The lavender fields of Valensole beckon, their heavenly scent entices, and the backdrop of the mountains make me yearn to paint them. Why not come and paint them with me? Trip/tour info at Tessa's site Paint Provence With Tess or email tessabakerart@gmail.com
PQ, immanquable, le coton-tige, peau des fesses…
(Today, all the new vocabulary words are in the story…so hup, hup, let's get going….)
Schaum's French Grammar–for those who want a daily workout for their French! Click here.
A DAY IN A FRENCH LIFE… by Kristi Espinasse
"A French Quirk?"
One thing I began to notice after moving to France was all the pink toilet paper! The supermarket shelves were full of it as were all of the petits coins de la France: it stood out at friends' powder rooms, was inmanquable at restaurants and the rest stops along the autoroute. The ubiquitous pink tissue (more polite than 'PQ'…) dots itself across l'Héxagone in one great question mark!
In spite of being the biggest Francophile in the world, one who put every quirk of French life up on a pedestal, I could not relate to the French penchant for le papier rose. And as soon as I learned that le papier blanc did indeed exist, I begged my husband to buy it instead. Like this, our house has been free of pink toilet paper for twenty years now.
But last week my daughter did the shopping, returning with a toilet paper value pack. 24 extra big rolls of PAPIER ROSE. "They didn't have anything else," Jackie explained. So touched that she had noticed this quirk of her mother's, I all but embraced the purchase. But Jackie's brother downright hugged it!
"I'll take it! I'll take it!" Max–my son and starving student–volunteered. "I don't care about the color–ça coute la peau des fesses! Toilet paper costs an arm and a leg in Aix-en-Provence!"
Et comme ça the toilet paper problem was settled. It would return to school with a very grateful bachelor.
Then yesterday Tess came over with a lovely group of watercolorists, including one of my readers, Valerie, and three of Valerie's longtime friends: Meredith, Marsha, and Trilby. I didn't make it to the store in time to switch out the pink rolls, and so resolved that if anyone would be okay with pink toilet paper it would be these artists - to whom color is a vital medium (indeed many artists, like my feisty Mother, abhor white! But I am getting off topic…)
As Tess pulled up to the house and I saw all the new faces inside the car, I did my best to appear at ease, even whispering to Tess, as her group exited the vehicle, just how relaxed I felt this time. But my body was showing other signs and, as I spoke my eyes and my nose and my skin began to drip...
Reaching into my pocket, I pulled out a tissue. Having no Kleenex in the house–and certain this friendly-looking group of women would take no offense–I proceeded to dry my eyes and nose and brow with a wad of pink toilet paper. "So lovely to see you all, " I sniffed. "What a warm group!" Meantime my body poured out its anxiety, drop by drop.
Once the ladies were settled before their paint trays, I hurried up to the house to check my mascara. Given how my eyes had watered, I was sure to find black streaks running down my cheeks. But I couldn't have imagined the real disaster when I looked into the mirror.
My eyes were plastered with toilet paper! There it was–my old pink foe–stuck to my eyelashes and paper machéed to the crow's feet just beyond! Even more alarming was the realization that I had been posing with the artists for photos…I with little clumps of pink TP glued to my eyes like far-out false lashes!
Using un coton-tige to clean up the mess, I rehearsed what I could say to my guests. But I never got the chance to explain. By the time I walked back out into the sunshine, to rejoin the warm circle of artists, I had completely forgotten about it!
And from this day forth, I shall stock my bathroom with rolls and rolls of pink papier toilette–and so honor the day…that yet one more anxiety up and rolled away.
* * *
Max (who scored all the pink TP), Tessa and the artists on a Paint Provence Tour that stopped at our vineyard a few years ago.
FRENCH VOCABULARY
hup, hup! = allez, come on
l'autoroute (f) = motorway, freeway
PQ = (vulgar but popular term) for papier cul (butt paper)
le petit coin = the toilet (the bathroom)
inmanquable = impossible to miss, unmistakeable
le papier = paper
rose = pink
coûter la peau des fesses = to cost the skin of one's arse (to cost an arm and a leg)
un coton-tige = Q-tip, cotton swab
My friend Tessa teaching our Max to paint when he was little. For more info on Tessa's Paint Provence tours in France, click here.
Doing garden work with my son Max and my Mom (behind the camera) is a wonderful way to rest the mind and the brain. Thank you all for the helpful tips you left me following the story Petits Oublis, about forgetfulness and memory loss.
Discover more from French Word-A-Day
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Isn’t this a story from 2015?
Hi GwenEllyn, yes it is indeed.
This story reminds me of when–quite some years ago now–I attended a graveside service for a friend and former colleague. It was full summertime, the temperature and humidity sky-high. And yet, out of respect for my friend, that morning I donned a linen dress and nylon stockings. As the service wore on, sunrays bearing down, sweat poured from my brow, trickling down my face and neck. Why, I wondered, had I decided to wear those stockings? The tissues I pulled from my purse to staunch the flow were soon crumpled and worn. After the service, I stood around with others, reminiscing about our mutual friend. When I returned to my car and took a look at myself in the rearview mirror, my eyes widened with horror. From brow to neck, my face was speckled with bits of tissue, like a weird, scaley skin eruption. I thought about the conversations I’d had post-service. It seemed everyone had been too polite to mention my affliction.
Well, you certainly made my Monday morning here a lot brighter with your humor! 🙂
Yes, that AWFUL pink French toilet paper – which is not even ABSORBENT!! It’s like waxed sandwich paper…. dreadful stuff…. At least they don’t have it in hotels any more….but in the TGV…. IF they even remember to replace it in the loos there!
Very graphic story, Kristi – had to chuckle….. good way to start the week.
Kristin, I don’t know if people really make meaningful eye contact anymore. Or are they too polite to tell you about artificial “flaws” on your face? I give up! If it’s not a glob of mascara under my eye, it’s broccoli in my teeth. And it may be hours later that I look in the mirror. How frustrating! It must be a universal thing.
I love the pink toilet paper. I even brought some home with me on my last trip:)
Gina, Im embracing it too…since learning that a lot of chemicals are used to bleach the other version!
Ah , yes , the toilet paper war . We have something at our restaurants and shops , which ends up like a large balloon animal in one’s hands . It must be more expensive in the long run . But where . . . is a photo of the papier rose ? Not necessarily in your eye lashes , just center stage . 🙂
Can only say we buy at Lidl (they do 4ply ,but white !!) hey ho !
Bonjour, Kristi,
It is good to have some early morning humor today because we here on the Monterey Peninsula are experiencing yet another power outage! This is the third in about 3 weeks. The last one was 42 hours. Quelle catastrophe! Do they have these power outages in France? I imagine a mistral could produce one. Is that so?
Our dear Kristi,
This is wonderful!
Only you could turn a tale of pink toilet paper
into such smiles on a snowy(snowing in Las Vegas!)Monday morning!
Thank you!!
Love
Natalia xo
Do you know how the term “petit coin” came about? It’s horrifying! Before they had indoor
Plumbing!😃
My wife and I used to live and work in Switzerland. I had a colleague, a fellow expat American, who had arrived shortly before we did. And one of the things he and his family had shipped over with their household goods was an enormous box of American toilet paper. What, like the Swiss don’t use the stuff? I used to tease him about it mercilessly. And, of course, when he eventually returned home, I gave him a lovely going-away present: a beautifully-wrapped box of Swiss toilet paper.
Oh My…rolling in laughter!!! Such a delicious story about pink tissue…thank you for your humor and willingness to share your great stories of life in France.
I lived in Paris for a year 60-61 (turned 20 on Le Côte D’Azur) Can’t remember the pink toilet paper.
Do remember le boudin, le cheval et le lapin that my Paris hostess served on occasion!
I have followed you since day one and enjoyed every page!
We have a lot in common!
Un grand merci!
It is my understanding that the dyes in the TP is not healthy for women parts and that is one reason you don’t see it in the US hardly at all. It is more of a health issue than anything.
This is a great story! I felt a little lurch when I saw the lovely women with Tess at your table. That would be icing on the cake if I were to take her painting class!! I don’t think they get down to your neighborhood on the Charente tour… but, who knows how that will all unfold! Meanwhile, I wonder if they sell pink tp here in the U.S. I don’t think I’ve ever seen it! It would be a conversation piece!
💛💛
Thanks so much for your delightful “tale of self discovery”, so to speak. You can always make me feel as though I am standing in your shoes and experiencing the same emotions. As always, I examine every pixel of your and your mother’s photos; I enjoy them immensely! PS: I can remember when toilet paper was available in a nice shade of soft green, yellow and pink here in the States … 60’s and 70’s approximately. My very best wishes, Cynthia
Dear Kristi, two thoughts come to mind upon reading today’s story – you are very precious and so relatable!
💛💛
Thanks, Cynthia. Mom enjoys taking photos and will often tell me to run and get my camera so she can capture a scene. In the photo she took of Max and me, she was focused on the light casting down through my hat, making designs or freckles on my face. She always gets us to stop and pay attention to the details around us. It is one of her gifts, as are your lovely comments. Merci.
Oh how I remember that pink toilet paper on my early trips to Paris. We even began packing our own in a duffel eschewing that pink dye! In France it was ubiquitous. Thanks for the charming and very funny memory.
Chère Kristi et Jean-Marc,
Je viens de lire que vous viendrez le 10 mars visiter ma librairie ici à Edwards Colorado.
Soyez la bienvenue. C’est super. Je vais “annoncer” les news à mes étudiants, classes/cafés de français et à mon Book Club.
Ils aiment beaucoup le vin français.
à très bientôt,
Rosalie Isom
Merci, Rosalie. cela nous aide beaucoup à faire savoir cet événement. Nous avons hâte de vous voir.
Jean-Marc et Kristi
Hello Kristi,
thank you for posting this delightful story. I am about to travel to France and will keep my eyes peeled for the pink toilette paper; thanks to you, no doubt.
Happy, sunny greetings from Bavaria,
Susanne Sanner