The Bold Soul: A Writer's Life in Paris

Pêcheur

He was quite the fisherman... caught an adorable, pretty little fish I do not know the name of -- and four of the greenest, ickiest eels ever. And he took them home for dinner. Anyone who has seen the Seine would know just how gross that really is. But this made for a nice "postcard" moment, just the same. Read more →

Nineteen

That's how many days are left before we must be on a plane, bound for New Jersey and the event of a lifetime (well, of OUR lifetime at any rate). When I looked at the calendar just now and did the math, for a moment I thought, "Naahhhhh, THAT can't be right, I must have counted wrong". (I am mathematically challenged, even with the simplest calculations, so it is entirely possible I could come up with 19 when the correct number might be 17 or 25 or 32. Ask anyone who has seen me do math. It's really quite pathetic.) But no, nineteen days it is. Nineteen days in which to finish organizing and photocopying documents, confirm plans with the caterer and florist (the latter still hasn't called me back to even discuss what I want and give me a price, so I may be getting married holding a bunch of weeds picked in a local field), figure out what to pack and what not to pack, transport the youngest child to his first vacation destination at the beginning of July, and make the early flight to NJ on the 7th. As the date gets ever nearer, I am getting... Read more →

Love is in the air

Sitting in a cafe in a small quiet square, as Georges watches me typing. Looking into his loving eyes, I am overcome with gratitude that this man loves me. Life is just very good. Read more →

Guignol a 200 ans...

... et toutes ses dents. That was what the ad read last weekend: "Guignol is 200 years old and still has all his teeth". Guignol (pronounced "geen-yol" with a hard "g" and a long "o") is the name of the famous French puppet who was "born" in Lyon in 1808. Over the past two centuries, puppeteers have of course created their own unique versions and storylines for Monsieur Guignol, but in every episode there are puppets bashing each other over the head with sticks. It's rather like Punch & Judy, only in French. If you're a French in Action devotée, you'll recognize Guignol at the end of every episode! So, we went with our neighbors and their kids to the Jardin d'Acclimatation to check out the 15 different Guignol shows that were playing for free (they have a regular Guignol show in their large theatre, but this was a special occasion), and also to let the kids play in the really excellent free playground (there are also some small amusement-park rides for those who wish to buy tickets, and other attractions like a driving range for you golfers). Here are a few highlights: From the first show we saw. This... Read more →

Typical

It has been what you might call a typical weekend here in Paris. And yes, it's possible to say that a weekend in Paris can be "typical" when you live here and must do normal weekend things instead of museum and monument-hopping. And the unseasonably cool weather notwithstanding (seriously, did Mère Nature NOT get my memo saying "Uh, Mom? It's JUNE now. Could you warm it up, please?") it has been a very nice weekend. Which I, for one, really needed after the stress of the past week. Yesterday started with a coffee and croissant in a café after dropping the Little Guy off at school, while we waited for my bank to open. Then after conducting some bank business (just switching my bank branch from the one across town where I used to live, to the one nearest us here in the quartier), we did the food shopping. Then dropped off the dry cleaning (See? What did I tell you... typical weekend stuff) before going back to the school where there was a little brocante out front to amuse us while we waited for school to let out. Then lunch, followed by a quiet afternoon at home hanging out... Read more →

Blogging it

Just a short post while I experiment with a new iPod application called Blog It. So when we're out somewhere with WiFi and I feel that compulsive urge to blog, I can dispense with delayed gratification and do what comes naturally. Read more →

One month more

One month from today, I will awaken to the realization that it's our wedding day! At that moment, nothing else will matter... not the weeks of planning, the frustrated tears in the face of reams of paperwork, or even whether anything happens to go wrong on that date. As long as Georges and I (and our minister) are there, and we get to speak our commitment to each other out loud and place those rings on fingers... everything will be perfect. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a homework assignment from our minister. She asked us to each write and send her, separately and SECRETLY, "why you love your partner----what is it about them that you are in love with and how has their love changed you?" She even said that Georges could write his in French. She may regret having asked me to do this. I could write volumes on the subject. Or maybe the short answer is: "Everything, and in Every Way Imaginable". Read more →

Another French paradox

Volumes have been written about the French "paradox". Usually this refers to the fact that while modern nutritional science suggests that it's sheer folly to eat lots of breads and cheeses, drink lots of wine, and consume nearly raw or actually raw beef because you're likely to either die of blocked arteries, end up at an AA meeting, or contract Ecoli from the un(der) cooked meat, the French have been living like this for centuries and continue to be among the healthiest people on the planet. And as long as they live in the "classic" French way (which includes daily walking, eating in moderation and eating lots of fresh produce and abstaining from processed foods), statistically speaking they seem to defy all the odds (even with the penchant for smoking). Yet paradoxes in French culture are not limited to the food and wine. There are paradoxes everywhere you turn, like in the language where "there is the rule, and then there is the exception to the rule". Rules like "nouns ending in -e take the feminine gender... except when they don't". It's enough to make you insane some times, and what's funnier (except when it's not funny at all) is... Read more →

To the nines

Another book I'm thinking of writing, although I'm certain other books have probably already been written on this very topic, is a book of tips for putting a wedding together super-fast, on a microscopic budget, and long distance. Because that's exactly what I'm doing. At this wedding, there will be no $10,000 Vera Wang dress. No $200 per head 4-course sit-down dinner with butlered hors d'oeuvres, open bar, ice sculpture, and a 17 piece jazz orchestra. Not even a DJ. No big fancy flower arrangements or $175 bridal bouquet. No seven bridesmaids in long gowns and matching groomsmen in rented tuxedos. No flower girl and ring-bearer. I am not even bothering about wedding "favors". Or a wedding cake which we would cut and then smash into each other's faces (I never liked that latter part anyway). Don't get me wrong... I've been to plenty of very lovely weddings that had some or all of these elements, on some scale. And I think if you've got the resources and the desire for some or all of these things, then why not go for it if that's your dream wedding? It's just that my idea of a "dream wedding" seems to have... Read more →

Technical Difficulties with Typepad? Anyone? Hello?

Have any of you had difficulties either reading or commenting on my blog in recent days? I have had one such trouble report from a reliable source (Georges), where the blog does not automatically refresh itself when he pulls it up (and it used to do so). He also noticed I have not had a single comment in two days which is unusual, I must agree (the incriminating photo of me sucking wine from a baby bottle should have at least generated a comment or two!) So... if you seem to be having problems either viewing the latest posts without manually refreshing or reloading the page, OR if you have been trying to comment and been unable to do so, would you please email me immediately here: [email protected]. Meanwhile I will explore this further with Typepad. Thanks. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- UPDATE: June 11th OK so comments appear to be working and I guess you were all taking a breather or out living your own lives or something. So that's good, they work. Georges and I have narrowed the problem down to that it's on a Mac with the Safari browser only. He also has a Firefox browser and it refreshes the blog... Read more →