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  1. Movie collection

    March 24, 2013 by Audrey

    It all started when I decided to backup my computer and do a little “clean up” because it had been warning me for while that my “start-up disk is almost full”… Turns I (thought I) had my iTunes library twice: once on my system disk and once on my data disk… I decided to remove it from the system disk since it’s the one that needed a little space to run more smoothly…

    Ok, I deleted my entire iTunes library by mistake. I’m an idiot.

    Somehow, most of the music was backed-up but the movies and TV Shows, not so much. So I banged my head on the wall for a little while and then decided to see if there was any solution to my “situation”… And there was. And I started fixing it (i.e. re-downloading everything), which I’m still in the process of doing. All of that to say: what a great moment to clean-up my movie library, on that gloomy Sunday afternoon and to make sure I have the can’t-live-without movies as a priority on my list…

    You’re seeing it coming… what are the can’t-live-without movies?

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    In alphabetical order (I don’t want any of them to be jealous).

    1. A Chorus Line – Hopefuls try out before a demanding director for a part in a new musical.
    To watch when: I need inspiration.

    2. Across The Universe - The music of the Beatles and the Vietnam War form the backdrop for the romance between an upper-class American girl and a poor Liverpudlian artist.
    To watch when: I’m alone so I can sing along out loud, preferably on a big screen with surround sound to better experience the psychedelic fever.

    3. Before Sunset - It’s nine years after Jesse and Celine first met; now, they encounter one another on the French leg of Jesse’s book tour.
    To watch when: I start doubting love.

    4. Casablanca - Set in unoccupied Africa during the early days of World War II: An American expatriate meets a former lover, with unforeseen complications.
    To watch when: I want to remember what it means to tell a story.

    5. Dirty Dancing - Spending the summer in a holiday camp with her family, Frances “Baby” Houseman falls in love with the camp’s dance instructor Johnny Castle.
    To watch when: I need to feel like I’m 15 again.

    6. Rocky Horror Picture Show - A newly engaged couple have a breakdown in an isolated area and must pay a call to the bizarre residence of Dr. Frank-N-Furter.
    To watch when: I’m down.

    7. The Right Stuff - The original US Mercury 7 astronauts and their macho, seat-of-the-pants approach to the space program.
    To watch when: I have male company and I still want to immensely enjoy a movie while not passing as “girly”.

    8. The Secretary - A young woman, recently released from a mental hospital, gets a job as a secretary to a demanding lawyer, where their employer-employee relationship turns into a sexual, sadomasochistic one.
    To watch when: I’m feeling naughty.

    9. The Way We Were - Two desperate people have a wonderful romance, but their political views and convictions drive them apart.
    To watch when: I have something on my mind and I need to cry to get it out.

    10. Valley Of The Dolls - Film version of Jacqueline Susann’s best-selling novel chronicling the rise and fall of three young ladies in show business.
    To watch when: I miss my Philly friends or when I’m tempted to go all claw-crazy on someone.

    What are your can’t-live-without movies?

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  2. Meet the original Little Audrey

    March 3, 2013 by Audrey

    Some people have asked me where my blog’s name come from. Mostly European people, this is true, but also some younger Americans. Here’s the story…

    Once upon a time, there was a group of girls, trying to stay in shape and have fun at the same time… They decided to sign-up for boxing classes at Manayunk’s Joltin’ Jabs. You probably wonder where I’m going with this… but don’t fret, I’m getting there.

    The utterly adorable Joey, owner of the establishment, would always welcome me with a song: “oooooh little audrey says…”, which I had never heard before and that he claimed was a cartoon from his childhood. I am assuming those were playbacks because the original Little Audrey is much much older than us…

    LittleAudrey

    According to Wikipedia: “Audrey first appeared in the Noveltoon Santa’s Surprise (1947), where she was the most prominent member of a multicultural child cast, and was briefly seen in the January 1948 Popeye cartoon Olive Oyl for President. Her first starring vehicle was the short Butterscotch and Soda, released July 16, 1948.”

    Original Audrey and I have some in common… and Joey wasn’t too far when he attached this song to me.

    We both have ties with Popeye (my second dog’s name), we are both huge dreamers… and I would bet those are jelly beans in the bag, in the episode below…

    Enjoy!

     

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  3. Playlist | Holidays

    December 12, 2012 by Audrey

    IMG_1181It’s December 12th, and I haven’t found the time yet to post something here… I feel awful… For the quick update, life has been a whirlwind and all my free time was spent:

    - moving my grandmother to South of France
    - getting and recovering from surgery
    - attending my niece’s baptism
    - christmas shopping
    - getting ready for my move at the end of the month
    - preparing the launch of a new blog in French…

    So, here we are 12/12/12… fantastic day to finally get into a little bit of Holidays spirit.

    I thought a great way to do so is to share a little bit of Holidays music. Here’s my playlist! On the menu:

    Blue Skies by Irving Berlin. A less known extract from the movie White Chritmas, that I re-discovered a couple of years ago when a wedding couple (students) chose to use it for their first dance.

    All I Want For Chritmas Is You by Mariah Carey. I think I read somewhere it’s the #1 song at Christmas time. To me, it’s Love Actually, THE mandatory Christmas movie.

    Last Christmas by Wham. George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley in a white suit crooning around Christmas. It’s just priceless.

    Santa Baby by Eartha Kitt. I have a thing for Eartha, only she can make big fat red Santa sound sexy.

    Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree by Mel & Kim. So cheesy… it’s decadent!

    Feliz Navidad by Jose Feliciano. For an exotic spanish version of the Holidays… and because I couldn’t put my hand on the terrible salsa Christmas music I used to hear at the dance studio.

    Ocho Kandelikas by Pink Martini. I have heard that song about a gazillion times since I performed it with one of my student. It’s good memories though, he was a teacher’s favorite. I’m a big Pink Martini fan and I love the idea of a jewish chacha!

    Petit Papa Noël by Tino Rossi. Because that’s THE traditional French Christmas song and I couldn’t have a Holidays playlist without it.

    Mon Beau Sapin by Les Amis du Père Noël. Because that was my childhood favorite traditional French Christmas song.

    Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow! by Blake Shelton. His accent, his voice, his blue eyes, his cowboy hat… All I want for Christmas is Blake Shelton.

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  4. What would Audrey do?

    November 15, 2012 by Audrey

    You might have guessed, I was named after Audrey Hepburn.

    I think my mother was inspired when I was in her belly… Not sure exactly which movie stroke her fancies (although I have a suspicion it’s My Fair Lady) but, little did she know, that some day, my favorite movie would be Breakfast at Tiffany’s (alright, neck-to-neck with The Right Stuff) and that I would catch myself humming Moon River as I walk down the street (true story).

    When I turned 33, my friends got me this Ikea Audrey painting that I carried around from bedroom to bedroom since that day. It was a wonderfully thoughtful gift because it was “me” and it was inspiring. Every morning, I got to wake up, look at her and wonder “what would Audrey do?”

    Because not only was Audrey beautiful, but she was smart and she had that little something that makes all the difference. She had a taste for life.

    Pick the day. Enjoy it – to the hilt. The day as it comes. People as they come… The past, I think, has helped me appreciate the present – and I don’t want to spoil any of it by fretting about the future.

    Isn’t that’s something you want to think when you wake-up?

    At a time when I’m about to settle down, yet all over again, in a new home, I miss my Audrey painting (that had to stay in Philadelphia, PA – I’m traveling light these days).  But I’m sure she’ll find her way in my new home, the same way she found her way in my life.

    Because there’s only one thing I aspire to be, and that’s Audrey.

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  5. From childhood book to book club…

    November 7, 2012 by Audrey

    I officially joined a Book Club…

    I have been wanting to do so since I saw The Jane Austen Book Club. And of course, because it’s such a staple in American culture. I always felt like I had to try once… Not to mention, I am woman of words… I love writing them but also reading them. It all started when I was a child and my grand-mother would bring me a new Martine book at each visit. I think I probably have the entire collection, buried somewhere in my parent’s basement.

    But of course, I had to wait until I moved back to France to finally have the opportunity of joining a book club. It’s an international one with that, and we will be reading in English. I’m really excited.

    And, of course, I missed the first and the second installments… But they have decided on a book: Changing Places by David Lodge. It seems like a pretty appropriate choice for a group of people who comes from all sides of the planet and find themselves in Lyon for  month, a year or a life.

    I have bought the book… Yes I did. Now all I need is to open it up and start reading.

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  6. Playlist | Hurricane Special

    October 29, 2012 by Audrey

    It all started with my friend N. whom recommended that I hum or sing “Here I am, rock you like a Hurricane” as I landed in Philadelphia last night… It brought back memories of last year’s Hurricane and singing “C’mon Irene…” on the Dexys Midnight Runners’s tune of “Come On Eileen”.

    Somehow tropical storms and music work well together.

    So what would be on the 2012 Hurricane Playlist? There we go…

    1. Rock you like a hurricane by Scorpions. Of course. Thank you N. I have this song in my head since last night…

    2. Sandy from Grease. Kind of appropriate, isn’t it?

    3. Stormy Weather by Lena Hornes. Because I’m in Philly, because this song brings back a lot of memories, and because it’s among my favorite songs.

    4. Umbrella by Rihanna. In honor of my friends D. for counting her in his patients list, and W. whom gave me the best huge green umbrella ever. I love it and I wish I had carried it with me…

    5. Riders on the storm by The Doors. Because we need a song by The Doors… and to illustrate the car ride that K. and I took around the neighborhood this afternoon, just to confirm: “yep, everything is closed.”

    6. Here Comes the Rain Again by Eurythmics. For the 80ies touch…

    7. Like a Hurricane by Neil Young. To heat things up a little bit…

    8. Hells Bells by AC/DC. I guess it’s because we’re around Halloween time but somehow this song has also been stuck in my head for the past 48-hours.

    9. Rain by The Beatles. Because we need a Beatles song as well…

    10. Let the sun shine in from Hair. Because, as we say in France: après la pluie vient le beau temps (after the rain the sunshine comes).

    What ‘s on your hurricane playlist?

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  7. Adventures in heels: Pérouges, France

    September 13, 2012 by Audrey

    It has been a great fun to have some American friends visit me last week. I’m sure you will forgive my silence, first, I was busy showing them around, eating all sorts of lyonnaise delicacies and drinking great regional wines; then I was busy trying to catch-up on all the left behind work…

    As part of my tour guide duties, I took K. & C. to Pérouges, a little medieval town, about 30 minutes from Lyon. According to Wikipedia, “Pérouges was inhabited by craftsmen — mainly farmers and linen weavers. It was probably founded by a Gallic colony returning from Perugia in Italy. In 1167, the Seigneur d’Anthon famously shut the commune’s walls against the troops of the Archbishop of Lyon, and as early as 1236 the inhabitants earned communal freedom. In 1601 the town officially became French. Until the end of the 18th century, the textile industry in Pérouges boomed. In the 19th century, however, roads and railroads were re-routed and the population dropped from 1,500 to 90. But, starting in 1911, the town was restored and houses were saved. Today, Pérouges is a popular tourist attraction.”

    As we visited the local church, K. noted the narrow windows and commented that it was probably a defensive mechanism… for canons! I suggested it might have been for people to throw burning oil… They didn’t have canons in the 12th century, did they? I might be wrong… It suddenly occurred to me that death by burning oil must be atrociously painful… what savages we are…

    But, in 2012, we had a beautiful fall weather and the visit was delightful…

    En images…

     

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  8. Playlist

    August 22, 2012 by Audrey

    On one of our “home early” nights, while in Barcelona, we started a blind test music game… I’m very bad at those, and my lack of musical culture, mixed with a common taste with my friend S. for musicals and old school tunes, turned the evening into a tribute to Liza Minelli and other Broadway stars…

    Some of the words that came out of my mouth were: “I love that song”, “that’s one of my favorite song ever”, “definitely on the top 10!”… When I look at the Favorites playlist on my iPhone, there are 40 songs in there. And so many are missing… I was going to give you a Top 10 today but in the end, I think I’m going to give you 10 of my favorites songs… and there might be more coming later. Because, honestly, I can’t choose 10…

    In totally random order:

    1. Where do I begin by Shirley Bassey: Love Story and an unforgettable Rumba with Brian Freedman for the 2010 edition of Dancing with the Philadelphia Stars…
    2. I love you till the end by The Pogues: Because it’s sad, it’s beautiful and I love Spider Stacy’s voice.
    3. 9 Crimes by Damien Rice: I saw Damien Rice in concert at the Mann Center, in Philadelphia, PA. This song will always give me chills, it always did.
    4. Smile by Judy Garland: I love to listen to that song when I’m feeling down. It always gives me a boost.
    5. Bad Things by Jace Everett: Okay, I confess, I’m a True Blood addict. But even without that reference, this song screams naughty, sexy, steamy…
    6. Secret by Maroon 5: That’s way before Adam Levine became a sex-symbol, when he was still looked at for his music and not his tattoos or yoga skills…
    7. You May Be Right by Billy Joel: I have no idea why I love this song so much… It just puts me in a good mood! It’s so goofy…
    8. Tears Dry On Their Own by Amy Whinehouse: I remember walking a guy to my apartment door one morning, looking at him wait for the elevator, close the door and think “I’m never going to see this guy again”. This song played on the radio shortly after. I cried. I really liked the guy.
    9. Beautiful Maria by Los Lobos: That’s when I realized I worked way too long in a ballroom dance studio. That’s one of the song I would hear at the very least once a day… I still like it though. Rumba anyone?
    10. Hallelujah by Jeff Buckley: My friends can confirm, I always said “I want that song played either at my wedding or at my funeral. Whatever comes first.” The first time I heard this song was at the end of a party, at a friend’s house. We were only a few left, sitting on the floor, silent. He played that song. I cried.

     

    So, please, no judgment. I know my taste in music is both eclectic and plain weird sometime… And, as I said above, it’s only a few random picks… There are so many more great songs… What are some your favorites?

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