The Mystery of the Chawarma

Had me a chawarma today that was out of this world! Man! My mouth is starting to water all over again just thinking about it. A chawarma is kind of hard to explain. It is kind of on the gyro side of things, but not really. You could compare it to a philly cheese steak, but not really. One might mistake it for a kebab kind of sandwich, but not really. It's a chawarma! And there is nothing else like it.

Sometimes I get 'em like a sandwich on a round bun type of situation. Other times I get them on a petite baguette kind of bread. My absolute favorite is on a galette, which is kind of like a large tortilla, but again, not really. These photos don't really do it justice, but it will give you an idea of what I am talking about. Thinly sliced meat, throw some veggies in there, some french fries, and then top it off with "the white sauce". Now "the white sauce" is also a bit of a mystery. It's not mayo. It's not ranch. It's just the white sauce. No other way to explain it.

Joy doesn't really like it when I go hang out at my favorite chawarma shop because I come home with my clothes smelling like I rolled them in a barrel of fried food, but it is just part of the experience. You have to take the good with the bad. It's a great place to hang out, meet people, and of course get a chawarma. It's the kind of place where everyone knows your name. You know what I mean. Except the guys in the shop yell "Thomas" when they see me instead of "Norm". Good times! Usually, after my chawarma, I will get a hot mint tea. Dude! I will have to tell you about mint tea some other time.

The copymeister! Makin' Copies!

This week I have been in the business of making copies. It is time to turn in our application to renew our residency cards here in France, and that means paperwork. Of course, the application is very vague about these things. It states, "include originals and photocopies." That's it. It doesn't say how many copies, but it is plural so we understand that to mean more than one. So we have the original and two copies of everything. Not to mention another copy of everything for us to keep in our files here at home, just in case we ever need them for anything. I think I have probably made about 120 photocopies on our little HP home printer this week. It is very tired, and also very low on ink. Well you gotta do what you gotta do!

The copymeister! Makin' copies!

Classic.

The Trouble with Homophones

The trouble with homophones is that they are tricky.  In our beginner English class this morning Joy spent quite a bit of time talking about a few homophones.  There, their, and they're are particularly difficult for native English speakers, but especially for those learning English as a second language.  

I must admit, I am the world's worst when it comes to homophones.  In fact Joy has forbade me (I am pretty sure that is the first time I have ever typed the word forbade) to send out any kind of updates, newsletters, or blogposts until she has proofed them first.  I always use their when I should have used there, or there when I should have used they're.  Sometimes I even use they're when I should have used their.  Can you believe that?  Don't even get me started on spelling.  Spellcheck is the greatest invention ever!  I used to be a pretty good speller.  I never won a spelling bee, but I made it to the last round a couple of times in elementary school.  Now that I have learned French, my spelling is out the window.  How bad is it that I have to look up the word appartement in the dictionary to see if you spell it with one p or two?  Or is it apartment?  I have no idea!!!!

(Joy is going to let me post this even though she has a problem with my homophone usage and my spelling of the word apartment.)

Do you smell a camel?

Joy and I were at the post office yesterday morning. While standing in line I kept smelling something familiar. It wasn't a terrible smell that I needed to get away from, nor did it smell great or inviting. It was just a familiar smell, but I could not place it. Then I said something about Joy's purse. I don't remember exactly what it was. I think it was something like, "Did you get a new purse?" I never know when she gets a new purse. I usually notice a few months after the purchase, which was the case this time. She said, "I got it a couple of months ago in the market. I like it, but I need to let it air out because it smells like a camel." That was it! That is what I was smelling! CAMEL!!!


When I lived in Côte d'Ivoire for a couple of years I would sometimes purchase leather goods that were made from camel skin. It has a very distinct odor, and that was the smell that I could not identify. I visited Timbuctu, Mali once and actually took a camel ride out in the desert. Let me tell you, the real thing smells much like the leather products that are produced from their hide. So, if you ever received a gift made of leather from me around the time that I was in Africa, there is a good chance it is genuine camel skin. Go give it a sniff and you will know exactly what I am talking about. ;-)