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Friday, March 27, 2020

Franprix, jam jars, Paris Letters/Maps

This week went by in a state of unreality. While others were making no-knead bread  and redesigning their lives, I wrestled with a jam jar. The jam jar won. True I got a stiff calf early on from too many squats without warming up. I elevated, iced with a bag of frozen peas and rested (RICE). 

Sunday morning I went out again early At 9:15. No one out except tenacious runners. Parisians left the city Tuesday a week ago, gone to their country homes. Its 'August in Paris' except boulangeries are open and the weather is crisp and cold (34 feels like 28). 
It's good occasionally to get out in the fresh air (we are allowed out 1 hr  per day with documentation) away from information overload and the tragic daily numbers so hard to comprehend. My building is all but empty. No garbage to speak of - the tell tale sign. 
The shelves are well-stocked at Franprix except for pasta. Maybe cos Parisians are now picking berries dans la campagne
I've never understood French cleaning products. Cleaning is not one of my strong points. Evidently good ole soap and water are lethal to CV. Who previously appreciated a simple bar of soap? Now I want to bathe 24/7. Can we inhale soap bubbles? Did your mother ever wash your mouth out with soap and water? Please be kind to your grocery store worker. Marjorie Williams wrote a terrific post about finding good food from your local farmers.
I noticed the jam shelf was seriously decimated.
French people, in general, have a big slice of toast for breakfast slathered with gobs of butter and jam/confiture along with their coffee/tea. Forget eggs and bacon.
Most prefer to eat only jam home-made by relatives and eschew the store-bought stuff but when travel is restricted... I couldn't resist the last jar of orange/citron/ pamplemousse. The French refer to this combo as agrume, which sounds more romantic than citrus. Most of this week I tried to paint that jar. Finally, after buying some croissants (also painting subjects) I dug into the jam, combined it with Roquefort on the 🥐and went to town 😳.
I ❤️ this Spring Bonne Maman poster from the Metro pre-lockdown.
My haul from Franprix supermarché. Those red balls are granade/pomegranates. Another jar of anchovies, a jar of 'Provençal' French-style tomato sauce, bubbly water far left, dill in upper right, marinated artichoke hearts great in salads,a pretty yellow tin of tuna I hope to paint, grainy German bread,and the jam jar.
The Big News on 💌 Paris Letters is: They will be 'sent' out as emails until post-Lockdown when I can send actual letters💌.My local post office is closed and my copy shop/printer is closed. ALL IMAGES WILL BE RESENT AGAIN AFTER LOCKDOWN👍🏻 Please understand. Stay home, stay well PBers Xxx🙏🏻🥐☕️🐻❤️

41 comments:

  1. I got the ivory bar soap in my mouth when I told my Mother to “shut up!” Great memories! I totally understand about the letters-I’ll take screen shots & be patient. If it’s easier for you to wait on sending the Jan letter & map, I’m ok with waiting

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    1. A whole bar! Yr mom was generous❤️ we just got suds...my sister got it many Xs.
      I learned from her shining example😄

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  2. Goodness, Paris looks odd without crowds. Stay safe!

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    1. Its the emptiness everywhere in the world these days.
      And with good reason. Sadly New Orleans celebrated Mardi Gras with a million people.
      And they were very badly hit.
      The same exact history during 1918 flu - Philadelphia celebrated and St Louis did not.
      Its a sign of safety not sadness imho.
      Rant over 🙏🏻❤️

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    2. Before/after coronavirus - scenes from the world's biggest cities

      https://youtu.be/vFZZF39fgWM

      Delete
  3. I love that tuna can. Oh Carol, it's so odd, isn't it. Out with papers, like in the occupation. I wish I could inhale soap, too. I could use some counter cleaner but I'm not supposed to go to the store or by people. So many nice cleaners on yourself. When the kids did my kitchen Kevin noticed "So many cleaners for a person who doesn't clean." I wish I could find where they put them.

    Your spring, though, is lovely when you can see it and I'm glad you're allowed out. My friend sent me a photo of his grocery walk passing by the Tower on the Champs du Mars side, then the other -- not a soul. I have never seen a photo of the full-on Tower without a soul in sight.

    Stay well, my friend. Your reports help keep us all in touch with a world you never hear about here because America is only centered on America.

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    1. That shelf is not my shelf. I have deadly fear of cleaers....so many chemicals.
      Soap and water is just as good.
      National geographic says so!!👍🏻

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  4. Tes belles aquarelles..Here in QC we have great leaders..however our timing was off for Spring Break..we are one week ahead of the other provinces and too many nasty germs traveled.
    You cannot mail mail..but is mail arriving to you?
    Simple little question:)
    In France I loved the markets and the grocery stores..specifically for cute jars and everything Bonne Maman:)
    In Maussane Les Alpilles..

    this grocery store took the cake..

    Le Jardin Des Alpilles:)

    Intermarché in St-Rémy was our go to..shelves upon shelves of Bonne Maman..and yogurts and cheese.
    Funny how I loved all these things..


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    1. I really dont know what the mail situation is here.
      The post boxes say pickup is at 14:00(2:00 pm) but I havent received an envelope since Lockdown.
      Course my concierge does not like to come upstairs so...

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    2. We have a brand new huge Intermarché. Just Terrific!!

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  5. We love your post.
    You have such a gift for telling and illustrating a storyline. Photos of our own morning outing, along empty North Oxford streets, would not be very interesting.

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    1. Oxford streets...how dreamy
      Window boxes. Those lacquered doors...

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  6. There's a lovely eerie-ness of Paris without the crowds. I've always enjoyed your posts and find a lot of inspiration in them, most especially during this time. Please stay safe!

    A few of the liquid hand and bar soap that I find still on the shelves at my Kroger store is the kind that don't advertise as 'anti-bacterial', funny enough. I have a pack of good ole' triple-milled handsoap that will last me a long time (purchased last year at a Monoprix during a birthday trip to Paris!) and a nice stash of hotel soaps I pilfered over a 3-year period of living in the UK and traveling a lot.

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    1. Excellent Miggsy
      I use those big square hunks of olive oil soap. They last for years. But my hands so feel rough from all the washing 6x a day..

      Delete
  7. Bonelle1:18 PM

    Oh my! If I had bread like the French, I would have bread & jam for breakfast every day, too! The heck with bacon & eggs! And the varieties and combinations of fruits in their jams are marvelous. Enjoy your agrume!

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  8. Dorrance1:45 PM

    It is difficult to get used to the streets of Paris being so deserted. It’s good that you can get outdoors for one hour per day. Hopefully all will get back to “normal”, sooner rather than later. Love your watercolors, and it appears that YOU have won the war with the jam jars!

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  9. Love that poster & tuna can - just finished a jar of Bonne Maman jam but, luckily have some homemade from a friend. Thanks, Carol, for starting my day with a smile -both you and Bear stay well and safe. Hugs.

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    1. Awww...sounds perfect.
      Stay well please 🙏🏻

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  10. Loved this post. Speaking of Bonne Maman, which we love, I save the cute jars with the checked tops and use them to store cut pieces of onion, peppers, half avocados, etc, whatever bits of vege or fruit I need to keep in the frig. Also aquafaba, leftover coconut milk, salsas, anything that needs a safe glass container for storage.

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    1. The jars are adorable full or empty. I put pencils etc in mine.
      Love the idea of your seed mixes ❤️

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  11. forgot to say.....my spice mixes that I make for cooking, seeds I have saved from the garden such as Sweetpea seeds, milkweed pods, Zinnia and marigold seeds, etc. Glass is so much better than plastic!

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  12. Thanks for the Paris update Carol! Jeanie is right, we don't hear about other countries here in Australia much either. Though each country is so full on at the moment I think it's fair enough. Totally understand about the posting situation, which reminds me I need to sign up again now I'm back at work and not a European student anymore. I enjoy seeing your shopping and sorry the jam jar beat you this time!
    Stay safe :)

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    1. There are a lot worse things than losing to a jam jar these days 😄
      Why is there no jam emoji?
      Stay well Kirra 💐

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  13. Gwendolin in Australia2:43 AM

    Thankyou for your lovely newsletters. Please take care

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  14. Bonnie P2:52 AM

    to you Carol. Just seeing all those items on the Franprix shelves made me long for my yearly trajets to Paris/France—especially the Cif! I can order Cif here in Colorado from the “A-on” folks and every time I clean my sink I think of the many sinks I cleaned with it while in French rental aparts—mmmmm…for me more evocative than parfum.

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    1. Oh I love this 😄
      CIF! I have bought it on occasion..
      Such strong stuff...terrifying

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  15. Erin H3:02 AM

    I so enjoy seeing what you’re up to and how you feel about things. Love all the bits and pieces you paint so beautifully.
    Keep it up dear Carol. We need inspiring people to keep us bubbling along.

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  16. Bonnie in CA3:07 AM

    You nailed it. Hope your calf muscles have healed. Your grocery display was awesome. Beautiful treasures. Yes! The yellow tin! Thanks to you I will try jam and Roquefort***. Sounds like heaven. And the pommes! Fabulous!
    Please keep sending us photos of your life and neighborhood. We need to experience what you are going through. This letter was remarkable. Thank you from the heart. Stay healthy, Carol.��

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  17. Wendy in Australia3:10 AM

    In times like these we need to say thank you. So thank you, Carole, for your cheerful and thoughtful Paris breakfast letters that I’ve been reading for years. When I went to Paris I visited some of your haunts, and you are always inspiring. It’s time I wrote you an Australian letter.

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  18. Lynn C3:15 AM

    Loved all the pictures and stories. And yes my twin sister got soap in our mouths often as we were rather opinionated and mouthy. Lol.
    Love all the art work. They are behaving better than over here.

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  19. Thank you so much for sending ! I am a Francophile who visits PARIS annually. Now holed up on Cape cod in Massachusetts USA. So wonderful to
    Get a glimpse of Parisian images.nourishment for the soul! Stay safe and strong ! Bisous!

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    Replies
    1. Wanna trade places?
      Clammms
      All that nice zinc!

      Delete
  20. Must be very tranquil there in the midst of this health crisis. I was supposed to be in Paris for six weeks starting soon...alas, trip is postponed until 2021. So will particularly enjoy your photo posts in the coming weeks. Stay healthy!!

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  21. Kathleen H8:45 AM

    Loved it (views, jams, watercolors!) Yes, lock-down continues all over the place. I am set up now to do work from home (weather not great yesterday - so stayed in my jammies and worked!)
    Feeling stir-crazy for sure - hoping we can get back to "normal" soon (or is this the new "normal"???).

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  22. love to see/hear of what is happening there. Your shelves look full compared to FL grocery stores.
    Stay well, stay safe

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  23. Kathleen8:50 AM

    Love all the tidbits of life in Paris. Thank you! I so enjoy your blog. Thank you for sharing your beatiful life with us. You brighten this American's Day!'

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  24. Very good information!
    PSA Safe Grocery Shopping in COVID-19 Pandemic UPDATED!!! www.DrJef...
    https://youtu.be/sjDuwc9KBps

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  25. Trader Joe's was out of butter this morning....

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  26. Hi Carol,
    Well, who knew life would change so quickly...In my small ME town lock down is not by law, but most things are closed. They say stay in and act as if it's here, to keep it away. Portland is our epicenter. Like you, my interests chez moi keep me engaged, but still...I watched Telematin and realized the seriousness of the virus in Paris...So, stay safe...glad we can still post...Rita

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  27. PS The hand washing video, very helpful, thanks...

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