It's a Dog's Nutty Life
Your taste of life in Paris and France
ParlerParis.com
Wednesday, June 8, 2011 • Paris, France
Dear Parler Paris Reader,
At almost 1 a.m. I phoned my daughter to relate the day's events to which she responded, "Your life is nuts."
It got me to thinking about my life in the City of Light and if the 'tornado' in which I live is a result of my own actions or the city within which I have chosen to live. Maybe it's a bit of both, but for either reason, I don't think I'd have it any other way.
It all started out rather normally with several hours of having a computer technician install and fine-tune a new Apple Mac Mini computer, transitioning from years of being a slave to Bill Gates (Windows) to becoming a devotee of Steve Jobs (Apple). (I am suffering through the transition of the operating systems now, so please forgive me for any transgressions electronically related.)
At any rate, this was all as normal as it gets and so was a late lunch at Café Charlot before heading off to our illustrious Notaire's office (property attorney). There I was to sign the "Compromis de Vente" (pre-sale agreement) on the apartment in Nice -- the third I've tried to purchase in the last few months.
Thirty minutes prior to arrival they had received a copy of the "Réglement de Coproprété" (by laws of the homeowner's association). Upon review, the document clearly outlined that rental of any furnished apartment in the building was forbidden. "Quelle surprise!"
Naturally the seller and the agent had assured me there was no issue with the rental of the apartment from the get-go, so had they lied or not known? Or was this version out-dated (1978) and the regulation had been amended at some time since?
With no panic nor real concern, we phoned to get confirmation from the seller's Notaire that they would requisition a copy of the correct and registered document, but that would take another two weeks. I also agreed to sign, but with the contingency that the regulation be changed prior to closing. No doubt, however, is that without the associations' permission to rent the apartment, another will have 'bitten the dust' and I'll be back to square one in Nice looking for another apartment to fulfill my Riviera dream. Ugh. I left under gray skies with a light rain and gusty winds, crossed the Pont des Arts where the "Love Locks" are getting thicker by the minute, and headed to Saint-Germain-des-Prés.
Author David Downie (of "Paris City of Night" and many other books found atparlerparis/books/) and his photographer wife, Alison Harris, hosted a "Meet the Author" event at the Village Voice Bookshop. They spoke, answered questions, signed books and made themselves open and available to their aficionados, one of whom was Diane Johnson, author of "Le Divorce" who graciously attended to show her support. TapBooks.org digital publisher, author and tour company operator, Karen Henrich, joined me to meet the authors and celebrate her birthday over dinner after the event at my favorite bistrot in the 6th -- Le Mazarin (42, rue Mazarine).
At Le Mazarin, an American woman with a group of others sitting at a nearby table was naturally louder than anyone else in the restaurant and without even realizing what I was doing, my first reaction was to blurt out "shhhh!" I even surprised myself, but it managed to make an impression as from that point on the group was a whole lot more respectful of the ambiance and we could no longer hear every word she was saying. Upon their exit, one of them took revenge upon my spontaneous (and rude, I admit!) reaction by knocking on the window of the restaurant, getting my attention and motioning for me to be quiet by raising a finger to her mouth. We both chuckled and without any discourse, understood immediately as Americans in Paris that we really aren't aware at all that our voices are more resonant than most others and tend to boom above the fray.
While at dinner, I received a call with an emergency from one of our rental apartments. As it turns out, a window was pushed in and a trespasser had rummaged through the renters' belongings, stealing all four of their passports, but nothing else. The police were called and when I arrived on the scene, they were trying to communicate between the three officers who spoke no English and the renters who spoke no French.
After a brief investigation of the crime scene, we rode in a paddy wagon with the officers to the local station, waiting two hours (till midnight) only to be told we must return the next day as the clerk on duty had been called off to another emergency. While the wait was just that -- a wait -- the officers were very kind and respectful. The renter and I agreed that the same experience might not have been the same at an L.A. or New York precinct.Today they will file the complaint then trek to the Consulate to have their passports reissued. It's not all that complicated and by the time they fly home on Friday, it should all be a blurry memory. (Should something like this ever happen to you while traveling in Paris, you can walk in with no appointment to the Consular Section of the Embassy [4, avenue Gabriel, 75008 Paris] between 9:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. Visit france.usembassy.gov/pass-lost.html for more information.)
Today the sun is out and I'm prepared for just about anything nutty that might happen while living in a 'tornado' in the City of Light -- as every single day seems like a new adventure, if nothing else, with nary a dull moment to call my own. In fact, often I wish for them...but they never come.
A la prochaine...
Adrian Leeds
Editor, Parler Paris
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P.S. A few things to remember...
1. Don't miss the newest House Hunters International episode: Historic Country Homes in Normandy -- Episode HHINT-2411H, airing June 12th and July 8th. Visit House Hunters International-Normandy for more information.
2. Plan on attending Parler Paris Après-Midi June 14th when Karen Henrich speaks about "Publishing in the Digital World: Incredible Opportunities for Self-Published Authors to Directly Reach Mass Audiences." Visit parlerparis/apresmidi.html for more information.
3. Jeanne Simonoff, author of "Saving Myself: a Los Angeles Childhood," will be speaking at Paris Soirées Sunday night, June 12th. Visit http://www.parissoirees.com for more information about the event and http://www.jewishbook.me/ to learn more about Jeanne Simonoff.
