Au Cochonnet Marin

The title above is, if I am not mistaken, the plural form of annus horribilis (an expression made famous by Queen Elizabeth).

The so-called Golden Years can be more horribilis than golden… unless you keep updating your brain with the latest version of the “young thinking” app. I recommend selecting “automatic updates” in the “settings” area of your cerebrum to avoid missing anything.
Just like your computer, your brain will be brought up to date regularly and will be kept working more efficiently.

By the way… excuse me for asking, but are you an old dude?

It depends. You are only as old as you act. If you shuffle your feet when walking, you are definitely old. If while sitting in a café terrace you still read a newspaper instead of abusing your phone, you also qualify. If you don’t look at the girls anymore, you are almost dead.
But if you fall asleep in your Tesla while on the freeway, you are not old. You are young, stupid and close to death.

Age is a state of mind; it does not represent the number of years that you have lived. It is the way you look at the world. Anybody witnessing a certain scene memorizes a different vision of what actually happened.

A young person witnessing such an event sees something different than an octogenarian… unless the old dude has managed to remain progressively thinking.

When you feel old age creeping up on you, buy new toys. It is the best medicine. Buy a drone, a virtual Reality Headset, a car, an island, a boy toy or a trophy wife… It will distract you for a while and prevent you from getting down in the dumps…

Dying is like coming to the end of a long novel–you only regret it if the ride was enjoyable and left you wanting more.  Jerome P. Crabb

If you don’t want to have any regret when you buy the farm, keep busy and keep mingling with young people. You could teach them a thing or two and they in turn, will keep you updated on what to wear and what to say.

You don’t need to know the exact meaning of some tech expressions, but you have to remember some so that you can drop them when you feel overwhelmed.

I recommend biobreak, meatspace, yoyo mode, legacy media, biometrics, cloud computing, wearables, brainjacking…

Take your pick and use any of those words when you feel snowed under. It will impress the kids and give a needed boost.

Alain

“A woman can do anything a man can do.” I do believe this, especially when it comes to pétanque.
As part of a long-established custom, women in this discipline have long been pigeonholed to the position of “pointer”.

Some like it, but some aspire to more. They would like to move up and take control of their team. They want to shoot, but the men don’t think they can and prevent them from doing so.

In the history of the American West, there has been plenty of women shooters… Annie Oakley, Calamity Jane, Belle Starr would not take any lip from anybody, and regardless of what the men would say, they did their own thing. They merrily shot… anything and anybody trying to meddle with their affairs.

Anybody can shoot. It just takes practice. Be it tennis, pole vaulting or car racing, women can do it all. And the longer they practice, the better they will be. If women express the desire to shoot, let them do it and prove themselves.
There is no rule in the book saying that they can’t.

History is full of dames who did extraordinary things when peed off.

Jeanne Hachette was one of these women. Read her story by clicking on the link below:

Jeanne de Clisson was another one badass woman.

So my macho friends, never underestimate the power of a woman! If she wants to do something, let her do it because “hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.”
Women are more emotional than men and given to extremes when annoyed.

We have in our midst, a few excellent female “shooters” like Shannon Bowman, Barbara Hall, Beth Lysten, Vang Chia but it is not enough. We need more and we need to give them the opportunity to blossom.
Remember that in your own life, somebody gave you once a chance to prove yourself. The least you can do is to return the favor.

If a woman in your club expresses the desire to shoot, give her a chance to so.

 “Know what? Bitches get stuff done.”–Tina Fey

 Alain

“There is nothing like a dame…” I agree, but yesterday (and each time we have a mixed tournament) dames are in short supply.
On Sunday, a few forlorn gentlemen were desperately looking for female partners and some ended up not playing at all. Somebody suggested paying bail for some women prisoners across the street, but the proposition was rejected.

On a personal level, Le Facteur outbid me to secure the services of Tamara. So, I (temporarily) hung up my cleats and spent the day observing and digitally recording the happenings on the field.

The tournament, by the way, was run by Christine Cragg and Michael O’Leary. Michael was one of the players who were unable to secure a female partner and spent the day assisting Christine. Michael is a hard worker and one of the nicest guys I know; I will play with him any time he asks me.

The weather was mild and pleasant and coffee and pastries were served.

The Marin field which used to be fairly easy to play on has become, with the addition of new coats of gravel, a treacherous minefield full of sand traps. If you want to come on top, “plombés” have to be part of your game.

For their first game,Tamara and Jean-Michel encountered Damien and Maggie Lane. Tough break! They were annihilated 1 to 13.
Damien Monnet, by the way, was the revelation (to me anyway) of this tournament. He is a complete player who seems to have mastered every move in the book.

When he shoots and misses, he looks surprised. When a guy like me shoots and hits, I look surprised. That’s the difference between and a great player and a journeyman.

Their second game was against Patrick and Shannon. They managed to reach 12/12 but Jean-Michel flubbed a crucial last shot that cost them the game. They lost 12/13.
I have always said, if a woman is willing to do it, let her shoot. They will often surprise you, as Lisa Vaughn did later in this tournament.

Their 3^rd game was against Toy and Cindy. They barely lost 12/13 and ended up in La Consolante.

As luck would have it, they won all their games in the afternoon and reached the Consolante finals.

They played against Donna von Edelkrantz and Mark Shirkey, two individuals who practiced a lot and improved a lot. Tamara and Jean-Michel lost 8 to 13.

Henri Cartier-Bresson said, “Your first 10,000 photographs are your worst.”

The same is true in pétanque or any discipline. To be a good player you need to put in the hours. You need to practice continuously until every shot becomes natural and accurate.
Some of us though are work-shy and practice only on holidays. We always end up paying for that.

In the Concours area, Ed Porto and Monique Bricca won the semifinals 13 to 9 against Hans Kurz and Lisa Vaughn. It was not an easy match and it was full of spectacular rebounds. Lisa saved Hans’s skin a few times with amazing shots and usually unflappable Hans could not help but hug her enthusiastically.

In the Concours finals, lefty Ed Porto and Monique Bricca battled Damien Monnet and Maggie Lane. It was a great match full of spectacular shots. Both shooters and pointers outdid themselves and drew applause from the spectators. Monique and Maggie were amazingly on target… and so were Ed and Damien.

Ultimately though, Damien and Maggie won the contest 13 to 5.

Concours
1^stplace: Damien Monnet and Maggie Lane
+ their names engraved on the Commemorative Cup
2^ndplace: Ed Porto and Monique Bricca
3^rdplace: Steve Dudgeon and Kris Edwards

Consolante:
1^stplace: Mark Shirkey and Donna von Edelkrantz
2^ndplace: Jean-Michel Poulnot and Tamara Efron

Alain

PS: Since the pictures shown today were recorded on 3 different devices, they are not displayed in a chronological order. Sorry about that.