Stones, bricks and concrete.

Architecture is inhabited sculpture ~ Constantin Brancusi ~

~ Every week weather permitting, I am setting myself a little photographic challenge, the current one is architecture. Just in case it rains all week here are a few images from my archive. Should I search out some new buildings, I do like modern too!

Blue sky and the Theatre Victor Hugo Fougeres

This beautiful building was restored and re-opened in 2001.

Blue sky framing Morel et Gaté

This was a shoe factory, fabulous art deco style. Fougeres

Marvelous Mosaic Sporting the Coq motive

Grey Sky at the Chateau Fougeres

Materials granite, schiste, stone, slate/ardoise, and half timbered houses (Colombage)

Do you have a favourite building, new, old, or quirky?

French words

Concrete = béton
Ciment = ciment
Draughtsman = dessinateur
Architect = architecte

I'm addicted to stats ~

Torture numbers, and they'll confess to anything. ~Gregg Easterbrook ~

Just like comments are welcome here on blogger, I love looking at my stats on Flickr umm I know I am a bit addicted.

So I thought I might share which photographs got the highest number of views (not art) from my stats this week!..Hotchpotch post!

An old favorite called Sway

Paris Champs Elysees trip to see Monet's art at the Grand Palais

Engulfed a puddle picture

Heart in the Sky ( I love looking at the canopy in the forest)

Twists & Turns (yes it is upside down)

A rather old shot taken on a hot summers day Golden Arch

Inside a pepper

Red Pepper was posted for the Week 5 of The 52 week project.

I often cook with the warm coloured peppers, red, yellow orange. I love to make veggie sauces for pasta, or a good veg chilli. I despair what the big companies like Monsanto are doing to our food and the Governments let them!

I wonder what your addictions are, apart from food and drink!

Cats wire is addicted to netting LINK HERE

Some French words

number of people, nombre

number (numeral) chiffre

telephone number, numéro

Rare indeed ~

~ Did you ever notice when you blow in a dog's face he gets mad at you? But when you take him in a car he sticks his head out the window. ~Steve Bluestone

I rarely take a photograph of my dog that looks half decent since she rarely keeps still when I have a camera in my hand. She is not great company since she prefers to be outside when I am inside and once inside does not wish to be stroked, she would prefer to jump on your lap! This dog behaves rather cat like at times.

So I am surprised to have two photographs of the mad mutt two weeks running!

Some of you may know I love playing with puddles, and so does the dog, week 3 of the 52 week project.

We both love puddles

We both hate having our picture taken

Week 4 The 52 week project, a quick snap of my dog, take a look at that face what a softie. My walks round the village with my camera are a nightmare as she pulls my arm just as I press the button. So off the lead in the forest is much easier, hence all the trees in my photo stream! Rarely still this dog behaves more like a hyperactive cat!

French Words
Dog lead = laisse
Dog bark = aboiement.

You only live once?

Anyone who says they have only one life to live must not know how to read a book. ~Author Unknown

Today I was with a friend helping her sort through some paperwork. I knew that my library books needed to be returned by the 18th and so Saturday morning I chanced a trip into Fougeres looking for a parking spot near the bibliotheque/library, necessary since last time I had chosen heavy books...dummy... As luck would have it I had a parking fairy and she found me a spot just by the library, yippeee not bad for a Saturday morning and market day too. After some confusion in the library and returning, and choosing new books I left and spent a few minutes in the Jardin Public to take a few pictures; it is a very pretty park and well tended, a special place to savour the views, and enjoy the ever changing flower displays. The weather was ok but rather windy.

Water framed

Seen any musicians?

Bold and Bright!

I hope that flower isnt too bright for you!

The French word for paperwork is paperasse.

The French word to look after/maintain is entrenir

The Richness of time

There is one kind of robber whom the law does not strike at, and who steals what is most precious to men: time. ~Napoleon I, Maxims, 1815

Last week as ever time flew by at a fast pace. One day we took pictures of the Belfry or Befroi in Fougeres. Although it is very prominent when one looks up at the town of Fougeres it is easy to miss it on market day. Everyone is looking at the produce on the stalls and not looking up.

Apparently the belfry was built in 1397 funded by local merchants. It allowed ordinary people access to timekeeping previously the preserve of the church and nobility.

I had never thought about richer people having access to time, and poorer people living without a clock. Maybe it would be nicer to live in a world where you could live by simply using the sun in the sky and not a timepiece.

Flower Tower

Actually I don't wear a watch, but my mobile phone can tell me the time if needed.

The French word for lifetime is vie....cours de la vie

The French word for ringing of chimes is sonnerie.

Etymology for the word clock.

Esmerelda

The theatre in Fougeres is named Theatre Victor Hugo. I have wondered what connection this acclaimed writer had with the town.

I found that in 1836 Victor Marie Hugo visited Fougères with his mistress Julliet Drouet.

He liked the town and said "At present I am in the Fougères area, in a town that should be visited piously by painters, in a town with an old castle, flanked by the most superb towers in the world. I have seen it in sunlight, I have seen it at dusk and I have seen it again in the moonlight. I will never grow tired of it. It is admirable"

Damn it, I wish I had said that, but I don't use the word pious, ever.

It turns out that Victor was a man who liked the ladies, although his mistress Julliet spent most of her life dedicated to this talented man. Juliet was in fact born in Fougeres but was educated in Paris and apparently was a good writer.

He spent many years in exile after speaking out against Napoleon III and lived on the Island of Jersey, in fact this is where he wrote Les Miserables, which has again become well known with many theatre goers.

He wrote many, many, poems and books, and I had no idea that he wrote what we know today as The Hunchback of Notre Dame. That poor old hunchback who loved his Esmerelda!

Victor was also a talented artist.

If you want to read a little more about Victor here is a link to Wikipedia.

A link to Victor Hugo online

A link about the love in his life.

A link about Les Mis

Here is a photograph of the Theatre Victor Hugo and the Julliet Drouet cultural centre.

Vics Place.

The French word for dusk is crépuscule.

The French word for moonlit, éclairé par la lune.

Etymology for the word pious.

1914 ceasefire Joyeux Noel

We have just watched a film on tv, Joyeux Noel, based on when the Germans, French, and Scots declared a cease fire for Christmas night on the front in 1914. The soldiers then sang, shared drinks and buried their dead comrades in the snow, and played football in "No mans land".

Makes you think with Christmas approaching that even if you haven't got much it is good to be at home with the people who love you. So it makes me think about people in the armed forces away from home. What a mixed up world we live in.

On Saturday I walked around Fougeres, it was sunny and the sky was blue, no snow here in this part of France. So much rain has fallen that the force of water at the castle was extremely powerful, the sluice gates were open and the water roared.

So while others were doing their Christmas shopping I wandered around the park, and streets which have some lovely old timbered buildings.

I saw some interesting boxes, not for presents!
This one is near the castle.

This box is in the Jardin Public.

This one in a street near the old timbered houses. Just in case you didnt know, to cease fire cesser-le-feu.

Box is boîte.

Bonheur

It is incredible what you can find when searching the Internet. The word bonheur which means goodtime and or happiness also is a name of a French artist look what I found here.

Happiness is a daily struggle for many in the world so the rest of us should try and find some joy in the simple things that we see in our daily lives.

The weather has closed in at the moment and so even the simple things like a walk in the forest are not always possible. Sunshine always makes us happy and having milestones to look forward to helps too. This week my diary is empty but I am looking forward to my new French class. Last week our teacher gave us some handouts about Fougeres which has some lovely places to see.

Here is a great link which tells you a little bit about this lovely town Fougeres

More basket work at Fougeres

Today I took some more pictures around the castle at Fougeres. This one shows the jardin next to the castle ramparts. The retaining weave is finished off at the top just like a basket.



This little garden is amazing it is right onto the street and the wall on the right is part of the castle.
The French word to weave a basket.

Baskets

Last year the gardens next to the castle ramparts in Fougeres had a make over. I watched two people weaving low fences around the gardens, it looked quite hard work. This week in the park I visited I saw this lovely basketry around a fun garden which had pretty cabbage plants in it.