Geese piece

“My trumpeting sounds like a goose farting in the fog.” Alex O’Loughlin

Some of my neighbors are geese. Canada (not Canadian) geese.
I first met them a few years ago in the Las Gallinas Valley Sanitary District. There were hundreds of them quietly resting on the water like a mighty armada.
I have visited them almost daily ever since.

IMG_6818In the molting season (June-July) geese lose their wing feathers and are unable to fly. During this time they loiter in a remote trail area, ready to take to the water if they feel threatened, and there are enough bird droppings on the ground to fertilize a football field.

When meeting them, I thread carefully though their ranks to continue my stroll. They eye me a little suspiciously, moving just at the last minute to let me through.

They are relatively unafraid of people but could become aggressive if they felt that their young were threatened.
To this day I still vividly remember when as a child I was terrorized by a big gander, and I have always kept a healthy respect for these elegant birds.

In August, after the molting interlude, geese are generally able to soar again and they often take to the air to practice flying.
They are excellent flyers, capable of going long distances without stopping.
“They can cover 1,500 miles (2,400 kilometers) in just 24 hours with a favorable wind, but typically travel at a much more leisurely rate.”
They travel in V formations to boost their range and efficiency, just as military planes learned to do.

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Geese are pretty vocal. Unlike ducks, they loudly debate what to do before taking off and continue talking while flying. You can hear them chattering from a great distance.
-Hey Gertrude, I am getting tired, can you take the lead?
-Sure Oscar. No worries.
-Thanks a bunch Gertie.
-Anytime Oscar.

IMG_6983Geese mate for life. They only chose another partner if their mate dies or is killed.
I didn’t know many of these things until I checked the Internet to verify a few facts.

What I vaguely remembered from my student days though, was that geese saved many Romans lives when the Gauls attacked them around B.C. 390.
“The tradition is that when the Gauls invaded Rome a detachment in single file clambered up the hill of the Capitol so silently that the foremost man reached the top without being challenged; but while he was striding over the rampart, some sacred geese, disturbed by the noise, began to cackle, and awoke the garrison.
Marcus Manlius rushed to the wall and hurled the fellow over the precipice. To commemorate this event, the Romans carried a golden goose in procession to the Capitol every year (B.C. 390).”

Geese can be loud but so what? Don’t you have neighbors (and relatives) like that?

Alain

Upgrading, downgrading, horse-trading

“Do not underestimate the determination of a quiet man.”
Iain Duncan Smith

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Upgrade is a very popular term, especially with business.

The New Oxford American Dictionary (my bedside Bible) defines “upgrade” as
“raising (something) to a higher standard, in particular to improve (equipment or machinery) by adding or replacing components.”

I am all for improvement, but sometimes (mainly because of cost) you only want to “downgrade” and when you utter this word, some businessmen perceive this to be as uncouth as breaking wind at a Bar-Mitzvah ceremony.

Downgrade? Sorry sir, we don’t do no stinking downgrade…
I would like to talk to your manager…
You can’t, he is busy upgrading our system.

Irritated by Comcast bloated bill and capricious fee increases, I decided to trim my costs by “downgrading” the services that I have been using for years.
Forsaking Triple Play (Cable TV, Internet, Telephone) I decided to get rid of Comcast phone service and downshift to Double Play (just Cable and Internet).

When you go to the Comcast website there is no obvious “downgrade” option. Like diarrhea, it is not a word that they like to hear (or smell).

In the meantime, I trimmed my sails by purchasing my own modem ($99.94 at Amazon) to replace the Comcast modem that I have been leasing ($10.00 a month) for years.
Surprisingly Comcast fully cooperated with the installation of my new modem and in less than 20 minutes my Mac was up and galloping all over the Internet.

Later on, I went to the local Comcast office to return their modem and inquire about my new (hopefully improved) Double Play bill.
Shockingly it proved to be more costly than what I was paying with Triple Play.
When you “downgrade” (ugly, ugly word) to Double Play, you lose a bunch of perks.
I have to admit that Comcast plays a very good game of chess.

I still wanted to keep my telephone landline but when I got rid of the Comcast modem I lost my landline.
So I went to Verizon who sold me on the idea of using a gizmo called Wireless Home Phone.
No need to plug into a telephone line anymore. All your calls are coming in wirelessly. For $20.00 a month, it is a bargain.

I transferred my telephone number to Verizon, but instead of an instant deal, I had to wait a few days before the transaction could be completed. Why?
If you ask me, I think that dear old Comcast was dragging its feet.

But now, after numerous calls to Comcast’ byzantine “Loyalty” department, I am finally able to use the Internet, TV and phone at much more reasonable rates.

Hey Comcast, if you really had my wellbeing at heart, why didn’t you propose this to me in the first place?
I would have loved you forever instead of just enduring you.

Alain

Le désamour

Life is uncertain. Eat dessert first! Ernestine Ulmer

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“Désamour” is a French word meaning « falling out of love ».
It can happen to anybody, anytime and it just happened to me.

I fell out of love with La Boulange (we are still friends) my oasis in the wilderness of Marin County for many years.

This state of affairs usually happens when you come across somebody or something that looks more attractive than what you are used to.

IMG_7816I was accustomed to go La Boulange (still one the best “snackaria” around) and I never looked anywhere else.
It was convenient and the food was varied and decent.
But since La Boulange is scheduled to close its doors at the end of September, I decided to look for a new breakfast/lunch place.
Carol Le ValleyAnd when I came across the Rustic Bakery (owned by Carol LeValley) in Larkspur, it was love at first sight.

One morning, upon biting in a ham and cheese croissant I realized that this place’s offerings were superior to those of La Boulange.
I also discovered that the Rustic Bakery bakes its mouth-watering pastries on the premises, and you can tell right away if you are dealing with a stale leftover or a freshly baked delicacy.
As somebody who cut his teeth on croissants, I sure can tell the difference.

All the pastries exposed under glass looked fresh and tantalizing.
If I may use a bawdy analogy, they looked as bewitching as the girls showing their wares in Amsterdam’ Red District windows.IMG_7798

Talking about food… I just heard in a French movie (naturellement) the following line spoken by the leading lady:
“I don’t cook, but in I am good in bed.”
Well then, if you ask me, never mind “boeuf Bourguignon” or “crêpes Suzette”…
But that’s just me…

Excuse my digression…

The prices at the Rustic Bakery are a little higher than at La Boulange, but it is worth it.

My only area of concern is organization.
With at least 10 people working behind the counter, you should not have to wait more than 5 minutes to be taken care of.
But I did. Especially for lunch when there is a long line of people waiting to be served.

The fresh-faced young people working behind the counter seem to be running in all directions at once and bumping into each other without being really effective.
There ought to be a well-defined routine to better serve the customers and so far I don’t see any. This place would greatly benefit from an efficiency expert.
Once they do this, the Rustic Bakery will be ready for prime time.

Otherwise, I still warmly recommend this place, especially for breakfast.
Give it a whirl, you won’t be disappointed.

Alain