The retreat: a fantasy of all writers slogging through a tough patch. If only I could carve out a chunk of time and really focus. As early as the fifteenth century, the word was used to mean a place of seclusion, originating from the Latin trahere, to draw back, withdraw. In the eighteenth century, two refinements […]
etymology, recipes, Travel, Uncategorized 0 comments
A Cajun fishing guide served me the perfect dessert drink. Try it for New Year’s. Note: this is not the traditional bourbon or brandy version offered in New Orleans restaurants. You do need one special ingredient, “Praline” liqueur, a concoction with a pecan flavor. It’s worth a trip to Spec’s. For each serving: Mix all […]
A tradition harking back to ancient times, the New Year’s resolution is upon us. What is the best and bravest approach to the future? Solidarity seems to be the theme. Women buy teeshirts proclaiming themselves to be nasty women who will vote. Friends on Facebook state their plan: if there’s to be a Muslim registry, […]
Travel, Uncategorized 0 comments
No matter what else is going on in December, our friends know that the Revis girls will load a suburban full of wine and Cheetos and drive an hour out of town to play a forty-eight hour bridge tournament. Forty-eight hours? Really? Really. We can’t not do it. It’s a family tradition. It all started […]
recipes, Travel, Uncategorized 2 comments
Every café in Paris served a version of the irresistible “salade avec chevre chaud.” There are fancier versions with pastry crusts, and other additions, a few more veggies, or crispy lardons of smoked pork, or toasted almonds, but the basic version is delicious and simple to make at home. You just need to pay a […]
etymology, Travel, Word of the Week 1 comment
Shakespeare & Co. is an English language bookstore on the Seine, opposite Notre Dame. Established in 1951, it was a mecca for expat writer/visitors including Allen Ginsburg, Anais Nin, Henry Miller, Lawrence Durrell, James Baldwin …. The building had originally been a monastery and each monastery had a “frère lampier” whose duty was to light […]
Dateline: Paris. Newsflash, the Parisiens are different from you and me. They’re not really keeping up with the twenty-four hour news cycle of attack, counter-attack in the U.S presidential election. I’m probably the only person in this city, awake at 5:00AM, wondering about the use of unhinged. It’s not a new word. Used in the sense […]
Travel, Uncategorized 0 comments
How to make the most of a trip to Paris? We travel for the same reason we read fiction: to expand our life experiences via the magical “what if …?” (What if my little sister were drafted to compete in The Hunger Games? What if I lived in Paris?) Fresh perspectives and new information are […]