Au Cochonnet Marin

When the unending distressing daily news gets to you, keep calm… and book a pedicure. It will soothe your soul… and your soles. Pedicures, you should know, are the ultimate stress reliever. I can vouch for it. I have done it many times… no later than this morning.

“According to many sources, the history of pedicures goes back 4000 years to the civilizations of Babylon, China, and Egypt and it was then that this practice of looking after one’s feet started.”

 I am pretty sure that (after her camel milk bath) Cleopatra insisted on a pedicure, and what was satisfying to Cleo, will certainly be pleasing to all of us.

When I was young and stupid, I would do the job myself, but it was never as satisfying as having somebody else do it for you. Now that I am wiser (and not as flexible as when I was stupid) I go to a local “nail salon” to have my toes pampered.

And it is done extremely well… mainly by Vietnamese women. They do a thorough job, soaking, cutting, sanding, oiling, and massaging your extremities. But they labor without ever uttering a word, which can be a little disconcerting… especially to a Frenchman. We Latins are born to talk and to kid.

So, to break the monotony of the procedure, I engaged my toe specialist with an innocuous question. She answered with an accented, thin voice, without looking at me. Since my hearing is not perfect anymore and since she was wearing a mask, I didn’t comprehend a single word of her answer. But being a diplomat, I smiled politely and nodded my head in a positive manner.

This was the extent of our conversation. When dealing with a woman, a Frenchman will almost always try to make her laugh. How can you remain indifferent when a man tries so hard to charm you? In French, this badinage is called “conter fleurette » or flirting, as the English-speaking folks would say.

But this time, my legendary charm did not seem to work. My pedicure lady remained as silent and unmoved as the Egyptian Sphinx.

Oh well, win some, lose some. But most important my toes are happy. At the end of the procedure, they bowed and wiggled approvingly. And when your toes are happy, it takes a lot of weight off your feet… and your mind.

If you are stressed, get a pedicure. Tell them Alain sent you.

Alain

“A blog is a regular feature appearing as part of an online publication that typically relates to a particular topic and consists of articles and personal commentary by one or more authors.”

Why would anybody run a blog? Well, there are thousands of reasons, but every individual has a different motivation. To me, a blog is a way to exercise my grey cells, and a tool that can be used to educate or influence people… or when reason fails, to blast some unsavory characters or government policies. And thank God, we don’t live in Russia.

It is a safety valve that allows bloggers to vent when something frustrates them to the extreme. Like the abominable war of aggression in Ukraine, the recent preposterous decisions of the Supreme Court, the mass shootings… or the outrageous amount of noise generated by souped-up vehicles.

I recently discovered an old-fashioned breakfast place that serves good dishes at reasonable prices. But Bacon, on Grant Avenue in Novato, also has a terrace that is unfortunately exposed to an unbearable amount of traffic noise.

It seems that all the exhibitionist rednecks of the area come to Grant Avenue to parade their purposely unmufflered punkmobiles. This motorcade makes enough noise to wake up the dead and it is extremely annoying.

But when you run a blog, you don’t grab a gun when something or somebody upsets you. You don’t respond with a mass shooting to show your discontent. You go home, calm down and pour your thoughts into your computer. You then share your story with as many people as possible. You fight cretinous punks with words, not bullets.

Even if this does not work, it gives you the satisfaction to tell morons what you think of them; something you probably could not do properly in the heat of an argument.

So yes, I like the food and the service of Bacon, but the proximity of the street and the dreadful noise generated by some vehicles make it somewhat undesirable.

Our planet is under attack from all azimuths. Where are the decibel cops? Having a beer while waiting for doomsday?

Alain

Yesterday, we went to Sonoma of course, to hear Jean-Michel sing La Marseillaise, to eat Chef Marco’s revolutionary food… and to abstain (me) from playing in the tournament.

There was some festivity in downtown Sonoma, and it didn’t prove easy to park but we finally managed, thanks to Tamara’s resourcefulness.

After registering Tamara to play in the tournament, I prepared to spend a relaxed day, gossiping with my buddies, and gawking at the players. I was not going to photograph anything this time. But as I mentioned many times previously, photography is an addiction, and you cannot go anywhere without getting the compulsion to snap a few shots.

I purposely omitted bringing Big Bertha to the field, but I always carry Sneaky Pete with me, and after a while, I couldn’t resist the urge to take some pictures. There were 24 triplettes registered, for a total of 72 players plus various onlookers, so I had my choice of targets.

When taking photographs, I prefer to sit with my back to the sun, and since the Sonoma field lacks a leafy umbrella, there is always plenty of it. When I photograph pétanque players, I am always first attracted to form, oddity, and fashion. If you dress with originality and flair, you probably will be among the first to be photographed.

Two timed games were played in the morning, and two other games were played after lunch. As usual, the number of wins and points dictates the ranking.

At lunch, Jean-Michel dressed in a bright tricolor ensemble regaled us with La Marseillaise, a rabble-rousing call to arms. Some people accompanied him and those who couldn’t drank some mutinous wine.

By 4:00 pm, all the games had been completed and 4 teams made the grade for the finals. Tamara and her team managed to win 3 games, but they did not qualify to play in the finals.

1st place: Gilles Karpowicz, Larry and Genevieve Etallaz
2nd place: Dave Lanter, Matty Lackey and June

Alain

PS: don’t forget to click on “My photos” to look at the actors of this revolutionary tournament.