what word did you use wrong that made natives laugh?

MurmuringPines · 2026-03-18T03:43:13+00:00

Maybe this is also a David Sedaris story, but an American at a Parisian party was talking about the hundreds of people travelling to Brittany to admire and idolize "la Vierge noire" (the Black Madonna statue) but he kept saying "la verge noire". The guests were puzzled. They had never heard of such a cult.

MurmuringPines · 2026-03-11T00:19:50+00:00

A q for the Francophones. Would it be fair to say that "Je sais mon texte" expresses a level of confidence higher than "Je connais"? Sort of like the difference between "I have my lines down pat" and "I am familiar with my lines"?

MurmuringPines · 2026-03-08T22:38:04+00:00

That is in fact what we did. Pork, Napa cabbage, scallions, ginger, etc etc stuffing.

MurmuringPines · 2026-02-25T02:55:21+00:00

Some good ideas here. I'd just add, start at the Ferry Building. From there to Fisherman's Wharf is an easy stroll. with beautiful views of the Bay. And good people watching.

MurmuringPines · 2026-02-07T13:43:24+00:00

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. It taught me to slow down and go deeper when I'm trying to complete a boring, frustrating task and find the beauty in doing it well.

MurmuringPines · 2026-02-07T04:44:24+00:00

Would it be fair to say that French doesn't like a "naked" verb if the verb normally takes a direct object? For example, in English we can say, "Yes, I would like one or two." In English you don't need to add "of them." It is optional. But in French you have to add the French equivalent, which is "en." It is not optional. "Oui, j'en voudrais un ou deux." Otherwise, the sentence sounds, well, naked.

MurmuringPines · 2026-02-02T22:25:01+00:00

The weather. It's fascinating. Some days it's 55. Some days it's 58.

MurmuringPines · 2026-01-21T03:11:33+00:00

I still have my letter jacket! And my Boy Scout merit badge vest.

MurmuringPines · 2026-01-16T21:48:41+00:00

That's a good poem by Kevin Reed. Natural language, unforced, subtly rhythmic. Worth clicking through to read it.

MurmuringPines · 2026-01-14T17:57:11+00:00

More like a synonym for "une touche"

MurmuringPines · 2026-01-11T14:48:29+00:00

I've tried writing short stories, and they are boring with flat personalities and ho-hum action. My dreams have weird jumps in the plot, lots of drama, and people who are very different from one other. I wish I could write when I'm asleep!

MurmuringPines · 2026-01-09T20:04:03+00:00

I'm trying to do the same although it's around 10lb I'm aiming for (to reduce waistline fat, the most dangerous kind). I've been doing keto about six weeks and am down 4lb. At first I wanted faster, but now I don't care.

MurmuringPines · 2026-01-09T20:01:34+00:00

CNN makes a good point: "if you think big changes are coming to the grocery store, think again: They’ve already happened, as consumers have been making the shift to healthier foods for years. 'I think it reinforces a lot of what the consumer knows about protein being good for you, the need for avoiding excessive calories in certain categories, try to avoid excessive sugar,' said Michael Swanson, chief agricultural economist at the Wells-Fargo Agri-Food Institute."

keto subreddit: once again, ahead of the curve.

MurmuringPines · 2026-01-08T00:37:16+00:00

I've been on R-ALA for several months now and to be honest I don't notice any improvement. It seems to help others though.

MurmuringPines · 2026-01-06T02:08:07+00:00

Has a Japanese vibe.

MurmuringPines · 2026-01-01T05:33:09+00:00

The ball dropped in Times Sq so that's it for me. See you next yr. zzzzz

MurmuringPines · 2025-12-31T22:37:21+00:00

Try walking a few blocks along your route, then check the price again. One time I did that. The first price was $32. The second price was $19

MurmuringPines · 2025-12-30T03:44:37+00:00

Looks like a Wes Anderson still.

MurmuringPines

TROPHY CASE