The Bold Soul: A Writer's Life in Paris

He cometh

Nativity scene at Notre Dame. Read more →

Change

"Change in all things is sweet." (Aristotle) I love change. I know most people are anxious, if not downright scared, of change, but I thrive on it. In fact, if things stay the same in my life for too long, I often get bored and look to change something, anything. Which is ironic because I'm a Taurus, and we're supposed to be creatures of habit, people who like the same-old-same-old. I guess I'm not a typical Taurean because for me, too much "same old" is like slow torture. To some, change is about endings, and this is what scares them about the prospects of something changing. When change occurs, these people focus on what they believe is being lost or left behind, instead of on what wonderful things might be around the corner. Even something that at first seems to be a change for the worse--such as losing a job--can turn out to be the best thing that ever happened. It's all in how you choose to look at it. "The universe is change; our life is what our thoughts make it." (Marcus Aurelius) To me, change represents possibility, new beginnings, hope, freedom, excitement. I moved to Paris in part... Read more →

Castles in the Sky

Donjon (King's apartments) and bell tower at Chateau de Vincennes, beautifully restored after centuries of wear-and-tear, and after Nazi abuse during WWII. Read more →

Down the Rabbit Hole, and Back Again

In this week's Bonjour Paris article, Down the Rabbit Hole and Back Again, I was inspired by my recent visit to London and seeing the Alice in Wonderland windows, particularly the one where Alice is about to plunge into the rabbit hole and enter a free-fall. It seemed an appropriate metaphor, now that I'm about to shift into the long-term plan of being in Paris, not on vacation but for a year or perhaps indefinitely. One of the perks of living in Paris is that you’re centrally located for easy travel to other exciting cities in Europe, and train travel makes everything accessible. On a recent weekend in London via the Eurostar, I came across the shop windows at Fortnum and Mason (gourmet foodies extraordinaire!) depicting scenes from Alice in Wonderland, which happens to be one of my favorite books. And when I looked at the first window where Alice is about to fall down the rabbit hole, it suddenly occurred to me: that’s precisely how I’ve felt during the past five weeks since coming to Paris! There is nothing like deciding to go to a place where your language skills are at a 4th-grade level to make you feel... Read more →

Winter Solstice Haiku

Shortest of the year, The Sun slept in. So did I. Days get lighter now. And happy SUMMER solstice to those south of the equator. You lucky people; it's COLD here! Fractal Image: "Winter Solstice" Copyright 2003 Damien M. Jones Read more →

Christmas Lights, Place Vendome

The Red Lion

The Red Lion, a pub in London. Apparently this is a fairly common pub name in England. Read more →

Re-entry

Back on terra firma, I am once again in New Jersey. It was an excellent flight, except for two things. The first occurrence was that an elderly woman was taken ill on board the plane; I got up to use the toilets and saw three flight attendants kneeling around this woman as she was stretched out on the floor of the cabin; she was conscious but they were administering oxygen to her. The attendants did a great job of keeping it all very low-key and I think half the passengers had no idea there was any problem at all; they were extremely professional about it, there was no commotion whatsoever. When we landed they took the woman and her family off first and when I deboarded I saw the woman standing up talking to some medical people on the jetway, so it has a happy ending. Awful way to spend a flight, poor woman, but good to know there are people on board who are trained to handle it. The other "thing" was the young couple seated next to me. Very nice people, friendly and quiet. The only thing was, they couldn't keep their LIPS off each other. He was... Read more →

The Pont Neuf is Watching You

Welcome back to America!

I'm back! Paris is (temporarily) behind me and I'm having a blast being with my family and friends. I plan to make the most of the next month. Color me happy! Read more →