2026, Business, Government, News, Uncategorized

The French Connection

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I read with great amusement this weekend about the deportation of Milo Yiannopolous, the right-wing rabble rouser described as a Provacateur. That French word made what he does, which is disgusting, seem so exciting and mysterious.

I wondered if he listed “Provacateur” as his official job description on legal documents and his British Income Tax returns. My father could have described himself as a Provacateur. He loved lively conversation in his coffee shop, and loved teasing and vexing his buddies who held different political beliefs than he did. I had to promise him on his death bed that I would include his signed photo of Hilary Clinton in the slide show at his funeral lunch. He wanted one last dig at his Republican friends. Heaven for him would be in a fishing boat with Winston Churchill, Joseph Stalin, and Billy Graham.

I think we should all start describing our vocations in French. Husband and I would be Psychologues. I don’t know the past vocations of all Baboons, but I know we have a Travailleuse Sociale (social worker), an Infirmiere Diplomee (registered nurse), a Poseur de Moquette (carpet layer), a Publicitaire (advertising professional), a Joueuse de Mandolin and Chanteuse (mandolin player and singer), an Auteur (author), a l’Agriculteur (farmer), a Technicien Lumiere (theatre lighting technician) and a Touche-a-tout (jack of all trades). Maybe we would all get paid more with such fancy job titles!

What is the French word for different jobs you have had? Would you enjoy being a Boulevardiere, Maitre d’hote, Danseuse, Raconteur, Flaneur, Sommelier, or some other French occupation?

26 thoughts on “The French Connection”

  2. Most recently, I’ve been a tricoteuse (knitter) and before that a modeliste (pattern maker)- so fancy!

    All I can find for a reason Yiannopolous was deported was “overstayed his visa”, but surely there is more to the story. Must have gotten up someone’s nose.

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  6. Before becoming an Auteur, I was a

    professeur de musique

    planificateur financier

    consultant en vin

    trader journalier

    investisseur privé

    On and off between those vocations, I was a homme au foyer.

    I’ll let you all exercise your brains (or not) and figure these out for yourselves.

    Chris in Owatonna

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  8. I like the l’Agricuclteur and Technicien Lumiere! I think you’ve covered the bases.
    The only other thing I could come up with is a man with a limp, Un boiteux: (A lame man or a man with a limp).

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  9. I was an infirmiere auxiliaire. I think that needs an accent mark over the “e” in infirmiere, which makes it feminine.

    More recently I have become a tricoteuse and a ver de livre. I am also a maman chien!

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  10. In addition to once being an infirmiere auxilliaire, I guess I would qualify as a musicienne, kayakiste, and just plain retraitee (accent over the last e).

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  11. What fun! First 4 years out of college I was an
    – institutrice in une école primaire
    (if they had been older, I would have been a professor).

    Later I was
    – une Secrétaire, and eventually a
    – responsable de bureau
    and then
    – la libraire
    Now I am
    – à la retraite
    and a bénévole…

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  12. Today I am a chef de cuisine (canning tomatoes). Boommate is the sous chef. She cut up the tomatoes after I blanched them to remove the skins.

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  15. Tomorrow I will be a patissiere since we have ripe peaches and I have home made pie crust dough in the freezer. Husband has requested a lattice crust.

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  16. Serveuse, boulanger followed by decorateur de gateaux, vendeur de livres, and eventually 35 years of planification de voyage. Now a la retraite!

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