Au Cochonnet Marin

He who hugs too much, hugs badly! Jeanne Calment

? ????

She ought to know. She lived to be 122 years and 164 days, the longest confirmed human lifespan on record and she must have known quite a bit (more than any of us) about hugs.

And yes, I totally agree with the late Madame Calment. Everybody should know that the minute an item is mass-produced it immediately loses its exclusivity and its worth.

Imagine for a minute that De Beers and all the diamond-mining companies in the world suddenly flooded the market with all the diamonds they hold in reserve.
The price of the (no more precious) stones would tumble and all the “rocks” would become as worthless as common pebbles.
Overabundance my friends, is often synonymous to depreciation, to decrease in value.

The same goes for hugs.
A hug is special. It is reserved for lovers, family, pets or very close friends. You don’t hug any Tom, Dick or Harry because it has suddenly become fashionable.
If you do so, your hug is fake.

In a way, this sudden popularity of the bro-hug in America is not really surprising.
Young Americans are a mixture of copycats and lemmings. When they see something that looks cool, they will duplicate it; and they will do it to excess because in America, excess is the norm.
My theory is that the kids picked up this routine from hombres across the border. A well- executed abrazo is macho and supercool. A bad one is pathetic at best.
Old farts by the way don’t hug, they cross canes.

An honest hug should be spontaneous, not calculated. You don’t hug because it is “à la mode du jour”, but because you really mean it.
Some people are good huggers and some are extremely awkward huggers. The best huggers are women. It comes fairly naturally to them and most of the time they do it right.

For men, it is an acquired taste. Like a tennis backhand a hug needs to be worked on, otherwise you could get entangled in a ridiculous embrace.

One additional reason to distrust would-be huggers is that it is much easier for them to plant a dagger in your back while they are holding you tight.
Especially at the end of a tournament, beware of losers who want to embrace you. There is no reason for them to do so other than testing your defenses. In my opinion a handshake is much less dangerous and definitely more sanitary than a phony hug.

So, to sum up it up, I am not fond of bro-hugging a bunch of guys. I would rather hug a tree  than making body contact with a guy I barely know.

I will make an exception for a comely lass though, and submit to a voluptuous hug if I have to. Noblesse oblige!

Alain ??

“Because a man plays a king superbly well does not mean that he would make a good king.” 
Louis L’Amour

? ????

Once upon a time (all fairy tales start like this), a little boy was born into an affluent family. He was of course well taken care of and grew up to be a tall, pleasant looking young man.
But with wealth comes privilege and sadly the young man became accustomed to having the right to anything he desired.

With the help of his father he grew richer but also with an exaggerated feeling of self-importance.
He soon became the GMNL/CEO (Give Me No Lip/Chief Executive Officer) of a large conglomerate, and like a conquering warlord he took to affix his coat of arms on everything he acquired.

After a long series of ups and downs, spurred by ego and driven by machismo he managed the unlikely feat of becoming the leader of a large country. This surprised many people and probably the man himself who during his scorched earth campaign constantly raged that the whole thing was “rigged”.

But once on the throne, he soon learned that the job of a CEO is quite a bit different from the job of a president.
A CEO very seldom hears the word “no”. It is even doubtful that he knows the meaning of it. He is is usually surrounded by sycophants who know better than giving this answer to their boss. They know from experience that this two-letter word is far more offensive than a four-letter word.

For a GMNL/CEO, a refusal to agree with him is synonymous to treason, and treason has to be punished. Underlings know that such a man holds them in servitude and they will stoop to anything to avoid hearing “you are fired!”

A wise president on the other hand, surrounds himself with advisers who are not afraid to disagree with him and won’t be punished for dissenting.

Wise kings generally have wise counselors; and he must be a wise man himself who is capable of distinguishing one. Diogenes

A CEO’s decisions might affect a few thousands people whereas a president’s resolve has an impact on the entire nation and the stability of the entire world.

The new king proved to be an impulsive man prone to send angry courier-pigeons messages to those who disagreed with him. Many people thought that it was not very kingly, but it proved very difficult to recall a pigeon once in flight.

One day a wandering soothsayer approached the King and whispered: Beware the Ides of March, Caesar!
The king who had no idea what that meant brushed him off and walked away surrounded by his minions.

With March fast approaching, a prudent man should always keep in mind that the Tarpeian Rock  is close to the Capitol.

Alain ??

Being a twin is like being born with a best friend. 
Tricia Marrapodi

  

You might have done it your way but regrets some regrets are part of life.

Regardless of what some braggarts are saying everybody has some, sometimes deeply buried in your psyche.
One of mine is the absence of an identical twin brother.

It takes a long time to become BFF with somebody. Can you imagine the fantastic luck of being born with one?

Can you imagine sharing your life with somebody who, regardless of the odds, will always unconditionally be on your side?
Somebody who will scratch your back the minute you feel an itch?
Somebody who will anticipate and fulfill your wishes without ever having to ask?
Somebody who would finish a sentence for you?
Somebody who would never forget your birthday?

Yes, I do miss having a twin brother.

I have had girlfriends, some decent, some so and so, but girlfriends are a light year behind when compared with a twin.
A girlfriend will quarrel with you, betray you, leave you (or vice-versa)… things that are absolutely unimaginable coming from a twin.

For whatever reasons, brothers and sisters are commonly at odds. Twins never.
It might have something to do with spending 9 months together squeezed in very tight quarters. To succeed, you must to cooperate.
A twin is a product made of kryptonite, guaranteed for life and backed by an ironclad policy. It is totally devoid of fine print.

Bonds between a brother or a sister are not made of the same material. Their ties are brittle and they are not rustproof. With time they might fail.

So again, having a twin is a fabulous blessing worth its weight in gold.
And yes, I am jealous and envious. I am wondering if even late in life I could acquire a twin because (as Lord Byron said) “to know true happiness you must share it.”

So just be aware that I am in the market for a functional identical twin. If you come across one (even used) I am extremely interested.

Waiting impatiently to hear from you.

Alain ?