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Post by lagatta on May 20, 2020 11:32:14 GMT
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Post by lagatta on May 19, 2020 21:04:12 GMT
A can of Cidre gingembre "Bone Dry" (less than 1gr of residual sugar). It is a very pleasant drink (I usually dislike sweet ciders and sweet beverages in general). This cider is fermented with fresh ginger and is especially good with Asian food.
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Post by lagatta on May 19, 2020 18:50:44 GMT
Yes, I also try to shop early, however a bit later than the 7-8 a.m slot because the buses are full (healthcare workers) then. Now I'll ride my bicycle so no longer a problem.
I have a pretty red cotton mask.
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Post by lagatta on May 19, 2020 9:24:36 GMT
Casimira, most of the groceries or "superettes" I frequent are about that size. "Supermarché Pa" (the Greek one) is no larger than that. Harder to judge the size of "Milano" (the Italian one, obviously) as it has grown like groceries in Italy, taking over a series of small retail areas. Even my local "Métro" (a chain, that has some very large supermarkets in more suburban areas) is no larger than that. I feel safer in those; in larger stores we are herded like cattle these days. Was so happy that the Vietnamese superette has reopened.
I did go to a larger Métro yesterday, and directions are indicated (as in smaller shops), meaning I had to pass through an entire aisle of chips and other junk food. I managed to not even look at anything - I think I'm not the only person who is strangely attracted by that non-food in these times, but am pleased to have avoided a temptation that is actually more than a bit disgusting.
We finally have some local products such as asparagus and radishes, a few greens. Very late this year.
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Post by lagatta on May 19, 2020 0:07:00 GMT
Yes, of course the Radio-Canada story also mentioned that.
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Post by lagatta on May 18, 2020 13:51:55 GMT
Radio-Canada (radio) news pretty much devoted to Piccoli, a change from endless COVID...
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Post by lagatta on May 18, 2020 0:33:16 GMT
Was beautiful Dora a stray? My utterly lovely wee black Livia was a street cat; her mum and bro have also been rehomed. Livia is solid black, mum and bro are a bit tuxie. They are all small, and all lovely. Mum took wonderful care of her boy and girl.
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Post by lagatta on May 18, 2020 0:28:21 GMT
Actually, there is now some decent instant coffee - Nescafé gold espresso for one, also some Italian brands. More decent than one woule think,and useful if the cafetière is out of commission. Can't even fathom not drinking coffee, though I don't usually drink very much nowadays.
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Post by lagatta on May 17, 2020 20:46:50 GMT
That is true. I know quite a few Jewish people (especially Sephardic) called Maurice, so at least we know they are Semites, if that is of any interest.
By the way, Livia is a cat, so I don't think she gives a fig about the origin of her name. However, she is named after a late human friend named Livio (both had very black hair though the human Livio was a Venetian and very black hair isn't particularly northeastern Italian) but it causes her, as a cat, zero existential angst as far as I can make out.
My previous cat was Renzo. He lived to 20 1/2 and was named after the main male character in the Manzoni novel I promessi sposi. Renzo was adventurous (the fictional human one and the real feline one), so it stuck.
Nadja's name came both from the Romanian atlete Nadia Comenici and the surrealist muse Nadja. I don't like going back as my memories get a bit fuzzy, but I love every one of my cats. Far more than certain people
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Post by lagatta on May 17, 2020 10:44:25 GMT
The name 'Le café d'avant' really hits home. I so miss popping into a café.
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Post by lagatta on May 16, 2020 23:37:20 GMT
I assure you that there is ABSOLUTELY no reason I should be checked for either. It was just a very creepy dream about the loss of touch. I have no physical contact with humans whatsoever, and have zero perverse thoughts about my wee livia.
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Post by lagatta on May 16, 2020 23:33:29 GMT
My petty personal trauma was an unpleasant dream, erotic but not in a pleasant or hopeful way. A guy pawing me and although there was something repulsive about him (not physically, he was what would be viewed as an attractive man), I was not at all happy about the situation, and then, some kind of authority figure came along and chastised us for violating the lockdown rules. Fortunately I woke up after that.
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Post by lagatta on May 16, 2020 22:31:38 GMT
I gagged on the only smoothie sample I was ever offered.
Of course, due very severe childhood cow milk allergies, I'd never tasted anything like that, and in general I' don't like sweets (no friends, they are not the only indulgent, calorific or fatty thing that exists).
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Post by lagatta on May 16, 2020 12:18:30 GMT
Yes, I also love that coffee and must find another source, as the café where I usually buy it is temporarily closed.
Livia is outside, but that is fine. She never strays far from our garden. It is still a bit cool for me to enjoy coffee on either of the balconies. The leaves were very late this year; they are just filling out now. I'll wait another week to plant flowers and herbs on the balconies.
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Post by lagatta on May 16, 2020 11:56:17 GMT
There used to be a bowling (quilles) alley above a nearby supermarket, but it closed down and is now a "co-working" spot.
There is actually a nearby pub, frequented mostly by LGBTQ+ people but welcoming all, that actually has a lane or two. So perhaps bowling will come back in style.
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Post by lagatta on May 16, 2020 0:26:19 GMT
I presume you have a chest freezer, not necessarily a large one?
I'd been avoiding meat too, but couldn't resist some duck "drumettes", that resemble miniature drumsticks, but are from the wings. I stewed them in my little countertop convection oven, at low heat. Fortunately they were still tasty, so I made a "parmentier" or what is sometimes called a (potato) pie in Britain and Ireland; the duck meat pulled (and improved with onion, garlic and aromatic spices - not hot ones)and covered with a mash of potato, poultry stock and a a beaten egg to make it stiff.
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Post by lagatta on May 15, 2020 13:22:15 GMT
They do that here too, but the problem is that 7 a.m. is one of the busiest times on the métro and buses here as healthcare workers still have to show up, and their shifts start earlier than those of office workers (many of whom are working at home or laid-off). I think a slightly later morning slot would have been a better choice.
Yes, most younger people out that early in the morning would be at work; if not, younger people seem to be more likely to sleep in, even if there is nowhere to go out for the evening now!
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Post by lagatta on May 15, 2020 11:34:54 GMT
Of course, at least in middle-class families, nobody ever goes to the toilet either. There are many such conventions.
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Post by lagatta on May 15, 2020 2:27:49 GMT
Trump and Bolsonaro are besties. Don't know what the chatter is now.
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Post by lagatta on May 14, 2020 19:46:28 GMT
I'm glad my soups and stocks are brightening friends' days. I'm wondering if at least some elderly people in care facilities would find some joy in eating if they had something other than tasteless pap, adapted to their medical needs and dentition.
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Post by lagatta on May 14, 2020 12:51:17 GMT
Yes, no doubt that the US (with such a bozo at the helm) poses a far greater military, economic and political threat than Brazil, but Bolsonaro is sure doing his part to destroy the Amazon basin and turn it into grazing land and megafarming (soya etc). Bolsonaro could also have a baleful impact on neighbouring South American countries that have also fallen under dictatorial rule a decade after Brazil did.
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Post by lagatta on May 14, 2020 12:06:26 GMT
By the way, Bolsonaro beats out both Trump and Johnson in the bozo competition, but I think he deserves a different category. He actually WANTS to kill people (he was involved in the Brazilian dictatorship decades back). I get alerts from a newpaper there; I don't actually read Portuguese but can get the gist of it. This paper also has a Spanish and an English edition (summaries). He is just itching for a pretext to restore military rule.
As for eyeglasses, I have very mild presbyopia and need them just for reading at length or reading fine print; I don't usually wear glasses walking around and take them out of the bag when I need to read something. Usually this is an advantage, but not this time! And I can't stand sunglasses.
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Post by lagatta on May 14, 2020 11:54:43 GMT
What's a library?
Finally some decent weather. It had been very cool. Will be about 17 or 18 today, and up to 20 soon. Still cool for May, but at least I can contemplate doing some balcony gardening. Our muguet is late but now is really taking off. I'm headed out to shop soon. One of the problems one doesn't think of is that very few public or semi-public (as in stores) toilets are open, which can really be a problem. I'll have one coffee before I set out, but that is it.
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Post by lagatta on May 13, 2020 11:29:43 GMT
I did walk to that park just because of its Québec interest. I haven't actually seen the new Samuel-de-Champlain bridge; I haven't crossed the river to Longueuil this year. Here is more on the park, or garden: www.paris.fr/equipements/jardin-samuel-de-champlain-1770I'm sneezing and blowing my nose, and hope to get sinuses cleared before any jaunts outdoors. Seasonal allergies, but they could scare others.
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Grief
May 11, 2020 23:04:06 GMT
Post by lagatta on May 11, 2020 23:04:06 GMT
I do have friends afar who have died of this shit, but I think I'll discuss them later...
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Post by lagatta on May 11, 2020 22:32:32 GMT
I've been stripping it for quite a while as well. I do love the taste of fresh corn, but really don't want to risk any teeth (fragile due to childhood severe dairy allergy and lack of proper supplements back then - this is no longer a problem, thank Bastet!
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Post by lagatta on May 11, 2020 14:28:21 GMT
Tod, are they in season down there? Do you have two asparagus seasons? We've started to get (early) autumn strawberries here; which is a pleasure. But we don't have the spring ones yet this year; it is very cool and everything is late. We do have local asparagus now, but it is very expensive; I'll wait a couple of weeks.
If it's only for myself, I cheat and cut them up, but the harder but edible parts in first and the points at the end. I don't usually strip the very hard part of the stalk; I stick those in the freezer with other soup vegetables.
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Post by lagatta on May 10, 2020 22:29:52 GMT
As for the Mardi Gras Indians, yes, it is the same story, as many enslaved Africans in Brazil were welcomed as fellow human beings by Indigenous communities. One of the reasons so many Brazilians are at least tri-racial. And now they have a white supremacist of all things as President.
I'll try to find some more detailed accounts, but I can't possibly conserve everything I studied at university... We didn't have the same computer storage systems (though my graduate studies were done in the early personal computer epoch). I can look them up, but that is ... work.
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Post by lagatta on May 10, 2020 20:25:01 GMT
Sorry, I thought it was an English translation of an Italian giallo. One gets a bit confused. I'm trying to read Brazilian Portuguese these days. (though really Bolsonarish & Trumpish).
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Grief
May 10, 2020 1:11:25 GMT
Post by lagatta on May 10, 2020 1:11:25 GMT
Mich, how horrible... And I know there is absolutely nothing I can do.
As for my friend in Argentina, he is much happier now, as if a double cloud had lifted a bit, but at the same time, the memories of barbarisms are essential.
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