Scarfood: The world is yours

You heard me. And, if you're anything like me, you said, "Quoi?" What does that mean?

Qui sait. More than the fast food joint in Pigalle being called "Scarfood", I love that they're promising us the whole world. It's a good thought for a Friday!

American speak

There’s Bagels & Brownies in the 6eme, and Twinkie right around the corner from me. But nothing speaks to the Frenchies' weird and un-ironic obsession with American food culture like the name of this cafe:

American speak

Just me and my tank top

Seen on rue Montorgueil—an actual tank top. Worn by a man.

American speak

From Elle Magazine’s People Awards:

Tiger Woods: “Le Golfeur le Plus Fucker”

Elle’s People Awards acknowledged such notable celebs as Madonna, “la quinqua la plus cougar” and Suri Cruise, “l’enfant la plus exhibée.” But Tiger’s award, I thought, took the cake. After tsk-tsking the 14 mistresses and sharing that, while Tiger has vowed to be a better husband, his wife has filed for divorce, the write-up concluded with: “Tiger part donc avec un sérieux handicap”—he has one serious handicap.

French word of the day: baskets

Def: gym sneakers

Sometimes my dad gets endless enjoyment out of one joke, memory or word. When he was visiting in October, I mentioned that the French call their sneakers “baskets”—American speak for basketball sneakers. It still cracks him up. So when I was home and got my snazzy new Nikes, we got a lot of mileage out of the baskets joke.

But my new baskets are no joke. I love new sneakers when they’re all springy and make you feel like you can literally go that extra mile. This morning, I went to another goofy aerobics/body conditioning class at the gym. Just me and a couple French dudes, doing Jazzercise-type dance moves and pumping iron to club music. Awesome.

But soon I will try Klay’s spinning classes. Mary dared Dad and me to go to an 8 a.m. spinning class when I was home and we rose (tres early from bed) to her challenge. I was petrified that it was going to kick my butt. But I loved it; I’m a convert and can’t wait to do it again (after all, there are all kinds of Christmas cakes and pastries begging to be tried…).

Witty & wise

“In Paris they simply stared when I spoke to them in French; I never did succeed in making those idiots understand their own language.”
—Mark Twain

(Who's our modern day Mark Twain in terms of wit and talent??)

Franglais

My colleagues are really wonderful. I can be the sole American in a meeting of 14 people, and they'll switch to English to ensure I understand. So I feel badly saying anything bad about their English skills. They're quite stellar. But every once in awhile, someone says something that just makes me giggle. Like today—a very high-up said:

"It can sparkle some other ideas."

Tee hee.

American speak

A children’s clothing store in Saint-Germain:

Milk on the Rocks

You’d think I’m obsessed with store names. A little bit, I guess. But more than that, I think that the Parisians are naming their boutiques in English taps into a larger trend.

It used to be that the French abhorred English. It was like pulling teeth getting them to speak it. In my few weeks here, I’ve noticed many people (definitely my colleagues, but also waiters and people out in streets) are eager to test-drive their English skills. With the infiltration of American music and movies as well as a younger generation who has learned English in school, it’s simply more accepted to speak English – indeed, it’s a notch in your belt if you do.

I also think the Finger in the Nose v. Milk on the Rocks names are indicative of the uptown/downtown dichotomy of the two neighborhoods (Saint-Germain = uptown, Marais = downtown).

American speak

A children’s clothing store in the Marais:

Finger in the Nose

If I could hazard a guess, the creators of this uber-hip children’s clothing store in the Marais were trying to be funny and a bit ironic. Sure, kids always have a finger up their nose. But as a store name? Hmmm….

American speak

I’m not sure if this one is actually in the American speak category, but it definitely warrants notice.

A restaurant in the Quartier Montorgueil:

eat me

It appears to be one of these “concept” restaurants (there are a lot of “concept” stores here)—the idea being fresh, nutritious meals, created by chefs, and served or delivered quickly. I just think they could have come up with a better name.

American speak

I was on a conference call this afternoon with my account team and our US clients. One of my account people is a real alpha female: strong and sharp-tongued, she’s not kidding around. And as a native Frenchie, when she speaks English, it’s with a bit of a sing-song-y British accent. And the translation isn’t always quite right.

There’s an expression we use in advertising that’s always music to the clients’ ears: that we will “break through the clutter.” It basically means our ads have to work extra hard because there’s so much crap out there demanding consumers’ attention. But I think I like her expression better:

We will “step out of the cluster.”

So cute, but so damn funny.

American speak

I absolutely love my new neighborhood, le quartier Montorgueil. It’s a maze of little pedestrian streets that are chockablock with cafes, markets and boutiques. One of the shops I passed on Rue Mandar this morning had me giggling:

Royalcheese
Deluxe

It’s a cool looking shop—a hipster men’s store with jeans, tees and sunglasses that you’d see on the Lower East Side—but I wonder just what that name is supposed to mean?

American speak

An option from the vending machine:

Corny Big

It’s a cereal bar, cloaked in chocolate. Sounds fun, if not nutritious.

American speak

It’s way too easy to feel intimidated and inferior when you don’t know the mother tongue. But every once in awhile I see bad or funny English and smile with a titch of satisfaction.

Seen on Champs d’Elysée:
Sexy Furs
Crazy Prices