Resting on one's laurels. (Note: I didn't have a picture of a laurel, so how about anemones instead? Let's rephrase things now to "easing up on one's anemones"
se reposer sur ses lauriers
: to rest on one's laurels
A Day in a French Life… by Kristin Espinasse
I did not bring my husband his cup of kawa this morning. Instead, I crept up the spiral staircase with its dusty red tommettes, made a swift kro-shay at the top of the cage d'escalier, and ran like a thief on a twilight getaway.
There, at the end of the hall, in a spring-cleaned office, I sat down at a tidy desk and willed myself to cast out culpability and put all guilt to rest. I looked around at my treasure, this room of one's own, and let myself get lost in the bliss of Alone.
Leave me ALONE! Isn't that what we so often yearn to say at the end of any given day? But there is no room for selfishness in a world full of need. So we try our best to put Ego aside and say "Yes" to others and dedicate ourselves to deed after good deed.
But in the early hours of the morning… before anyone else is awake, a peaceful parcel is ours for the taking, and there we claim our moment of calm and drive in our victory stake.
…Only sometimes we linger too long on our lauriers…
He can get his own coffee this morning! I decide, allowing my meditative moment to meander on and on… Nursing my coffee like Nefertiti, I sit back in my office chair and click open my calendar…
Monday, March 29th… !!!
Double-quick dare-dare, I ditch Nefertiti—and any other newfangled notions about nursing time—and hightail my hide back to the coffee machine in time to make my husband his café with cream. Next, I climb the stairs in rhythm with the French words of Joyeux Anniversaire!
:: Le Coin Commentaires ::
Will you help me to wish Jean-Marc Joyeux Anniversaire? Thanks for leaving him a message here.
Happy Birthday Chief Grape. We love you.
French Vocabulary and Audio File
(check back this afternoon, via this link, for the audio file.)
le kawa = (synonyme for) coffee
la tommette = red (often hexagonal) floor tile
kro-shay (pronunciation for "le crochet") = sudden swerve, detour
la cage d'escalier = stairwell
les lauriers (mpl) = laurels
dare-dare = double-quick
joyeux anniversaire! = happy birthday!
French Demystified…simple enough for a beginner but challenging enough for a more advanced student.
The bible of French home cooking, Je Sais Cuisiner, has sold over 6 million copies since it was first published in 1932. It is a household must-have, and a well-thumbed copy can be found in kitchens throughout France. Its author, Ginette Mathiot, published more than 30 recipe books in her lifetime, and this is her magnum opus. It's now available for the first time in English as I Know How to Cook. With more than 1,400 easy-to-follow recipes for every occasion, it is an authoritative compendium of every classic French dish, from croque monsieur to cassoulet.
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Happy Birthday, Jean-Marc! Have a fabulous day. (And Kristin, good decision to get him the coffee today. But there’s always tomorrow to enjoy that room of your own!) 🙂
Bon anniversaire a toi, Jean-Marc. Tu restes jeune, quand-meme, compare a nous!
Joyeux Anniversaire! Happy Birthday!!
May your days be filled to overflowing with love, laughter & success!
From Hobe Sound, FL – 70.9 degrees & raining
Happy birthday, Jean-Marc, from sunny Grasse! And, many returns of the day!
Bonne Anniversaire, Jean-Marc. Hoping that you’ll have a great day and many more birthdays. I hope your trip across America was fruitful. A bientôt, Tes amis à Paris
Bonjour Kristin. I haven’t been able to poke my head in to read you over the last week but the last time I did I was so happy to hear about the rebirth of your “space”. I’m now happy to read that you are enjoying it. Your sweet picture of the pups captures that quiet of the early morning which is also my favorite time to sit down in peace with my coffee and laptop. Unfortunately, time seems to go much faster during these stolen sessions and it seems all too soon that the mad rush crashes down upon me and I’m called into joyful duty.
Happy Anniversary, Jean-Marc. The key to success is making your dreams a reality. I wish you many more years of success and happiness.
Happy Birthday to the wine man!! Any man who takes his wife to live in France and then makes her wine is a winner and a keeper!!
Ugh – I always do that. I confuse “anniversaire” with anniversary and therefore thought we were wishing J.M. good wishes for a milestone with the winery. When will it sink in???
So….. Jean-Marc- Joyeux anniversaire et bonne fête !!!
Much Happiness and a long,fruitful life, Jean-Marc. Happy Birthday!
Joyeux Anniversaire Jean-Marc from Cape Cod Massachusetts. Have a wonderful day with your lovely family. I wish you health, joy, and happiness and of course a prosperous year in your vineyard.
Paula Sullivan
Joyeux Anniversaire Jean-Marc!
Joyeux anniversaire, Jean-Marc! We’re hoping the year ahead is a great one for you; health, happiness, and joy in the vineyard, too.
Alyssa and Fred Eppich, SoPo, Maine
Lundi, le 29 mars 2010,
Joyeux Anniversaire, Jean – Marc!
J’espère que vous ayez beaucoup plus.
Avec amitié,
Marcel Tiemann
Nouvelle-Orléans, Louisiane,
Hello Jean-Marc!
Jour “J” pour te chanter le bon vieux refrain de la chanson populaire:
Bon anniversaire
Nos voeux les plus sincères
Que ces quelques fleurs
Vous apportent le bonheur
Que l’année entière
Vous soit douce et légère
Et que l’an fini
Nous soyons tous réunis
Pour chanter en choeur
Bon anniversaire !
(chorus of a song written in 1951… not that long ago!)
Have a wonderful birthday, JM!! I hope your day is filled with everything you wish for and nothing that you don’t…
Many happy returns.
LeNora
Jean-Marc……..Joyeux Anniversaire!!!! We are having rain showers and storms here in Orlando, FL just so that you can enjoy a bright and memorable day…..
Bon Anniversaire!
Jackie Hughes
Joyeux Anniversaire, Jean-Marc! It was great seeing and meeting you at Solo Vino in March.
34 degrees and heading to 65 in St. Paul.
Happy Birthday, Jean-Marc!
Joyeux Anniversaire from Philadelphia, PA!
JOYEUX ANNIVERSAIRE, JEAN-MARC,
C’ETAIT UN PLASIR DE VOUS VOIR A NEW YORK!
RUTH
Joyeux Anniversaire Jean-Marc de Pittsburgh, PA! J’espere que tu as un jour magnifique et que Dieu vous benisse.
Bon Anniversaire Jean Marc! I send springtime birthday wishes from Baton Rouge. I wish for you a beautiful day and many more years of health, love and good wine! Cheers!
Bon anniversaire, Jean-Marc et une toute joyeuse année à venir. Que tous vos voeux se réalisent !
Joyeux Anniversaire Jean-Marc de Toronto, ON. Have a wonderful day and all the best in the year to come.
Hope you have your wines in Canada soon!
Joyeuse anniversaire and Happy Birthday, Jean-Marc. My French nieces and nephews always sang the English birthday song-don’t know why, do you?
Have a great day.
Bon anniversaire à Jean-Marc! A glass of wine & a toast: À votre santé!
and Kristen: do you know about the “Room of Her Own Foundation?” http://www.aroomofherownfoundation.org
Joyeux Anniversaire, Jean-Marc! Sorry to have missed you in D.C. I hope to find your wine here in Charlottesville, VA. There are so many wineries here, you and Kristin will have to come visit them!
Joyeaux Anniversaire, Jean-Marc! We have never met but your wife’s stories have made me feel as if we have. Have a wonderful year.
Happy Birthday, Jean Marc, you handsome devil! I hope that you get lots of kisses from Smokey and Braise just as I do from my 2 pups, Cooper and Cosette. And, of course, even more kisses from your beautiful family: Kristin, Max, and Jackie. You have truly been blessed!
JOYEAUX ANNIVERSAIRE, Jean-Marc. Stories and photos of your beautiful, happy family bring joy to the world. Vita-Iris
Jean-Marc: Joyeaux Anniversaire! Have a great day – relax – have a cup of coffee! See you all soon.
Greetings from Quogue, Long Island, NY! Have a Joyous Birthday, Jean-Marc! We met you and Kristin when you were visiting Manhattan on your wine and book tours. Bonne Anniversaire!
Happy Birthday from New Jersey USA – I hope your vintage is a good one this year. You are lucky to have such a witty and wonderful wife who so obviously adores you and the life you have built together. She brings happiness to my life with her stories as I am sure she does yours.
Jean-Marc Joyeux Anniversaire from Pittsburgh, PA USA. You work so hard on your vines and seem to love them. I wish you another year of health, wealth and love of family and good friends.
MMMMMMMMMMMMMM! Coffee in bed is the best way to start your birthday!
Best wishes from Miami….where we are still waiting for your wine introduction & visit…..
All the best form a fan of FWTD…
Renee Convers
Happy Birthday, Jean-Marc! I hope you’re having an incredibly-blessed and blissful day. We’ve planted a grapevine in our Austin, TX backyard in your honor. 😉
Happy Birthday from Northern Virginia, Jean-Marc! Wishing you many years of laughter, health and happiness.
Jean-Marc … to a fellow Aries & lover of “what can become” when everything lines up perfectly from Spring to Harvest .. I wish you a bountiful year, with an incredibly full & chewy finish! Aloha from Kauai, Bill Facker
Joyeux Anniversaire, Jean-Marc.
Many happy returns of the day. Hope the next year holds wonderful things in store for you and yours.
All the Best,
Adele
Joyeux Anniversaire, Jean-Marc.
Joyeux anniversaire, J-M, from rainy Philadelphia to la belle France…. Best wishes for a wonderful year of family, friends and winemaking…
Chris
Félicitations à Jean-Marc de Nouveau Mexique!
The world wide community of French Word readers wishes you a joyeux anniversaire and many good times in the year ahead. Thanks to Kristin, we’ll be sharing them with you and cheering you on. You have a very large family now!
Amiitiés,
Johanna
Joyeux Anniversaire, Jean-Marc. Coincidentally it is also my youngest son’s birthday – 27 years old! Now those days of hustling to get breakfast on the table for a scrambling family of 6 are only on the occasion of a visit from their distant homes. The seasons change, each with its glory.
Blessings,
Esther
I add my good wishes for a fine day Jean-Marc – Joyeux Anniversaire! Raise your glass and thank your lucky stars for all the blessings that are yours every day as well as this one. Health, wealth and happiness to you all always.And to Kristin I add, Virginia Wolf would be proud of you. Allez-y! xx
Happy Birthday, Jean-Marc! Have a wonderful day and keep making your fabulous wine. All good things to you in the year to come.
Happy Birthday Jean-Marc! I hope that coffee in bed was the best ever. The world is a better place because of you – the passion you bring to your craft, your kindness and generous spirit. We salut you this morning with our own mugs of coffee and wish you many more years of good health. See you soon.
Joyeux Anniversaire, Jean Marc from friends in Tucson Arizona. We celebrated our anniversary this year with a bottle of your wine. Have a wonderful day
Feliz Cumpleaños, Jean_Marc, con mucha salud, amor y felicidad.
Joyeux Anniversaire! With lots of health, love, and happiness.
From a faithful reader in Miami of Kristin’s adventures. Marilina
Joyeux Anniversaire Jean-Marc! I hope you have a wonderful day!
From Salt Lake City on a beautiful and sunny spring day (high of 68)
Joyeaux Anniversaire Jean-Marc! We enjoyed a bottle of your Dentelle last night. Thank you for sharing your gift of wine making with the world! Best wishes!