When the Euro Zone authorities put the new currency into circulation on January 1, 2002, I, and the Euro Zone authorities, expected it to generate a plague of problems, ranging from conversion errors to price gouging to tantrums. It didn’t. … Read More
Ah, For a Breath of Fresh Outdoor Air! This is an actual photo from the Tour de France in the 1920s. It’s surprising how few riders smoke during the race today — wouldn’t top-level bicycle racers want the benefits of … Read More
C’est Ironique Sign of the Weeque Did you name your restaurant yourself? Yes! My daughter thought of the name. Oh — so you didn’t name it yourself. Yes I did! It’s called “Yourself.” You mean it’s named after me? No, … Read More
C’est Ironique Sign of the Weeque Spotted by Nancy Li. Two stores in a row, one letter each away from being an Anglophone preteens’ giggle fest. And the little dots on the Mini Nippes sign don’t help any. I sometimes … Read More
My wife Nancy used to be close friends with an American woman who had lived in Paris in the late 1940s and early ’50s. One day they were talking about what the city was like back then, and the older … Read More
C’est Ironique Sign of the Weeque Spotted by reader P.K. Munroe. A sign for the season! This is more of a graphics malfunction than an ill-advised trade name: what we’re supposed to see here is the word “Fluo,” as in … Read More
C’est Ironique Sign of the Weeque Spotted by reader Jake Dear. It’s a watch shop. Get it? Get it? Get it? In Pnin, Vladimir Nabokov describes his main character as having “a bright foreigner’s fondness for puns.” I think we … Read More
C’est Ironique Sign of the Weeque Bar spotted on Avenue de la République. “Is the name of this bar okay?” “No, man. It’s pretty ****ing far from okay.” David Jaggard Have you seen a ridiculous sign in Paris? Or anywhere … Read More
I once ate a frozen hamburger. Oh wait — that sentence is not entirely accurate. Let’s take it word by word: “I” is true — this really happened to me. “Once” is also correct, in the sense of both “at … Read More
C’est Ironique Sign of the Weeque Plaque spotted on Rue de Gramont.This might not actually be a French company, but it’s still a pretty strange use of English and, more importantly, it offers me an excuse to shoot my mouth … Read More
