HOW TO LOOK ON THE BRIGHT SIDE ALL THROUGHOUT THE YEAR

Are you ready to jump on board 2019?

This week to help you to navigate the rolling waves of this new year safely and cheefully, I have written a short post about how to look on the bright side (and for my English-Learning readers, learn a few idioms, as well).

In the small hours of January 1st, I'll take a feather duster and blow away the cobwebs.

Then, come rain or shine, I'll wear rose-coloured glasses, so I'll forget the saying " it never rains, but it pours " and just remember that every cloud has a silver lining.

Yet, if the weather turns really foul and things seem to keep falling, I'll hang in there and my motto will be that " when life gives you lemons, make lemonade ".

All that will help me to keep upbeat all throughout the twelve months to come, but what will send me on cloud nine is a skyrocketing number of readers on my blog, so...it's up to you!

In the meantime, I wish you a smashing New Year and I hope everything will come roses for you and all the people you love!

UNUSUAL WISHLIST

Not much time this week to post a short story, so here is Canaille's special request to Santa Claus.

Dear Santa,

My name is Canaille.

 I'm an English Springer Spaniel, and Mum says I do justice to my breed, cause I often behave like a cheeky monkey. (Quite normal, cause that's the translation of my name in English).

Yet, last September I turned 11 and now I have a good head on my shoulders. So, every day, to make up for my silly antics, I help Mum and  Dad with household chores. I'm not sure they realize how helpful I am, but never mind.

I know you are a busy guy, so I won't be demanding.

No need to move heaven and earth to bring me a magical key to open the treats drawer. There is one and only key and it belongs to Daddy.

And anyway, it's of no use any more, cause now that damned drawer is empty.

Yes, dear Santa, as empty as my stomach!

Have I been on a binge eating? Nope, and that's why I am rather keyed up, cause that "food crisis" is none of my doing!

Who's responsible, then? The vet, dear Santa!

Last time Mum took me to his place, he asked me to climb onto the weighing scales and I obeyed,  cause I am a good boy.

His gasps made me think he was calling for an encore, so I climbed onto the scales again. 

That's when the judge, oops sorry, I mean the vet, sentenced me to a 

 no-treat month! Can you imagine that, dear Santa, thirty days without the least sweet to enjoy!

And the worst of it is that Mum agreed. I guess she is under the vet's thumb, poor girl!

So, this year, dear Santa, just one thing on my wishlist :

Could you put  new weighing scales under the tree of the vet's surgery, cause you see, even one of the vet's  patient agreed with me, the scales must be broken!

I will be asleep when you visit on Christmas Eve, so please say hello to the reindeers.

By the way, thank you for the comfy basket you gave me last year.When I curl up in it, I make sweet dreams!

And Merry Christmas to my Mum's readers!

RECIPE FOR A MOUTH-WATERING XMAS TREE

Early December I started planning for Xmas and its main attraction : the Xmas tree.

As I was fed up with all the glittering balls and tinsel garlands I had been hanging on years after years, I decided to bring in a change and make a mouth-watering Xmas tree.

For once it wouldn't be just eyed greedily, but " harvested " cheerfully!

All throughout the countdown to December 24, there are plenty of Xmas markets around, so it didn't take me long to get beautifully wrapped candy canes and sweet-smelling treats.

Waow, this year my Xmas tree would be the cream of the crop!

Then, I thought that it would look tastier if I added a few touches of my own, and that's when things went wrong!

I followed step by step a tuto on how to prepare a popcorn garland, and as I am a bit of a klutz, it took me the whole afternoon to make it, but unfortunately...just half-an-hour to munch it!

Was I feeling guilty afterwards? Guilty, not really, but heavy, for sure.

Believe me, digesting a one meter crunchy popcorn garland is not that easy!

The day after, to make up for my pre-Xmas binge eating, I baked a dozen gingerbread men and then hung them immediately on the Xmas tree.

I resisted their sweet eyes and sugary smiles, and went to bed with a sense of accomplishment.

Too good to be true! Yesterday when I got downstairs, the Xmas tree was lying on the floor and all the gingerbread men had taken a French leave!

My dog was curled up in his basket and his guilty eyes and the gingerbread crumbs on his nose and all around let me think that if the saying " Like father, like son " is true, then " Like owner, like dog " must be true, too!

Well, there are still some days left before Xmas, so I won't give up, cause I am a tough cookie.

Cookie? A delicious decoration for my Xmas tree! Here is the link for a recipe. Enjoy and share.

http://www.sweet2eatbaking.com/speculoos-christmas-decoration-cookies-recipe/

HOW THE WORD OF MOUTH BOOSTED MY BLOG

Some years ago when I started my blog, my relatives and my friends were my only readers. I was a newbie in the blogosphere and I didn't know how to boost my blog traffic.

Fortunately one year later, thanks to my early "supporters" and their enthusiastic and efficient word of mouth, a journalist of the local newspaper heard about me and came to my place to interview me. 

She wanted to know who was that French girl hiding under the pseudo of "Dany the Perky Busy Bee" and blogging from the very tip of Brittany.

When she arrived, she was white as a ghost, and, just for fun, I was about to ask her if she was a ghost writer, but she looked so pale that I thought my joke wouldn't be a good icebreaker.

She apologized for being out of breath, and told me she was feeling dizzy and sweaty because she had been cycling all the long steep road to my place.

I offered a seat and a cup of tea, but she refused and said that the only thing she needed when she was feeling that way was to lie down on a cold surface and close her eyes for a while.

Then, before I could say Jack Robinson, there she was, lying on the tiled entrance floor, and thats' when the doorbell rang!

When I opened the door, the postman's smile froze in a wink. He stared at me and at the journalist lying on the floor as if he was on a crime scene.

No way to count on him for further investigation, cause he dropped my parcel and hurried away.

Had he read too many detective novels and was he scared of suffering the same fate as embarrassing witnesses? Did he spread the word about a weird blogger living in the town?

I really don't know, but who profited that fake crime?

You and me, cause the journalist recovered and thanks to her sweet words about my blog in the local paper and perhaps thanks also to the poor postman,  nearly four years later I'm still on line and sharing my adventures with all of you!

So,  for tuning in to my blog every week :