FYI ~ meet the French guys
Tuesday, September 4, 2007 at 02:54PM 
The French guys on our trip this past weekend • click to embiggenIn my last installment - ku # 481 - Mike said; "Surrender monkies? When did they surrender? Remember the Resistance. Who bailed the Colonists out when they were being thrashed by the Brits? Where do these epithets arise? "Cheese eating, wine-swilling" — just because they know how to eat well is no cause for jealousy — get educated."
Just in case Mike thought my 'cheese-eating, wine- swilling, surrender monkey' comment was anything other than shot at the morons who coined it, let me introduce myself and my grandson, Hugo - we are 14th and 16th generation descedents of the one of the Duzine - 12 French Huguenot family heads who, in 1677, founded the village of New Paltz, NY.
Hugo and I are the descendents of Hugo Freer, whose house, built circa 1698, still stands today on Huguenot Street in New Paltz.
'nuff said about the French.
PS - the other side of my family hails from the Emerald Isle - guess that's why I love potatoes, beer, links golf and a lady named Kelleher (not necessarily in that order)
Reader Comments (5)
It's funny to see Hugo cross his legs the same way you do. Or is it the other way round?
One thing that makes me proud to be from New Brunswick, is that we are Canada's ONLY bi-lingual province. I don't know if there are any officially bi-lingual states, I don't think so. Anyways the Acadien culture is alive and kicking here, so are the Irish, Scottish, Loyalists ( English ) and Maliseet and Mi"kmaq.
The French, especially in North America have much to be proud of, it's a culture that needs to be protected and nutured.
We all benefit from that, even an Irishman like me. They helped build this great country and they along with others built your great country too.
Too bad that cultures seem to think that to progress one needs to overpower and absorb, by force most times, other cultures that preceded them. That is the tragedy of our Native populations and cultures,even today,for example.
Tim
I believe the phrase was coined by Homer Simpson.
Man I just love that shot, so natural.
DOH! OK — maybe a little quick off the mark on that — have French friends. Please excuse. Tim, Belgium is bilingual. Switzerland is quadralingual (Fr, Ger, It, Romansch) to name but a few places. And many European countries have citizens who speak English as well as their native tongues — so they're unofficially bilingual. Cheers.