Thursday, September 30, 2010

life list: make a tiramisu.


is your mouth watering yet?
this afternoon i was looking through
my little recipe book 
i've been slowly adding to

on a tattered piece of notebook paper,
is a recipe for 
homemade tiramisu
that a french friend passed on to me.

one of these days i'll try it.
maybe on a rainy afternoon 
where i want to do is curl up with a book
and boycott classes and errands.
oh wait, that's today.
(well, the rainy part anyway)

what recipes do you have stashed away
that you want to try on the next rainy afternoon?

xo

ps! stop by tomorrow for 
a new feature on mistinguett! 

photo courtesy dailymail.

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

we're all in it together.


morning!
or afternoon for most.
i just finished a fresh tomato salad for lunch
a baguette with a square of cheese.

i wish i had an umbrella like that
i'll need it when i go outside in a bit
i understand montrealers 
affinity for rain boots now!

while i was doing my morning reading 
and reflection writing,
i came across a quote 
that rang true to me in a funny way.

it was from a writer quoting Lev Vygotsky
(how cool would it be to be named Lev?)
a Russian psychologist,
who talked about how we interact with people.

one of his beliefs was that
we become ourselves through others.

there's a certain individual awareness
that comes from interacting with others.
we actually learn more about ourselves,
become ourselves
through being with other people.

isn't that a wonderful thought?
i think it brings some togetherness
to the world
when sometimes we have to squint to otherwise see it.

so there's some social theory 
for your tuesday afternoon!
:)

alli

Monday, September 27, 2010

le weekend.

i think i may have had
the most american of weekends.

the peek of a golden dome
like a window into the past
in a way

a good old fashioned tail gate
was in order on saturday morning.
brats, potato salad, chips, beer
cupcakes, autumn color m&ms...

best friends.


highly competitive corn hole matches.


and an intensely concentrated marching band.

i won't show you a picture of the score board...

it was a wonderful american autumn weekend.
cozy sweatshirts
chilly evenings
picnics and crockpot dinners
eight way conversations at the dinner table
old friends, so close they're family

it was funny to be in michigan in the autumn. 
the last time i was there this late in the year,
i was saying goodbye.
it was hard not to be reminded of that.
but the bittersweet ending of a summer season
comes with the excitement of what the new one will hold next year.
and all the fun things to be done in between!

how was your weekend?

alli

ps. i now know from experience.
you only have to forget your passport once 
to have the lesson sink in.
:\
montreal and michigan never seem so far away
as when you don't have the ID to get there!

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

life list: visit prince edward island.

a couple thoughts before life list.
i've been people watching most of the afternoon
a couple minutes ago,
i walked past a man lying on some steps
looking up at the sky
just chilling out there.

(slightly strange yes)
but haven't you ever wanted to do that?
just lay and watch the clouds
i'm having one of those kinds of wednesdays

fighting a headache and wondering
why oh why
i decided to stop drinking coffee today
i am honestly folks,
is it worth a cranky wednesday?

anyway
i digress!

i think i'd like to go to prince edward island


especially now, in the first days of autumn


i'd like to hop on a ferry,
cuddle up in chunky wool sweater
and explore the island
eat some lobster
maybe spend a night or two in a lighthouse.
i'm certainly a lot closer to it now!

what's your autumn trip fantasy?

alli

photos via here and here

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

celebration time!


hello friends!
a celebration is in order!!

today
(ok, really, 2 weeks ago)
mistinguett
is a year old!

two years ago, on my way to france 
for my first year of adventures,
i started
when i moved to beaune, i switched blogs
et la, voilà
mistinguettalli.blogspot.com
:)

you've joined me through my 

and now my journey 
through the world of les québecois
academia
and snow plows

thanks for reading friends
a very happy birthday mistinguett

xo




Saturday, September 18, 2010

saturday morning.

this is how i love 
starting my weekend mornings.
cup of coffee
and pretty pictures.


the new Rue magazine



i couldn't link other pictures,
so you must go see!
colors, textures, shapes
i love looking at design magazines.

the problem is,
i cut out all the ideas
post them on my inspiration board
and that's where they stay!

which is your favorite?

alli





http://freeasabullfroghopwhereyouplease.blogspot.com/ 
http://www.annesage.com/blog/2010/08/at-last-the-first-sneak-peak-of-rue-magazine.html

Friday, September 17, 2010

the scent of a memory.



coucou!

on my morning metro walk
bundled up in my trench coat,
(i love fall!)
vintage red scarf tied around my neck,
and brown boots hugging my ankles
i started to contemplate something.

turning the street corner,
i caught a whiff of a mens cologne,
and i was instantly transported back to october 2000.
walking down the hallways of marian high school
trying to find a place in the crowd
but not wanting to get too comfortable
our family was right on the brink of a big move

i've encountered that smell several times since then
a mix of cologne and aftershave 
it reminds me of anticipation and uncertainty
make believe confidence and new beginnings.

smells have a way of attaching themselves to things.

the first one i remember
in nantes, france
was butter.
huge, sweet clouds of butter that seemed to permeate the town
...or at least the street i lived on,
a patisserie somewhere close by.
years afterwards,
it always makes me think of early mornings,
walking to class, hopping on the tram.
ipod in ears, parapluie above my head, french books in tow.
a step out of the apartment 
onto a new street.

the smell of paris to me
is a combination of many things.
you'll laugh when you hear
that i have been searching for a certain perfume for years.
years.
it's the one i smell on parisian city streets
a sweet flowery feminine smell.
there's a elegance and nonchalance to the perfume
all swirled into one.

and don't think i haven't searched for it.
i've spritzed countless perfumes on my wrists
and sometimes even think i've got it
but then later, it's just not quite right.

en fait, maybe it's the elusiveness
that makes this perfume
one of my favorite scents.

all this was part of the
metro morning walk
and the wonder,
what does montreal smell like?
what will make me think of this time in my life,
years later?

do you ever wonder about that?
what are the most powerful smells in your life?

happy weekend!

alli

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

positive in the negative.

hello there.
i've been having a bumpy sort of week.
does that ever happen to you?
things just sort of don't feel right
i'm sure everything will work itself out
it always does, n'est-ce pas? 

in the meantime i've decided to look at the positive.
crisp fall weather means
tall boots, flannel shirts, and trench coats
tights, scarves, and leg warmers 

and pretty dresses


this weekend i'm traveling to a new city to see something i love
EAA fly in in ottawa

the wonderful crafty blog i stumbled upon this morning


with oodles of crafts and design ideas i want to copy asap
next sewing challenge: making that tank top right there
and i think following her instructions 
might even be possible for those who don't sew
ie moi

what cheers you off during an off week?

alli 



Friday, September 10, 2010

silence. constructive or crippling?



this blog is quickly turning into 
a recap of
but sometimes i can't help but share 
interesting things i find over there.

like this
one of the first ever articles i've encountered
that praises silence in the classroom.
not the communist sort of 
take-everything-as-is
and don't express-your-own-opinion
sort of silence

but the kind i am more familiar with-
silently listening and reflecting 
in the classroom
forming my own opinions
but only rarely sharing them.

i don't entirely endorse remaining silent in the classroom
it's something i struggled with throughout my school career.
only in my last years of undergrad and now the first year of my masters
am i making a big effort to break my habits.

in fact, 
my experience as an english teacher in france,
made me look at my own classroom habits
in a new way.
i can see the value of participating in the classroom,
what it can add for students and teachers alike.

even so, 
i felt like the author was talking about me 
in the article
and in a different way, from my report cards which constantly read
'she needs to talk more in class'
even though now I can see, that i agree with those teachers and their comments
i just was in the middle of figuring out how to find my voice.

what about you?
do you/did you have an active voice in the classroom?
silence.
is it constructive or crippling?


alli

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

life learning.

today i did something intriguing
and i couldn't wait to share it here.
i was asked by a teacher,
to map out
my learning journey.

to write everything that i thought
contributed to the learning 
i've done throughout my life.

my first entries read very much like a resume.
a very complete one, that is.
montessori preschool (i inserted three states here)
montessori kindergarten-eighth grade
high school
university
masters

in between, i thought of educational experiences 
outside of the classroom
(the class is called nonformal learning...)
so i threw in gymnastics, flute lessons, and volleyball
ignoring the month and a half of pathetic basketball playing...
navigating the london tube map with my sister
our first trip out of the country

in high school, i added chorus, singing lessons, travel volleyball
weeks in europe, pruning independence
flying lessons.

then i started to think about all the times
learning wasn't the goal so much at the time.
stocking food shelves at the homeless shelter in 8th grade
tutoring middle school algebra
handling classes full of rowdy french middle schoolers.

a list at the bottom of the page
was for learning experiences 
important, but less tangible
going to my first funeral
being a best friend
a big sister, a family member
being in committed relationships
being alone

times when i learned
not always willingly.
how much clearer i can see the learning now
that went on years ago.

have you ever sat down 
and mapped your learning journey?
i think you'd be surprised
as to suddenly what seems most important.
what shaped you the most.
what you didn't realize at the time.
and the endless learning going on everyday.

just some thoughts.
as you can see, i'm deep in thought and theories over here :)

a+

alli

Sunday, September 5, 2010

market day.

market goodies. 
peaches, potatoes, baguettes, bananas
lettuce, onions, garlic, cherry tomatoes
eggplant, sausage, and wine!

peach cobbler for dinner
and roasted potatoes and eggplant on the menu sometime soon
the wine was from romania....
a long way from Quebec, I know

I'm realizing now
that I was incredibly and irreversibly spoiled
by french wine, cheese, bread and yogurt.
besides the lack of variety,
the price tags are enough to make you faint.
or simply change your eating habits i guess.

but are few things i like better
than taking a saturday morning stroll
to load up a bag with fresh
farmer's market goodies.
thankfully that's similar in most cultures :)



today we took a hike up 
le mont royal
pronounced in french exactly like montreal
it's the city's namesake after all
the 'mountain' in the middle of the city


my french chicago!

we went with a new friend i made,
an american named ali.
we bonded on the fact that we spell our name the same,
allison,
childhood gymnastics memories,
and cross country road trip stories.

and the adorableness of her dog, luna.

a great pyrenees, who was certainly the star today during our walk.
we actually had a group of (spanish?) tourists
ask to take a picture with luna.
without ali in the picture?
luna seemed pretty used to the attention!

tomorrow, to celebrate labor day,
we're heading to a mont orford,
our second national park in quebec.

how are you spending the holiday weekend?
winding down the summer with a campfire and barbeque?
picnic in the park?
catching up with grad school reading? (i will be!)


a+

alli




Friday, September 3, 2010

friday night inspiration.


hope everyone has a fabulous weekend in store.
it's finally going to cool down around here,
but unfortunately that means some rain first.

maybe i'll be brave enough to debut my 
blue and white polka dot rain boots
to find some fresh fruits and veggies at the market
(note to self: find and purchase umbrella)

then if the sun comes out on monday, 
i think we'll skip over to another national park
photos to come, i'm sure!

a+

alli



Wednesday, September 1, 2010

dressing for success. and 90 degree humid city weather.

i have to admit, 
that one of the things 
that did not come into my mind
when packing for montreal
was heat. 

now, in the midst of one of the hottest weeks in the summer,
relying daily on public transportation,
while trying to avoid blisters and throbbing feet,
i find it a bit more challenging to get dressed in the morning

and then there's the ever open question 
what does one wear to graduate school?
a suit and heels?
too much
shorts and tshirt?
too little

for the moment, i don't mind erring on the side of overdressed
dresses and skirts have been the go to so far
although surrounded by newbie undergrads tends to leave me feeling 
realllly dressed up at times. 
oooh undergrads. 
there, i said it.

on a related note,
i've recently discovered 
an intriguing mix of blogs, articles, and reviews
covering everything from nitty gritty statistics
to opinion pieces and forums

this morning i was pointed to an article about teachers and fashion entitled, 
it talks about how you dress in the classroom 
shapes your credibility in the workplace.
nothing new there.
it goes on to explain that in academia 
there is a reverse correlation between looks and success,
the opposite to what we find in the business world.

someone working in a Fortune 500 company
is more likely to be promoted
if they are considered 'good looking'
(i'm not agreeing with this, i'm just stating the general opinion in the article)
whereas as a faculty department member
the 'better looking' you are
the less credible you are.

"If you look as if you spend more time in the beauty parlor than in the library, that's going to be a problem."
intriguing.
do you buy into it?  or do you think 
that kind of discrimination and judgment
is not relevant 
in the workplace?

thoughts please!

a+

alli 

food for thought.

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