You can love anyone

I'm sick. Got a cold.

Out with the old. In with the new. That's the adage.

Between bouts of bed and the toilet I see around me so much stuff that was absolutely necessary at the time. And now I don't know what to do with it.

Now I want to travel and run a cafe in a foreign country and run an English school there, too. So the stuff's got to go somewhere.

The massive insight for me is that I want to do the new venture with a partner, not alone. Massive insight. I want to do the new venture with a partner. I'm done with solo.

My current meal partner

If you can love anyone, who do you choose? Who's my partner?

The 36 questions in the link are meant to accelerate closeness. The questions are followed by looking into each other's eyes for four minutes. Not two. Four. Two's terrifying, but that's not enough!

The links on the New York Times' webpage lead you to a podcast and readers who have been inspired by the 36 questions.

Now I just have to pick my mark.

Tip: 
Action is the only way forward.

Social context is the biggest driver for our health - Dr Mark Hyman

Another Marie Forleo interview....

With Mark Hyman, a Functional Medicine doctor.

WATCH THE WHOLE LOT, EVEN IF YOU THINK YOU ARE ONTO YOUR HEALTH 💜

Functional Medicine looks at the body as a whole organism, a system, not just at each individual organ, such as the heart, kidneys, skin, etc.

Mark asserts that so-called non communicable diseases are actually communicated through social networks.

After the interview, on Marie Forleo's website, I posted the following comment:

Web link

A local caf

Change of plans. It's a study day. Heavyish snow fall. A day for the birds.

For the birds.
It was snowing heavyishly.

The croissant and coffee at a local caf will have to wait.

I do so want one. A local caf. 

My place to contribute to others accomplishing their dreams and revolutions.

A place to hold others only as capable. As performers. People of action.

But then my Pilates studio can do that too.

Because in the France that I see, a coffee is about how big you want it black. Ristretto. Espresso. Lungo. Americano.

I think I could get a machine to do that in my studio.

Forget milk. Soy. Almond. Skinny. Frothy. Not frothy. Half strength. In a glass. A paper cup.... 

Focus on people, Pilates, revolutions.

I love the clean lines of that. I think I've lost weight, simply from having my coffee black.

Boulangerie & caf ahead.

Unintentional payoff. 

Easy to do because the coffee is simply delicious in Gérardmer, France, no matter where I go.

Sounds like more research coming up.


Here's a story about the café culture in France, well I think Paris, but interesting anyway. And here's the link to the café that the story refers to.

Sylvie the mountain accompagnatrice
from Sens-a-Sons in the middle.
We were almost at the top of Le Hohneck.
The view from the top was magnificent.
It was too cloudy to clearly see to Switzerland,
but Germany could be spotted.
My phone battery got too cold so I could
not get photos. Drats. You've really
got to be there in real life, though.

Tip:
You've really got to be there in real life.

Hearty

Can I live on the ground floor of my son's house? 

How can I get my lakehouse in Gérardmer, France?

What are my plans for today? (In Gérardmer France, not Brisbane Australia)

How come I'm only getting a message now that my mobile phone's international travel pack has kicked in? I've been making calls since yesterday! Eeek. What rate have I been paying for that?

Why didn't I get 100% on that exam? It should have been 100. What the hell did I get wrong then? Man, maybe I'll never know this stuff. (I got 83%)

Scourers should really have been provided in this accommodation you know. I mean look at that soap scum on the shower tiles. Should I buy a scourer? Why should I buy a scourer? There's still splotches of paint on the tiles. No-one has ever scoured those tiles.

And on it goes. My mind.

All the while I am being grounded by cooking a hearty dish. 

A dish for my heart. 

Take heart. 

Eat.

Canned food. Marrons à la forestière.
But boy does it add something
to my standby lentil boeuf haché dish.

Tip:
Sometimes canned foods are OK, even necessary.

Choose

My heart was thumping with fear, I supposed. It was thumping anyway.

The thought.... go to London for the last weekend in France. 

It was beginning to get cold.
The north side of Lac Gérardmer.
The more natural side. You can circuit
the whole lake, and even take detours
into the well signed paths in the forest.

Yep. My trip was all about France and snow. I resisted anything else. Any suggestion. It was just people telling me what to do and discounting the outrageous and unstoppable human being I already was. In my own safe way.



Studying. Learning anything. Travelling solo. Making my way in a new town. Looking at property to buy. All easy for me.

So when I noticed the thumping heart, I thought I might just have to choose London for my last weekend in France. 

What if it was excitement and I just didn't recognise it?

Do I need to know what it is?

I will expand. I know that.

The postie still rides a motorised
pedal bicycle to deliver the mail
in snowy weather.

Tip:
Choose.
Choose something.
And love it.
Create love.

It will snow eventually.

Getting out amongst it.
This was melted by nightfall.

Kick-ass serious-kind
of
keep-the-feet-warm boots.

Nothing is futile

The truth about your calling with Seth Godin and Marie Forleo. https://youtu.be/AtfvZ_KOiZY

Homewares shop window in Munster, France.
Possibly buying stuff instead of doing stuff may be futile.

Tip:
Be who you want to be in the world.
And the actions fall into place.
To get what you want.

The answer's not in the fridge.
The answer's not in homeware shops.

Cash is king.... supposedly

Cash is king in France they say.... on all about France websites.

Well I have 35 euros for 19 days left of travel.

My flea market & fresh food market samplings are halted.... well just until I can access my cash!! Action & more action.

Coffee & Croissant.
1 euro.
Super U.

Supermarket shopping with credit card is easy as, of course.
And I can get a ristretto and croissant for 1 euro.

But that's not the point.

So I had an indoors day working out how to work it out.

And working out how to earn an income when I live here.

Another great day.

Tip:
Every day's a great day, if you make it so.

Vosgiennes cows. Mwuh.

Leffe Blond stubby holder.

The temperature. It called for the
supersize Korean 'feather doona coat'
on my morning walk.

Keeping the weight down in
the day pack. Emergency
supply only. Toilets are few
and VERY far between.
Quite ridiculous.
I've let the mairies know.

Very cute, but I prefer the multi-level homes.

Now this is a home.
Leroy real estate agent.

Beetroot omelette

I am so loving food shopping and cooking in my studio in Gérardmer.

I have never had a problem cooking for one.

I have a problem about cooking for others!

All that effort and not even leftovers to freeze for 7 days like when I cook for myself.

Cook once, eat twice doesn't even do it for me.

Having said that, the omelette pictured was only one meal.

So pretty.
Leftover beetroot chips done in the oven in butter and salt;
Some kind of mushroom available in Super U, Gérardmer, France.
In Australia, we might call them Swiss Brown;
Mâche is the green stuff;
Two eggs beaten with a fork and a bit of water;
All sprinkled with salt and dotted with red Tabasco.

Tip:

Cook once, eat 7 times.... 

generally speaking.

Pixies by Whippy Cake

This is a screen shot from yet another
before and after pixie cut of Whippy Cakes.

She is brilliant styling pixie short hair looks using heaps of product.

Love it.

So ALIVE.

Follow the link to see her take a woman who happens to have lost a lot of weight and now wants a new hair look, from great to extraordinary, by cutting the pixie haircut, too.

I've cut mine again since being in France. I brought my hair scissors with me for some reason!!!!

Will I keep it natural greying dark blonde tones or go the thick platinum look?

Tip:
Love or hate the hair you've got.
It doesn't matter.
There'll be a product to get it exactly how you do want it.

Chestnut mousse pudding

This is not a trusted recipe. Just sayin'.

If in doubt, head to the local 
SuperU
and pick up this starter.

This is another thing you would do with some creative home cooking.

I really wanted a French favourite, creme de marron de l'Ardeche, but I had not been able to spot it in the supermarché.

Now that I've googled the name I should not have a problem finding it provided my accent doesn't get in the way. But failing on three attempts permitted me some creativity, I guess.

Anyway, now that I've bought plain pureed chestnuts I'm going to try for a sweet dish....

1/2 tin creamed chestnuts, about 200g.
1 equal weight of fromage frais, or créme fraîche, or white cheesey stuff that you prefer.
2 eggs
Sweeten as you prefer. I'm using my chestnut honey obtained in Gérardmer, France, at the local market.


You could do the old beat the whites till like snow. Beat the yolks with the sugar till light in colour.... and all that.

I don't. I drop the whole eggs into the dish and add the honey, starting with about 2T, and beat it till I'm satisfied,

I then add the pureed chestnuts, because I'm in France and only have a fork to do the mixing. The kitchen in the studio is great, but not too well equipped for creating. If you have mixers of any kind, the order doesn't really matter.

I then add a 1:1 mix of fromage frais and créme fraîche because I can. I'm in France.

Beat/fork it till you have achieved the consistency you want.

Refrigerate for 3 hours.

If it is too runny, turn it into a power smoothy by adding some collagen.

If you want something warm, bake it in the oven in a trough of water.

Eat after a long walk around the lake.

Tip:

Cook and Standup Paddle Board? 
It was hitched to the back fence 
atop the canal.
I'm guessing it goes directly 
to the lake in Gérardmer.

Cook and walk and eat.

Lucky the baguette was a mini. Now I get
why my mum puts butter on like cheese.
She grew up in rural England
 where the butter
tastes like this French stuff. 
Delish.

What? Not Smurfs?
Les Schtroumpfs.

Biathlon discovery at last

Sylvie Triboulot introduced me to this sport at Les Bas-Rupts, Gérardmer, France.

Fun and rough and therapeutic somehow. 

This is a screen shot of Sylvie's 
Sens-a-Son-Nature website.

After the biathlon session, I actually voluntarily entered a forest on my own, with verbal directions only. Outrageous (for me).

I made it to nearby the destination, but that was plenty good enough.

I left home (Annie & Jean-Claude's Airbnb) at 08:40 and did not return until 14:30. All on foot, with the two hour biathlon stint in the middle. 

According to the FitBit data, that's 24,000 steps, 2000 calories, 16 kilometres and 131 floors.

Tip:
You only live once as far as I know so make sure you come home completely empty just from being in the day.

Balustrades

In Colmar, France, down a side street
near the train station.
Above & Below pics.

In Munster, France. I also love 
hinges & brackets.

In Munster, France.

In Munster, France. A new apartment block 
with business offices around the side.

In Munster, France. A veterinary surgery.
A beautiful, restful colour scheme
and building.

Boeuf Bourguignon

I didn't taste one drop, but the meal
sure tasted delicious.

Boeuf Bourguignon is its formal name, but just like Spaghetti Bolognese has special family recipes, this will have as well.



I made the batch pictured while in Gérardmer, France and felt right at home.

This meal instantly takes me back to playing in the pile of sawdust in the shed while my father fixed mowers for other people.

Gigantic, orange flowered wall paper, even in the kitchen. 

Look at all that gelatin and animal fat. 
So delicious warmed 
and served with green beans and quinoa.

Playing down the river, walking past 'Haggy's' house to get there (as in 'The old hag' - she was probably only 33, but to us kids..... you get the idea).

And then sitting at the mosaic tiled kitchen bench with my brother and sisters and a steaming bowl of this in front of you.

 Tip:
Cook.

The Bambi Ritual

Walk done & new ritual begins.

Gérardmer, France. My new home.

Leffe Blond comes in a 250 mL size here. This Belgian wheat beer has 6.6% alcohol content, so one cup is enough for moi.

Just to prove that the weather
is cold enough
to start freezing 
the water bodies.

Sit outside and wait for Bambi is the new ritual. 

I was told on my first day here that at dusk and dawn deer come and eat the grass in the back yard. This is pretty novel for an Australian. So I was intrigued.

The wee Leffe Blond. I was in the image 
of course, but  solo travellers 
generally go unseen.

Of course I kept looking out for them to no avail. My hosts, however, assured me that the deer had come. OK. Maybe it required more than a peek through the curtains every now and again.

So the new Sunday ritual began. Sit outside with the lights off, drink the Leffe Blonde, and wait.




Tip:
Go for an hour long walk anyway. Just for the heck of it.