The View from a Drawbridge

Tag: paris

  • We Focus on the Tempest

    On my bookshelf sits the book “Droll Stories”, a collection of 30 stories by Honore de Balzac. I’ve never read it all the way through. I really ought to. The stories within are mildly ribald by today’s standards. But in the 1800’s they caused quite a sensation, I’m sure. The only reason I have this…

  • A Horrifying Anniversary That You May Know Nothing About

    I’m 49 years old, and I’m just learning about something horrendous that happened on this day only a few years before I was born. I have no idea why this should be the case, other than the fact that I had a spotty and typically subpar Florida public school education. I knew about the Algerian…

  • It’s No Honeymoon

    I heard recently that the tradition of having a honeymoon after one gets married has some very nefarious origins. Back when abducting the bride from a neighboring village or tribe was even more commonplace than it is today, it was a good idea for the man to hide the woman for a couple of weeks.…

  • Location, Location, Location

    The first time I fell in love I was 19 and in Europe for the first time. Everything was exotic and new and delicious and exciting. We held hands and made out and explored that world and each other, and everything was magical. So magical, in fact, that the rest of my life has paled…

  • Extremes

    The most profound silence I have ever experienced was in Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado. Miles from civilization, the quiet takes on a character one does not usually experience, to the point where the flapping of a raven’s wings startles you. The best thing I have ever eaten was a seafood pasta dish called…