taking care of the reindeers. They smell, and it is not part of our job description ventured their ring leader.

They also refused to be called “helpers” anymore.  We are full-time partners they said and we want profit sharing! Then there were allegations of sexual misconduct in the group… I have been groped repeatedly groused an “elfette” and management did not do anything about it. I am a victim and want compensations.
And to top it all, the rascals wanted to unionize!

On the domestic front, his second (young) wife kept nagging and telling him that his franchise was in danger. You must go with the flow and present the image of a young, robust, modern CEO, not a frumpy old man she said.

Shave your beard and dye your hair. And instead of these stupid red pants, wear ripped jeans. It will make you look cool and more appealing to the young TV audience. Get rid of those glasses and use colored prescriptions lenses instead. Lose your red hat and wear a beret… It is more Continental…

The name “Père Noel” is also passé. You need to be hip to stay relevant. From now on, you should call yourself Bro No.  Bro sounds cool. In Hollywood (and the Vatican) all the cool people are bros…
Your ratings will go up, believe me.
Le Père Noel sighed …

The reindeers, particularly troublemaker Prancer, also made some rumbling noises. They complained about dangerous working conditions. They grumbled about an outdated guidance system and loose satellites. One of these days, something bad is going to happen they said. We absolutely need anti-collision devices… or else!

To make matters worse, le Père Noel also suspected that his database had been hacked. More “nice” children had been added to his list and a lot of “naughty” brats removed. Who could have done this? The Russians? The Democrats? The LGBTQ?

His wife also warned him about the Chinese. In great secrecy, they were about to launch a socialist version of Pere Noel to compete with Bro No.
Unthinkable. You cannot have two Pères Noel; it would be like having two popes..

Bro No suddenly felt old and despondent. Life is getting too complicated he thought. And why should I suffer every year such terrible jetlag for mostly ungrateful people?

And on the spot, he made up his mind. He rang Jeff Bezos on his private line and asked him to take over his operation. Jeff old friend, I am tired and too old to climb down chimneys anymore… Do me a favor… Take over my job. You are already half there and you seem to be more efficient I do.

And that’s why my friends, Amazon instead of Bro No is now delivering your Christmas gifts to your front door. The big guy’s wife is in a tizzy but he promised her a new fully loaded Tesla and she (temporarily) cooled off.

“The one thing women don’t want to find in their stockings on Christmas morning is their husband.” Joan Rivers

Joyeux Noel to all !

Alain ?

Paris is arguably one of the most beautiful cities in the world, and due to the fact that I was born and grew up there, I am extremely biased about it.

It distresses me to no end to think that in the last 2 weeks the City of Lights has turned into another Beirut. As seen on vivid video clips, the city was racked by violent riots and senseless devastation.

There was rioting all over France and particularly in Paris where the famed Champs-Élysées were the scene of ferocious fighting. Impressive damage was also inflicted upon the Arc de Triomphe and the Avenue Kleber. Numerous cars were set on fire and stores and buildings were vandalized by the so-called Gilets Jaunes “yellow jackets”.

What happened?

Committed to reduce global warming, French president Emmanuel Macron introduced new carbon taxes to urge motorists to change behavior and protect the environment. The fuel tax was accompanied by other measures including incentives to encourage people to buy electric vehicles.
But considering the high price of gas in France (around $5.54/gal) this well-intended initiative was not well received by the electorate.

Many demonstrators complained about their struggles to stay afloat in world afflicted by a disproportionate gap between the rich and the poor. A great number of these people barely make 2,000 euros per month to cover rent, food, taxes, gasoline and many incidentals. Macron on the other hand has been accused of speaking only for the rich.

“Macron’s plight illustrates a conundrum: How do political leaders introduce policies that will do long-term good for the environment without inflicting extra costs on voters that may damage their chances of re-election?”

All demonstrators did not mean to wreck the city, but marginalized young people from the “banlieues” did. These so-called “casseurs” (breakers of things) were not interested in righting wrongs. They descended on Paris with the sole objective of looting and vandalizing.

People have the right to protest government measures that they find unjust or arbitrary, but vandalism of any sort is not the way to do it. A massive, dignified demonstration would do more to rally common folks to their cause than senseless devastation.

On the other hand, profits should not be the only concern of large companies. Board members would be well advised to include philanthropy and altruism in their mission statement. In a perfect world, a percentage of their profits should be devoted to improve the living conditions of the disadvantaged.

To this effect, many protesters are demanding the immediate reintroduction of the wealth tax (ISF) previously cancelled by Macron.

In the latest news development, the so-called “carbon tax” has been postponed for 6 months. Unfortunately, this does mean that calm will prevail.

Alain