Shopping

Posted on April 15, 2010 by David

Yes this is a feat that we thought we have mastered in French. But there were many things that we were unaware of since there are no signs and the only way you find this out is if you are in the “know” which we were not. Yesterday DeAnna’s language partner wanted her to go to Cora (French version of Wal-Mart) with her so she could show her how to “really shop.”

DeAnna spoke in French and her partner spoke in English so they both could practice their foreign languages. First problem was that the security thought they were up to something funny since they were talking in different languages to each other. Next problem was at the deli when the worker behind the counter couldn’t figure out why a French person would give away all the shopping secrets.

Lessons Learned

  1. You can go to the deli and ask for yesterday’s meat and they will sell it at a discount but it’s not on display.
  2. How to demand to speak to the manager when the price advertised is not the price they are selling it for.
  3. You should never buy certain items since they are way too easy to make – i.e. the quatre-quarts gateau (4 cups of flour, 4 cups of sugar, 4 eggs and 4 pounds of butter or something like that and bake it)
  4. Don’t buy the rolled up croissants that you pop in the oven to bake. (DeAnna needed to anyway for a recipe she was making)
  5. A faux fillet is the best cut Cora sells for steak (Faux is also the French word for false so this was not something we would have purchased)
  6. When you go to the Deli you can ask to sample anything and they let you try it for FREE! (I wondered why they didn’t have the sample trays like Costco!)
  7. How to ask for the amount of octopus you want (barquette)
  8. How to read the labels to pare your cheese with the different foods and how to select the correct cheeses (She even told us which cheeses don’t taste good – but I will not post that here as to not damage the reputation of those cheeses)
  9. How to read the price labels to know which one really is the best price (there are little numbers to look for)
  10. What website to go to in order to find great French cooking recipes http://www.marmiton.org
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Combinations

Posted on April 8, 2010 by David

There are many different foods that can be purchased in the stores here that are not easily available in the United States. The problem is that just eating the food alone might not be how the French desired the food to be eaten for the best experience.

DeAnna’s language partner asked her if she has eaten Ratatouille since living in France. She answered yes. Then the language partner asked her which recipe she used. Busted, the Ratatouille we had eaten came from a can and was not very appetizing. So she gave DeAnna her recipe and instructed her to go home and make it, it didn’t seem like something that would taste good looking at the ingredients (Tomatoes, onion, zucchini, eggplant and some spices). To our surprise it was amazing! Even our picky 5 year old eater said “Mom this is delicious!” not a frequently uttered complement he uses. She also learned that one of the smelliest/strongest cheeses in France must be combined with Fig Jelly to taste good.

The proper combination of food made me think about how Paul wrote about the different Spiritual gifts and that each one is important and they all need each other to work together.

The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. (1 Corinthians 12:12-13 NIV)

Lord, help me to remember that you have designed and created me to be used with others and it is only through these combinations that your glory and power with shine through and I will have the experience that you designed.

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How to tell time (take 2)

Posted on April 7, 2010 by David

This is DeAnna and I’ve been keeping a “Misadventures with DeAnna” count and I have another entry.  Last week I met with my new language partner for the first time.

In school I learned to tell time in French by 24 hour time (military time).  Last week, my language partner explained to me when we were talking about time that the French really use the same time as in the States, but without a.m. or p.m. because she said in context it is self-explanatory if it is a.m. or p.m.   So before I left, she told me to come at douz heure for our next time together.  (I purposely spelled the number wrong and spelled it how it sounded to me).  I showed up at 12 p.m. today and she looked puzzled and I asked if I understood correctly to come at douze heure (12 p.m.) and she said, douz heure.  I looked puzzled and asked for clarification because my watch said douze heure.  She explained some more in French and then in English said two.  Then I remembered that when saying deux heure there is a liason.  (There is a liason when the first word ends in a consonant and the next word begins with a vowel or some h’s, so the two are combined with a liason).  So the time sounds the same as douze heure.  I will return at 2 p.m., however, now I know why I was taught the 24 hour time and I think I will try to stick with that.  As David pointed out, it is good I went early and can return later rather than 2 hours late.

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Don’t let the pronoun get you down!

Posted on April 2, 2010 by David

Today was class as usual and after the instructor asked us if we understood our homework which we all did we were given a quick quiz to verify we understood the grammar concept. We all used the new concept correctly but we all missed a pronoun and then after her reprimand on forgetting such a basic concept she had us read Jeremiah 18 to encourage us.

As I reflected more on the fact that we are cracked pots and the marred life that I have I was thankful that no matter how many cracks I have in my life I’m still in the hands of the potter.

So I went down to the potter’s house, and I saw him working at the wheel. But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him. Jeremiah 18:3-4 (NIV)

Oh LORD form me into the pot you need me to be.

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Knock Knock Jokes

Posted on April 1, 2010 by David

On the way to school Joshua wanted to do knock knock jokes. Luckily he doesn’t insist that all the jokes are funny just that he can repeat what he has been told. Since today was April Fool’s day, what better day to be learning how to tell a joke before going to school. (They call it Poisson d’avril in France and tape paper cutouts of fish to your back. I don’t get it either.)

His favorite joke was

Knock Knock
Who’s there
Lettuce
Lettuce Who?
Lettuce In

We looked up a lot more Knock Knock Jokes online at lunch and if you have one that a 6 year old would think is funny please comment below so I can share it with Joshua.

Here are some French Knock Knock Jokes (Toc-Toc Blagues)
Toc-toc!
Qui est là?
« S »
« S » qui ?
« S »cargot!   (a snail)

Toc toc!
Qui est là?
Loste
Loste qui?  (Sounds like you lost your key)
Oui.

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Cultural Differences

Posted on March 25, 2010 by David

Pleasant Hill MO

When Joshua was playing at the sandbox he was sharing his sand toys with another little French boy and they were both building roads for their pretend trucks to drive on. They were very intent on building the best sand box road France has ever seen.

Joshua had very straight roads that ran parallel and perpendicular to one another, while the French boy’s roads did not go straight and all the intersections were roundabouts (autour in French). I know that there are some roundabouts in the U.S. but from a 6 year olds perspective when he looked at maps the roads went straight. I think both boys were a little perplexed as to why they were doing it differently but they still were able to accept their differences and play together.

I really don’t want to admit it but there have been many times when I looked at how the French required something to be done and thought, that seems like I’m going in circles when I could just go straight this way and be done.  Just because something is different does not make it bad or wrong, it’s just different. I’m thankful that Joshua did not let his differences frustrate him. This is a lesson I still am learning every day.

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Train Witnessing

Posted on March 25, 2010 by David

The other day on the train Jonah began singing Jesus Loves Me (in English) for everyone in our train car. Normally it’s silent on the train unless someone is playing the accordion or another performer is trying to put on a performance for money. So everyone was able to hear the song without problem. (Gratuit)

We have searched and asked if there is an equivalent song to Jesus Loves Me in French and we have not found one yet. If you know of one please let me know. But we are still hoping we will find one so Jonah can update his singing of Jesus Loves from last year. After several times through the song he sang Deep and Wide with his brother.

I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile (NIV Romans 1:16)

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Wonderful Gift

Posted on March 18, 2010 by David

The other day when I came home DeAnna had a wonderful gift waiting for me. Le Porte-Filtre, this has to be the best invention I have witnessed since moving to France!  C’est formidable!

It allows me to have a fresh brewed cup of coffee without the need for a coffee pot. I’ve only had a few brewed cups of coffee since arriving in August and my taste buds thanked me when they tasted this freshly brewed wonder.  Not that there is anything wrong with instant coffee, it just doesn’t compare to brewed.

It’s so simple to use just place the le Porte-Filtre on top of your coffee mug (not a bowl or glass but an American sized coffee mug) put in the filter, coffee and add hot water and Voila! Fresh Brewed Coffee!

A wife of noble character who can find?  She is worth far more than rubies Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value. (Proverbs 31:10-11)

Brewed Coffee, My wife rocks! Any questions, check out the rest of chapter 31 and it sums her up.

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Story telling

Posted on March 16, 2010 by David

Today in class our instructor told us a story and asked us to repeat the story to him. It was an exercise to see if we understood what he said and if we were able to use the correct verb tenses in retelling the story.

I’ll tell the story in English:

There was a sugar cube who loved the tea spoon very much.

But the tea spoon didn’t care for the sugar cube.

The sugar cube asked the tea spoon if he could meet with him to explain his love.

The tea spoon said yes but only in the café.

When I retold the story I said it didn’t make any sense. If the sugar was going to discuss his love with the tea spoon and the tea spoon would only meet with him in the café (aka COFFEE) he would not be around long to discuss his love since he would be dissolving, forget the fact that I was arguing that a sugar cube could talk in the first place. Then he reminded me that in French café can mean coffee or a place where you drink coffee.

The moral of the story is, drink your café without the sugar. Or maybe it was a joke and I was really slow at getting it.

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Making Friends

Posted on March 15, 2010 by David

Jonah has been the only one in the family who is forced to speak in French the entire day, which is evident when he starts speaking and doesn’t have the pronunciation problems the rest of us have. DeAnna and I can always speak in English at break (though not allowed within earshot of our instructors) and Joshua has some other English speaking children in his classroom so at recess they normally stick together.

As the weather is warming up we are able to stop and play at the park after school. Today Jonah and Joshua were playing when some of their English speaking friends came.  Jonah continued playing with his French friends and even followed them to a different play area where there were only French speaking kids.  DeAnna overheard the little girls asking Jonah where his goûter (snack) was.   (It is a big deal here for children to be greeted at school pick-up with a snack, however, we normally don’t have a snack for the boys at pick-up).  Jonah explained in French that his Mom forgot his snack.  The girls, who were eating their snack, expressed their condolences to Jonah and both of them shared their snack cakes with Jonah.

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