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Archive for the ‘Entries #451-500’ Category

François en série — the artist in François sends a romantic email (#500)

Posted in Entries #451-500 on 18 August 2012|

In entry #498, you watched a short clip from François en série, where François comes face-to-face with different aspects of his personality in the form of real people that only he can see.

In that clip (watch again here), the artist in François, l’artiste en lui, jumps out the window after being told how awful his romantic poetry to Marie-Hélène is.

Below we see François again, making a telephone call to Marie-Hélène. She’s crying and doesn’t answer the phone.

The artiste en François composes a poetic email to her. But the text of his poem is so awful that it’s met with disapproval by François and the woman in him, la femme en lui…

— Ça répond pas… J’aime pas ça. Je pense que je vais aller la voir.

— Mon chou, mon minou, mon genou, mon pou!

— Que c’est qu’tu fais là, toi?

— J’écris un email à Marie-Hélène, une ode, un poème. Ô Marie-Hélène! Ton nom composé me décompose le cœur. Ton parfum m’ensorcelle. Ô toi! Sorcière de mes amours! Envoyer.

— C’est vraiment poche!

The adjective poche (bad, lame, no good) was used in the video from entry #498 too, where François says mais t’es ben poche!

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Des spéciaux qui vont faire jaser (#499)

Posted in Entries #451-500 on 23 July 2012|

On a sign from a mobile phone company:

Des spéciaux qui vont faire jaser.

des spéciaux
specials, deals

jaser
to chat, to make conversation

faire jaser
to get people talking, chatting

You’ll hear jaser pronounced with the vowel sound â in Quebec, as if it were written jâzer.

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Mais t’es ben poche! (#498)

Posted in Entries #451-500 on 17 July 2012| 2 Comments »

In the series François en série, François literally comes face-to-face with different aspects of his personality.

François is the one with the stubble on his face. The other people we see in this scene are all parts of his personality, in the form of real people. That’s why they’re all dressed the same. Only François can see these people though.

The female in this scene is the woman in François, la femme en lui (his feminine side).

We also see the artist in François, l’artiste en lui, who tries to help François attract a woman called Marie-Hélène through poetry. François thinks that the artist in him is an awful poet though. He tells him:

Mais t’es ben poche!
But you really suck!

The artist in François has a depressive personality and can’t handle criticism…

Watch another clip from François en série here.

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Wordplay on the French word POCHE (#497)

Posted in Entries #451-500 on 16 July 2012| 2 Comments »

Une poche is a pocket, so something that’s format de poche is pocket-sized.

In Quebec French, poche also exists as an informal adjective meaning nul, “no good,” “lame,” etc.

For example: Je suis vraiment poche en anglais. I’m really bad at English, hopeless in English…

If something’s pas poche, like the price of this 414 mL Coke, then it’s the opposite.

format de poche
prix pas poche

pocket-sized
not-awful price

It sounds better in French though because of the wordplay on poche.

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Les Parisiens vus par les Québécois (#496)

Posted in Entries #451-500, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on 14 July 2012|

I always look forward to reading the Montreal-based magazine Urbania.

You may remember this magazine from past entries on OffQc, where Urbania authors have devoted issues to themes like lesbiennes and bébés and the hiver québécois.

Right now I’m enjoying the summer 2012 issue of Urbania, #34.

It’s all about… les Parisiens.

From the magazine:

Reason number 2 of 25 for a Québécois to not feel inferior to a Parisian: Nous autres [les Québécois], nos sacres peuvent se décliner en verbes, en adverbes et en adjectifs.1 (Our swear words can be used as verbs, adverbs and adjectives.)

Reason number 15 of 25 for a Québécois to indeed feel inferior to a Parisian: Nous [les Parisiens], à partir de 16 ans, on range le sac à dos et on l’oublie. À jamais. Surtout avec des talons.2 (After age 16, we put the backpack away and forget about it. Forever. Especially with heels.)

Or this from a young Parisian woman named Marion: Quand je vivais à Montréal et que je m’habillais bien, c’était pour mon mec ou pour des garçons en général. À Paris, je m’habille pour mes copines. C’est elles qui portent un jugement.3 (When I lived in Montreal and would dress well, it was for my boyfriend or for boys in general. In Paris, I dress for my girlfriends. They’re the ones who pass judgement.)

In Quebec, you can find the magazine in kiosks. Here’s a list of places where you can find it in Paris.

This issue isn’t a comparison of the Parisians and Québécois. It’s about Parisians and their city. Some comparisons do come through in the writing, however. If you’re interested in reading about Parisians from an engaging québécois perspective, you’ll enjoy it. This issue is written in the usual Urbania style that makes it a pleasure to read.

Urbania also offers some content online. You can find some links to articles and videos related to this issue here.

Quoted material from Urbania, spécial Parisiens, no. 34, été 2012, Montréal.

1Marie-Andrée Labbé, “25 raisons de ne pas se sentir inférieur devant un Parisien,” p.40.

2Anne-Laure Naumowicz, “25 raisons de se sentir inférieur à un Parisien,” p.41.

3Marion, in an article written by Catherine Perreault-Lessard, “Souper de gonzesses,” p.50.

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