We decided last week we would try to catch a bit of the Tour de France, given that we had visitors from SoCal in town. And, happily, this was one of those random years when the guys who stake out the world’s greatest bike race … drew a line on a map that put the […]

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The Covid-19 pandemic has had an effect on nearly everyone on planet Earth, one way or another. One outcome is physical — testing positive, exhibiting symptoms and having to confront a dire, sometimes deadly virus. And then there are the rest of us, a global majority, who have avoided Covid the Virus for the past […]

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It is not uncommon for Americans to travel to Paris and return home believing they now know La France. The reality is often missed. What we consider a refined, cosmopolitan place … well, that is Paris all right. France is the biggest nation in Western Europe and also its emptiest. It has miles and miles […]

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I have lived outside the United States for most of the past 12 years and I can vouch for this: Over that much time your sports interests mutate. Perhaps significantly. Some sports pretty much disappear from your mind. Thinking all high school sports; just can’t keep track of any of them, so I lost track […]

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It was four years ago that I confessed, on this site, to being an elections wonk. I watch them for fun. For entertainment. For my own edification. For belly laughs. To watch my countrymen at their best, or worst. Probably the main reason I watch them is that a big election — like, say, the […]

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People tend to say that ahead of various big events. Especially the breathless folk who work in media relations or advertising. It also sometimes can be heard, chanted, during a demonstration against the authorities. The whole world is watching. It pretty much is never true. Sober and realistic is the way to approach this. John […]

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I need the Lakers to close out the NBA Finals tonight. Because I have money on them? Because I have become a fan of LeBron James? Because I can’t stand to see them lose? Nope. I need them to win so I can get a little sleep. A downside for an American living in France? […]

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The bells. The bells tell the tale. When the church bells toll for 10 or 20 minutes … it means someone in our little French village has departed this mortal coil. A funeral service is about to begin, and in this case it was for someone we knew. At least a little.

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I have been a grandfather for nine years and change, and it’s a pretty good gig. You can take a whack at spoiling the little guys and not feel guilty about it, and you can smile and head for the door when three boys get a bit too … boisterous. There are some great moments […]

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Typically, we would be looking at another couple of weeks before the wine-producers haul out their monstrous vine-shakers and start bringing in the 2020 harvest. However, a dry, hot summer has the local producers are thinking later this week more than later this month. Which reinforces what I come to understand about making wine, while […]

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