Duszek

I cracked open Huysmans yesterday, been meaning to read it for ages. It’s tough going because his vocabulary is so extensive (reading it in French) and I had to either keep stopping to look words up or just blunder on. As a result, I’ve (temporarily) binned it in favour of A Prayer for Owen Meany. Which is magnificent.

Advice sought, please. I bought the below bottle to use in a Christmas cake, but will have plenty left over. Are there any decent brandy cocktails?

“This countries history is been white washed” Good point, well made.

f**k sake, that's us set for another month of confinement. At least Macron announced the schools were staying open, cueing howls from the kids and a 'Yass! Get in!' from me.

Another one that brings back good memories. Was the lager of choice in Bratislava when I was there. Crisp and clean, went down a treat.

Krupnik! A magnificent drink. Best consumed on a sleigh ride through a snowy Polish forest, in the company of reprobates, in my experience. Enjoy!

Sworn enemy of Saint Johnstone. they were actually brothers, albeit to different fathers.

Large glass of Gigondas and a good book on a Sunday afternoon = good times.

Grim, this. I have friends working as teachers in the French school system and they’re (understandably) shaken up and angry. Michael W’s excellent post above sums up my thoughts. There’s really very little to be said for religion in the 21st century.

Some rocket near me has Christmas lights out on their balcony. What the f**k is wrong with people?

Apologies if already posted but have you seen this? Looks amazing, made in Italy. https://mashable.com/2017/11/27/madi-unfolding-modular-home-living-unit-italy-built-in-6-hours/?europe=true

Spot on. Maupassant has a lot of fun cranking up the reader’s outrage. A great modern example of this is Sabbath’s Theater by Philip Roth. Mickey Sabbath has to be experienced to be believed.

We have to wear masks in public transport and shops, but that’s about it. Restaurants and bars are doing good trade. Kids wear masks in the school playground but we’re back to usual class sizes. I can still travel across the border to work inSwitzerland without any hassles. A second lockdown would be extremely unpopular... will be a total last resort. so « in denial » is probably your answer.

Sartre is worth reading, I’ll leave it at that.

Ah, cheers, just looked into it. The petition was signed by, among others, Bernard Kouchner (founder of Medecins sans Frontieres) and Jack Lang, future Minister of Culture. However misguided this now appears, probably unfair to tar them all as child rapists.

That's one I'm saving for 2021. The first two are great. You might like Updike's Rabbit books.

Sorry, should have read my post before sending. He was up for folk shagging twelve year olds. Hang on, so you're saying he advocated shagging twelve year-olds? Can you provide a reference?

Do you know he shagged twelve year olds?

Yep, his autobiography (Les Mots) is brilliant too, as is Nausea, as are the plays... it’s his philosophy I struggle with. There are whole passages which I’ll read carefully, then realise I’ve understood f**k all. guy was an ubermensch.

Carnets de la drôle de guerre, Jean-Paul Sartre it’s the WW2 diary he kept from when he was sent up to (near) the front lines in 1939 until the Germans overran the place. Really interesting read. A mix of observations about army life (he gets really irritated by the noise someone makes when eating, or the way someone sits in a chair), philosophical musing (sketching out the theme of Being and Nothingness), literary criticism and reminiscing. a truly exceptional dude.

The extra red around the collar and sleeves is OTT, but I guess you have to tweak things annually. The Airdrie strip has always been a belter.

Picked this up at an Italian supermarket (shop selling Italian products rather than shop in Italy). Going down great, a pilsener from right down in the foot of Italy.

A local brewery to me, an hour down the road in Bourgoin. Weighs in at a hefty 8.4%, so was expecting a rough ride, but it’s perfectly (dangerously) drinkable.

Local supermarket has a beer festival on. Well, ‘festival’ is stretching it a bit. Berliner Weisser is interesting, very different from the blond/pils I generally go for. Described as « refreshing, sour » on the bottle notes. Glad to have tried it, but doubt I’d go back.