Gracious, I almost forgot.
Once upon a time, I wrote a whimsical post about calpol and menthol eucalyptus suppositories on a freshly created blogspot blog. I still get clickthroughs today from people who have searched for the latter and ended up here, a little disoriented and unsure as to how they washed up on these shores.
Two years have flashed by. There have been highs and lows (and I haven’t even begun to tell you about the lows, so do bear with me and I will enlighten you very soon) but on the whole I have no regrets. I have been prone to worry, on occasion, that this blog lives my life for me. But only sometimes. Mostly I’m just grateful for the number of firm friends I have made through petite anglaise, the way writing has helped me to find a little clarity when my head is a fuzzy mass of tangled thoughts, and above all for the way in which through this blog I re-discovered my long forgotten love of writing, many years after my creative writing efforts in GCSE English with Mr Jones.
In honour of my blogbirthday, I reserve the right to have a drink or two, to celebrate, so I may not be around to moderate comments this evening.
I wonder if it wouldn’t be fitting to light a couple of menthol eucalyptus suppositories?
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petite anglaise 
it was my blog birthday on the 5th…and by the time i remembered it was the anniversary of the london bombings and the death of a friend….and so i couldnt really celebrate it…
Comment by piupiu — July 7, 2006 @ 6:21 pm
Many happy returns!
Comment by Loxias — July 7, 2006 @ 6:21 pm
Happy blog birthday Petite!! I think all of us faithful readers should donate $2 to your PayPal Account as a present. Fellow petite addicts, thoughts?
Comment by Leslie — July 7, 2006 @ 6:33 pm
Hi Petite, CONGRATULATIONS on the anniversary of your blog! You’re doing a great job, keep it up! It’s one of my favorites!
Comment by Rose — July 7, 2006 @ 6:43 pm
Great idea on the paypal donation Leslie. Done! =)
Comment by Rose — July 7, 2006 @ 6:45 pm
he he, thank you rose..
of course I should point out that any monies received will be donated to my current favourite charity:
IKEA
Comment by petite — July 7, 2006 @ 7:00 pm
Happy Blog Birthday and many, many more! :-)
Comment by kelly — July 7, 2006 @ 8:03 pm
Dear Petite … as a relatively new blogger myself, I am grateful for the path you have forged. I happily stumbled on your blog and immediately became a fan (or is that addict?) either way …joyeux anniversaire Petite Anglaise.
Comment by Deborah — July 7, 2006 @ 8:11 pm
Happy Blogbirthday!
I will have a cocktail for you too!!
Comment by chantel — July 7, 2006 @ 8:43 pm
Happy Birthday! I think lighting them would be best, just don’t . (OK, forget that thought)
Comment by joeinvegas — July 7, 2006 @ 9:36 pm
Congrats, Petite. Enjoy your weekend!
Comment by Kat — July 7, 2006 @ 9:38 pm
Injured Kids of East Africa?!?
Indian Koala Enthusiasts Association?!?
Congrats on your two years.
Comment by JonnyB — July 7, 2006 @ 10:02 pm
Delurking to say: happy blogthday! and many more. I hope the next year will be better (and I’ll let you decide what exactly that means) than the last.
Comment by udge — July 7, 2006 @ 10:25 pm
…and many more!
Petite, thanks for writing this blog. About a year and a half ago, I became addicted and now I check every day for news from Little English. My life has changed a lot since then–I’m now here in France (Montpellier for the summer, then Aix-en-Provence until spring ’07) and I think you (and La Coquette) are partially to blambe. Best wishes to you and mille mercis!
Comment by suzanne — July 7, 2006 @ 10:30 pm
Many happy returns, and a small addition to the Ikea fund. Enjoy!
Comment by Jan — July 7, 2006 @ 10:40 pm
Happy blogiversary!
Comment by Bluegrass Mama — July 8, 2006 @ 2:11 am
Bon anniversaire à notre petite amie! One Ikea donation, coming right up!
Comment by The Bold Soul — July 8, 2006 @ 2:36 am
Happy blog birthday!
Comment by Claire — July 8, 2006 @ 3:28 am
Happy Blog Birthday!
I’ve been reading since just before Mr Frog moved out and I’ve been loving every post. Thanks for such a wonderful reading experience.
Hip Hip Hooray!
Comment by Jack Hartley — July 8, 2006 @ 5:16 am
Happy blogbirthday! I will raise my cosmopolitan in a martini glass to your honor!
Comment by Lost in France — July 8, 2006 @ 8:57 am
Happy BlogBirthday!
Two years ranting and raving, eh! Chapeau!
Comment by Cream — July 8, 2006 @ 11:00 am
happy blogbirthday Miss petite anglaise
Comment by andre — July 8, 2006 @ 12:25 pm
Happy belated blogday!
Comment by Magpie — July 8, 2006 @ 1:07 pm
Well happy blogday. It’s a great piece of work, and a pleasure to read. Thanks.
Comment by Damian — July 8, 2006 @ 6:41 pm
Is it only 2 years? Thought I’d read all your archive, but have no memory of suppositories. Congrats and keep up the good work.
To Lost in France
Thought of you when shopping today – Cranberry Juice at Intermarché L’Isle Jourdain – probably the others too!
Comment by J — July 8, 2006 @ 9:29 pm
Congrats and Happy Blogday!!!
Keep up the amazing work! Your random Frenchie stories bring a smile to my face. It’s definitely a fave…
Comment by Noire Dire — July 8, 2006 @ 11:11 pm
Bon anniversaire de ton blog, Petite. I wish I could hand you flowers in person. Imagine me extending to you a bouquet of giant gerbera daisies- orange, yellow, white.
Encore!
Comment by eric — July 9, 2006 @ 12:02 am
A very excellent blog b-day to you! But, as a writer myself, don’t you think that the sentence “Two years have flashed by.” should be, “Two years have flushed by?” Would seem more appropriate given the subject matter regarding suppositories……….;-)
Comment by Dave of the Lake — July 9, 2006 @ 12:22 am
Blimy, that means I’ve been reading this for 2 years very soon.
Comment by David In London — July 9, 2006 @ 1:56 pm
Your blog inspires me to improve the quality and content of my own blog.
I don’t want to sound like a sychophant, but your blog (for me) stands head and shoulders above anything else I regularly read in so many ways. It’s wonderfully written, and always interesting.
Comment by Jonathan — July 9, 2006 @ 3:34 pm
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO we losty what was Zidane DOING!? And why did you buy little tadpole an ITALIA shirt!? All the English people in an English Yates bar were shouting for Italy, dispite the fact that half couldnt name more than 2 Italian players.
Why am i telling you am i drukn?
BOO:(
Just got back from 7 lovely weeks in Paris. Hooray.
Hope you two are oki and enjoyed the victory:)
Comment by Maxi — July 10, 2006 @ 12:02 am
Joyeux blogversaire! Incroyable de voir combien de choses changent en deux ans… Merci d’écrire de façon si régulière
Comment by Bibil — July 10, 2006 @ 12:48 am
Congs Petite on the birthday of yo blog.
Its amazing!!!some 2months ago blogs were being introduced to us and part of the documentary we had to read in order to understand how it works had yo url address,eversince then i am addicted.i am yet to go to the archives tho but it has surely taught me how to write my own
Congs
becky
Comment by becky — July 10, 2006 @ 8:16 am
Tell us about the mood in Paris the morning after the the World Cup final, Petite. At least Tadpole will be happy…
Comment by old school friend — July 10, 2006 @ 9:48 am
And many happy returns to a lovely blogger x
Comment by fjl — July 10, 2006 @ 11:23 am
joyeux anniversaire ! quel plaisir de lire ton blog depuis deux ans, merci.
Comment by Thomas — July 10, 2006 @ 1:45 pm
Happy blog birthday and, more importantly, thank you for introducing us to blogs and blogpeople and general webheadedness.
It’s great! Keep on trucking
Comment by Lou — July 10, 2006 @ 2:22 pm
Menthol suppositories to clear a blocked nose?!
You are sure this wasn’t one of those hilarious Misunderstood Foreign Language situations, right?
Comment by Clare — July 10, 2006 @ 5:20 pm
J, thanks for the info on cranberry juice. First I have to figure out where there is an intermarché. Do they exist in Toulouse?
Then I’ll be shaking those cosmos:
Comment by Lost in France — July 10, 2006 @ 5:31 pm
Happy blogday petite, your writing is really addictive! I don’t know how you do it, but don’t stop.
Thankfully we all had a quiet evening yesterday with just the occasional klaxon, unlike 8 years ago!
I hope the coming years bring more highs than lows for you. Just don’t stop blogging!
Comment by Paris Lights — July 10, 2006 @ 7:33 pm
It’s hard to find a blog where writings about day-to-day stuff is so well-writen. I predict a publisher will be knocking on your door soon with a fabulous offer! Happy blogbirthday Petite!
Comment by okdokes — July 10, 2006 @ 8:43 pm
Happy Blog Birthday! I have only recently discovered you, but I have been thoroughly enjoying reading about your adventures. I read because I love the Tadpole stories and because it is my dream to live in Paris. Since I can’t do that, I like to read about people who do live there. Since I am new, I think I will read some of the older posts and catch up.
Comment by Wide Lawn — July 10, 2006 @ 8:54 pm
Many happy returns, girlie!! Loving your works, never stop trying to clarify yout thoughts and re-arrange them online… cos’ as you can see a lot of people find it awfully entertaining!
Keep up the good work, chick!
Comment by Sarah Louise Parry — July 10, 2006 @ 10:07 pm
Happy birthday. I enjoy watching your thoughts and feelings grow along with your blog.
Comment by BlondebutBright — July 11, 2006 @ 5:23 am
Well Clare, I don’t think shoving one up each nostril would help one breathe, so if you can think of any other orifice…?!
Lost in France
At the risk of getting moderated for turning PA’s comments box into the shopping channel – http://www.intermarche.com tells you where all their stores are – loads in the burbs. Also for UK/US stuff Champion Pibrac & Beauzelle not bad if you have a sudden craving for Oreos. http://www.champion.fr.
On the one hand it’s nice to be able to get stuff for the kids so their digestive system is bicultural, but on the other, it does make me nostalgic for the first time I lived in France, twenty years ago (yikes am getting old) when such cravings involved ‘red cross parcels’ from any family or friends I could con into paying the postage on a jar of mincemeat.
Comment by J — July 11, 2006 @ 7:40 am
Thanks again, J. It’s like the Hello from Lu commercials where the Frenchman waits at the airport for young women coming off flights from, say, Los Angeles, with a briefcase full of chocolate-chip cooks.
Comment by Lost in France — July 11, 2006 @ 9:01 am
Congrats your anniversary!
Comment by lilacstripe — July 11, 2006 @ 9:34 am
delurking to wish you a happy (late) blog birthday, petite. and many more!
Comment by franko — July 11, 2006 @ 3:34 pm