Au Cochonnet Marin

Denial ain’t just a river in Egypt. Mark Twain

It is a torrent rushing across the planet. In our ever-changing society, denial is becoming as prevalent as the common cold. If something is judged reprehensible, difficult to accept, it is denied… vehemently.

In psychology, denial is when a person cannot or will not accept an unpleasant truth.

And for deniers, the best defense is the attack. They will question the sincerity and the morality of their accusers and try to cast doubt about everything they say.
Deniers of all sorts are legions… and they are passionate. I don’t know what motivates them, but it is certainly not objectivity.

Confronted with tons of evidence, they nevertheless persist in their preposterous assertions.
The moon landing was a hoax, the earth is flat, climate change is a leftist fabrication, the Holocaust never happened, vaccines create autism, evolution is a made-up-story… and more recently, there never was any quid pro quo…

 When faced with a threatening situation, the animal world has two options: fight or flight. While animals usually concede, presumptuous humans often decide to fight.

It is good… and bad.

It is good if you have a strong, honorable case to defend. It is bad, especially when you have a weak argument, to fight overwhelmingly supported evidence.

The motivations and causes of denialism include religion, self-interest (economic, political, or financial), and defense mechanisms meant to protect the psyche of the denialist against mentally disturbing facts and ideas.

In politics, denial is the rule, not the exception. Even when confronted with damning evidence, a politician will deny.
I never met this man, I never slept with her, I didn’t benefit from this…

Deny, deny, deny… is the mantra (a sacred utterance) of the ruling class. It is the ultimate exorcism used to combat any allegations of malfeasance.

 As Joseph Goebbels asserted “If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it”. 

 For everybody’s sake, hopefully not!

If you ever quote me, I will naturally deny saying or writing anything derogatory about the GOP (Government Of Pakistan).

Alai

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On January 5, I recorded the Golden Globes awards ceremony to watch at a more convenient time.

When looking at such an event, I usually don’t pay too much attention to the self-serving speeches spouted out by the laureates. I focus on what they are wearing and il y a toujours quelque chose qui me chiffonne, there is always something that ruffles my feathers.

An actress does not necessarily have a sense of style or fashion. A thespian is generally good at inhabiting characters, but is not a fashion expert. And they are bound to make mistakes.

A prime example of this kind of faux-pas was Jennifer Lopez; she was wearing a fairly decent dress but… with an enormous bow tied in front of it. Garish and ridiculous. And most probably very uncomfortable.

A lot of her associates showed the same lack of judgment. Kerry Washington (whom I usually like) wore an absolutely tasteless outfit. Why did she have this insane desire to baring her meager breasts? This was not a bit attractive.

Salma Hayek, on the other hand, looked stunning. She sported a very simple outfit showcasing her own Golden Globes. She did not feel the need to expose unnecessary skin. When it comes to fashion, simplicity and restraint are the keys to elegance.

‘Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.’ – Leonardo da Vinci

Jody Comer covered up by a green potato sack looked pathetic. Da’Vine Joy Randolph wearing an overworked purple dress looked monstrously ugly… Ellen DeGeneres looked weird… Scarlett Johanssonwearing a red, unflattering deep V-neck dress would have been better inspired to lose her voluminous sweep train. Carol Burnett was wearing an ugly suit and Ellen DeGeneres looked peculiar.

If you have no sense of fashion, you should have the perspicacity to rely on a professional. And there are plenty of those around.
I just happen to know somebody who is doing an excellent job advising women on how to dress and I recommend her. She is called Abi and runs a lively website named “Update Your Style”. Look at it.

 A sense of fashion is not an innate gift. You have or you don’t. If you don’t have it, there is definitely no shame in seeking somebody who could help you to look your best.

To be stylish, above all, keep it simple!

Alain

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Due to technical difficulties, my site was down for a few days. It is now back up and running. Sorry for the inconvenience.

So, how cold was it last Sunday, are you going to ask? Well, my friends, it was so cold that squirrels wore fur hats and Alpine insulated jackets.

But this did not prevent pétanque enthusiasts to answer the call of the cochonnet. They trickled in one by one, and around 9:15 a.m. I counted 16 hearty souls ready to rumble; 8 plucky women and 8 macho men, to be precise.

Two games were played in the morning and two more games in the afternoon. The winners of this tournament would be decided by the number of games won and by the lowest amount of points accumulated.

The morning games proved a little challenging due to the biting cold. I caught myself saying “My balls are cold and difficult to hold”. (sic) I haste to say that it sounded extremely funny to the people around me.

It was difficult to play due to the multiple layers of clothing we had to wear. We had to choose between keeping warm and hampered, or being free to move and exposed to hypothermia. I chose to keep warm.

In this tournament, I had the good luck to be paired with Francois Moser, my old partner in crime. He pointed so amazingly well, that I immediately dubbed him “Bras d’Or” (Golden Arm). Due to his prowess, we managed to win four games out of four, and be in a good position to snag First Place, and a heavy pot of gold.

But it was not to be. Our setback was due to our last game where we faced 2 determined ladies. A certain Tamara and a ringer called Liza Moran gave us a hard time and we barely managed to win the game 13/12.

Mark Shirkey and Noel Marcovecchio also won four games and beat us to the finish line by a few points.

Regardless… In spite of the uncharitable weather, it was a great day and I am pretty sure that some chilly fun was had by all.

Final results

1^st place: Mark Shirkey & Noel Marcovecchio
2^nd place: Alain Efron & François Moser
3^rd place: Tamara Efron & Liza Moran

Alain

PS: I also had a problem with one of my cameras and I had to delete all the defective shots. What you will see on SmugMug was taken exclusively with my iPhone 11.