The Bold Soul: A Writer's Life in Paris

"I don't think FRANCE is a country"

I haven't really had to post anything under the "What were they THINKING?" category in a while, but this story was begging for it. You may have seen this already as I'm sure it's making the rounds on blogs and email, but I couldn't resist sharing it here. I also love the part where she says "I thought Europe WAS a country" and had never heard of Hungary (pronounced "HONG-ry" like any good redneck), but somehow she knew TURKEY was a country. Maybe she should run for office. The shocked amusement on those kids' faces was priceless. I hope this proves to them that looks alone obviously aren't going to get you very far in life. P.S. Here's another version of the video with French subtitles. And another link to one of Jeff Foxworthy's "You might be a redneck if..." routines. Read more →

Pros and cons

First SMS (text message) sent to a friend tonight: "I am having pizza with Jane Austen, with a view of the Roman baths at the Cluny. How effing great is life in Paris?" Second SMS sent to same friend not TEN MINUTES LATER: "I am consistently disappointed by what passes for PIZZA in France. What the hell? Puh-leez discuss on your podcast and tell us where to find something edible and like home." Friend's reply to this last: "Oh, this is so easy. It's called Pizza Hut." Sigh. Not to disparage my friend's preference in cheesy cuisine (and maybe she was pulling my leg) but Pizza Hut has never been my favorite (I never eat there when in the States), and I really try to avoid American fast food over here, just on general principle because this is FRANCE for crying out loud and the food is supposed to be a matter of pride here. Or so I thought. Plus I'm from New Jersey where we have a large Italian-American population and fantastic pizza is available pretty nearly everywhere. Sure, sometimes you get a mediocre slice and not all pizzerias are created equal. Yet in all the time I have... Read more →

Guess correctly and win!

I have been thinning out my library of books here in Paris, having made a commitment not to get any new books until I (a) finish reading some of the ones I already have and (b) hand off to others the ones I've already read and no longer want or need to keep. Faced with the prospect of packing and moving a lot of stuff across town at some point, and books being heavy to begin with, I am trying to be a bit ruthless with my collection here. It was during this weeding out process that I came across two books I DEFINITELY do not need, as they are remnants of my former single status, B.G. (before Georges). I thought I could make a little contest out of passing them along to a new owner, instead of just saying "Hey, anyone want these two books I've got lying around collecting dust?" And so... (drum roll, please) if YOU are one of the first two people to correctly guess the name of the above Parisian landmark shown in the photo, you will win one of the books: He's Just Not That Into You: The Newly Expanded Edition, by Greg Behrendt... Read more →

Let there be peace

On a morning walk recently, the Eiffel was slightly fogged in but still provided a nice backdrop for this Peace monument at the end of the Champs de Mar. Read more →

An American Day in Paris

Yesterday ended up being a bit of an American-themed day here. Georges and I started our afternoon by going to the Musée Carnavalet for the Benjamin Franklin exhibit (and judging by the accents overheard in the exhibit, lots of other loyal Americans-in-Paris decided to drop by as well), and ended it with an early "dinner" (American-style) at Breakfast in America. The Ben Franklin exhibit was quite interesting and we enjoyed it (note: although the Carnavalet's permanent exhibits are free, there was a 7 euro fee to get in to see Ben). Franklin was much revered in France and lived here in Paris for much of the latter part of his life, and upon his death the French government declared three days of mourning. Lots of paintings and drawings of Dr. Franklin (the man surely loved to sit for a portrait!) and many letters both in French and English. Books written by Franklin translated into French. And some of his inventions and interests were honored: bifocals (which I have a feeling I will be needing soon myself), hot-air ballooning, and one invention I'd never heard of but was fascinated by -- the glass harmonica! The glass "armonica" (as Franklin called it)... Read more →

Monkey business

As the "grand finale" of animal photos from our visit to the Jardin des Plantes ménagerie last weekend, here was my favorite part: the Singerie, or Monkey House. They didn't have as many different types of monkeys as I had hoped, but of course, the orangutans were the most interesting. And how soulful are her eyes, this one (above). This isn't the best photo I've ever taken (way too blurry) but I couldn't resist sharing the major POUT on this one's face. She was rather shy before this and had her face covered with her hands. Can't say I blame her... she must have hundreds if not thousands of people gawking at her all day long. Fortunately the zoo forbids flash photography in the indoor spaces so as not to startle or upset the animals. Of course, the picture wouldn't be complete without a youngster in the group. I have no idea how this giant bucket got all the way up onto that large horizontal pole, but this little girl, Tamu, was having a ball ducking down into the bucket and playing with the ropes, and then popping back up again. She was quite a crowd pleasure, especially when the... Read more →

Even the healthy stuff isn't healthy any more

I just can't believe it. Now we are being told to avoid (or severely reduce our intake of) TUNA and certain other types of fish -- because they contain higher levels of mercury than previously thought. This includes canned tuna, tuna steaks and fresh tuna used in sushi. SUSHI, I love tuna sushi and maki! This totally sucks. Good grief. Maybe this is old news to some of you, this mercury thing, and personally I don't eat a lot of canned tuna anyway, but now they're talking about taking away my sushi! It's like we're damned if we do and damned if we don't, no matter what we eat. "They" tell us to stop eating red meat and eat more fish, and we do, and THIS is what we get for it. How can you win? Sorry, Charlie. Even the Starkist tuna isn't going to be quite good enough any more. Read more →

What would Caesar think?

This is what's left of les Arènes de Lutèce -- the Gallo-Roman era arena that dates to the 1st century A.D. For centuries, it was lost -- somehow covered over during the reign of Philippe Auguste -- until it was discovered again in the 1860s. It is not a particularly impressive site nowadays. Attached to more "modern" Parisian apartment buildings and tucked away inside a small park, if you didn't know it was here you might not notice it at all. There are some small square enclosures with gates that I'm sure are where the lions or other animals were kept (and released to feast on Christians or criminals). Getting to the bottom from the top is a bit tricky - I found a way down by going over the left, then up some stairs to a higher level, then found a winding, steep staircase that leads down into that wide "entrance" you see just right of center in the photo. Today, it's a place where kids come to play basketball or football, and the pétanque players were out in force, too (a nice flat sandy area is all they need). A lot more tame than in the Roman days,... Read more →

So cute I want to take him home and cuddle him and hand-feed him a pain au chocolat

... because all that bamboo has to be a bit boring. Right after this, he climbed up into his little cubby hole and took a nap. Maybe the reason pandas aren't very robust is because they don't have enough chocolate in their diets. Read more →

The inevitable question

No, not THAT question. There is another question that seems to be coming up a lot lately, in conversation with certain friends and family. And that question is: "So... are things still good with Georges?" Note the phrasing of this question, beginning with the "So..." as they inject a slight hesitation into it. It's not a chipper "Hey, how is Georges?" or a conversational "Well, did you and Georges do anything interesting last weekend?" -- but "Are things still good between you?" I know exactly what they're really getting at. They're not as subtle as they imagine themselves to be. This question is typically accompanied by a tone of voice that lets me know the interrogator is half-hoping that my response will signify "DANGER: Trouble in Paradise!" in bright neon flashing letters. They are looking for there to be problems. Looking for it not to be perfect. Waiting to pounce on anything slightly negative. They seem a tad disappointed to learn that things ARE going well, in fact it gets better and better all the time as our relationship develops and matures (but we still kiss in public places like teenagers), and we're very happy together. Sure, we are moving... Read more →