It’s one of the most beautiful memories. Firstly for the taste which reminds me of childhood, but also because it is one of the first recipes I prepared. That and the Kraft Dinner. We played outside late and when my mom made Rice Krispies squares, the smell alone would bring us in. This was before screens, although video games already took up a lot of time. Still, it was enough to stop a sport or a little war or to come down from a tree and come and get drunk. When they were still hot, it was even better.
Peonies, phlox, tomatoes were in flower 10 days ago, at the end of May. As far as I remember, I’ve never seen it this early. It’s fortunate, but we wonder if there will be any plants left that will still want to flower in August. Everything is a little ahead of time at the end of spring. The same leaves: lettuce, kale, spinach, arugula. And vermin too. It’s one of the laws of prosperity: there is a downside to everything.
PHOTO HAIYUN JIANG, THE NEW YORK TIMES ARCHIVES
Donald Trump
We smiled a lot while listening to Donald Trump’s disjointed improvisation, following the guilty verdict in this document falsification case. I am one of the very few commentator news who do not seek to demonize him. This man sadly embodies the era: in an incredibly beige and bland world, it no longer seems to be through art, anthropology, philosophy or sociology that we define ourselves, but through the former American president (which I do not endorse, on the contrary).
Donald Trump is the echo of rage, of hatred, of fed up, of the flaws of a system, of the importance of the ideology of appearances, of the “fake truth” , the implosion of morality, our worst faults, a lot of a lack of impunity and, also, an atmosphere that stinks.
My trapping friends “grease” their traps with skunk scent. It camouflages that of humans and reduces the distrust of the animals we are trying to attract. It’s a technique as old as time.
The growing vegetable garden therefore also comes with a lot of pests. There are several raccoon and skunk cage traps around the house. One morning this week, I stuffed a stinky beast with Rice Krispies squares (before, it was with leftovers, but that also attracted the local cats, which wasn’t fun). A skunk, then. I take a blanket as a shield to approach, and I “pack” the cage while trying not to get sprayed to go and relocate the animal far-far-far. Every time, it’s the same thing: even without being sprayed, clothes, hair and skin still smell like… But I’m also one of the very rare people who find that the smell of skunks or that of horse manure a stable smells good. This is an other story. Let’s say that it reinforces the need and desire for solitude with happy results.
How far will the Americans go in November? Will they elect this “pest” again (the skunk’s tail looked strangely like Trump’s toupee)?
In nature, even the animals that we love to hate and in which we find few qualities (rats, skunks, weasels, scavengers, etc.) play an important role in the overall system. Allowing us to trace the contours and ensure the development, with more or less justice, of course, of the world they inhabit. Because even when trapped, they eat the Rice Krispies that lured and condemned them.
I was standing in the grocery aisle. I was hesitating between white or multi-colored marshmallows. With muted wars, famines, tragedies and this soap opera social of an era caught in its own trap. I chose the colorful ones. For that matter. We persist in believing, despite everything, in beauty.
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