Maybe because I’m 70 years old, I jumped at the first chance I had to receive the Covid-19 vaccine. Even better, I received the version from Johnson and Johnson, not only a trusted brand for floor wax (actually that’s SC Johnson – not the same), but also a vaccine that needed only one shot. I […]
Technical Difficulties in Paris in 2020
Remember when the TV would occasionally show a screen saying that they were having technical difficulties? We had a few technical difficulties in Paris in 2020. Looking back, I have plenty of things to be thankful for. I’m not among those who suffered because of health problems or financial loss. The regulatory regime was a […]
Halloween and Terror in Paris – 2020
There is Halloween in Paris Owing to American influence, there are shops with costumes and decorations. In our neighborhood, we haven’t seen kids go door-to-door soliciting candy, though I buy some every year hoping that they’ll catch on. Spooky Halloween decorations cover the common areas of our apartment building. On the streets, they are already […]
Bloomsday in Paris
Bloomsday in Paris and the Origins of the Lilac Bloomsday Run In 1979, my mother-in-law Beth Shaw ran her first Lilac Bloomsday Run in Spokane, Washington. My first time was in 1988. This year is my 27th year of competing in the race. My wife Brenda has done it a couple more times than I. […]
Bartholdi and his Statue of Liberty
The dictionary sums up what most of us know about Bartholdi and his Statue of Liberty. This brief description of a statue by a man we’ve never heard of conveys nothing of the quest and the ideas that produced this phenomenal work of art. The Statue of Liberty: a statue at the entrance to New York […]
“The Third Man” needed help from Peoria
With current restrictions in Paris on how and why we can leave our apartment, we’ve had to make adjustments in shopping routines, exercise routines, and certainly social routines. For instance, a couple times each week, my wife and I watch a movie together, sort of a date night for people in lockdown. Rather than choosing […]
