My friend Allison, who is twenty years younger than me, and whom I have known since she was seven, leaves tomorrow. I am going to be a lost duck, I mean cigalle without her!
The other day while we were driving around Provence Allison asked French Husband If there was a leader of the cigalles that told them when to sing?
French Husband responded, "No. They sing when they are hot."
Allison was hoping for a more elaborate answer, or at least a tad bit of conversation since I was fast asleep in the car, so she continued,
"Okay, but how do they know when to all sing at the same time?"
French Husband looked at her oddly, as if the answer was so obvious, or should I say his expression seemed to say, "Duh," when he added,
"Because they are all hot."
Since that moment that has been the "EXPRESSION" we go to, the memory that has circled our conversations, the one thing we say over and over again,
"Duh, they are all hot."
All at once.
A matter of fact.
Why do cigalles sing?
Because the are hot.
Duh.
Why do we drink wine?
Why do we go shopping?
Why do we go to the beach?
etc.etc. etc.
Facts about Cigalles:
"It's the males who make the noise to attract females to the tree where they are sitting (they are remarkably adept at camouflage). They produce the sound by contracting and relaxing tymbals, ribbed membranes inside their stomachs."
via http://www.marvellous-provence.com
But actually, as French Husband would say:
"They are hot. Period."
"The cicada is the one of the world's loudest insects, recording sounds of up to 120 decibels. The males have to "switch off" their hearing organs while they sing, in order to avoid going deaf. Below 22 degrees Centigrade, the resounding sections of the diaphragm lose their elasticity."
via http://www.marvellous-provence.com
Again, they sing because they are
HOT.
I must admit I like the sound of the cigalle sometimes, but not all day long.
Small doses yes, all day long no.
"Provençal myth has it that the cicada was sent by God to disrupt the peasants' endless siestas and stop them from growing too lazy."
via http://www.marvellous-provence.com
"The Ancient Greeks were equally keen on the cicada, which they regarded as a symbol of Apollo, the god of music and of the sun." Via www.marvellous-provence
Nevertheless, French Husband speedy response fits here too..
"SUN equals HOT.
They are all hot."
"Apart from Xenophon, writers who celebrated the cicada include Homer, in the Iliad and Plato, in Phaedra's, which relates that cicadas were once men who became so enthralled with music that they forgot to eat and drink and their bodies wasted away." via www.marvellous-provence
Yeah, well that certainly isn't cool.
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