Despite the computer crash... ALL LINKS ON THE NAVIGATION BAR TO YOUR LEFT ARE WORKING JUST FINE. SO EXPLORE THE REST OF THE SITE! On the Road to (data) Recovery: 3 July, 2001 Howdy folks! Finally good to be back online again. Apologies all around to everyone who was waiting with baited breath for responses to old e-mails and to those who I told "just wait till you see the NEW, HUGE update I've got planned." Well, the huge update is just shredded data now, so I'll work on re-posting it all to the site. Two new front pages to the site went down the tubes, so those updates will probably not be rewritten, but I will be re-updating the photos section. Several FromageCam updates bit the dust, and they're based on my initial impressions of the cheeses, so I may not be able to reconstruct them. We'll see how it goes, but the HTML coding for all those layered images on the FromageCam pages is pretty complex, so it simply may not happen. I have plenty of archived photos of moodily lit cheeses taken against provencial backgrounds, though, if you're just that interested. Quelle Fromage! I will be rewriting the entire new downloads-only Postcards from Paris site. The downloads site has (well, had) a self-installing screen saver with my images from Pere Lachaise cemetery, as well as nifty wallpapers of scenes from around France - including Versailles and medieval chateaux from southern France. So, check back often, as I will be working day and night to put it all back together. In fact, your ever-busy webmaster is currently (like right this instant) multitasking by working on both the website and the wash at the local laundromat. How's that for commitment? Good news. The new site address is now reserved in my name, the screen saver is rewritten (and tweaked with a new option to control the transitions from picture to picture.) The wallpapers are watermarked and waiting in a file on my desktop. All I need to do is finish redesigning the site itself and I'll be in business. So keep watching, kiddies! Clear your Browser Cache! One item I mentioned on the last update that went bye-bye in the crash was that some people have written me to say "You wrote that the site was updated, but it looks exactly the same to me." Depending on how your internet browser is set up, you might be seeing an older version of the site that is saved in your computer's memory. So if you get an e-mail saying "Postcards from Paris is updated," but it looks exactly the same, try poking around in your browser's "Options" or "Properties" menus. You should find a button you can click to clear out all the old, outdated junk in your browser's cache. If you only check a few sites every now and then, this can happen from time to time. For the record, I only post e-mail bulletins after the site is actually updated and checked. So if the e-mail says it's updated, it is. Live in Memphis? Help out a Parisian friend of mine... So it's like this, see. Justin's the former Senechal of my SCA chapter here in Paris, and he's a big Elvis fan. Justin owns a really tacky Elvis belt buckle that was given as a gag gift. Little did he know that it would become a prized posession that he would wear every day for years. But then it broke, and Justin is so protective of the thing that he won't bear to part with it, even to give it to a repair service. "They might break it!" he says, seemingly oblivious to the fact that it's BROKEN now. Anyway, if you live in Memphis, Tennessee (home of the once and future King,) and have any reason to hang out at the souvenier shops near Graceland (I dunno - maybe you've got relatives in town who are Elvis fans) will you please keep an eye out for this particular belt buckle? If you buy it, I will pay you back (electronically through PayPal if you'd like) and we can get Justin a brand new tacky Elvis belt buckle. Let's harness the power of the internet to make this little guy's dream come true! ;-) Help clothe little Justin for just pennies a day. Click here. Thank you... Thank you verrrry much. No, The movie Moulin Rouge is not playing in Paris. Seems like everyone wants to know, so... Nope. It didn't premiere here. It's not on the movie screens here. We haven't seen it here. I don't know when it will get here. I'm not all that thrilled about it coming here. Yes, I've been to the real thing here. No, it doesn't look anything like the video playing on MTV, which we have seen here. Uhmm.... let me see... Oh, yes. the soundtrack is available here, and there are only two tracks worth listening to. Actually, it's more like one and a half. Fin. :-) Francetrotting Well, with the hard drive having gone to data heaven, the last two front pages to the site went bye-bye. So I'll just sum up the past month or more. It's been busy. Of course I can't leave you hanging like that. Things have been busy, all right. Seems like these months have been packed full of activity. In pursuit of gastronomic excellence, I've travelled south to Chablis to a snail ranch to find milk-fed escargots, deeper south into the Dordogne - land of truffles and foie gras in search of authentic Occitan cooking, then north to Champagne to purchase champagnes that wil mature and be at their best when Kristina finishes her dissertation and gets her PhD in a few more years. I'm planning the menu now, so it'll be a hell of a party, folks... So a brief synopsis of the past excursions is in order, with photos where they're available. Again, you'll find that the pages aren't linked yet. But we have a guest in from the states this week, and I doubt he'll stand for me typing all day when we could be out saying "No, merci" to all the souvenier vendors at the Eiffel Tower and other tourist spots. Who is this mystery guest, you ask? Atlanta's very own - Dewan McIlhaney - our upstairs neighbor from the apartment we lived in in Decatur! I'm sure you can count on cheesy tourist photos after this trip! Getting Medieval in France Kris, Stanzi, Roland, Herzeloide and I went to a city-wide medieval festival in Provins (a real medieval city with a walled keep, battlements and such) a while back. We met with other medieval recreationists from across France and had a great time. The day was over far too soon. Photos? You bet. Thanks, Patrick, for bringing our medieval costumes when you came to visit! We fit right in with the rest of the medievalists. P.S. SCAers out there - Kris just got an e-mail from the medievalist conference she'll be speaking at in October. Guess who the keynote speaker is? The celebrated Chaucerian TERRY JONES. Yep. Monty Python's Terry Jones. Live and in person. Seriously, Mr. Jones is well respected in Chaucerian academic circles - anybody who's seen his BBC series The Crusades has an idea of how cool a medievalist this guy is. He's also written some keen books for children. Bohemian Food Orgy Ah, yes...then there's the all night bohemian dinner party that Kristina and I just got back from a few hours ago. What happens when five classmates at Le Cordon Bleu cooking school decide to throw a dinner party in Paris? Let's just say that such a complex dinner takes all day to prepare and literally all night (and into the morning light) to enjoy. Such a dinner requires a 3 AM trek across the Seine to the Louvre just to walk off the last couse and make room for dessert! Check out photos, the menu, and the wine list by clicking on Dinner at Maria's.. Snail Rustling in Chablis The wine classes at Le Cordon Bleu took a trip to the cellars of M. Jean Dauvissat in Chablis over a month ago. We toured his wine cave, had a degustation of his wines and homemade cheese profiteroles, then loaded up on award winning wines. Then it was on to lunch and a tour of the Bernon Snail Farm, where milk-fed escargots are raised for consumption at France's finest restaurants. You can order them, too, by clicking on www.escargot.fr. Lunch began with a fantastic preparation of escargots (what else?) in a garlic buerre blanc made with the local chablis. It ended with a cheese course of goat cheeses from the goat farm down the street. Tasty. The Dordogne / Loire Valley Trip with Kris' Parents A few weeks back, Kris' folks arrived in Paris after a whirlwind three days in London. Kris' Dad, Ron Watkins, rented a car and we braved the French highway system to spend a week in the Dordogne. The region is best known for its foie gras, black truffles, duck and prunes - so let's just say the eating was good. It was great to have regional wines with the appropriate regional foods. I was already a fan of wine from Montbazillac, and this trip has cemented that relationship. I'll have to hunt it down when I'm in the states. The week was a blast. We mountain biked, toured all kinds of medieval chateaux. (Yes, you SCAdians out there, there are plenty of pictures - including several of a reconstructed medieval kitchen. I've got photos of the dungeon (bwahahahahaha...) a bedroom or two and the tannery/dyeroom where furs and fabrics were prepared.) Kris' folks were very accomodating when I said "Oooh - there's a Foie Gras Museum here. Can we go?" We drove and drove up and down mountains, theh through kilometers of farmland to arrive at the museum. After reading up on Foie Gras history, we tasted everything they offered us, and carried home some local fare. Of course, more photos are in the works, and a little more detailed info on the whole trip. Consider this an appetizer - the main course is on the way. Champagne Two weeks ago, Le Cordon Bleu went to Champagne to learn about Champage (the drink, obvoiously.) We toured the cellars of Veuve Cliquot as well as met a winery run enirely by women (a rarity in wine country) where a fine Blanc du Blanc is made with 100% Chardonnay grapes and the blending of the wine is done with regard to where on the property the grapes come from compared to the traditional process of mixing wines from different years to create the Champagne. It was a grueling day for me, drinking champagne for breakfast, then a huge lunch (with foie gras and preserved duck gizzards, among other delicacies) and then more champagne in the afternoon. Sometimes, a Chef's gotta do what a Chef's gotta do, I guess. ;-) Well, I guess I'll leave you with this front page as it is. In my rapidly dwindling amount of spare time, I'll put the pieces together and give you some photos and more detailed info about the many, many different places we've been, and what we ate when we got there. After all, it wouldn't be Michael's page without food, would it? Ciao, y'all - |
Wecome to Postcards from Paris! Well, folks, the laptop bit the big one in Paris and brought Postcards from Paris to an untimely close. Then, I just let it sit here forever. Well, it may continue to sit for a while, but as we've been back stateside for 2 years, I guess it's time for a litle truth in advertising. WE'RE BACK IN ATLANTA Long story short, you'll find this, the first page, with missing links. But all the links on your left are working just fine. Peruse the site as it was when we left Paris. If I can ever get a little more time to myself, I want to put up all the photos, artwork and downloadable screensaver that I was working on before the computer died. A lot of the data still exists, but the site navigation (so you can see it or download it) all went to data limbo. Arrghh. I need your e-mail address - my address book is in cyber-limbo! That info IS important enough to put on the front page. If you've expected any mail from me in the past month or so, your address is in cyber-limbo along with the entire contents of my "Program Files" folder. Yes, the computer crash was that bad. Mail Michael with your address. |
Quite concise, I think. Well, Mississippi blew it and agreed to keep their racist little flag. Read Michael's now outdated opinion in the Annex. |
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Quite concise, I think. Well, Mississippi blew it and agreed to keep their racist little flag. Read Michael's now outdated opinion in the Annex. |
Wecome to Postcards from Paris! Well, folks, the laptop bit the big one in Paris and brought Postcards from Paris to an untimely close. Then, I just let it sit here forever. Well, it may continue to sit for a while, but as we've been back stateside for 2 years, I guess it's time for a litle truth in advertising. WE'RE BACK IN ATLANTA Long story short, you'll find this, the first page, with missing links. But all the links on your left are working just fine. Peruse the site as it was when we left Paris. If I can ever get a little more time to myself, I want to put up all the photos, artwork and downloadable screensaver that I was working on before the computer died. A lot of the data still exists, but the site navigation (so you can see it or download it) all went to data limbo. Arrghh. I need your e-mail address - my address book is in cyber-limbo! That info IS important enough to put on the front page. If you've expected any mail from me in the past month or so, your address is in cyber-limbo along with the entire contents of my "Program Files" folder. Yes, the computer crash was that bad. Mail Michael with your address. |
Despite the computer crash... ALL LINKS ON THE NAVIGATION BAR TO YOUR LEFT ARE WORKING JUST FINE. SO EXPLORE THE REST OF THE SITE! On the Road to (data) Recovery: 3 July, 2001 Howdy folks! Finally good to be back online again. Apologies all around to everyone who was waiting with baited breath for responses to old e-mails and to those who I told "just wait till you see the NEW, HUGE update I've got planned." Well, the huge update is just shredded data now, so I'll work on re-posting it all to the site. Two new front pages to the site went down the tubes, so those updates will probably not be rewritten, but I will be re-updating the photos section. Several FromageCam updates bit the dust, and they're based on my initial impressions of the cheeses, so I may not be able to reconstruct them. We'll see how it goes, but the HTML coding for all those layered images on the FromageCam pages is pretty complex, so it simply may not happen. I have plenty of archived photos of moodily lit cheeses taken against provencial backgrounds, though, if you're just that interested. Quelle Fromage! I will be rewriting the entire new downloads-only Postcards from Paris site. The downloads site has (well, had) a self-installing screen saver with my images from Pere Lachaise cemetery, as well as nifty wallpapers of scenes from around France - including Versailles and medieval chateaux from southern France. So, check back often, as I will be working day and night to put it all back together. In fact, your ever-busy webmaster is currently (like right this instant) multitasking by working on both the website and the wash at the local laundromat. How's that for commitment? Good news. The new site address is now reserved in my name, the screen saver is rewritten (and tweaked with a new option to control the transitions from picture to picture.) The wallpapers are watermarked and waiting in a file on my desktop. All I need to do is finish redesigning the site itself and I'll be in business. So keep watching, kiddies! Clear your Browser Cache! One item I mentioned on the last update that went bye-bye in the crash was that some people have written me to say "You wrote that the site was updated, but it looks exactly the same to me." Depending on how your internet browser is set up, you might be seeing an older version of the site that is saved in your computer's memory. So if you get an e-mail saying "Postcards from Paris is updated," but it looks exactly the same, try poking around in your browser's "Options" or "Properties" menus. You should find a button you can click to clear out all the old, outdated junk in your browser's cache. If you only check a few sites every now and then, this can happen from time to time. For the record, I only post e-mail bulletins after the site is actually updated and checked. So if the e-mail says it's updated, it is. Live in Memphis? Help out a Parisian friend of mine... So it's like this, see. Justin's the former Senechal of my SCA chapter here in Paris, and he's a big Elvis fan. Justin owns a really tacky Elvis belt buckle that was given as a gag gift. Little did he know that it would become a prized posession that he would wear every day for years. But then it broke, and Justin is so protective of the thing that he won't bear to part with it, even to give it to a repair service. "They might break it!" he says, seemingly oblivious to the fact that it's BROKEN now. Anyway, if you live in Memphis, Tennessee (home of the once and future King,) and have any reason to hang out at the souvenier shops near Graceland (I dunno - maybe you've got relatives in town who are Elvis fans) will you please keep an eye out for this particular belt buckle? If you buy it, I will pay you back (electronically through PayPal if you'd like) and we can get Justin a brand new tacky Elvis belt buckle. Let's harness the power of the internet to make this little guy's dream come true! ;-) Help clothe little Justin for just pennies a day. Click here. Thank you... Thank you verrrry much. No, The movie Moulin Rouge is not playing in Paris. Seems like everyone wants to know, so... Nope. It didn't premiere here. It's not on the movie screens here. We haven't seen it here. I don't know when it will get here. I'm not all that thrilled about it coming here. Yes, I've been to the real thing here. No, it doesn't look anything like the video playing on MTV, which we have seen here. Uhmm.... let me see... Oh, yes. the soundtrack is available here, and there are only two tracks worth listening to. Actually, it's more like one and a half. Fin. :-) Francetrotting Well, with the hard drive having gone to data heaven, the last two front pages to the site went bye-bye. So I'll just sum up the past month or more. It's been busy. Of course I can't leave you hanging like that. Things have been busy, all right. Seems like these months have been packed full of activity. In pursuit of gastronomic excellence, I've travelled south to Chablis to a snail ranch to find milk-fed escargots, deeper south into the Dordogne - land of truffles and foie gras in search of authentic Occitan cooking, then north to Champagne to purchase champagnes that wil mature and be at their best when Kristina finishes her dissertation and gets her PhD in a few more years. I'm planning the menu now, so it'll be a hell of a party, folks... So a brief synopsis of the past excursions is in order, with photos where they're available. Again, you'll find that the pages aren't linked yet. But we have a guest in from the states this week, and I doubt he'll stand for me typing all day when we could be out saying "No, merci" to all the souvenier vendors at the Eiffel Tower and other tourist spots. Who is this mystery guest, you ask? Atlanta's very own - Dewan McIlhaney - our upstairs neighbor from the apartment we lived in in Decatur! I'm sure you can count on cheesy tourist photos after this trip! Getting Medieval in France Kris, Stanzi, Roland, Herzeloide and I went to a city-wide medieval festival in Provins (a real medieval city with a walled keep, battlements and such) a while back. We met with other medieval recreationists from across France and had a great time. The day was over far too soon. Photos? You bet. Thanks, Patrick, for bringing our medieval costumes when you came to visit! We fit right in with the rest of the medievalists. P.S. SCAers out there - Kris just got an e-mail from the medievalist conference she'll be speaking at in October. Guess who the keynote speaker is? The celebrated Chaucerian TERRY JONES. Yep. Monty Python's Terry Jones. Live and in person. Seriously, Mr. Jones is well respected in Chaucerian academic circles - anybody who's seen his BBC series The Crusades has an idea of how cool a medievalist this guy is. He's also written some keen books for children. Bohemian Food Orgy Ah, yes...then there's the all night bohemian dinner party that Kristina and I just got back from a few hours ago. What happens when five classmates at Le Cordon Bleu cooking school decide to throw a dinner party in Paris? Let's just say that such a complex dinner takes all day to prepare and literally all night (and into the morning light) to enjoy. Such a dinner requires a 3 AM trek across the Seine to the Louvre just to walk off the last couse and make room for dessert! Check out photos, the menu, and the wine list by clicking on Dinner at Maria's.. Snail Rustling in Chablis The wine classes at Le Cordon Bleu took a trip to the cellars of M. Jean Dauvissat in Chablis over a month ago. We toured his wine cave, had a degustation of his wines and homemade cheese profiteroles, then loaded up on award winning wines. Then it was on to lunch and a tour of the Bernon Snail Farm, where milk-fed escargots are raised for consumption at France's finest restaurants. You can order them, too, by clicking on www.escargot.fr. Lunch began with a fantastic preparation of escargots (what else?) in a garlic buerre blanc made with the local chablis. It ended with a cheese course of goat cheeses from the goat farm down the street. Tasty. The Dordogne / Loire Valley Trip with Kris' Parents A few weeks back, Kris' folks arrived in Paris after a whirlwind three days in London. Kris' Dad, Ron Watkins, rented a car and we braved the French highway system to spend a week in the Dordogne. The region is best known for its foie gras, black truffles, duck and prunes - so let's just say the eating was good. It was great to have regional wines with the appropriate regional foods. I was already a fan of wine from Montbazillac, and this trip has cemented that relationship. I'll have to hunt it down when I'm in the states. The week was a blast. We mountain biked, toured all kinds of medieval chateaux. (Yes, you SCAdians out there, there are plenty of pictures - including several of a reconstructed medieval kitchen. I've got photos of the dungeon (bwahahahahaha...) a bedroom or two and the tannery/dyeroom where furs and fabrics were prepared.) Kris' folks were very accomodating when I said "Oooh - there's a Foie Gras Museum here. Can we go?" We drove and drove up and down mountains, theh through kilometers of farmland to arrive at the museum. After reading up on Foie Gras history, we tasted everything they offered us, and carried home some local fare. Of course, more photos are in the works, and a little more detailed info on the whole trip. Consider this an appetizer - the main course is on the way. Champagne Two weeks ago, Le Cordon Bleu went to Champagne to learn about Champage (the drink, obvoiously.) We toured the cellars of Veuve Cliquot as well as met a winery run enirely by women (a rarity in wine country) where a fine Blanc du Blanc is made with 100% Chardonnay grapes and the blending of the wine is done with regard to where on the property the grapes come from compared to the traditional process of mixing wines from different years to create the Champagne. It was a grueling day for me, drinking champagne for breakfast, then a huge lunch (with foie gras and preserved duck gizzards, among other delicacies) and then more champagne in the afternoon. Sometimes, a Chef's gotta do what a Chef's gotta do, I guess. ;-) Well, I guess I'll leave you with this front page as it is. In my rapidly dwindling amount of spare time, I'll put the pieces together and give you some photos and more detailed info about the many, many different places we've been, and what we ate when we got there. After all, it wouldn't be Michael's page without food, would it? Ciao, y'all - |
