The Bold Soul: A Writer's Life in Paris

Almost unnoticed

In memoriam... The CPE

It seems as if the CPE (the new French labor law that was causing all the ruckus in France for the past several weeks) is dead. Quoting from today's NY Times: French President Jacques Chirac announced today that a contested labor law would be taken off the books, handing a victory to student groups and labor unions who have demonstrated in the millions in recent weeks to have the measure scrapped. The announcement is a blow for Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin, the chief architect of the law, who until late last week still categorically ruled out dropping the legislation. It comes only eight days after Mr. Chirac had formally enacted the legislation, albeit with promises of a speedy revision and far-reaching modifications. But over the last week, students and union officials made it clear that they would not be satisfied with anything less than a withdrawal of article 8 — the part of the legislation which creates a controversial new contract that makes it easier for employers to fire young workers. Speaking shortly after Mr. Chirac issued his statement, Mr. Villepin said that it was no longer feasible to maintain the measure. "The necessary conditions of confidence and serenity... Read more →

Lacrosse Boy

Yesterday, I went out to Pennsylvania to visit my nephew, Steve, who is a freshman at Bloomsburg University; my sister, mom and Steve's girlfriend Angie also came along. It was his last lacrosse game for the season so we decided it was now or never if we wanted to watch him play. Well, wouldn't you know, the weather wasn't very cooperative. It was pouring rain for 3/4 of the drive, then when we got about 40 miles from Bloomsburg it turned to snow and some sleet... and we passed not one, not two, but FOUR accidents all within a 1-mile stretch, the last one of which involved between 3-5 cars and a car fire. I can't imagine there weren't fatalities in that one, it was awful. Well, by the time we got to the college we had driven out of the bad weather but not the cold and the grey skies. It was freezing and windy up on the hill (why are colleges always on hills?) so we froze for a while until the team realized their opponents weren't going to show up. Then the boys decided to play a scrimmage game with the Alumni since they had enough people... Read more →

Bow, Scrape and Rub Elbows

I just signed up for my first writer's conference! I found out that the ASJA (American Society of Journalists and Authors) is holding their annual New York conference in 3 weeks and the Saturday portion of the event is open to non-members. When I was focusing on life and career coaching as my profession, I went to the big international coaching conference almost every year. In the beginning these events were small and intimate -- just a few hundred participants -- because the coaching profession was still small. I came into the profession as part of the "second generation" of life coaches, and so I was able to meet and connect with many of the true masters in the profession... connections I maintain even now that I'm no longer doing life coaching because those people have become my friends, not just my colleagues. As the event and profession grew, the conferences got bigger and less intimate (and more exhausting). But I always made it a priority to go because coaching, as a work-from-home profession, can be very isolating and I felt it was important for me to branch out and make the effort to build my own personal community within... Read more →

One more reason to be glad I'm not a homeowner

This morning, my mother went into the basement to do a load of laundry and discovered that the hot water tank has started leaking. Fortunately it hasn't been leaking long, and she even managed to get her plumber to agree to come over and do the work today (a minor miracle as she figured he wouldn't be able to get to it until Monday). This house is almost as old as I am, which makes the house 44 years old. My parents were the original owners and moved into the newly constructed home in 1962 when I was about 9 or 10 months old (we've got old B&W photos of the neighborhood under construction... there used to be a lovely view of the valley from up here at the top of this hill where we live, but 40 years of tree growth has obstructed that view). After 40 years, it's only normal things would go wrong and break down. Appliances aren't designed to last anymore... "planned obsolescence" is the rule manufacturers live by. The water heater is about 10 years old, and the plumber says the new ones are only warranteed for SIX years. In addition to the leaky tank,... Read more →

Dad's Favorite Spot

Observed in a local state park, in a picnic grove near the river, this sweet and modest tribute to someone's father. Bet he loved to fish. Read more →

10 days to the guillotine, and counting

The guillotine got its name because in 1789 France, as the revolutionaries tried to come up with a new form of government and a new penal code, a certain Dr. Guillotin proposed that decapitation become the official form of punishment for all capital crimes. The good doctor did not actually invent the machine that would carry out these decapitations, but he was opposed to the use of torture and felt a swift beheading was a much more humane way of executing criminals than shooting them. His proposal was eventually accepted about two years later (the French Revolution was then in full swing, so the government had other things on its mind at the time). In 1792 the first guillotines were set up and tested, first on livestock, then on cadavers, as the machine was "perfected" over time. And in January 1793, Louis XVI was executed by guillotine in what is now known as the Place de la Concorde. Marie Antoinette's beheading followed 9 months later. I mention this because in the United States, the dreaded TAX DAY is coming in just 10 days from tomorrow. Ten days in which millions of Americans will pop antacids, curse the IRS, and pray... Read more →

I never thought I'd say this, but...

I'm GLAD I am not in Paris. At least not right now. Because I'm not even anywhere near France and all these strikes are really getting on my nerves, at this point. At first it was interesting for me to observe what was happening and to use it as an opportunity to learn more about the French cultural mindset and some of the political issues there. Now, I'm wondering how long they're going to keep it up considering it doesn't seem to be having the radical effect the protestors want (i.e. a complete revocation of the CPE law). I can only imagine how tiresome it must be for those who have to live with it, up close and personal. I keep hearing, via other bloggers, that there's yet another grève planned for next Tuesday, the 11th. I don't know why Tuesday is "strike day" in France. Has it always been that way? Or is it just this particular issue and the preference of the organizers to have weekly strikes on a Tuesday? Why is it only once a week instead of every day for a week? I love Paris in the springtime... but I sure hope this CPE furor is... Read more →

Nature's bathtub ring

April Fooled Us

So much for "signs of spring": April Fool's day came a few days late, I think. This morning, we got a freak snowstorm here in north Jersey, complete with poor driving visibility, slippery roads, and about two inches of accumulation in my neighborhood. The poor daffodils and pansies where slumped over with the cold, hanging their heads... kind of like the people trying to dash from place to place as they went about their business this morning, bundled up against the heavy, wet snowflakes. I started out having a really good hair day, too... until I had to leave for my weekly French class. After clearing the car windows of snow, I looked like a drowned rat instead of a chic Parisienne-wannabee. Why do I bother? The local NYC news station just reported that with today's unexpected snowfall, it brought the total accumulation in the city to 40.0"... and this is the forth year in a row we've had more than 40" of snow (the average before this was about 29" per season). Mother Nature is turning into one cranky bitch. Read more →