No, we aren't going to continue with the guessing game with photos but can someone help? I photographed this strange monument in the summer of 2005 and have no idea where it was. It was taken in the Pyrenees as on the same day we visited St. Martin de Canigou - we stopped in the village for a picnic in the 'jardin public' next to the Mairie where we discovered this statue. It can't be far from St. Martin de Canigou.
44 comments:
If you google the first three names on the memorial - Buzan, Broc, Campos, the first in the list of returns is for a list of war dead in a place called Vernet- Les -Bains.
According to Larousse it's a "station thermale" in the Pyrenées -Orientale. Could be your place, but if not, the names are the thing to research.
Thank you Sherlock Holmes - yes, that was the place!
'Tis a wonderful thing, Google. One feels there ought to be a Nobel prize for its creators.
Is this someone's fine sense of irony. Sticking l'entente cordiale on a memorial to the dead
I must read about this thing -probably there is some info on the Vernet les Bains site.
So does this Richard of Orléans character imagine there to be a separate heaven for British and French ?
Does God care really care what human souls possessed as national labels in their lifetime ?
Especially as Brits and French were both on the same side, fighting one of the greatest evils in the history of mankind.
Religion is one of the greatest evils of mankind.
So what's your point, Bill Taylor ? Are you saying there is a moral equivalence between say, Canterbury or the Vatican, on the one hand, and Hitler's National Socialism on the other, with its concepts of racial purity, supposed racial inferiority of Jews, Slavs etc.
I'm saying that most wars have been fought and oceans of innocent blood shed in the various names of god. Even Hitler purported to have a religion.
I googled Vernet les Bains and entente cordiale - there is quite a lot about this statue - I won't post a link as it will go wrong, but it's quite interesting reading.
Listen guys, it's a new blog. So give the girl a break, for heaven's sake (correction: for the sake of courtesy and consideration).
We have two people here, both of them old enough to know better, who are using both Louise's photo as a cue simply to get on their hobby horses (again!). OK, so you are anti-religion, Bill taylor. So are lots of folk. What's that got to do with this post ? Where's the religious imagery in that statue ? There's no reference to a deity. The two figures are not angels, indeed the one on the right has a trident, so may be someone from Greek or Roman mythology. Nobody is trying to exploit "Death" in that statue.
As for the other contributor, words fail one. His comments are quite simply divisive and poisonous, as is virtually everything of his I have read. That man has one giant pus-laden boil that should have been lanced years, possibly decades ago.
Thank you, Benjy, for your most chivalrous support, but don't worry! I'm used to Bill and Richard ... I learnt about blogs through Colin Randall's Torygraph blog and got whammed quite a few times - especially by Roo. It was a bit upsetting at times (for five minutes) but the skin has sloughed and I've developed alligator scales now. When they start bitching, I just ignore it. If it gets really bloody, I'll delete it!
You were the one who introduced God here, Benjy. I merely followed up on your comment. One of the joys of a blog is the way the discussion can morph into something quite unexpected.
As for giving "the girl" a break, I wouldn't patronize Louise by calling her that. I've been contributing to this blog since she began it -- longer than you. If Louise feels that I've been discourteous or inconsiderate, she has only to say.
Not much 'entente cordiale' here, is there?
But lots of courtesy and consideration...
Yes, there is, isn't there? But I don't mind if things go off track - isn't that what blogging is all about?
Indeed it is. Or it should be, anyway. But don't tell me, tell Benjy!
Roo thinks that Benjy is Colin B, so that is why they are bickering and Roo has deleted all Colin's posts on his blog and vice versa - I still don't know why everyone has to either change their name or become anonymous. Have the courage of your convictions, people!
To finish on a totally girlie note, I though you would all like to know that I am cooking a 'boeuf carottes' for supper tonight, and it smells lovely!
Right - without cheating and googling it - why are the police in France called 'boeuf carottes' - I know the answer, do you?
I have deleted no comments from my blog. I am not in with Colinr's facho lot. The only modifs that occured were when I went to beta.
If benjv is not colinb then there are no carrottes in your stew. Isn't 'stew' a lovely word, a bit like 'petrin' that I like also. Could I put colinb in one or the other?
You can put him in a petrin if you like but you're not putting him in my stew!
I wish you hadn't told me what you're cooking, Louise -- that's one of my favourite. My wife does a fine one but she hasn't in a while and now you've started me thinking about it.
But why is it also a nickname for the police?
Well, I must admit that that boeuf carottes was pretty good - and the leftovers will be even better tomorrow reheated!
I'm sure your wife will make you a boeuf carottes if you take her home a bunch of sweet smelling flowers!
Oh, you're making it worse -- yes, the leftovers are indeed better. Bit of a waste of time going home with flowers for my wife, though. She has a party to go to tonight and won't be home till late. I shall have to rummage through the other leftovers. Anyway, flowers would just make her wonder what I'd been doing.
Even if your wife is out tonight, you can still take her home some flowers! And if you are worried that she will wonder why you are bringing her flowers, then it's about time you started taking them home for no special reason, other than that you love her and women on the whole love being given flowers.
Send me a bunch of flowers and I'll send you some leftover boeuf carottes!! Don't know if Interboeuf exists though!
Nothing stopping you from making the boeuf carottes either, is there?
You make me hang my head in shame (for about 3 seconds). Interboeuf - what a fabulous idea. But flowers are a bit dodgy in our house at the best of times. With 3 cats, you have to choose something that they won't eat and their tastes change constantly. I've known one of them have a go at a cactus. Anyway, I got my wife a whole Christmas tree at the weekend - a real one, which is shedding even worse than the cats. I'd be quite happy with a fake one (some of them are remarkably realistic) but she's a traditionalist in these things and I bowed (lovingly) to her wishes.
All there is stopping me from making the boeuf myself is an utter lack of culinary aptitude. I'm very lucky indeed that my wife loves cooking.
What's the beef Louise? You become anti male since you got dumped. By the way I've got a tuyau. The flics are called carottes rappées because they travel in a panier à salades.
No boeuf Roo ... why? Because I suggested to Bill he made the boeuf carottes? Well, why not? We know why not, he can't cook, as he admits, but lots of men can and there's nothing wrong with that.
Or is the flowers - got a guilty conscience?
I am just stating the obvious - have absolutely no grouse against men, apart from my ex (but that is why he is my ex!) and I divorced him so long ago now that we have re-establshed a very good 'entente cordiale'! Now hasn't that remark brought the posting round full circle!!!
On the subject of beef - les flics were/are called boeuf carottes as they used to 'cook' their suspects for a long time.
I wish I could cook -- beyond the basics such as frying eggs (and even that tends to be iffy). The one thing I can do is a mean mulligatawny soup. But it's a bit limited/limiting.
At least I'm not like Princess Anne, who said on a TV interview before she married her first drippy husband, something like: "One can boil an egg. But one doesn't expect to have to." Of course, I'm not like Princess Anne in many other ways, too.
Well that is comforting to know Bill - can't be anything worse than having a drippy husband or talking about yourself as 'one'.
One went to see "The Queen" night before last, and was most impressed. But Her Maj still has some way to go before she's quite as regal as Helen Mirren, especially in that scene towards the end when she's refusing to engage in sofa talk with His Toniness. Who can blame her taking him off into the garden, just to avoid being face-to-face with that wall-to-wall grin. So she takes him out into the garden, where corgis peeing on the roses come as a welcome distraction from the sight of Ma'am and Smarm.
Welcome back Colinb. Did you manage to stay away for 12 hours?
In France there is an understanding that if the wife doesn't do a reasonable job of looking after her husband he will take on a mistress, usually a younger model. There always seems to be a reasonable supply of candidates. In exchange the husband provides cash, flowers and visits to the restaurant. Most important he looks after his appearance in order that the threat remains credible.
It is certainly a more agreeable relationship, for the males, than having some domineering overweight anglosaxon wife.
One is going this evening to see oneself on the big screen.
Sorry, Roo, was that comment for me? I didn't understand it if it was.
Just a comment on the way of the world.
Message from another Anonymous("Anonymous 2,or maybe 1")
Richard O writes: "In exchange the husband provides cash, flowers and visits to the restaurant."
But to whom ? The wife or the mistress ?
The earlier context of this thread would suggest wife, albeit as a cynical salving of conscience.
But in the context of his present remarks, one suspects he means the mistress is the one who benefits from two-timing sugar daddy.
That's what one finds so irritating about Richard O: his sloppiness, not just with facts, but with the English language, so that his meaning is often unclear. Mind you, that can be a blessing at times.
Colinb, a blog is supposed to be short and brief. Not covering hectares of text.A reasonable level of intelligence is a given.
The wife looks after the husband and in exchange for these services, rendered by his wife, the husband provides cash, flowers and restaurant meals to the aforesaid wife. As long as the wife doesn't fall down on the job, ages reasonably,doesn't become depressed, keeps her figure she (ie the wife) is reasonably sure to keep her(the wife again) position. But younger, more sexy, cash hungry models (ie potential mistresses)are coming along all the time.
Colinb(?) may be satisfied by your answer, but I am not. What about the "cash hungry" mistress, as you put it ? Is she so mercenary that she would scorn flowers and visits to restaurants ?
In other words, your original comment was ambiguous. Never sacrifice clarity for brevity.
Anonymous 2
Well teacher that may be what the profs say. In business, if you can get 90% of the meaning in 3 lines you skip the further 15 pages.
Back to mistresses (most of this is based on information provided by miss maid and sarah red light). Restaurants and flowers take cash. But that doesn't suffice. There is also a need for designer clothes, swiss chalets, montpellier sea front housing, luxurious appartments rue de rivoli, jewellery etc.
I'm reminded of the old Royal Navy toast: "To our wives and sweethearts. May they never meet."
Reminds me of that old Swiss toast:
To our lovers and bloggers. May they never meet.
I don't like old Swiss toast. It curls up at the edges.
What about Navy toast then - all soggy and salty.
Navy's not a good colour for toast.
Yeah, but you can't see the mould.
I thought Roo had been on fairly good behaviour recently, but he is starting to get carried away again - he must be moving into top gear for Christmas.
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