Mucking About

Despite all of my philosophizing and soul-searching, I have managed to keep busy this year. Very busy! Several project launches are scheduled for the coming month of September, and one took place back in June: the new on-line store for POINTWC Paris.

You may already know about POINTWC if you’ve ever found yourself on the Champs-Elysées with a terrible need “to go”. This cute little shop tucked away in the shopping center at 26, avenue Champs-Elysées is the chicest spot in the city to pee. For 1.50 Euro, you can use one of the four stylish stalls which also serve as a showroom for the designer Japanese toilets and elegant accessories.

On-line, POINTWC sells their complete collection of designer toilets, sinks, faucets, accessories and gift items: www.pointwc.com

There are only so many hours in a day, and so much pressure to maximize every minute if we want to be respectable, productive people. Work long hours to be materially successful. Prepare fresh, balanced meals to eat right and be healthy. Exercise to stay in shape. Have a hobby to fulfill needs or desires otherwise unmet in the workplace. Spend quality time with your loved ones. Stay abreast of world events, latest trends, contemporary art and literature to stimulate your intellect. Attend social events to feel connected to the world.

I’ve seen reports on television about people who get up an extra hour or two early to get in their daily workout before going to work. Or people who start their work day at like 5 a.m. so that they’ll be done by early afternoon and have the rest of the day to go sailing, do yogo or whatever. I have a Facebook friend who regularly reports on his status bar the inability to sleep and that he is up at 4 a.m. writing poetry or a script or doing something otherwise artistic and productive before then going off to work.

I get insomnia too from time to time, and have even been known to get up and read or write in those early hours until sleep takes over and forces me back to bed. But then I sleep, and am generally more than a little late for work and not entirely productive the next morning. I’ve tried, but it just comes down to one simple fact: I NEED SLEEP. I can’t do without it. I get cranky. I can’t think. 6 hours is just not enough. 8 hours is a bare minimum. I easily sleep from 9-10 hours every night, but not without a certain sense of guilt.

Unfortunately, the fact that I sleep so much does not keep me from being tired all the time. “So, how are you doing?” the common question. “Oh, well, you know, I’m a bit tired, but otherwise I’m alright.” the typical answer.

It has been suggested to me that the sleeping so much might be directly related to the being tired all the time. There’s a thought, except that, if I don’t sleep my wonderful 9 hours, I am not only tired the next day, but verging on dysfunctional.

“Mais tu trouves ça normal ?” (Do you find that normal?) I asked my friend Val over lunch the other day.
“Yeah, I think that’s great,” she said, “I’d sleep more if I could. I think if you sleep it’s because your body reclaims it.”

We can only do so much, at least in a day. So I am letting go of the idea of sleeping less, and simply letting my body and the night decide. With my waking hours I will spend them as wisely as I know how, and as my energy will allow. And that will have to be good enough.

If you haven’t read it already, run out right away and find yourself a copy of Petite Anglaise – a wonderful and romantic read, just in time for summer. I knew vaguely what I was getting into even though I’m not a regular follower of Petite Anglaise the blog, having heard about her story and her reputation as a riveting author. Not only is this true story of a young English woman and her romance with Paris completely captivating, but the style is seductive and makes every page a delightful discovery of life, love and, of course, Paris.

Where it may not have cured my writing rut, it has got me reading again. Another big thank you to Kelsey at Spiegel & Grau for the gift.

The mid-April snow had turned into a chilling, intermittent rain. I made my way toward the quay from the rue Agar, my face bent out of shape against the cold.

“Take your winter coat,” he had said that morning, “it’s going to be freezing out today.”
“No way,” I grumbled back, “I’m sick of wearing that damned thing!”

I sat down on the bench under the cover of the #70 bus stop on the Pont de Grenelle, wondering why I hadn’t taken his advice. Next time I’ll listen to him, I thought, no matter how much he sounds like a nagging grandmother.

There were four of us huddled under the shelter, silently cursing the wait. Up in the distance, just off to the left of the Eiffel Tower, the faint shadow of a rainbow managed to pierce its way out of a dense, dark cloud, and brought a warming smile to my face. I sat there grinning and wishing it could be contagious. I had the urge to say to the others, “Look, did you see the rainbow?” with my big dorky, naive smile. But I didn’t, either by my own self-consciousness or the disbelief that they would have appreciated it as anything other than mundane.

So I sat there ginning and feeling a little warmer. The bus still didn’t come. A few more people gathered around. Then, instead of the bus that we were all expecting and hoping for, from around the corner came a woman, on foot, wearing a rain slicker with a bright yellow hood, leading three saddled ponies. The rain continued to fall. My grin widened. She stopped in front of us for a minute to adjust the bridals in preparation of crossing the bridge. I turned to the woman next to me and said, “Now there’s something you don’t see everyday!” She smiled, but didn’t say anything. We all watched with curiosity, my smile now a permanent fixture, the woman’s next to me had faded like the rainbow.

Finally, the bus arrived. I was the only one smiling.

ÉCU 2008 is rapidly approaching! The program of film screenings and the calendar of events has been posted, so quick, go check it out and make your RSVPs asap. Film trailers can also be viewed on ÉCU Interactive to help you choose among the more than 100 independent films from all over the world that will be shown over the weekend of March 14-16 at the Bibliothèque Nationale de France.

For programs and events : www.ecufilmfestival.com/program.php
To view film trailers : www.ecufilmfestival.com/interactive/

Entry is free, but you have to reserve seats in advance. See you there!