FRENCH WORD-A-DAY

I was standing on a medieval bridge, over the Nesque River, when I took this photo. I did not notice the tiny mouse until I posted the (larger version of this) photo at Cinéma Vérité. That's when Margaret pointed out la souris. Next, Newforest commented on the"la girouette" and, like that, we all learned the fanciful French word for weather-vane!

 
Camille Claudel: A Novel (fiction): Camille Claudel, an old lady confined to the Asylum for the Insane in Montdevergues, France, reviews her life. Order this novel.
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rigolo, rigolote (ree-go-low, ree-go-lowt) adj

    : funny, comical

Also: rigoler (to laugh)

Kristin will be in Paris on March 1st at Shakespeare and Company (Talk begins at 7 p.m.)
Jean-Marc will be in Iowa City next month and elsewhere in the States... meet him!.
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A Day in a French Life... by Kristin Espinasse
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At the cheese shop in Pernes-les-Fontaines, the woman in line ahead of me stepped up to the counter and this is what she said:

"Je voudrais de l'Emmental." As an afterthought she added, "sans trous."
"Vous voulez de l'Emmental sans trous?" the flummoxed fromager questioned.

My mind began to wonder about this "trou-less" transaction. Did the customer really ask for Swiss cheese without holes? Was this possible? Was it prudent?

But before I had the time to further try my mind, a proposition was put forth:
"Mais,"argued the cheesemaker, "the holes are the best part!"

A collective nod could be seen from beyond the cheesemaker's vitrine as the clients in the fromagerie agreed that les trous are, indeed, la meilleur partie!

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French Vocabulary & Sound File: Download Rigolo
Listen to my daughter, Jackie, pronounce these words: rigolo, rigolote

Le fromager est rigolo!
The cheesemaker is funny!

Je voudrais de l'Emmental (m) = I would like some Emmental
sans trous (un trou) = without holes
Vous voulez de l'Emmental sans trous? = you would like some Emmental without holes?
le fromager = cheesemaker
mais = but
la vitrine = (shop) window
la fromagerie = cheese shop, cheese dairy
la meilleure partie = the best part

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A Day in a Dog's Life... by Smokey "R" Dokey
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Just showing off my new medal. Whaddaya think?

 
You can barely make-out Mom's medal, just above my nose. It reads "Braise" (BREZ) of course. Our phone numbers are on the back, in case we forget them. (This is the embarrassing part. I mean, as if I'm absent-minded...! I may be furry, but I'm not a forget-me-not! Wait a minute, I AM a forget-me-not!)

Love,

Smokey (Which, by the way, rhymes with QI or "quotient intellectuel"—that's "IQ" in English. Only, we dogs have "High-Q")

 
Eggplant Caviar: use with toast or crackers as an apéritif. Lovely alongside hard-boiled quail's eggs (as my mother-in-law serves it!) Order a jar!

Rosetta Stone French Level 1, 2, & 3

Fluenz French 1+2