Recognizing my difficulties in the naming of the place in France my friend Peter Denman alerted me to the possibilities of La Cure, and this, an old word for Le Presbytère, is somehow much more flexible.
(See comments here)
Now Peter is a man who loves words even more than I do.
He is also extremely skilled with them, anyone who can create a crossword in which the solutions all had relevance to my life is a true wordsmith, it puts his other achievements, like his doctorate in English Literature and being a published poet, into the ha’penny place.
He also (unintentionally) alerted me to the Presbyterian connotations of Le Presbytère, not that I should care a damn about that , not with the big man himself now sitting at the table with Gerry Adams.
I started to think of various ways in which I could use La Cure.
It has a secondary meaning in French which is the same as “cure” in English. Consequently I discovered thet names like La Cure du Détente (as in relaxation cure) were already much overused.
In trying to think of other cures (water cure, sleep cure, rest cure)I thought of what all of us Irish, sufferers from SAD syndrome are constantly seeking: A Sun Cure ; La Cure du Soleil.
I like it.
It has a nice ring of sunnier climes as well as recognising the history of the house.
I like its affinity to Le Circue du Soleil, and also to that French chain of wonderful biscuit shops; La Cure Gourmande.
I tried it out on my French class last night .
It went down like a lead balloon.
My teacher, a French Lady, even made a little moue francaise to signify her lack of enthusiasm.
I still like it, Sile isn’t TOO against it.
Comments Please!
Comments
Stephanie
on March 28, 2007GOOD MORNING MARTIN, I LOVE THE NAME YOU PICKED..IT ROLLS OFF THE TONGUE SO WONDERFULLY, AND IT SOUNDS SO WARM AND INVITING..GOOD CHOICE, AND, I ALSO LOVE YOUR NEW HOME…BEAUTIFUL…..STEPHANIE
caitriona
on March 28, 2007hrm… i’m not convinced, but will reserve judgement until i visit the place.
deirdre
on March 29, 2007What’s a moue francaise?
Martin
on March 29, 2007I don’t know if I should tell you as you haven’t given an opinion on the
Cure du Soleil (which your mother has turned against)
But I will.
It is that moment when a French person purses their lips together,
opens their eyes a little wider and sticks their chin out.
The may also, at the same time,(given that they are free) stick out
their hands palms upwards and shrug their shoulders.
To add emphasis they may also grunt quietly.
The intention is to convey a combination of I don’t get it and I don’t like
it.
Try this yourself in front of a mirror
(do make sure no-one is watching)
and you will see what I mean.
caitriona
on March 29, 2007i have it all except the sticking out the chin bit. i don’t seem to be able to do that as well as the rest.
and by the way, don’t rush into buying any books for yourself too quickly… i still owe you a birthday present!!
Martin
on March 29, 2007Stop Press.
I have just been carrying out my own directions for the moue francaise and I have realised that the actions given with widening of the eyes means I don’t understand, with narrowing of the eyes means I don’t like it.
aingeala
on March 30, 2007Hee-hee I love your description of “la moue francaise”. There’s another great explanation of it here:
http://french.about.com/library/weekly/blg-moue.htm
My sister lives in France and does this all the time, it’s the bored, glazed-over look that drives me crazy. We dubbed it “le bouf” – because of the pouty sigh that follows.
So thank you Martin for alerting me to its proper name.
Eileen
on March 31, 2007Not sure bout the name dad. Liked Three Sisters and all that a biit better. La Cure reminds me of bacon and Robert Smyth (from the band The Cure)
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