juli writes:
when in spain, i discovered that the kit kats there are MUCH BETTER than the kit kats that are sold in the states. the chocolate is good chocolate – the chocolate here (regarding kit kats) has that sort of plastic-y taste to it. so i want to know why europeans get better quality kit kats than we do? i assume they must be better in france as well. europeans get fanta too. it’s NOT FAIR.
This is, in fact, SO true. The Kit Kats are wayyyy better here. I thought it was because the vending machines are refrigerated. And we all know how much better refrigerated candy bars are than room temperature ones. But, ah yes, juli is right. The chocolate is just better. Maybe if you pay higher taxes, your government gets you better chocolate? No? You don’t think so?
For some reason i automatically assumed Kit Kat’s were born in the USA. Another Ameri-centric slip of mine i guess. Standing by the candy machines with Anne-Marie, saying i wanted a Kit Kat but couldn’t rustle up the required 5 Francs in monnais (change), she said,
“Oh they have Kit Kats in America?”
Me, surprised, “Of course! I mean they’re born in America!” Pause. Now a bit unsure, “Aren’t they?” Another pause realizing that actually I know nothing about Kit Kats other than that they’re tasty. I certainly don’t know where they’re from. “Wait. I have no idea, do you?”
After visit to my local public Internet, I found out that Kit Kat was actually born in London September of 1935. The Kit Kat site goes on to tell you pretty much everything you might ever want to know about our yummy 4 fingered friends. Here’s a smidgeon:
The nameKit Kat was supposedly named after the Kit Kat club, an 18th Century Whig literary club. As the building had very low ceilings, it could only accommodate paintings which were wide and not very high. In the art world, these paintings were known as ‘kats’. It’s believed that Kit Kat derived its name from paintings, which had to be snapped off to fit into the rooms with the low ceilings.
Now I really really want one and still don’t have the pieces in change. Hmph!
Also, is anyone aware of how old Mr. Rodgers has become? Wow. Yeah, that’s really him. Find his official site here
This is really great:
Nudist pensioner lands Benetton in hot water
PARIS (Reuters)
Wednesday October 3, 06:06 PM
Notable quotable: “The French government said it was not its intention to censor advertisers, but to prevent them from using women’s
bodies as objects in a way that was degrading.”
LOL
Has anyone seen the ta-tas that are on the cover of the news magazines here?! Clearly there are some boobies that are degrading to women and some that are not. Large pale floopy ones = degrading. Pert tan oily ones = deep and substantial. Hmm..
more later..
By Lee Sandlin
Originally appeared in the Chicago Reader
March 7 and March 14, 1997.
[Aside: All last weekend i kept having this one recurring thought: That there are a group of men sitting in a room (or a tent maybe) figuring out ways to kill Americans. And then there are another group of men in a room figuring out ways to kill Arabs. Occasionally heated conversation turns to shouts, and then dies back down again. Someone asks, "Could you pass the water, please?". A cigeratte is lit. Notes are written. Each person has his expertise. Someone asks another's opinion. Someone else ignores it. These are the way killings are planned. Aren't they? I just sit and picture these meetings going on simultaneously. On a stage, separated by white curtain, like an avant-garde play maybe.]
More from everyday life. I have developed an addiction to listening to episodes of This American Life. I have also been reading fark a bit too obsessively. The comments on Strom Thurmond are hilarious, like pee-in-your-pants funny. I know they’re in terrible taste. But we all left taste at the door when opened our browsers, okaaaay?!
Next, my mom’s on her way from LA to Paris and called me from LAX. She went way early cause you’re supposed to do that now, and had nothin much to do. She told me how pleasant it was in the airport with no people in it.. hmm.
Also the Tax Relief for America’s Workers check found it’s way to my office in Paris today. It promptly slipped out of my hand in front in the elevator by accident. And then a few hours later someone found it and out on my desk. Tax Relief’s gonna get to me no matter what.
Okay, let’s get down to everyday life again. I’ve got a problem. A big problem. Something very odd is happening in my pipes. Whenever i wash dishes in the sink, a bit later a good 25% of the stuff reappears in my bathtub. It is so revolting. Last night i had spinach. This morning there was spinach in my tub. Spinach! In my tub! Can you imagine anything grosser?! I don’t cook all that much so it ends up being mostly coffee grounds. But think.. coffee grounds in your tub. Blech!
And it gets worse. Somehow i need to explain this situation to my landlord over the telephone, in french. In french! Fuck! This is torture. I keep thinking of that Seinfeld episode where Kramer installs the garbage disposal in his shower so he can bathe and cook at the same time. For some reason, that doesn’t seem nearly as gross. A little gross yes, but not this gross. This is grosser than gross.
This week’s favorite news site is Fark.com. The comments section is the icing.
Recently Enjoyed Pointers:
+ NYC firemen are getting all the sex they could want
+ Ebay: TRI JET Turbine Powered Toyota MR2. What the hell is this?
And Not Particularly Enjoyed:
“The State Department has issued a “worldwide caution” to U.S. citizens traveling abroad amid growing fears that American tourists and businesspeople in Europe could be targeted by terrorists for assassination or kidnapping.”
Thanks to Ftrain’s American Military Operation Name Generating Device, I’ve decided to name the never-ending redesign of nil by mouth: Operation Ceaseless Peach. I am so darn close to done, but something is keeping me from finishing. I know it’s psychological. But it didn’t have a name before. Now I’ve got a name and i feel like that might help.
The brief rundown on Bretagne. It was beautiful. Friday night started with immediate partying at the bar. It was dub night. There seems to be a lot of dub in these parts, i may have to investigate a bit. Anyway lotsa a dreaded hip young things. Many headwraps. Afterwards went to the town’s Club up in a mountain somewhere, and by that point i certainly wasn’t paying any attention to the road (No i wasn’t driving). The music there was err.. well, let’s just say it’s a small town. Then in the wee wee hours, 7 or 8 of us standing around the parking lot, walk over the teeny hill and are standing on the beach futzing around, smoking things, and ending our evening quite serenely.
Saturday was sunny and hot, and we were tired and maybe a bit burnt. Lunch at the restaurant where Audrey’s family knows everyone. And i mean everyone. Each person walking down the street chatted for a minute. The cars that drove by slowed down and waved. After the Brochettes St Jacques (translation: yummiest scallops ever), went to the beach, laid around, collected rocks. Let’s just say Fantastic. Of course, i forgot my camera during all the scenic moments.
Saturday night, amazing dinner at the bar. One would think frenchies can’t do BBQ pork, but oh is that a fallacy. Best BBQ pork i ever had. Then many drinks and some very long games of pool. Lovely.
Every so often burning skyscrapers found their way into my head, but i suppose that ain’t gonna go away anytime soon.
I’m going away this weekend. To a place (or near a place) called Quimper. It’s in Brittany and from my half-hearted searching, famous for painted pottery. I’m going with a friend from the office to visit a friend of hers on the last open night of her father’s bar there. It’s got to close after some problems with the landlord or neighbors or both. I’m not entirely sure. It promises to be a weekend of drinking and various partying. I am slightly apathetic about it, but know that if there’s anything i need it’s a weekend away, with locals drinking and laughing. And not reading stuff on the Internet.
Meanwhile, listening to a press conference with the outgoing Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (that’s quite a title) discussing the Airforce’s “rules of engagement” on the horrific occasion where they may need to shoot down a commercial plane. [Sigh].
Afterwards NPR takes us to the president’s speech at O’Hare airport yesterday. An unfortunate coupling of stories. But i think it’s a good gesture to have all the cabinet members take airplanes. I want to take an airplane. I will be on one soon.
Already i’ve consumed a dozen or so news articles and a few dozen wire stories. It’s 3pm here and 9am in nyc. People are waking up on AIM.
Lately I’ve been thinking about the guy who i had a silent exchange with from my airplane seat at JFK.
photoshop tennis ~ Fun! This goes in the top ten things to do for no good reason except it’s awesome.
speaking of tennis: somebody searched on “finding tennis partner in france” and found themsevels here. Come out come out whomever you are. If you are in paris and want to hit – e-mail me!
New Angeles Monthly, June 2008
Weekend America, March 30, 2008
Los Angeles Times, March 13, 2008
Los Angeles Times, March 6, 2008
Nil by Mouth is written by Neille Ilel. Neille is a writer, reporter and user interface specialist in Los Angeles. If you think that's a lot, she's also got a host of meandering sidelines including improv comedy, tennis, cooking, drawing and thinking about learning to play the guitar.
Nil is her given name. It's a long story.
E-mail her here:
nil
@
neille
.com
