The Bovine Brigade

They're tough. They're mean. They moo.

Don't miss the bovine brigade -- coming soon to a pasture near you.

(Photo courtesy of Thierry Jouanneteau. Click on it to enlarge.)

Celebration in Solitude

On the evening of La fête de la musique in Rodez, crowds mill about all over the town.

I love the festive atmosphere, but it's the solitude of this soloist's celebration that catches my eye the most.

La fête se prépare

Preparation is underway all over France for la Fête de la Musique, which takes place on June 21st every year.

Rodez is no exception -- I noticed telltale signs of the upcoming event all over town as early as Tuesday afternoon.

Perhaps this statue can pitch a prayer for good weather!

Postscript June 22nd:

The weather was lovely, albeit a little cool, for the Fête de la Musique in Aveyron. I'll get a post up about it over the weekend. In the meantime, if you went to the Fête de la Musique in France or elsewhere and have blogged about it, feel free to leave a link to your post. I'll do a little round-up.

Cross-Cultural Clips 1

I tend to save up way too many links to "articles of interest," so I have decided to take action and present an occasional link list. If you are an expat in France, a Francophile or simply enjoy comparing cultures, you may enjoy reading one or more of the following:

The New York Times Movie Review of La Vie en Rose: “'La Vie en Rose,' which Mr. Dahan wrote as well as directed, has an intricate structure, which is a polite way of saying that it’s a complete mess," writes A.O. Scott. I agree. Do you?

Is Maman mean or magnifique? from Telegraph.co.uk: I won't comment on this one yet, but I suspect some of you might.

Hillary Equals France by Bill Maher. "What's there to say about a country that was too stupid to get on board with our wonderfully conceived and brilliantly executed war in Iraq?" Several expat blogs have already linked to this great article -- don't miss out on it. Hilarious and terrifying.

French film industry dubbers complain of pressure to water down scripts from the International Herald Tribune: I found this surprising. Who are the Puritans, again?

Looking Up, Things Are

A Happy Ending

About a year ago, I was wondering what would become of the historic "Family" cinema in downtown Rodez once the new multiplex cinema project was underway.

The bad news is that the "Family" closed down at the end of April, leaving Rodez with only two movie theaters and fewer choices -- for the moment.

But the very good news is that the cinema's premises are being taken over by La Maison du Livre, a highly popular local bookstore that is sorely lacking in browsing space.

I'm pleased that the site is trading reels for reads, and that the cinema will not be transformed into some new brand-name clothes emporium. Consider it another point scored for culture in Rodez.

And speaking of cinema, if any of you have seen Les Chansons d'Amour, hop over to my post about it on And So Forth and tell me what you thought about the flick.

Work more, earn more?

Ken from Living the Life in Saint-Aignan just wrote an interesting post -- an article, really -- about French attitudes toward work and Sarkozy's ideas about changing them.

I just left a comment, practically worthy of a post in and of itself, but why don't you join the debate on Ken's site? It's certainly a subject most expats have strong opinions about...

(Cartoon courtesy of Un dessin d'actualité par jour)