tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506Sun, 13 Nov 2011 09:56:06 +0000Paris je t'aimeBernard TapiebooksrillettesimmigrationChevernyLes Misérablesfilmsrandom musingsartFrench lawsFrench civil servicetheatreJeanne d'ArcrecollectionsJean GabinpronunciationEnglish dominancesportssmoking banrecipesFlyboysaccentsweddingsThe WrestlerJean Renofarcelinguistic confusionstimulusnamesdiyproduct reviewsfellow FrancophilesMad MenSesame StreetMarcel Duchamprantsgovernmentwork ethicwriterschateauxQuébecaccent marksjournalistic annoyancesSégolène RoyalbureaucracyNew Orleansstrikesle foodingTwittermispellingsPhilippe PetitChampagnetales from Francemispronunciationspied noirvillainscuisineHarry PotterFrench electionsAcademy AwardsJean-Pierre Jeunetriotswinehorsemeatmechanics of speakingla voileMarion CotillardMickey RourkeMaghrebinesheroesDavid Lee Rothchildhood recollectionsteachingPepe le PewbirthdayPittsburghculturePépé le MokoDavid SedarisOscarshow-toconfessionsfashionEiffel Towertelevisionemail annoyancesCentre Georges Pompidoufoodstupid quotessmokinghistoryscholarly annoyancesidiotsLe Cercle RougehealthToursThe sometimes-linguistic observations of a disgruntled American francophile.http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)Blogger97125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-5220011172873914113Tue, 18 Jan 2011 00:37:00 +00002011-01-28T22:40:54.212-05:00culturefilmsJean-Pierre Jeunet When I saw Jean-Pierre Jeunet's latest film, "Les Micmacs à tire-larigot," back in September, I had to double-check my ticket stub: I thought I'd wandered into the middle of a Jeunet retrospective. "Micmacs"- the English-language title of the film - looks more than a little familiar. And it's not just because Jeunet has a distictive cinematographic style or that he uses the same actors http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/GE4SOeTD830/tropes-of-jean-pierre-jeunet.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)0<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/GE4SOeTD830" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2011/01/tropes-of-jean-pierre-jeunet.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-3123482833124731226Mon, 06 Dec 2010 02:44:00 +00002010-12-05T22:33:56.492-05:00English dominancescholarly annoyancesrantsbureaucracySo, France's current spate of strikes is largely over. The country was in chaos for a few weeks (months?), but Sarko did what he had to do and made those French retirements slightly less cushy (am I the only one that prefers to shorten it to "'Kozy"? He's just so cute and little when he stands next to that Amazon wife of his.). But, I digress. The big French news story on this side of the pond http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/eoNDJppq49M/end-of-strikes-but-start-of-cuts.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)0<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/eoNDJppq49M" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2010/12/end-of-strikes-but-start-of-cuts.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-5085961036346414459Mon, 18 Oct 2010 15:05:00 +00002010-10-18T11:05:35.184-04:00strikeswork ethic Apologies for the absence - let's just say I've been striking in solidarity. After all, France just wouldn't be France without its inordinately young retirement age and generous pensions. As much as the cultural inertia bothers me at times, if it means keeping some quintessentially French institutions intact, I'm all for it.http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/O8_IJCoxWkA/solidarite.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)0<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/O8_IJCoxWkA" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2010/10/solidarite.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-3234191636153472098Fri, 23 Jul 2010 19:52:00 +00002010-07-23T15:53:51.246-04:00product reviewsQuébecfood I have just found the most ambrosial yogurt on the planet. It's from Liberté, a company based in Québec. I've been running a yogurt experiment lately to try and find a brand I actually like and this one won the contest totally by accident. I happened to look up above the Greek yogurt in the store to find, right at my eye level, the word "Méditerranée" and I was hooked. The company had me at http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/v64BRr7bnEM/moi-moi-la-liberte.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)0<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/v64BRr7bnEM" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2010/07/moi-moi-la-liberte.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-5211721334558452947Sat, 17 Jul 2010 04:29:00 +00002010-07-18T18:49:42.051-04:00culturefilmsJean GabinPépé le Mokostupid quotesrants Hollywood, can we talk about this? Now, I know that you've been playing catch-up with the French since they invented film and all and then went on to perfect it. But there's really no need to be so pathetic in the chase. We've come a long way from the whole Pépé le Moko/Algiers thing, where you had to change the ending because of the Hayes Code. A spokesman for Jay Roach, who is directing http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/OpUFi0VIDSo/warmed-up-leftovers-anyone.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)0<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/OpUFi0VIDSo" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2010/07/warmed-up-leftovers-anyone.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-8185221645205975267Fri, 16 Jul 2010 15:53:00 +00002010-07-16T12:00:30.122-04:00journalistic annoyanceshow-towinediyA DIY clip from France on how to open a bottle of wine without a corkscrew has been making the rounds on Facebook and other platforms lately. Pat Kiernan, a morning news anchor in New York City, posted it on his blog, Pat's Papers, and it took off like, well, a busted champagne cork. Here's the original video, methodically demonstrated by a well-dressed Frenchman: Once he posted, people http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/bkRtKoOueT8/no-embouteillage-here.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)0<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/bkRtKoOueT8" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2010/07/no-embouteillage-here.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-6341326667914865755Sat, 10 Jul 2010 13:27:00 +00002010-07-10T09:27:11.900-04:00journalistic annoyancesThe person at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette who is copy editing headlines and the one who's editing article copy don't seem to be communicating too well today. I'm not sure what's going on here, but all I know is that, for once, it's not the writer's fault. The same mistake appears not only in the headline, but also in the image caption and in the RSS feed. All I have to say is, "tsk tsk."http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/Zv4Ha9cnVIY/copy-editing-fail.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)0<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/Zv4Ha9cnVIY" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2010/07/copy-editing-fail.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-331706783773715701Sat, 10 Jul 2010 04:27:00 +00002010-07-10T09:47:54.161-04:00films Despicable Me is one of the few movies I've ever described as "cute" in my entire life. Because that's what it is; it's adorable. It's the kind of movie that makes you laugh until you're suddenly tearing up and cooing at the screen. However, my initial impression was less favorable. I had seen a scant preview prior to another film and it came across as yet another gimmicky http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/duyq-bDGcjc/despicable-me-moi-moche-et-mechant.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)0<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/duyq-bDGcjc" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2010/07/despicable-me-moi-moche-et-mechant.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-2968222679092471825Wed, 02 Jun 2010 13:38:00 +00002010-06-02T09:42:52.877-04:00writersculturejournalistic annoyancesle foodingfoodcuisine Adam Gopnik had an interesting article in The New Yorker recently. It was yet another omen of the cataclysm in French cooking that has now been foretold so many times that it's no wonder Nostradamus was French. Gopnik's focus was on a French culinary movement called "Le Fooding." The words, it is explained, are supposed to be an amalgamation of "food" and "feeling" but instead give the http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/4LiY4gbtRhw/french-food-crisis-downgraded-from-red.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)0<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/4LiY4gbtRhw" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2010/06/french-food-crisis-downgraded-from-red.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-1975150582374706768Sun, 02 May 2010 16:47:00 +00002010-05-02T13:02:25.972-04:00writersculturefellow Francophilesbooksrecipesfoodcuisine I'm enjoying this book, in spite of myself. I mean no disrespect to Elizabeth Bard with that remark; it's just that Francophile nonfiction written for an American audience tends to come in two flavors: 'look-at-the-fabulous-sophisticated-life-I-lead' and 'you-fat-stupid-American-why-can't-you-stop-gaining-weight-or-learn-the-language'. Luckily, Elizabeth Bard's book is neither of those. It's http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/On6jXmpqDJg/review-lunch-in-paris-love-story-with.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)5<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/On6jXmpqDJg" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2010/05/review-lunch-in-paris-love-story-with.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-8491478330713304784Fri, 23 Apr 2010 01:12:00 +00002010-04-22T22:32:30.534-04:00writersbooksfashion Literary Rags, an awesome company that produces apparel for bibliophiles, is currently boasting quite a library of French authors. Of course, I'll be getting myself a Victor Hugo, but the selection spans novels, poetry, philosophy and fantasy: Proust, Rimbaud, Voltaire, Descartes, Saint-Exupéry and, somewhat depressingly, Sartre (he's also April's Shirt of the Month and is enjoying quite the http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/DbVkSYfpCYw/thinking-francophiles-tshirts.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)0<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/DbVkSYfpCYw" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2010/04/thinking-francophiles-tshirts.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-8990302599964078481Tue, 13 Apr 2010 03:28:00 +00002010-04-22T22:38:59.521-04:00villainsculturefarcerandom musingsheroesfood Frenchy flotsam of the moment: The Times of London has a nifty slide show on 7 ways to wear a breton shirt.  I still think I wouldn't look good in horizontal stripes. See, if you're cubist, you can get away with that. In a scene straight out of classic French farce, a group of robbers tried to tunnel into a Paris bank on Easter Sunday.  They didn't succeed, but they sure did garner the http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/uoq3KabXc58/bric-brac.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)0<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/uoq3KabXc58" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2010/04/bric-brac.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-7169876115281985575Thu, 08 Apr 2010 19:05:00 +00002010-04-08T15:05:43.701-04:00linguistic confusiongovernment In reading about the French government's Francomot competition this week, I came across this gem: "On the jury were a dozen French personalities including the rapper MC Solaar (praised as “a dextrous handler of words” by Joyandet)." The Francomot competition is about preserving French as a homogeneous language and resisting the intrusion of words from other languages, primarily English.  Whyhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/ynpUsnzJWgQ/rapper-defends-proper-speech.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)0<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/ynpUsnzJWgQ" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2010/04/rapper-defends-proper-speech.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-392664670889965167Thu, 01 Apr 2010 16:38:00 +00002010-04-01T12:38:31.069-04:00Happy April Fool's Day!  Do yourself a favor: check the back of your shirt before you go out in public today. http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/yZXMxoEj4z0/poisson-davril.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)0<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/yZXMxoEj4z0" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2010/04/poisson-davril.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-322833817053282686Mon, 18 Jan 2010 02:44:00 +00002010-01-17T21:46:20.214-05:00Even Facebook has figured out that I'm a francophile...this is what awaited me when I logged in over the weekend: Not only did they figure out that I sometimes type in French, but I type in "French French", not Canadian French or Belgian French.  Some pretty smart folks, they are!  I think I will take them up on their offer and poke around a bit and see how things translate.  (Yes, this is http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/wsR5BTTdxXI/why-yes-i-would-thanks.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)0<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/wsR5BTTdxXI" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2010/01/why-yes-i-would-thanks.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-8992645711734876796Thu, 07 Jan 2010 04:29:00 +00002010-04-22T22:38:22.719-04:00culturefilmsToursrillettesJeanne d'ArcconfessionsTwitterrandom musingsChampagnefoodcuisine Some random Frenchy-type thoughts that are floating around my brain: What is it about putting a francophone wrestler into an English-language movie that gives it that automatic air of adventure? The Princess Bride and Sherlock Holmes just wouldn't be the same without "a Leviathan Frenchman with fists like Bayonne hams" (thank you, Wendy Ide, for quite possibly the best quote in a movie review http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/kHX2VZadbPI/random-thoughts.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)0<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/kHX2VZadbPI" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2010/01/random-thoughts.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-208751750107363462Tue, 08 Sep 2009 02:06:00 +00002009-09-07T22:25:09.747-04:00booksThe New York Times' Arts Beat blog reported a few days ago on the demise of a popular French-language bookshop in Rockefeller Center, the Librarie de France. The shop will close September 30.Not being much of a fan of New York City, I've never stayed long enough to find gems such as this one, and I'm sorry to hear of its closing. It's a sad trajectory for independent businesses as it is withouthttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/xGZeDXW-ib0/la-morte-de-la-librarie.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)0<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/xGZeDXW-ib0" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2009/09/la-morte-de-la-librarie.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-4304029627798105159Tue, 25 Aug 2009 23:10:00 +00002009-08-27T16:46:46.646-04:00Mad MentelevisionrecipesfoodMy favorite current show, Mad Men, had its season three premiere last Sunday and the hubby and I hosted a party for our friends to come watch it.I'd spent a good week watching every episode of season two on blu-ray and exploring the set's special features, one of which is a delightful clip of the great André Soltner, chef and later owner of the much-vaunted restaurant, Lutèce, creating his famoushttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/EsNyCA_bS4Y/ode-to-lutece.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)2<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/EsNyCA_bS4Y" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2009/08/ode-to-lutece.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-538838027055173924Wed, 05 Aug 2009 02:16:00 +00002010-05-03T22:45:04.143-04:00culturejournalistic annoyancesbookscuisine I just finished reading Michael Steinberger's recent book, Au Revoir to All That: Food, Wine and the End of France. The title caused me to initally think that this book had been written by a critic from the food industry who hated France. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that Steinberger is actually a Francophile and was honestly trying to investigate the so-called "crisis" in French http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/r69dsVfFrKI/au-revoir-to-all-that.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)2<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/r69dsVfFrKI" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2009/08/au-revoir-to-all-that.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-268713898287879611Fri, 17 Jul 2009 02:46:00 +00002009-07-16T22:48:05.094-04:00tales from FranceconfessionsWhen I read about ModCloth's Terrific Transformations Contest, I inevitably thought about the months I spent in France. Now that it's been over five years since I returned from my extended stay in 2004, I've had the time to really reflect on what I learned during that time and how it changed me forever.I think the main trait that my stay in Touraine changed about me was my level of maturity. http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/CiEapAp7D1g/la-transformation.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)0<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/CiEapAp7D1g" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2009/07/la-transformation.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-7254046054843868184Wed, 08 Jul 2009 00:23:00 +00002009-07-07T22:06:52.200-04:00chateauxculturegovernmentstimulusThe New York Times reported yesterday on France's stimulus package. I have to admit that it sounds much more appealing than ours does currently - a big flashy project like the Château de Fontainebleau makes for much better publicity than our slow roll out of funds. Sometimes I daydream about what it would be like to live in a country in which the arts are so highly valued.I don't mean to say http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/XHyxymvuS7Q/tangible-stimulus.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)0<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/XHyxymvuS7Q" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2009/07/tangible-stimulus.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-8150783122808309033Wed, 15 Apr 2009 04:10:00 +00002009-04-15T00:24:37.169-04:00artscholarly annoyancesmispronunciationsI've nothing against art historians in general - after all, I'm one myself - but there's a recurring problem I've found with certain of these scholars: they also think they're linguists.Many folks assume that because art historians spend their time studying minute details of an artist's life and work, that they are also the foremost authority on the pronunciation of said artist's name. Not all http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/uXEMD5nmL5I/trouble-with-art-historians.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)0<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/uXEMD5nmL5I" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2009/04/trouble-with-art-historians.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-6486630074078956923Tue, 24 Feb 2009 01:01:00 +00002009-02-24T23:54:59.129-05:00OscarsPhilippe PetitAcademy AwardsMickey RourkeMarion CotillardIt turned out to be a fabulous Oscar night for the French, despite Mickey Rourke's lack of awards. Marion Cotillard was a presenter; Jerry Lewis was honored by the Academy for his humanitarian work; Yves Saint Laurent and Christian Dior made their requisite appearances on the stars.But the Frenchman who stole the evening had to be Philippe Petit with his Oscar-balancing act. He gave the best http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/OB7wQDt-Crw/it-turned-out-to-be-fabulous-oscar.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)1<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/OB7wQDt-Crw" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2009/02/it-turned-out-to-be-fabulous-oscar.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-7182651891246137413Tue, 10 Feb 2009 02:15:00 +00002009-02-10T20:51:02.987-05:00The WrestlerfilmsMickey RourkeI finally saw The Wrestler this past weekend. In a word, it is AMAZING. Though I've never been familiar with lead actor Mickey Rourke's career and have never gotten closer to professional wrestling than watching Slim Jim commercials in the early 90s, I am fascinated by this film.There's absolutely nothing French about The Wrestler - it's a truly American film in every sense: plot (washed-up http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/jRBDuPCMUq4/le-retour-de-mickey-rourke.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)0<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/jRBDuPCMUq4" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2009/02/le-retour-de-mickey-rourke.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12825506.post-4338655133505871702Fri, 06 Feb 2009 02:54:00 +00002009-02-05T22:20:59.289-05:00"How hard it is to escape from places. However carefully one goes they hold you - you leave little bits of yourself fluttering on the fences - like rags and shreds of your very life." ~Katherine MansfieldI'm back after a very long hiatus.I made this blog private two years ago because I had reason to believe it was being used to "spy" on me,* but I've revived it mainly due to the hole in my http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~3/F6GqIZD5CS0/encore-une-fois.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Mme.G)3<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bouchers/EXOoN/~4/F6GqIZD5CS0" height="1" width="1"/>http://butcheredfrench.blogspot.com/2009/02/encore-une-fois.html