A heavy weekend watching France, a fire in the fireplace at home, a romance for fans of Addie LaRue, and an hour with Stephen Fry
I have been watching scenes this weekend from my beloved France, specifically Limoges burning. On Saturday, at the end of a protest, a group of hooded rioters broke into the Hôtel de Ville and set it on fire. The building was inaugurated in 1883, had stood through two world wars, and has been a protected historic monument since 1975. The roof and the bell tower have collapsed. The protests began over school conditions, the cost of living, and other frustrations, and they have grown into something much larger, with hundreds of thousands marching across France.
Although I studied International Relations and Political Science and have the degrees to show for it, politics is not a subject I engage in on this blog, for many reasons. The first is that there no longer seems to be a space in the world for civil conversation and discourse, or at least that is my opinion. You may have your own. Both are allowed.
The one thing I keep coming back to is this: how does looting, stealing, and damaging public and private property help your cause in any way? It actually harms you in more ways than one. Now there has to be money to pay for the damage and the cleanup, money that could have gone toward the very things people were asking for. Then there are higher prices, because the stores and companies that were looted pass those costs along to the consumer, and not just on luxury goods. In France, reports say large chains and small businesses were both hit.
I went to school in Limoges. I have friends there and have spent a great deal of time there over the years. A beautiful building has been devastated, and with it a piece of history, art, and more. It is too early to know what was lost inside.
France is not alone in this. Protests have spread to Italy and Belgium, where there has been unrest too, and there have been demonstrations in Spain and Portugal as well. I do not have any answers. I was just musing.
How was your weekend? Sunday morning was cold, not chilly but cold. At mass there were people wearing down jackets. I will admit that as I write this there is a fire in the fireplace, and I am wearing cosy, warm pants, a t-shirt, a sweater, and slippers. I think summer is over.
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All We Have Is Time by Amy Tordoff
I finished All We Have Is Time this week, and it was exactly the distraction I wanted, the kind of book that belongs on a fall reading list. It opens in London in 1605, where Beatrix, an immortal pickpocket, drifts through the crowds at the Globe Theatre carrying the grief of outliving every person she has loved. There she meets Oliver, they share one perfect day, and then he has to leave, which does not shock her one bit. When they cross paths again a century later, she realizes he is impossible in exactly the same way she is, and a second chance at love suddenly feels possible. The story then travels forward through the centuries, as far as Woodstock in 1969 and further still, and since I love romance and time travel, and this one has been likened to The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, truth be told, some say it is a rip off of Addie LaRue. I think there are simalrities and I enjoyed it. It is a little slow going at the begining.
On the Screen
This weekend I watched the final episode of Season One of the Wodcast on YouTube, and at an hour long it feels more like a movie than a podcast. Actor Stephen Fry is the guest, and the episode, titled There Is No Perfect Word, asks whether words can ever say exactly what we intend, beginning with happy, which he traces back to an old word for chance. From there they wander through the history hidden in words, translation, the oddities of English, and what AI is doing to the way we think about our own language and minds. He also talks about what turns a person into a writer, and his answer is that it is meant to be hard, because whatever is underneath, pushing the words out, matters far more than the mechanics. Fry loves words for how they sound and feel in the mouth as much as for what they mean, and I found the whole hour fascinating, right down to the question every guest is asked at the end, which single word they would choose to be remembered by.
Outfit of the Day
A friend was wearing this dress recently and I loved it. Mine arrived a few days ago and I have already worn it. The skirt has a lot of fabric so you may have to size down. This dress is on sale and is a great piece for your fall and winter wardrobe. I wore mine with black boots but you can also wear it with flats. Here I styled it with brown boots and a brown bag, both of which are on sale. I added a touch of color with the earrings. The perfume sounds intriguing, vanilla orchid and dark cocoa.
Outfit Separates
If you missed Weekend Meanderings, Kim, Juliet, and I had lots to share this week. Come say hello.
Find me on Pinterest and Instagram for more in between posts, and I would love to know: do you love a romance with a little time travel or magic in it, and what is your favorite? Leave a note in the comments.
Be gentle with yourselves this week, friends.
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I got the chills when I read you actually had gone to school in Limoges. I have connections to Nice and have lots to say, but not here. I come to your posts to escape lots of unpleasant things and appreciate you focusing on the beautiful, ordinary and extraordinary aspects of our human condition. My prayers are with Limoges today.
Suzanne, thank you. I appreciate your kind comments. It is a challenge to stay silent here, but the fact is that this blog is not that. The blog is a place to share beautiful things, and it always has been. It started with sharing them with family and now friends.
Limoges is a special place and has lost, as has France a beautiful building and histoy. Not to mention this is the city hall and all of the things that happen at a city hall are lost as well. I cannot imagine how long it takes to outfit a new building to handle all of those things.
I hope that your friends in Nice are well and I pray that things are resolved soon.
Have a wonderful day and thank you for reading the blog.
I do think these protests also bring in those who just want to act out in violent ways and aren’t even protesting..it incites mob mentality sadly. Just so unproductive.
I love that dress but it’s only in small and Xsmall. I normally wear a sz 10-12 do you think a S would fit?
I love Stephen Fry and look forward to that video.
Weekend spent packing, enjoying the fall weather on the patio, buying pumpkins, and we had a showing Saturday and one today. Hope we get a contract!