Friday, November 16, 2007

Moi, moi, moi


Help! I've been tagged by the lovely Lucy. I'm normally a deeply private person but this blog has changed that. Here are a few little secrets that I hadn't yet revealed.

Four quirky things about the way I eat (and drink):

1. I need to eat at least every two hours or I am impossible to be around. So I am constantly nibbling on fresh or dried fruit, nuts and seeds (and occasionally pain au chocolat and macarons!).
2. Though I don't cook much meat at home, I like to order really carnivorous dishes in restaurants. I can rarely resist a well-seasoned steak tartare.
3. If I travel to a place where vegetables aren't abundant, I get desperate after a day or two.
4. I don't drink most hard alcohols but I love (very good) rum and (very good) Armagnac.

Four dance forms I have studied, without particular aptitude:

1. Ballet
2. Jazz
3. Flamenco
4. African dance

My four favorite foods:

1. Tomatoes - It's not just that they taste good, it's the way their presence in my kitchen guarantees an effortless meal. Of course I love them best in summer, but I am not above buying cherry tomatoes in winter.
2. Lemons - But the Côte d'Azur has spoiled me, so I will only eat local ones.
3. Strawberries - The dessert equivalent of tomatoes, except that I absolutely will not eat them in winter. Under any circumstances (OK, maybe in jam).
4. Crusty bread - I am French in the sense that bread is the main starch in my diet, but I don't like standard baguettes, only baguette au levain or good wholegrain breads.
Runner-up: Avocadoes - I can't stop eating these at the moment.

Four jobs I've had:

1. Theatre usher - Great job for a teenager. You can watch plays or do your homework, and occasionally flirt with actors.
2. Paper delivery girl - I was paid £6 a week to slog up and down a steep hill every morning with a a sack of newspapers (this was in a seaside town in England).
3. Secretary/receptionist at a country club - Nice boss, no complaints. But the job made me anxious to go to university.
4. Cook/bookseller at a second-hand bookshop/tea room in Paris - The oven was tiny, but I prided myself on turning out puffy, Canadian-style cinnamon buns.

Now it's my turn, so I'd like to tag the Diva, Kate Hill and Dorie Greenspan, three people I admire for their amazing culinary skills and generous characters. Participation is totally optional, of course, but if you would like to play feel free to make up any four categories.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Rosa, I'm flattered to be tagged -- thank you! And I'm game, but just a little swamped at the moment. I'll think of four fun categories and let you know when I've got them up. A bientot.

Lucy said...

I LOVE it - tomatoes, strawberries, flamenco dancing, the desperation you feel knowing veggies aren't within grasping distance! An usher - I bet you saw some interesting things when the lights went down...

So pleased you joined in Rosa. I'm quite private too and it's fun to bend the rules of these meme's to give away just as much as you are comfortable with. I'll be following your tags.

"Diva" said...

Tag I am it? Will think on this...and let you know.
It is hard to look inside and really think about it.

Will let you know.

ciao bella

Kate Hill said...

Thanks Rosa for the tag. Verrrrrry interesting! I've spent a few long minutes thinking about just what four- or more- things you 'd want to know! and in such good company as the Diva and Ms Dorie! Merci!

Rosa said...

Dorie, I know you're swamped but I'm looking forward to seeing what you come up with... when you get a moment!

Lucy, it is a fun exercise. I'm glad to have taken part.

Go for it, Diva! I did mine without thinking too much, which probably helps.

Kate, I had such fun reading yours. I'm glad you found it not only fun but productive!