TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:

Translation:

"As long as there is money in the world, there will never be enough for everyone" - Anonymous

"It's pretty clear now that what looked like it might have been some kind of counterculture is, in reality, just the plain old chaos of undifferentiated weirdness."
Jerry Garcia

"Never pretend to a love which you do not actually feel, for love is not ours to command."
Alan Watts

Song of the Day: 4th of July Edition - Woody Guthrie - This land is Your Land

From California to the New York Island
From the Redwood Forest to the Gulf Stream waters
This land was made for you and me.

As I went walking that ribbon of highway
I saw above me that endless skyway
I saw below me that golden valley
This land was made for you and me.

I roamed and I rambled and I followed my footsteps
To the sparkling sands of her diamond deserts
While all around me a voice was sounding
Saying this land was made for you and me.

When the sun came shining, and I was strolling
And the wheat fields waving and the dust clouds rolling
A voice was chanting, As the fog was lifting,
This land was made for you and me.

This land is your land, this land is my land
From California to the New York Island
From the Redwood Forest to the Gulf Stream waters
This land was made for you and me.

Rather than propagate a false mythology, This Land is Your Land branishes America's physical beauty and enduring spirit of freedom. It speaks of an America that is at the heart of my American dream - one full of hope and peace, warmth and equality.

Happy 4th of July.

Vive le mois d'août

The bright morning sun shone directly down the middle of Rue de Rivoli and into my eyes turning oncoming pedestrians in to moving silhouettes.

Distracted by the blue summer sky, framed in the remnants of Haussmann, I barely noticed the noise of garbage trucks, car horns and the typical clamour of big city hustle and bustle.

Spring has finally given way to summer and that light feeling that accompanies thoughts of vacation, the end of school or lazing the day away on a sidewalk terrace enjoying un demi (25cl draft beer). For Parisians, native or transplants, it is a special time of year.

Today marks the start of les grandes vacances – the official start of the French school summer holidays. Many children will burst through the school doors today rejoicing at the arrival of holiday time. This is not only a special time for French families and their children, it is also special for those of us ‘visitors’ working and living in Paris. At a slow but steady pace, Paris will empty out. Parisians will pack up their things and leave the city and in a sense, hand the city over to the tourists for the summer months. On French radio, regular traffic updates for the juilletistes (July holiday-makers) and aoûtiens (August holiday-makers) indicate that perhaps Paris is the best place to be in August. All the traffic jams and crowds have moved south!

Not only is parking practically free in Paris at this time, but the traffic wardens turn a blind eye to any illegal parking – or perhaps they too are on holiday! If your favourite restaurants haven't closed for the summer months, this is the time to get that sought-after table or simply find a place to sit in the likes of Place des Vosges or Les Jardins de Luxembourg. Even riding the Metro at 6 pm can be relatively painless! You can also spend a day at Paris Plage, the hugely successful man-made beach set up along the banks of the Seine or take a picnic to Parc de la Villette for free open-air cinema.

August offers a different kind of Parisian experience to the expat, one without the Parisians. Locals who are here in August - and many choose to stay - appreciate the drop in stress levels and welcome the change of ambiance. Vive le mois d’août!

Photo taken from: http://www.douglas.stebila.ca/pictures/2003/paris/ and used under the conditions posted at www.creativecommons.org

"At the height of laughter, the universe is flung into a kaleidoscope of new possibilities."
Jean Houston, PhD.

Song of the "Happy Canada" Day - Last American Exit - The Tragically Hip

Today is Canada Day, formerly known as Dominion Day, so I'd like to wish my former neighbors from the North a happy Canada Day. I'm not Canadian, I'm a Buffalonian and growing up in Buffalo, NY, there was very little that separated us from our Ontario cousins. We love hockey, Canadian Lager, donuts and understand all too well long, freezing-cold winters. A friend of mine used to say that the only difference between a Buffalonian and a Canadian from Ontario was that while the Canadians use the expression "eh?”, a Buffalonian would say "huh?". If you pay attention, more often than not, he’s right.

Canada - "Going to the game, eh?"
Buffalo - "Going to the game, huh?"

and so on!

Today's SOTD features The Tragically Hip, arguably Canada’s most successful rock band. Taken from their self-titled EP, “Last American Exit” lends itself to life on the road, and the return home. In the video it appears that they exit from Detroit, Michigan, but before ever seeing the video I thought (or hoped) he was perhaps singing about Buffalo, since from one or two directions, it would be the last exit.

Video taken from youtube.com, originally posted by The Tragically Hip