Mother's Day in France

Yesterday was Mother's Day in France. These flowers are for all the mothers all over the world. Click on photograph to enlarge.

Hier, c'était la Fête des Mères en France. Ces fleurs sont pour toutes les mères du monde entier. Cliquer sur la photo pour elargir.



(I'm sorry about the Bay to Breakers post, it got tangled up when I was uploading additional pictures the other day. I guess it's best to keep these posts as simple as possible, otherwise it's pretty easy for things to get tangled up. I'll try to straighten it out soon and republish. )

(Désolée pour l'article sur Bay to Breakers, je l'ai endommagé en voulant mettre des photos supplementaires. Des fois, il vaut mieux faire le plus simple possible car c'est trop facile d'embrouiller les choses dans ces petites fenêtres. Je vais essayer de le reposter le plus vite possible).

Gay Marriage is now legal in California

Photographed in San Francisco, Gay Pride 2007

Big, big news in San Francisco, today! Even bigger than the record-breaking heat wave, actually!



The California Supreme Court ruled earlier today (5/15/08) same-sex marriage in California is legal!




Here is the complete article in the paper.



The Chronicle has also dedicated an entire page right here if you want more details.

I could not take the time to walk to City Hall today to get you some original pictures, but if you hurry, you can probably catch all that live on KPIX anyway.

Bay to Breakers ... reminder!

Just a reminder to all of you expats, bloggers, photographers, and whoever else wants to have some fun this WE in the Bay Area ... this Sunday (5/18/08) is Bay to Breakers again, so grab your gear and get ready to par-té.

Registration is still open and if you want a preview of what to expect, click here or check out the local papers on line.

FYI, the fee to run the course this year is ... $44!!! (Might be cheaper to drive to the finish line, uh? Good luck parking, though.)

Anyway, see you there!

* * * * *

Bay to Breakers official website (all information you could ever want is there)

Just for Julien: an 'alternative' way to run the Bay to Breakers: Bare to Breakers

Eiffel Tower handbag / Sac Tour Eiffel

Photograph © Sally, Sidney Daily Photo Blog (By Permission)


Love Paris? Wish you were there? Wanna pretend you're "from Paris?" Well, maybe the next best thing is to start walking around town with this funky Eiffel Tower purse (above).

Vous aimez Paris? Vous aimeriez y etre? Vous voulez faire croire que vous etes "de Paris"? Eh bien promenez vous en ville avec ce sac à main Tour Eiffel (ci-dessus).


Thank you Sally, of Sidney Daily Photo Blog, for letting me use your photograph taken at the Opera in Sidney.

Merci à Sally, de Sidney Daily Photo Blog, de me laisser utiliser une de ces photos prise à l'Opera de Sydney.


Like it? Hate it? Click here to let her know.

Il vous plait ce sac? Vous detestez? Allez lui dire, ça lui fera surement plaisir!

Cherry Blossom Festival 2008 San Francisco

Every year, San Francisco Japantown celebrates Cherry Blossom Festival. It usually takes place over 2 week-ends. They have events and stands in Japantown both week-end, but if you want to have more fun, plan on showing up the day of the Parade.


I did, and I wasn't alone. A lot of people showed up ...



to look ...



to participate ...











to look and participate ...



The parade started at Civic Center



Ah, shucks, I had my camera on the wrong settings!!(1) The kids were so lovely, though, I just have to post these shots anyway!





The parade went up Polk, left on Post and ended up in Japantown, at Fillmore.

(OK, I'll admit these guys looked slightly out-of-place)

The entire event was a lot of fun, very uplifting. There was a lot of giggling and happy sounds coming from the participants of all ages in the parade.



Why, even the Police looked pretty laid back.






By the way, here is a little movie I shot so you get a better idea. Sorry, no sound.



I didn't have my backpack that day, so I didn't fill up on Japanese snacks this time.



Oh, well, another time!

(1) (begin snark mode) Dear Camera Manufacturers, could you please make the buttons on the point-and-shoots a little smaller, because right now, we can still see them somewhat. (/end snark mode)


* * * * *

Links and additional resources:


Official Link for Cherry Blossom Festival

Japantown official website.

Praying for gas prices? / Prier pour le prix de l'essence?

I did not know if I should laugh or cry when I saw this article in the front page of the Chronicle this morning:

Je savais pas si j'allais rire ou pleurer quand j'ai vu cet article en première page dans le journal ce matin:

"Twyman - a community organizer, church choir director and public relations consultant from the Washington, D.C., suburbs - staged a pray-in at a San Francisco Chevron station on Friday, asking God for cheaper gas. He did the same thing in the nation's Capitol on Wednesday, with volunteers from a soup kitchen joining in. Today he will lead members of an Oakland church in prayer.

Yes, it's come to that."

"Twyman ... a organisé une prière à une station d'essence Chevron à San Francisco, Vendredi, pour demander à Dieu que l'essence soit moins chère. Il a fait la même chose dans la capitale des Etats Unis Mercredi dernier, avec des volontaires. Aujourd'hui, il recommence à Oakland, California."

Eh oui, on en est réduit à ça."

Hmmm... OK. For those of you who don't feel like praying, check out instead sites like San Francisco Gas Prices, to see who has the cheapest gas in town.

Hmmm... mouais. Pour ceux d'entre vous qui n'ont pas envie de prier, allez plutot visiter des sites comme San Francisco Gas Prices pour voir qui affiche le meilleur prix dans le coin.


* * *

Resources: Pray-in at S.F. gas station asks God to lower prices


San Francisco Gas Prices lists prices of gas. Updated by users.

6 y old Connie Talbot / Connie Talbot, 6 ans!

Just when you thought there wasn't any beauty left in this world...
Juste quand on s'imaginait qu'il n'y avait plus rien de beau dans ce monde ...


(alone, without sound effect)
(toute seule, sans accompagnement)



(same, with sound effect)
(meme chose, avec accompagnement)





Last but *not* least (I think), a few months later:
Le meilleurs pour la fin (je crois), quelques mois plus tard:


"I will always love you, by Connie Talbot"



Thank you little girl, you absolutely made my day (not to mention you also made me cry like a baby)!
Merci petite, quel moment de bonheur tu viens de nous donner (j'ai même pleuré comme un bébé, en plus)!

To listen to extracts of Connie Talbot's album and see additional videos, check out her website.
Pour écouter des extraits de l'album Connie Talbot et voir d'autres videos, allez cliquer sur son site.


Have a good week everybody, and see you very soon!
Allez, bonne semain, et à bientot!