Sunday, September 13, 2009

My Little Town

I snapped this photo while sitting in the back seat of the car when we were stopped at a red light on Main Street in downtown Moncton on our way to the airport. Pierre was driving as we didn't want to inadvertently end up in another province as has been known to happen if I'm at the wheel. We were taking our daughter to the airport, and I had allowed her the shotgun seat, so that's why I was in the back. I mean, it's not as if I treat Pierre as my chauffeur or anything, though he does look awfully attractive in that brass-buttoned suit with the cap.





Now, you did notice that I said downtown Moncton, didn't you? Main Street. We live about 20 to 30 minutes (depending who's driving) outside of this city. The Peticodiac River (also known as the Chocolate River because of its frequent brown hue from the silt in it--that is silt not s--t, you'll note) runs through it and there is a walkway along most of it, though I've never strolled it. Charming, in its way. But not really what I consider a great downtown. In fact, this song by internationally renowned, local Acadian songstress (now living in Montreal, Paris, and...?) pretty much sums up my feelings about my little town.





Even if you don't understand all the words (she sings in the true "Shiak" mix of French & English) you'll see some more images of what I like to call Monkeytown.

Comme elle dit, "j'feel ben stuck icitte."

20 comments:

  1. That was an interesting music clip, the two languages was an approach I hadn't heard before.
    Very picturesque anyway!

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  2. Spending beautiful weeks in Paris this video was able to provide me with many nice memories - thank you for that!
    As my small son has to deal with German and Greek at the same time, comes up as well mixing words of these two languages, sometimes taking the beginning from one, only to have the last part of the word in the other one.
    A complete nice new week for you.

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  3. Hey Saj, Nice place to visit, eh, esp. with a few drinks to one's credit. The Franglais spoken in the area is very colourful, and not always easy to understand...though you can sometimes catch some idea of the topic by picking up on a few English words. As in, "J'aime ta skirt; j'aime le way ça hang." Quebeckers and French visitors here are always superiorly amused by the Acadian French accent. My own is a real hodgepodge! I think it only improves after a few drinks.

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  4. Robert, my dear friend, I'm glad you enjoyed the video but I suggest you get your eyes tested as soon as possible as Moncton is in no way at all like Paris. Au contraire! Though perhaps the music brought back memories for you.

    Our daughter grew up in a bilingual situation as well (me English, her father French Canadian). She mostly refused to speak French all through her childhood and teens but somehow or other wound up fluently bilingual. She now lives in Montreal, where the official language is French, and works in a largely English based university.

    I wonder how many languages your son will eventually have under his belt, with you for his father!

    A happy week to you, too.

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  5. I speak double dutch after a few too many....oh, and WV today is 'brabac' as in here is your or perhaps 'I shall have to get my.."

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  6. I thought the music was fascinating! Beautiful bluesy sound to it. My favorite "franglais" was "watcher!" Well, there was a main street! You're daughter's going to love Montreal! xx

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  7. Saj,
    Yes, you'll have to get your "brabac" (haha! good one, Saj) as that's likely why your girls went missing!

    And now all my Blog Pals have gone missing on both my blogs! Everyone has simply disappeared. Is it a conspiracy?

    Paranoid, in the Hills

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  8. Hi Margaret,
    One can be very inventive in this region in French. If you can't think of the word in French, just "er" to the end of the English equivalent.

    My daughter does love Montreal. She did her BA at McGill and has lived there for a subsequent 3 years. So great to visit her there! (of course, it would be great to visit her anywhere, but Montreal's a treat. I used to live there, myself).

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  9. So they've all phoqued off then? Oh dear, and I've poured a drink for everyone...we will have to have them ourselves! You can get a lot in a boot you know...haha, am laughing at my own joke now ' A boot" isn't that Canadian for about? (Or is that irkines of me)

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  10. Greetings from a bigger city!

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  11. Saj--you being irkine? Never! Some people have it that Canucks say "aboot" but it isn't so. Well, maybe the Newfies do (folk from Newfoundland). Do the Kiwis say "boot" for the "trunk" of a car? The blogpals all turned up again, including your lovely cleavage. Too bad for them that we'd already drunk those libations you'd already poured.
    hic!

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  12. Ewix! I hope you had a pleasant tour of smalltown life here. I enjoy my jaunts with you through your New York blog.

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  13. Yup, boot = trunk of a car over here. Actually, it is a very versatile word. You can get the boot, be as full as a boot, wear a boot...

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  14. Be as full as a boot? I don't know that one. I think there's an expression, "Fill your boots." Kind of like "knock yourself out!" though I've never actually heard anyone use it. Is wearing a boot the same thing as wearing a rubber? Americans, as opposed to Canadians, get all embarassed when we refer to rain boots as "rubbers." (let's try it on Owen, and see how he reacts. I mean the expression, not the actual thing!)

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  15. Ah, no, wearing a rubber ain't the same as wearing a boot over here...I agree, thats a good one for Owen to report back on since it was his boots that started all this!

    As for "fill your boots' yes, that is used on occasions over this way...mainly by older people so obviously you and I don't need to retain that one for now!

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  16. This is very wrong of me, Saj, but when has that ever stopped me: I can't help but envision a toddler wearing gumboots and a leaky diaper when I hear the expression "Fill your boots."

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  17. Oh dear oh dear oh dear, well, it's not that your blog pals all disappeared, some of us just got covered in giant tarpaulins of rubberized plastic, and have been billowing about in them for days in the wind trying to find our way back to civilisation and the blogosphere... but here I be, better late then never, that's here I be, as in : I be owen, not I be bubby, good boy bubby, bubby has black rubber boots, no, bubby has black leather boots, no, bubby lost boots... oh shit, better get me a bucket... bubby gonna chuck... too many cosmopolitains I guess !

    Wow, what brought that on I wonder ??? Moncton looks like a lovely place, hope to get there some day, on the way out to New Zealand...

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  18. I love how everybody completely missed the whole point of this posting, that Moncton is not, in fact, a lovely place and that I was lamenting the fact! But I guess at least you, Owen, might be forgiven as you seem to be suffering from a lack of oxygen getting to your brain as a result of the plastic bag you pulled over your head, mistaking it for a tarp. That plus the fact you're still stumbling about here at 5 in the morning your time, reeling from Tuesday's tipple! Nevertheless, it was kind of you to stop by. Though we still haven't cleared up the rubber mystery.

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  19. I'm only commenting because my WV is 'acadwans"....
    Owen appears to a lost cause, you'd better give him back his boots..............

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  20. Yes, I think we'll have to be very gentle with the galumphing one for awhile. However, I've already sold his boots at a yard sale. There's a local group of Hells' Angels rejects that hang out in the backwoods and they were happy to find a vintage, booze soaked pair. Not sure if they planned to wear them or suck 'em dry.

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