Au Cochonnet Marin

Yesterday, after weeks and weeks of torrential rain, the sky kind of cleared up and allowed us to hold a long overdue tournament. Forty (40) people showed up for this Select Doubles event and by 9:30 am things got underway.

At this point, I would like to recognize Ann Krilanovich for the tremendous job she has done in promoting our sport. Yesterday she brought along fresh-faced Bek Smith to our field, another one of her countless recruits, and she deserves to be acknowledged for her contribution to our common good. Ann, we salute you.

Since my shooting days are over, I secured a few weeks ago the partnership of Bernard Passemar for this tournament, and I felt confident that with his assistance we would do well.

As usual, I brought my cameras, but left the large one in the trunk of my car, to be used in the afternoon, after our elimination from the tournament.

Three games were played in the morning and even though the field was still wet and rather difficult to handle, we managed to win 2 games out of 3.

In the afternoon, we found ourselves in the Concours and managed to win our 3^rd game of the day. So far, Bernard and I played rather well, and I felt that we could retire honorably from this tournament even if we lost the next game.

But the capricious Gods on Mount Olympus saw it differently. They allowed us to win another game, and another game until we reached the Finals. So far, we stood with 5 wins out of 6 under our belts, and regardless of the final results we were content.

In the Finals, we faced two heavyweights, Louis Toulon, and Ed Porto and I thought that it would be a challenging game, especially when we played on a different (still very wet) surface.

The game started rather poorly for us, and at one time, our opponents were leading 6 to 2. But we didn’t lose faith and managed to rally. Bernard played extremely well and managed some great defensive shots.

At this time, I didn’t have much of a chance to take many pictures, but I managed a few between games. When we started playing against Louis and Ed, I gave my camera to Tamara and asked her to fill my shoes. Photograph the action I told her and make me look good regardless of what you see. Capisce?
So the last phase of the tournament was photographed by the One and Only Tamara.

Ultimately, we lost the final game 8 to 13, but by all accounts, we lost honorably. By 6:30 pm it was all over, and Tamara dragged me to the car and put me to bed where I slumbered for approximately 10 hours.

Concours:

1^st place: Louis Toulon & Ed Porto
2^nd place : Bernard Passemar & Alain Efron
3rd place : Peter Wellington & Adair Hastings

Consolante:

1^st place: Tim Wetzel & Holly Sammons
2^nd place: Noël Marcovecchio & Shama
3^rd place: Ted Bissell & Mike O’Leary

Alain

Click on “My photos” to watch the pictures

“Everyone should have a deep-seated interest or hobby to enrich his mind, add zest to living, and perhaps, depending upon what it is, result in a service to his country.” ~ Dale Carnegie

You might have heard that today, France is in an almost permanent state of political upheaval. The government wants to progressively change the retirement age from 62 to 64, and labor unions are adamantly (and often violently) opposed to it.

But the average life expectancy in France is now 82.18 years, meaning that you will have 20 years to occupy yourself after the holy retirement. It is a long time and for many, it often turns out to be a harsh disillusion. After a short period of exhilaration, many feel bored and restless… and horror of horrors, some even yearn to go back to work.

People, like animals, are creatures of habit. They cannot abruptly stop a life routine without encountering ill side effects. Retirement is often a brutal life disconnect that can be extremely traumatic… It is somewhat akin to swimming: if you quit paddling, you will drown.

If you retire, you need a hobby, otherwise, you will feel lost and make your mate’s life miserable.

“When a man retires, his wife gets twice as much husband for half as much money.” — Chi Chi Rodriguez

To keep everything peaceful on the home front, a human being needs to give his mate (and himself) some breathing space. And the hobby should include a variety of people… to fill the gaping void left by his former colleagues.

In this respect, pétanque is an excellent hobby. You get out of the house, meet friends, get some exercise, and go home happily tired (and unable to start even the slightest argument).

I doubt that anybody could find fault with this. If you don’t want to lose your zest for life, you need to remain active and social.

In conclusion, I would like to quote an extremely capable woman who molded her husband into the 29th President of the United States:

“I have only one real hobby – my husband.” – Florence Harding

How about this?

Alain

Last Saturday was a sunny but rather chilly day in Marin, especially in the late afternoon when the sun retreats behind the Civic Center building. This didn’t prevent some pétanque devotees from showing up and practicing their favorite game.

According to the experts, Pétanque is good for the body and equally good for the soul. So, my lubovnitsa and I go to the local field on a regular basis to play a few games and keep in touch and enquire about AWOL friends.

People are creatures of habit and can easily fall into a dull routine, doing the same things and seeing the same people day after day. So, on Sunday, my friend Jean-Claude Bunand and I decided to have an afternoon delight by going to a fabled place called Lamorinda

According to another friend (who shall remain nameless), it is an area where the sun always shines, populated by friendly half-naked natives; they will invite you without any chichi to their tables, games, and tepees.
Who could resist such an invite?

After a 45 minutes ride, we arrived at the Promised Land around 1:30 PM. Everybody was having lunch and we were greeted enthusiastically by the natives. We were offered flowery leis, food, drinks, and some gold ingots by the local vahines. We were also invited to participate in a few games with them.

We gratefully accepted and played a few matches with the friendly natives. After a little while, due to a (permanent) grumpy back, I stopped playing and concentrated on memorializing this event for our grandchildren. Armed with Sneaky Pete (my discreet little camera) I spent about an hour documenting the feats of the natives. They were good and photogenic, but definitely younger than our own aging arthritic members.

To quote an unknown philosopher, age is no big deal, “but the side-effects are getting harder to ignore.” – I can vouch for that.

Around 4:30 pm, most of the regulars had left and we decided to do the same thing.

A particular group of six though was not about to quit and continued playing. According to the legend, they play until dark or until they drop to the ground from exhaustion. Some people stay behind to carry the limp bodies to their cars.

To summarize, it was an afternoon delight, spent with the extremely friendly natives. If someday, you wonder what to do, I recommend Lamorinda, the magic land across the Bay where the sun and the skirted natives are always hot and friendly.

When you go there, tell them Alain sent you.

Alain

PS: Click on “My photos” to feast your eyes on the friendly natives.