la panne
convive

même pas peur!

cat in a box (c) Kristin Espinasse
Psst. There, in the right-hand corner. A cat in a box on a steep ledge. Ever feel like that? (photo taken in 2006, in Italy)
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même pas peur! (mem pah purr)

    :  Not afraid!

Même pas peur is an expression French kids say when confronted with something or someone daunting. It means "I'm not a bit afraid!"

 Audio File: Listen to me talk about today's appointment in MarseillesDownload MP3 or Wave file

Aujourd'hui, j'ai un punch biopsie et j'ai même pas peur... et je dis n'importe quoi... Today I have a punch biopsy and I'm not all scared... and I'm just talking nonsense (...when I say that I'm not afraid)... 

A DAY IN A FRENCH LIFE.... by Kristin Espinasse

Même Pas Peur: A few examples 

Même pas peur! The kid on the playground says to his cohorts, when the school bully threatens him: "Même pas peur! That guy doesn't scare me a bit!"

Même pas peur! I'm not afraid! The French woman says with a wink, when her hairdresser suggests chopping off all her locks, for a new look. 

Même pas peur! My son jokes to his friends as he inches over to the edge of the falaise... and jumps 15 meters to the shimmering waters below.

Même pas peur! my husband says, when I hand him the toilet brush and point to the chore.

And ... Même pas peur! I tell myself this morning, as I head out, now, to the doctor's. May the results of this skin biopsy come back speedily, different from the last time... and the time before that....

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To read about my first experience with skin cancer, click here.  
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Kristin and Jean-Marc Espinasse
Then... (Kristin, Max, Jean-Marc, and Jackie)

Jean-Marc and Kristin Espinasse
...and now! (Max, Braise, Jackie, Smokey, Kristin, and Jean-Marc). JM looks a little serious, but he's just impatient to get the picture over with, after several retakes. What do Braise and Smokey look like they're thinking? Comments here.

Note: the first photo was taken at Domaine du Banneret (Jean-Marc's uncle's winery, in Chateauneuf du Pape). It was before Jean-Marc began his own winery, Domaine Rouge-Bleu. We moved again, last September and are still settling in, here near Bandol.

Other places we have lived: Marseilles (when we first met), St. Maximin (after Max was born), Les Arcs-sur-Argens (the longest we ever stayed put!), Ste. Cécile-les-Vignes, and now we are back near the sea, where we started from!

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For more online reading: The Lost Gardens: A Story of Two Vineyards and a Sobriety

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