Yuenyeung: coffee with tea

 Oh the things you find sometimes just browsing the internet because a trivial question pops into your head. It happened to me recently: I was wondering if there was any people that drank tea with coffee, I mean together, in the same cup. I was wondering if it was a thing or just some abomination that existed in my twisted, imaginative mind. Well, a quick Google search made me discover that it is actually a real thing: it's called yuenyeung, as in ying and yang. Apparently, it originates from Hong Kong, where it is popular. I love tea, but loathe coffee, so for me this sounds like the stuff of nightmare, a Frankenstein's Monster of a drink, a brewing mutation. I'm not sure I would dare to try it, even out of curiosity. Be that as it may, yuenyueng is the word of the day.

Le Kiosque du Quartier

 Bon j'apprends totalementpar hasard qu'il y a une librairie à Arvida et ce, depuis 2023. Comment se fait-il que je ne le savais pas? Elle s'appelle Le Kiosque du Quartier et elle a une page Facebook. Mais sinon, j'en sais très peu sur son sujet. Sauf que ce sera un nouveau commerce à visiter lors de notre retour au Saguenay.

Sweater Weather VS Sweaty Weather

I saw this meme recently on one of the many Halloween and autumnal pages I follow. It showed up numerous times. It was calling me, I guess. We have been having a spell of cold, or at least colder, weather recently. Not enough to wear thick jumpers, but enough to wear long sleeve shirts. Otherwise, the meme says it all, doesn't it?

"Crevettes sauce mangue gingembre"

 Des fois, mon père m'envoie des photos du souper qu'il a cuisiné avec ma mère, rien que pour m'envoyer des photos. Ce qui me rappelle que je suis médiocre chef. Mais enfin bref, mes parents ont cuisiné hier des crevettes sauce mangue et gingembre. Sur un lit de riz. C'est juste ce qu'il faut d'exotique, je dois dire. Ils en font assez souvent ces temps-ci parce qu'ils ont des stocks de crevettes. Bon, enfin bref, voici la photo.

#CosyReadingNight

 Mark your calendar, at least if you live in the UK: in a month's time, for Independent Bookshop Week, a special event has been organised to mark its end: #CosyReadingNight. I don't know what kind of activities there will be, but I guess the name is pretty much self-explanatory. And I am all for a quiet night spent reading in a comfy chair. So yeah, I have one Saturday evening sorted out.

Bouteilles de Saguenay Dry

Les choses que l'on trouve dans les internets: j'ai appris que quelqu'un avait une collection de bouteilles de le Saguenay Dry. Des antiquités. Je n'ai jamais été un grand fan de ginger ale, mais pour une raison quelconque, j'ai toujours aimé le Saguenay Dry. Mon côté Bleuet chauvin qui aime tous les produits de la région, j'imagine. Mais sinon, j'aimerais vraiment qu'ils en fassent encore. Parce que je suis un incorrigible nostalgique.

The New Italian Connection?

Last Sunday, late afternoon, Wolfie and I went outside so I could teach him to ride a bike. He is getting better, although he needs to build his confidence. But I digress. Outside the house in the corner, there were our neighbours, with some friends. These neighbours, I didn't know much about them, except that they are having their house extended. They are a couple in their thirties. So anyway, they had visitors, another couple and their child, a little boy of two or thereabout. When he saw Wolfie, he was drawn to him, as if he found a new friend. I asked Wolfie to say hello. I could tell they were speaking another language, but it didn't struck me it was Italian. Then the mum told me her little boy didn't speak English yet. And then I could hear they were Italian. So I introduced myself and Wolfie to them, and to the little boy, in Italian. We had a quick chat, mixing English and Italian, Wolfie spoke a few words of French because well, why the heck not. I didn't spend much time chatting, mind you, it was all an impromptu talk due to circumstances. I didn't even properly introduce myself to my neighbours. But I do hope to find time speaking to them and learn to know them better. They seem quite friendly. Being a foreigner, it is nice to see people in the same boat as you, so to speak. And I also hope to improve my Italian.

Pain au fromage

 Mon frère PJ a fait un pain au fromage. Je n'ai pas la patience pour faire du pain, encore moins du pain au fromage, mais enfant, j'adorais ce rituel familial. C'était une tradition chez nous. J'ai blogué sur le sujet en 2022. PJ m'a rappelé qu'on faisait des soupers de pain au fromage, une fois qu'il était sorti du four et frais. On invitait ma grand-mère et ça faisait des célébrations impromptues à la bonne franquette. Il m'arrivait aussi d'acheter du pain au fromage à Montréal et d'en faire un souper le vendredi soir. Mais enfin bref, tout ça pour dire que j'aimerais vraiment être capable de pétrir du pain.

October, October

No, no, I am not thinking of autumn just yet. Okay, yes, I am. I always am, when autumn is still a long way ahead. I long for it. No, I am blogging today about a novel I found at random in a garden centre, of all places. Titled October, October. An autumnal novel seemingly not about Halloween, albeit it must show up at some point in the story. It is, from what I understand, a coming of age story about a girl named October who rescues a baby owl. I did not buy it, mostly because from August until, well, Halloween, I read horror stories non stop. But I might buy it next time I see it and add to my TBR list for summertime, just so it can help me get through the hot days of summertime. Just a thought.

Mafalda et le bonheur

J'ai (re)trouvé ce gag sur la page Facebook officielle de Mafalda. Comme bien des gags de Mafalda, la page officielle m'aide à les redécouvrir, et dans en espagnol en plus (parfois en italien). J'arrive à comprendre. Mais enfin bref, ce que j'aime dans ce gag, c'est qu'il fait sourire plutôt que rire et que c'est ça a une portée un peu philosophique.

The Boys' Night In

 Yesterday evening, my wife went out with some friends. She rarely does that and I think she needed it. But that means Wolfie and I spend the evening in. We had, in effect, a boys' night in, the first proper one in months, I believe. I think our last one was in March. It went as it always does: we have pizza dinner, we watch a movie on Netflix. That's about it. We are very lazy, but we enjoy it tremendously. That's the advantage of being a father of a cheeky little boy: he allows you to live a second childhood. I know I said it time and again, but it's still true. So Yes, I am looking forward to the next night in, whenever that may be.

Olives aux atocas

Mon père m'a envoyé cette photo d'olives farcies aux atocas. Bon, c'est une première. J'adore les olives, j'aime les atocas, quoique je les mange plus en hiver. Je ne suis pas certain que ce soit un mariage inspiré, mais j'essaierais bien quand même.

The Godfather, the Game

 Oh the things one finds in the local toy shop. As many people into crime fiction, whether they are books or films, I am a fan of The Godfather. Well, it turns out that there is a board game (at least I think it can count as a board game, I mean it was in the board games section) called The Godfather: Last Family Standing. I own already too many board games, we have too little time to play them, we don't really invite enough people often enough to have party games anyway, but I must confess, I am curious. Anyone played this game? Is it worth 20 quid?

Les hippopotames roses

Photo prise par mon père à Montréal. L'art urbain. Des hippopotames roses. Ou, comme on les appelle parfois dans cette famille, des "popotames". C'est mignon.

Say it with Champagne

 I mentioned two days ago that I was celebrating my work anniversary: I have been three years in my job. My bosses are very happy with me, or so it seems: they thanked me by sending me this bottle of Veuve Clicquot. A genuine, authentic Champagne, not just a fizzy wine. I must be doing something right. I was expecting something, but not this. So I was overjoyed when the delivery man knocked at my doorto hand me this bottle. It's not only to celebrate my three years, it is also because the project I am on has been extended and even expanded. I was profusely thanked for my hard work this week and they told me how thankful they were with the work I have done for them. Well, it is sweet in itself, but it is made all the sweeter as more than four years ago, I was in a different job, which I hated. I put the Veuve Clicquot in the fridge and drinking it this weekend to celebrate will be oh so sweet!

Murale sur Saint-Laurent

Mon père m'a envoyé cette photo prise sur le Boulevard Saint-Laurent. Montréal change et je ne le vois pas: je ne me rapelle pas avoir vu ce genre de murale lors de mes derniers séjours. C'est joli, je dois dire, même si un peu criard.

Pound Puppies

We went to the local toy shop last weekend. We did not stay long, just long enough to buy a birthday present for a friend of Wolfie. And enough time to see the stocks they have this time of year, thus giving me inspiration for future birthday presents. I was happy to see that they have a good selection of Pound Puppies. I knew they had them since last year. I was even tempted to buy one (the bottom right) for Wolfie, but decided to wait a bit. What is nice about Pound Puppies, is that each is unique. So it is almost like adopting a real dog, except without all the troubles.

Mai ici (et ailleurs)

 De tous les mois du printemps, le mois de mai est d'habitude le plus estival. Il y fait beau et chaud. Enfin, d'habitude. Ce fût le cas la fin de semaine dernière, un peu la semaine d'avant. Mais ça a soudainement changé dès lundi, avec des températures et de la météo qui donne au mois de mai des airs d'octobre. Pas que je ne m'en plaigne, remarquez. Je n'aime pas les températures trop chaudes et le samedi, alors qu'il faisait un soleil splendide... je trouvais ça suant par moments. Heureusement que nous étions à l'ombre. Mais c'était peut-être une aberration: j'ai vu les prévisions météo et il risque de faire frais, sinon froid, pendant une semaine de plus. Quant à moi, c'est tant mieux.

Work Anniversary

I forgot to mention it when it happened, but thought I better say it here: last Monday was my work anniversary. I have been three years in the same job. I hadn't expected it when I started. I had been temping for about nine months and before that temp job I hated my previous job, my then employer and everything about it. To say I am much happier in my current position is an understatement. It's not perfect, but it is the best employer I had in years, maybe since I am on the job market. So although I did not make a big celebration of it (or indeed any at all), I think it is important to mention it here and mark the anniversary.

Mille-feuilles érable et pacanes

Mon père m'a envoyé cette photo d'un mille-feuilles (ou mille-feuille, ou mille feuilles, enfin voir ce billet) à l'érable et aux pacanes. Il l'a acheté Ô Petit Paris. Ce sera un arrêt obligé lors de mon prochain séjour à Montréal.