Chicks and Champs

Did you all watch the soccer game, the European Cup Final?! It was really fun, even though Germany lost, the team I was hoping would win. Spain won instead. There were many wonderful plays, so I still had a great time watching the game. I think that will be the end of sports while I am here. There is a foosball table in the house. Maybe we can have our own live games!

On Monday morning, I did get to sleep in. I sent a package from the post office. France is so expensive! I won't say how much I paid, but it is more expensive than sending things from the States. I don't think I could live in France because I would fear going to the post office. The system is pretty confusing, too. Even the name of the family of the place of destination has to be on the package or letter being sent within France. I think our system is much more efficient because the name doesn't matter. Oh, the small things I take for granted back home, like trusting the postal service!

I quickly got out of the evil post office and didn't look back. I walked straight to the Monday market going on in Lasalle. I said hello to some friends I've made: two men from Senegal who sell their artwork there and a Thai woman who sells lots of random things (Thai jewelry, Thai food, painted woodwork, spice baskets, etc.). One of the Senegal guys has a sister living in Rhode Island. He called her on his cell phone so I could talk to her, haha! She was very sweet and spoke English very well. I also bought some fruit from a family that always gives me free samples of what they have. I bought watermelon and cantalope, which I will cut up and put in a lime-honey-mint sauce for July 4th, and some dates to share with the family and Naoko in particular because she has never eaten them before. I had a great time running around and visiting these familiar faces. I even got some free items because I come to say hi when I can and sometimes buy things from them. I like being with these foreigners and supporting their way of life! They are all very generous and friendly!

On the farm, Ja-Ja has already been preparing for Saturday's market. She has picked a lot of potatoes, which is what she usually starts out gathering because they can last in good condition for quite a long time off the plant. She has also been collecting a lot of squash, zucchini, and green beans. All of these vegetables are starting to get very large! She wanted to pick them before they get too big and difficult for her customers to cook with. Naoko, Amena, Mishka, and I have been gathering the black currants. They are fairly ripe now. Some are sweet and addictively delicious, but others are still a bit tart. We are picking them all anyway because Ja-Ja plans on making a lot of jam with them. Black currant jam is pretty spectacluar if you get a chance to try it! It takes a long time to pick the currants, though. The pants look somewhat like grape plants, and the currants grow in small bunches sort of like grapes, too. The plant and its leaves are beautiful. Try to put one in your garden if you can!

We also have been trying to fill orders placed by other farmers and neighbors. One order was for 10,000 leeks! My job was to help count them and carefully place them in crates in a very orderly fashion. These are baby plants and the farmer plans on replanting them, farther apart than from what they were here in the ground, so that they grow into larger leeks. My other big job here has been helping out with the hay. We are still cutting, raking, bailing, transporting, and storing the hay. It takes a lot of people, a lot of arm strength, a lot of sun screen, and a lot of patience. The process can last all day, depending on the size of the field, the driness of the hay (wet hay can brake the bailing machine and make the bails heavier), the amount of wind spreading out our hay piles that we have to re-rake, and the amount of workers. You also have to have a tolerance for bad tan lines because my sock tan is getting pretty obvious now, eep!

There is a new addition to the farm: baby chicks! There are five in total: four black and one yellow! They are extremely small and furry. They like to hide under their Mom's belly a lot. I will keep you updates in their growth! They like to stay indoors, but they can't hide from me!

On Tuesday evening, we all went to watch Inès in her school play. It is the end of the school year now for the elementary school here (yes, I think it's pretty late, too). This event is mostly to help raise money for the next school year. The kids sang songs, which were actually mostly all in English, read poetry that they wrote, and did small skits. The major theme was nature and using every items, like tin cans and wood boards, to play games or do silly things with your body. I got to drink a free kir as an apéritif. It was a mix of white wine with black currant liquor. It is a regional favorite. The wine was really cheap and bad, though. I'm glad it was free. My head hurt the next day, even though I only drank half a glass! Chérif knew my headache was because of the wine and he felt bad because he wants me to enjoy the culture and food here. He let me work less that day.

The food here has pretty much been the same. We are eating a lot more onions and leeks because they are in season here now. They are especially sweet and very good in omelettes or salads. Ja-Ja made a lasagne with a lot of diced carrots. I thought it was a great idea for a healthier dish. I like it, but it gave the lasagne a sweeter taste, which I didn't like much. Maybe diced zucchini would be a better substitute for me. On the night of Inès's event, I pan fried steak for Naoko, Amena, Mishka, and I. Naoko wanted me to show her how to make gravy with the left over sauce. She had it before in London and wanted to know how to make it from scratch. I showed everyone and they loved it! Thank you Aunt Linda for teaching me! Your cooking expertise has now traveled to France, hehe!

I am now looking forward to cooking for July 4th tomorrow! Wish me luck. I hope that everyone has a great holiday and celebrates well! Eat some cake, drink some ice cold soda, and watch some fire works or parades for me! I want to lastly thank you all for the ideas for the molasses substitutions. I appreciate the help. The grocery stores here don't really cater for foreign tastes. Rubbish! (N'importe quoi!)