Category Archives: Uncategorized

Some people measure a life in milestones: first steps, first kiss, first job, first grey hair. The Universe, apparently, prefers calendars. I was born on Sunday, June 21st, 1953. It was the first day of Summer, Father’s Day in France, … Continue reading →

Thirty Years, One Baby, and a Belt I Couldn’t Find In which our correspondent drives two and a half hours to celebrate a marriage that has outlasted several monarchies, meets a granddaughter who has been on the premises for considerably … Continue reading →

The plan survives contact with reality (mostly) Race day The words that make every other day of the year feel like a rehearsal. I had, as is my custom, a plan. A proper one. Not the kind scribbled on a … Continue reading →

So I have a Chinese name, a must officially when applying for a work visa. Mine was suggested to me by the manageress of the induction course I attended prior to settling in Shanghai for my 3 years stint. 苏杰 … Continue reading →

There are birthday parties, and then there are birthday parties. Bob II’s 80th fell squarely into the second category — though why the “II”, I shall not explain here. Life is too short, and besides, some mysteries are best left … Continue reading →

The aperitif dispatch There will be no weekly recap this week. The blank page can wait; Brittany, as it turns out, cannot. When the weather in this most stoically damp of French regions decides to behave — genuinely behave, blue … Continue reading →

Or Everything they told you was a lie Golfe du Morbihan  ·  A Monday morning, suspiciously luminous Chris and Jeffrey have departed for England. I have seen them to the door of the weekend, metaphorically speaking, and waved them off … Continue reading →

🇬🇧 It is done. Flights to Thailand are booked, paid for, and sitting smugly in my inbox like a promise I actually intend to keep. Bangkok will once again serve as our gateway to South East Asia — a region … Continue reading →