Category: Fourre-tout

Despite the threatening rain, Oktoberfest 2021 took place as planned last Sunday in Sonoma… with maybe a little lot less drinking and carousing than in Munich. For those who expected lots of lederhosen, dirndls, bratwursts, and Oom Pah Pah music, it fell a little short of expectations. But still, 54 people (without counting the canines) signed up to play and showed up on time.

I went to Sonoma with the firm intention of doing nothing but taking pictures, but in this world, nothing ever works exactly as planned. Toward the end of the day, one player (probably disgusted by his performance) defected, and I agreed to take his place for the 4^th game of the day. We lost 7/13 on a thoroughly wicked area of the field.

But before we get to this… when the list of the players was posted, I noticed a lot of new names (which is good); but missing were the last names of all the players involved (which is bad). For us, out-of-towners, it is confusing and annoying; especially for those trying to write a little report of this event.

Two games were played in the morning, and two in the afternoon. In the morning I shot numerous pictures with a long-focus lens which allows me to discreetly record the antics of all players without their knowledge. An interesting pétanque picture to me has two phases: the split second the player releases his boule, and a few seconds later, his reaction to his (successful or failed) attempt. I particularly love the second phase… when I can catch it.

Let’s not forget either that pétanque is just a game not to be taken too seriously. You might disagree with your opponents about the validity of some points, but this is no reason to get unduly excited. Every player has the right to remeasure any contested point and should do so if disagreeing with the original assessment.

By the way, getting testy about some points is not the prerogative of youth. Some senior citizens proved to be equally feisty and didn’t hesitate (despite their advanced age) to get on all four to measure some contested points. For my part, I’d rather give you a contested point to avoid getting on my knees and to further irritate my aching back.

Around 4:00 pm the local Oktoberfest was over… and we didn’t get soaked.

The winners:

1^st place: Jean-Michel Poulnot & Addie (no last name)
2^nd place : Tim Wetzel & François Moser
3rd place : Peter Wellington & Mireille Di Maio

Alain

 PS : Plenty of pictures

What do you do when your mate is afflicted by a disorder known as “the hotties”? The symptoms: she is getting uncomfortably hot when I am shivering, and insists on keeping all windows open, regardless of the weather conditions. It has been a Homeric struggle between the Bushwoman and the Eskimo.

Would you believe that she is also prone to frolic “au naturel” when I am quivering in flannel shirts and long johns? Well, Your Honor, this is my predicament… my Way of the Cross… and I hope that you will show some sympathy for my kettle of fish.

There can be a snowstorm or a blizzard raging outside, and she will still insist on letting some “fresh air” in. Her internal thermostat is obviously out of kilter and needs to be fixed… But she does not think so. She would rather believe that I am a weakling who needs to be toughened up… and molded into her own image.

Well, my friends, I’ll have you know that I am no namby-pamby and capable of extraordinary feats. My extreme modesty prevents me from enumerating all my past accomplishments here, but take my storyteller word for it.

It is said that opposites attract, and that’s probably what happened to us. She is hot and I am cool, and we both agreed to disagree on that subject. But attraction has its limits… especially in the hotness department. The question is “Can a hot lady be cool?”

Thinking of it, this might be the wrong way to express my concerns since hot babes usually parade in micro-bikinis. The problem is that they are hot and cool at the same time. It is very confusing for men, especially for a slow-witted guy like me.

To my defense, I should also say that I was born and raised in a temperate, civilized, climate… not in some desolate snow-covered acres where the temperature hovers between 26 and 16 degrees in winter. When you are used to live in freezing climate, you are naturally hot anywhere else…

“I don’t like to commit myself about heaven and hell – you see, I have friends in both places.” ~ Mark Twain

 Like Mark Twain, I am sure that I also have friends in both places. Probaly more in Hell… But since I am always cold, Hell might be more tolerable to me; for her though, the heat is going to be “hellish”. And I don’t think that you can haggle with the Prince of Darkness…

I understand that Hell might be a bit uncomfortable, but socially speaking, you meet much more interesting people there than among the stuck-up do-gooders of Heaven.

That’s all for today folks. I hope that you empathize with my predicament and side with me regarding this hot issue.

Alain

PS: I discovered a few lost photos on my little Canon camera. Check the last event to see them.

With a grand total of 23 participants, last Sunday’s tournament in San Rafael felt more like a family affair than an FPUSA sanctioned competition; it was nevertheless spirited and fun.

The event was billed a “mêlée », and partners were semi-randomly assigned. I inherited a friendly young fellow named Quintin Mecke (who oddly enough reminded me of Herge’s Tintin) and proved to be quite an accurate pointer. We didn’t do particularly well (2 wins and 3 losses) but we had fun and that’s what counts.

Shama and her dog Tchai (?) kept track of the scores and we are grateful for their cooperation.

Two games were played before lunch, and three after. Among the competitors were 3 members of the Danielson family and judging by the results, they did very well. Thank you, Abby, by the way for pressuring your relatives into play with us.

The number of players might have been small, but the quality proved to be above average. On our first game, we had the (mitigated) pleasure of playing against Richard Bell and Loël McPhee, and they murdered us 0/13. I understand that Richard spent the last 3 weeks practicing his shooting 10 hours a day with only 2 hours of sleep per night… and it paid off.

We also played against Joe Danielson who (as a newcomer) had the impertinence to clobber us 5/13. Abby, I hold you responsible for your brother’s cheeky behavior.

On our 5^th game, Tintin and I faced Liza and Liv and they also had their way with us. Liv pointed extremely well, and Liza acted as the merciless executioner. They shamelessly beat us 13/5.

This tournament did not have a Concours and a Consolante per se, and the results were tabulated according to the number of wins and the minimum number of points accumulated during the event.

This also meant that unfortunately, I didn’t get a chance to take any pictures during this event. It is difficult to wear two different hats during any proceeding and I should have stayed on the sidelines instead of playing, but the cochonnet (piglet) always exercises a strong pull and I could not resist its appeal… And my aching back is paying the price this morning…

Here are the final results:

1^st place: Joe Danielson & Stephanie Wilkinson      $52.00 each
2^nd place: Richard Bell & Loël McPhee                           $38.00 each
3^rd place: Eddy Pay & Abby Danielson                            $25.00 each

Alain

PS: A very few pictures at the usual place.