Don't let the Pigeon play pétanque....

Another Christmas Crèche from Valerie

It was wonderful to meet up, this summer in New York, with valerie and her family, the creator of these fine animation shorts. She brings such warmth a humor to Pétanque, not only with her movies but as a player too. I look for ward to next years installment of the Christmas Crèche and those dedicated pétanque playing figurines.

A Joyeux Noël to all and may your New Year be filled with Pétanque, sea ,sex and sun......

Welcome to the 'New' Brooklyn Boys.....

Here is a very nice slide show of the birth of Brooklyn's new Pétanque piste. As you can see in the video, NYPC all worked very hard and hands on to create a beautiful space, reminiscent of the communal spaces found all over France. A big round of applause and a 'cheers' to all that made it possible.....and a big thanks to Thierry Julliard for putting the images together.




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E-madness = US $1,450.00

Who are these people that sell Pétanque sets at ridiculous prices? Is the world that greedy? And if Neiman Marcus was selling sets of Pétanque boule in the 60's why not now? Is it not retro or chichi enough? Why is it that crap supersedes quality? Imitation is not the finest form of flattery, it's fraud! All I can add is; thank the heavens Philippe from Pétanque America is here, á la mode, to outfit all with shinny balls, at a reasonable price.

(Although whom ever's selling them did do their homework with a nice write up and I do like the yellow case, but that's beside the point! And 8, why not 12? There's more than enough room, at least get the numbers right. 12 crap balls are better than 8 crap balls.I know they do that in France too, sell vacation sets, by why, why, why!!!)

NO BALLS?

Brooklyn Pétanque Bar Tabac tournament on Smith St. SNY tv 2007

Just in case you missed it two years ago, here is the SNY "Street Games" episode of Pétanque, as played on Smith Street in Brooklyn for the Bastille Day Tournament hoasted by Bar Tabac.

BAR TABAC PETANQUE TOURNAMENT BASTILLE DAY 2009 BROOKLYN

The most expensive Boule Set on Ebay

The most expensive Boule Set on Ebay.com. Welcome to the world of high priced boule. This fantastically crap set is going for: $230,000, putting Louis Vuitton in his place. I know it's a typo but I do love it.....
LINK!




Even with the free shipping....it'd have to be some kind of James Bond Doo Da to win all games no matter what. Yet the case is a bloody give away...

What Time Is It.......????

SPRING TIME....

As hard as it is to believe Spring is here in Brooklyn. The sun is shining and the Oaks are budding. Having been incarcerated by the rain for the past few months it is finally time for the 2009 Pétanque season in New York. Yesterday we stopped by the Pistes in McCarren Park to see how the surface was and much to our pleasant surprise two new trees have been planted next to the the old Oaks. The whole park has been dotted by newly planted trees. Fortunately for us, one tree is in a perfect spot to ward off soccer players from the North out field. As we shared a game, under the setting sun, another couple turned out with a shinny new set of Boule, and played tandem on the other piste. More and more players are popping up in North Brooklyn and finding solace beneath the Oaks.

So come, join the fun.
Wednesday Nights will be commencing, if the weather allows.
Sundays will be a flexible free for all, turn up and watch out for incoming projectiles!!!

Perma Froid....

COLD COLD COLD.....!!!

Another Ebay Gem...

As the cold wind blows through Brooklyn, I pass the time by scouring Ebay, both foreign and domestic, for all Pétanque goodies. This beauty was on Ebay.fr, rather pricey but I imagine it's quite rare. A fine item for any lover of both Pastis and Pétanque.


I will continue to post more Objets Trouvé on the blog than last year, but others and see a greater selection and post their own finds on the Brooklyn Boule Message Board.

Iphone goes french, for those that can't....

I saw this image on www.apple.com and had to do a follow up to see what it was about....

So here it is, via www.Appshopper.com:

Lonely Planet French Phrasebook

Lonely Planet Mobile Phrasebooks – go native

Want to never be at a loss for words, no matter where you are in the world? With your iPhone, and a little help from Lonely Planet, you’ll have the local lingo licked.

Lonely Planet, the world’s leading travel company, now offers its most popular phrasebooks in downloadable audio format, specially tailored to make the most of your iPhone. Don’t just skim the surface on your next trip: with over 600 spoken (and phonetically written) phrases in each guide, you can shop, socialise and shout like a native.

Sort of amazing really, the only French image Lonely Planet could conjure up was a game of Pétanque. Not the Eiffel Tour, the Fleur de Lis or even a bereted man on a bicycle with onions around his neck, but Pétanque, how lovely.