Author: Stew Ross

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The Pee Ladies of Paris

I like to maintain traditions as much as the next person—remember Tevye singing “Tradition” in the movie Fiddler on the Roof? A tradition in Paris is about to become extinct—all in the name of “progress.”

Well, one of the traditions—or should I say, experiences—was being in the men’s public bathroom while the female attendant waited for me to finish so she could tidy up the place after I left (and collect her half a franc). Imagine the impression this made on a ten-year-old American boy living in Europe over fifty years ago.

Urinal Cross-Sales

Madame Pipi – A toilet lady. Photo by Yves Lorson (2006). PD-Creative Commons Attribution 2.0. Wikimedia Commons.
Madame Pipi – A toilet lady. Photo by Yves Lorson (2006). PD-Creative Commons Attribution 2.0. Wikimedia Commons.

These Paris toilet ladies or as they are affectionately known, “dames pipi” or pee ladies, are about to be dismissed by the government in favor of a Dutch company called 2theloo (cute name, huh?). You see this company has developed a new automated toilet technology. What it really flushes down to is cross-selling toilet products. Yep, the dames pipi are expected to follow me to the stall, be able to speak multiple languages, and sell me stuff like toilet paper and tooth-brushes. Their traditional cleaning responsibilities seem to have taken a back seat to cross-selling toiletries. Read More The Pee Ladies of Paris

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Pasties and Medieval Suppers

Pastie bought near Metro Revolución, Mexico City. Photo by Hippietrail (2009). Wikimedia Commons.
Pastie bought near Metro Revolución, Mexico City. Photo by Hippietrail (2009). Wikimedia Commons.

No, no, no—not those. I know what you’re thinking.

I’m talking about one of the food staples of the iron ore workers in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan—the pasty. Think in terms of a giant Italian Stromboli. A flaky crust (usually a pie crust) enveloping meat, diced potatoes, carrots, onions, or anything Mom or Dad could think of. It was (and is) a hearty baked meal—one to satisfy the hunger of very hard working people.

Do you know why the edges of the pasty are so thick? It’s because the iron ore workers didn’t wash their hands and so they picked up the pasty by the outer crust and then discarded the crust after eating the main section of the pasty.

Pasties were eaten in the Middle Ages as part of the supper. Instead of beef or pork, the meat would usually be roast boar, pigeon, or wild game that was hunted. The pasty originated in England, and in particular, Cornwall where miners ate them for lunch. By the mid-1800s, the pasty had been introduced to the diet of the Upper Peninsula miners.

Today, we raise turkeys, pigs, cattle, and other animals for our consumption. During the Middle Ages, other animals were considered a delicacy. Besides the boar, deer, and other hunted animals, the nobility would gather up, fatten up, and glutton up on the following: Read More Pasties and Medieval Suppers