Well, it's almost September, and thoughts for the blog have been fluttering into my mind. So I'm back!
Right now I'm trying to refresh my fluency in French just in case perchance by good luck some author interviews come my way. Mostly, I'm practising those pesky numbers, in particular 1993 in case someone broaches that FAQ: what year did you come to North America? In order to answer this in French, I have to say ten, nine, four (x) twenty, thirteen. Complicated, hey? What I'm thinking is that the Academie Francaise should invent new words for seventy, eighty and ninety. That would make the numbers so much easier. Not to mention shortening the typing and saving the breath.
Apart from the complication, why is this such a stumbling block for me? From what I understand, people generally and naturally do mental arithmetical calculations in their mother tongue. This is something that's retained even when they're far away from their original roots.
Meantime, if you catch me muttering, you'll know it's not serious. I'm simply happily slipping into my francais.
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Hiatus again
My apologies. Summer daze: ongoing. I hope to be back next month, so see you in September.
Friday, August 5, 2011
Towels
Yes folks, it's still silly season, so the post today is as advertised above. Or maybe not entirely, as it's all to do with size, yanno.
Along with buying the water pic at Target (otherwise known as Tarjay), I treated my husband and me to a new pair of bathsheets. Yes, they're huge. My mother would totally have approved. She was particular about her towels, and often gave a set as an engagement present to young couples. This was because, in South Africa, we didn't do showers as you do in North America.
Anyhow, those fluffy new towels are still stored in the linen closet. I simply haven't felt the need to be enveloped as I emerge from the bath or shower. And I'm wondering if this is a summer thing... i.e. I'm happy with a smaller towel.
Different countries seem to do size differently. (Is it cultural?) I remember the first time I visited a dear friend in Germany, how surprised I was when she gave me a towel that I considered hardly bigger than a hand towel. And her basement shower room was cold. In North America the standard in homes and hotels still feels small to me. But maybe I'm getting acclimatized (see 2nd paragraph).
And another thing, those hand towels? Can't wrap them around my wet head to make a secure turban. So when I visit South Africa, I always buy one of their slightly-bigger versions to bring back home with me. But I'm still looking for a size I've found very useful for travelling and carrying in my hand luggage, a size that seems to have disappeared. It's between a facecloth and a handtowel. The one my mom gave me is sadly threadbare.
Along with buying the water pic at Target (otherwise known as Tarjay), I treated my husband and me to a new pair of bathsheets. Yes, they're huge. My mother would totally have approved. She was particular about her towels, and often gave a set as an engagement present to young couples. This was because, in South Africa, we didn't do showers as you do in North America.
Anyhow, those fluffy new towels are still stored in the linen closet. I simply haven't felt the need to be enveloped as I emerge from the bath or shower. And I'm wondering if this is a summer thing... i.e. I'm happy with a smaller towel.
Different countries seem to do size differently. (Is it cultural?) I remember the first time I visited a dear friend in Germany, how surprised I was when she gave me a towel that I considered hardly bigger than a hand towel. And her basement shower room was cold. In North America the standard in homes and hotels still feels small to me. But maybe I'm getting acclimatized (see 2nd paragraph).
And another thing, those hand towels? Can't wrap them around my wet head to make a secure turban. So when I visit South Africa, I always buy one of their slightly-bigger versions to bring back home with me. But I'm still looking for a size I've found very useful for travelling and carrying in my hand luggage, a size that seems to have disappeared. It's between a facecloth and a handtowel. The one my mom gave me is sadly threadbare.
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
A pause that (hopefully) refreshes
I'm deep in edits for my upcoming spring release 'Cape Town', and so my thoughts are focused rather than fluttering by!
Plus there's music happening and social time.
All to say, I'll see you in a few. Probably days rather than weeks!
Plus there's music happening and social time.
All to say, I'll see you in a few. Probably days rather than weeks!
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