Une Année à Paris

So young and innocent. Pray for Mojo.

One year in Paris.  Today.  It’s been a wild and crazy ride; not easy, no, but definitely more ups than downs.  I’ve met so many cool and interesting friends, worked with the best and brightest, improved my French (still with Quebecois accent, or so I’ve been told), eaten the yummiest foods, travelled to exotic locations, and just plain had fun. And while I did not ride the lion (I kept slipping; photos of me humping the lion’s ass whilst attempting to do so have been omitted out of respect for said lion), I did make it up there with him.  I said I would when I got here, and I did.

I am one lucky son-of-a-bitch.

Brought to you by Fishy Joe’s.  Ride the Walrus!

Courtesy of world-renowned photographer and sometimes ninja, Avi.

A much older and wiser Norm.

Okay, just a much older Norm.

À bientôt, mes amis.

The Land of Oz

To my fellow Australians: whether you celebrate a happy Australia Day or mark a more somber Invasion Day, let us all agree on the one thing that can and should bring us together: the name should be changed back to New Holland.

New Holland. So where the bloody hell are you?

While we're at it, let’s switch Melbourne back to Batmania.

Batmania. Pure. West.

For more information:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Holland_(Australia)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Melbourne

And that's One to Grow On!

After Midnight

The best things happen after midnight.  Even in Paris.

Monsieur Edgar Allan Snow

Brown Sugar

In his house at R'lyeh, dead Cthulhu waits dreaming; dreaming of a decent Indian meal in Paris.  Well, wait no more great Cthulhu!  I’ve found the place of your dreams. 

The best Indian food in Paris is most likely to be found in my kitchen; but the next best option is Akash, located in the 4th arrondissement:  http://www.akash.fr/

I stumbled upon it whilst searching for Ras Malai, those sweet sugary balls of pure bliss.  I ordered my usual: lamb korma (hot) with garlic naan, mango lassi, and Ras Malai.  I asked for my dish to be served «très très très piquante» and it actually came out … mildly spicy! This is a million times spicier than I’ve found in the few Indian restaurants I’ve tried to date. And the mango lassi was a real mango lassi, not that milkshake-style crap one tends to get 50% of the time.  All in all, the food was good, the service was excellent, and I had an enjoyable time.  The one caveat: it’s pricey (for el cheapos like me).  My usual cost just over 31€.  But can you really put a price on happiness?

Well, yes.  But for the occasional night out on the town, Akash is a good choice.

Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn!

Songs to Soothe the Tortured Soul

A dimly lit room ...

a cup of tea ...

Listening to ...

1) Maybe Sparrow - Neko Case

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qclxx4uO0ac

Listen to Neko.  She will blow you away.  I ♥ Neko.

2) The Last of the Good - The Sadies

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UckmTZXPz18

ZeD introduced me to the Sadies.  The Sadies introduced me to Neko.

3) Sleeping Satellite - Tasmin Archer

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGL2lcaRYqk

As Bill Shatner says, better to have been a “has been” than a “never was.”

4) 6 Underground - Sneaker Pimps

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2eBZqmL8ehg

See above.

5) Anything, Anything - Dramarama

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Azj_AjdNWwY

On A Nightmare on Elm Street 4 (cockroach girl) soundtrack.

6) Big Empty - Stone Temple Pilots

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0rdVMSdnJs

Great things about The Crow: Freaking Awesome Soundtrack.  Fantastic look and feel, with the right balance of comic book drama, romance, action, and dark atmosphere.  Great cast and acting.

Bad things about The Crow: they killed Brandon Lee.  They killed him.  Dead. 

Still, great movie.

7) A Not Quite Perfect Film - Lousy Robot

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_G-YmKiqTE

Yes, I saw it there.  So did you.  Sinner.

8) Everybody Knows - Leonard Cohen

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEQldSi-heE

LEONARD NORMAN COHEN.

From Montreal.

The end.

And Now, Deep Thoughts ...

Who are you?
Is your life worth living?
What is your life worth living for?

At the Movies

1) The Dark Knight Rises.

Christian Charles Philip Bale

A few hokey moments aside (government statue of “The Batman”?  Riiiiight.), it delivers. But enough with the superhero movies already.  Next thing you know they’ll be making Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles from Outer Space.  

Oh for f*ck’s sake.

2) The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Hello ladies.  My name is Benedict.

More like “an expanded journey full of filler so we can justify three moneymakers in lieu of one.” The Hobbit takes itself too seriously at too many points and is too long by about two and a half hours.  Better off re-reading the book and saving this and the next one for blu-ray or DVD or VHS - assuming anyone still does that.  However, I’ll venture to the theatre again for the third to see the handsome chiseled but alien good looks of Benedict Cumberbatch in dragon form on the big screen squaring off against Holmes’ homey Martin Freeman.   I just love saying that name: Benedict Cumberbatch.  It’s not even a made-up actor name; he was born with that.  Some guys have all the luck ...

3) Killing Them Softly.  

Brad Pitt back when he actually seemed to give a damn.

The best thing this movie has going for it is how little Brad Pitt actually appears in it. Good move, mister director. Good move.  Lots of stylized graphic violence and little of anything else.

4) Beasts of the Southern Wild.  

 Quvenzhané Wallis does something called acting.  Look into it, Tom Cruise.

Very good acting.  Extremely good.  The likes of Tom Cruise nowhere in sight.  The lead actress was between five and seven years old during the making of this movie. Ignore the occasional use of heavy-handed effects that you tend to find everywhere these days, and there’s a good story about people in here.

5) Life of Pi

It's great.

Hm, no snarky remarks here.  Perhaps the Montreal and Indian connections got to me; or the fact that it did have something to do with 3.141592653589793234626 … ; or the continual microsleeps I had throughout; whatever the reason, I really enjoyed this movie.  Enough to make me want to buy the book and read it.  Go check it out.

6) Searching for Sugar Man

Sixto Díaz Rodríguez

I love documentaries, and this one is no exception.  Frankly, if I’d just sat in a darkened theatre for two hours with nothing but Rodriguez’s music playing, it would have been pure bliss.

Still looking forward to …

1) Wrong.  The alarm clock flips to 7:60am.  That’s all I needed.  The awesome original soundtrack is a bonus.

2) Django Unchained. 'nuff said.

***

Before, I go I want to tell everyone about a very bad dream I had the other night.  It was called the seventh season of Dexter.