: resourceful, crafty, clever
Audio file: click here to listen to the following French
Ses camarades disaient de lui : C'est un malin, c'est un roublard, c'est un débrouillard qui saura se tirer d'affaire. Et il s'était promis en effet d'être un malin, un roublard et un débrouillard. His comrades said of him: He is a clever man, he is a rogue, he is a resourceful man who will be able to get out of trouble. And he had promised himself to be a clever, a rogue and a resourceful. Guy de Maupassant , "Bel-Ami"
Coincidentally as I type this, one of those news pop-ups has invaded my screen. The alert reads:
Coronavirus. La France connaîtra en 2020 sa plus forte récession depuis 1945… (in 2020, owing to the coronavirus, France will experience its worst recession since 1945…)
If that isn't a motivation to roll up one's sleeves and begin to look at our "things" and "stuff" differently, then what is? Just what are some of those resources we have at hand? If you are like me, you may be overlooking many of them:
I learned this astuce from our yearly meetup with relatives near Aix-en-Provence: each Christmas Annie and André treat our family to a turkey and mixed bird dinner (André is a chasseur). As les oiseaux roast over the fire, Annie places baking sheets full of baguette slices across the fireplace floor to catch the drippings. Guests enjoy these savory slices alongside Christmas dinner.
This "catch the drips tip" is a delicious reminder of the usefulness of bread as a sponge for collecting les restes: whether it's a delicious pasta sauce coating your pan or this amazing hamburger ratatouille–don't wash that pan! don't wash that bowl–not until you have wiped down all sides with bread slices. (plus, wiping down a pan with bread makes the pan easier to clean…). Transfer the coated bread into a Tupperware or baggy and enjoy the savory toasts (put them under the grill) at the next meal– served alongside a green salad they make a satisfying lunch, or serve them as a convivial apéro. I do this every time I remember to, but often, I am at the kitchen sink pouring liquid soap into the pan … before I realize I have just ruined a good opportunity!
WINE
There, that title woke you up! Who knew wine was a resource? Here at our place, even if we all don't drink it, none of us (not even I…) let it go to waste. This next tip I learned from the wonderful Babé (bah-bay) who was the best help each time bottling season came around at our vineyard. As we stood side-by-side in the bottling truck, Babé entertained us with stories of her life and a few great tips, too–like how her houseplants drink wine…
"Never let a drop go to waste! When you reach the end of a bottle, fill it with water and go and feed your plants!" Since learning that tip I "rinse" every bottle, filling it with water to collect what wine remains…and feeding it to my garden plants or directly to my compost.
RAGS ARE RICHES
I was supposed to begin this post with a word about conspiracy theories and why, if I were a Truther (is that the word?), or conspiracy theorist, I'd have a thing or two to say about the coronavirus: my theory would be that The Powers That Be (that be trying to eliminate us all?) — it was THEY who came up with the Minimalist Movement, created Marie Kondo, got us all to clear out our homes entirely before BAM! hitting us with the coronavirus. Now that we've given away almost everything (I donated a pile of bandanas that didn't spark joy! Those kerchiefs would have made good face masks!) we are as vulnerable as ever. We even sold my daughter's sewing machine after it remained in the closet for 4 years. Dumb, dumb, dumb–sewing machines, like flour, are a hot commodity. (speaking of farine, I hope you are all making the 4-ingredient super fastoche bread loaf right now. I make it every night and bake it each morning…in fact I just burned a loaf while typing this post! So much for resources! I'd better end on this note: it is presence of mind that makes us aware of all the wonderful resources around us…and it takes presence of mind, as well, to protect them.
* * *
It would be a great pleasure to learn about the ways in which you, dear reader, use and repurpose the materials around you. From saving rubber bands to cutting up your husband's T-shirts and making safety masks (see my belle-mère, Marsha's, video)–please share your tips in the comments. Merci d'avance!
FRENCH VOCABULARY
roublard =street smart
débrouillard = resourceful, clever, crafty
une astuce = tip, hack, trick
le chasseur = hunter
un oiseau = bird
les restes = leftovers
la farine = flour
récoupérable = recoverable
on verra = we'll see
Our dear Smokey, in between the flower pots.
Smokey and The Glycines–could be the name of a band. I love this profile pic, with his hooded eyes and a glimpse of that tongue.
What his Tinder photo might look like?
Faithful friend for life.
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Mike, It is great to learn you have a worm farm and are pleased with it! Just yesterday, I contacted someone through a community service, to see about getting some donated worms. Now to figure out whether to buy a lombricomposteur or build one? Ideas welcome!
My boys love Lego-building challenges. I often read to them or they listen to an audiobook (https://stories.audible.com/discovery/enterprise-discovery-21122356011?ref=adbl_ent_anon_ds_ds_dccs_sbtp-0-1 for heaps of free audiobooks for children, as well as adults) while they build.
We also do YouTube workouts together. The John Wicks channel on YouTube is made for children, but I love joining in the workouts from time to time.
We enjoy baking or cooking together. When they help in the kitchen, I use that time to help them practise essential maths skills. Your four-year-old can practise counting dried pasta or beans, and the six-year-old can practise multiplication by grouping items. We also practise fractions when baking by multiplying or dividing a recipe.
My kids get daily screen time, but they have to ‘earn’ it by first doing chores around the house and engaging in non-tech activities. I hope that these ideas might be useful to you.
Kristi, your photos of Smokey with those blossoms are so charming! I’m smiling from ear to ear. I hope that the bread was salvageable. Over here, farine is a hot commodity, and although some people choose to drive from shop to shop seeking flour, I prefer to stay at home and make do. I have Coeliac disease, so I bake with a gluten-free flour mix, and my family doesn’t seem to mind it too much, though they certainly prefer regular baked goods. I have been baking gluten-free scones, which are very versatile, as well as making my own almond milk (I stay away from dairy for health reasons), then using the almond pulp to make banana bread. These days, I’m cooking as much as I normally do, but we try to limit our trips to the supermarket and for that reason, I find myself carefully planning our meals in advance.
We have a teddy-bear hunt currently happening in New Zealand. Households that wish to participate decorate their front windows with a teddy-bear, and when families go for a walk, the children count how many bears they can spot. I have seen several households change their display on a daily basis, with one window that now features 20 bears.
Thank you, Leslie! 💕💕
Wonderful. Thanks, K. J. !
un ooops!
ingénieux
adj m inv capable de créations, pleine d’ingéniosité
Anyone with tips on using dry (maybe moldy) cheeses?
Merci Betsy
I think the Harry Potter books are a bit advanced for a 4- and a 6-year-old; they will appreciate them more when they’re a bit older. There are many wonderful books for younger children, and I recommend including books with pictures, as well as some with simple text that the children can start to learn to read. Mostly they will benefit from listening to you.
Among other projects, the kids could make puppets and put on plays.
Betsy, funny you should ask! This is an inside joke with JM and me. I am fearful of moldy cheese, whereas JM has a *même pas peur* attitude. I admit that lately, when I find moldy cheese in the fridge, I hate to throw it out…as we are not going to the store as often. So yes! If anyone has a tip/info on moldy cheese, share it here!
Kristin-
I have enjoyed your daily blog emails for years. I have just tried your recipe for rustic bread, with great results! Thank you! Best of luck, always.
Jan Roese (now from Irvine, California)
Hello Janice, I am so happy to hear you had great results. Keep on baking! I have halved the recipe and continue to mix it each night and bake it each morning. Take care.
Try baking or cooking with them. It teaches them and is fun to enjoy the end product. I’ve been doing this via Facetime with my granddaughter (with help from her mom) and she loves it!
why not start a band with friends online, and name yourselves “smokey and the glycines” … i love this name! and namesake!
I have been making no knead bread for years. Your “pour” trick is genius. I baked a loaf this morning. Worked great. In the past I often thought the time saving was hardly worth the work of cleaning up afterwards. I did make adjustments for high altitude. I baked at 475 degrees Fahrenheit for 40 Minutes. Thanks for the great tip.
Thank you, Joan, for this update. I am so happy to know this worked for you. I am about to put this mornings loaf into the oven. Your note cheers me on! Happy baking.
Attention… Roublard, is mainly known amoung French as cunning, an old fox 😉