Wow, there are a lot of us. A barrel of Fire Monkeys! Sounds perhaps too incendiary even for FFL; instead of a barrel perhaps we better make it a nice steel drum.
--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, Share Long <sharelong60@...> wrote: > > 1956, Year of the Fire Monkey > hey, didn't someone mention a barrel of monkeys this morning? > I'm also just sayin... > > > > > ________________________________ > From: Michael Jackson <mjackson74@...> > To: "FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com" <FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com> > Sent: Saturday, August 10, 2013 7:24 AM > Subject: Re: [FairfieldLife] Re: Paris in the doldrums > > > >  > Hah! I learned TM for $65 also - that was the SIMS price in 1974 - I also > turn 57 this year, in a few weeks in fact. > > > > ________________________________ > From: "doctordumbass@..." <doctordumbass@...> > To: FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com > Sent: Saturday, August 10, 2013 6:50 AM > Subject: [FairfieldLife] Re: Paris in the doldrums > > > >  > $65 for me to learn TM 38 years ago - I don't think that buys me lunch in Gay > Paree. > > All those Parisians come to San Francisco during the summer. My daughter > works in the financial district, and she says it is full of French people, > who, conforming to the stereotype, are fairly rude and stand-offish. The > Germans, on the other hand, are perfectly sweet and friendly. > > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, turquoiseb <no_reply@> wrote: > > > > Some of you, reading my Subject line, might be expecting a morning cafe > > rap about how listless or despondent the city of Paris -- and me, > > because I'm here -- are at this Present Perfect moment in time. Au > > contraire, Pierre. > > > > The City of Light *is* in its doldrums, but not in the sense of the > > modern meaning of that phrase. The Doldrums (capitalized) originally > > referred to areas of the oceans near the equator where the spin of the > > Earth often created long periods of calm weather that could become > > somewhat distressing for sailors. > > > > Their ships, after all, were wind-powered. In the Doldrums, there was no > > wind -- often for weeks at a time. If you were a sailor stuck in such > > conditions, you might indeed have felt a little listless or despondent, > > stuck in a small boat on a sea as smooth as glass. But I don't feel that > > way, "stuck" here in Paris during its yearly doldrums...quite the > > opposite, in fact. > > > > The Paris doldrums -- which are real, and known to all -- are caused by > > the yearly exodus from the city of pretty much every Parisian who can > > afford to leave. They pack up their clothes and swim fins and kids and > > dogs and cats and head off to their place (either owned or rented) in > > the country or in the mountains or on the seashore. Which pretty much > > leaves Paris EMPTY, largely devoid of its regular inhabitants, literally > > becalmed...in the doldrums. > > > > The calm IS occasionally shattered by the hundreds of thousands of > > tourists who come here during this period, unaware that they're busily > > snapping photos of a ghost town, one that contains a mere fraction of > > its population. But those of us who live here during other months see > > the difference, and more important, we FEEL it. > > > > Paris is SILENT. > > > > The silence permeates everything, even in the busiest shopping district > > or nightclub-strewn alley. If you're attuned to silence, all you have to > > do -- wherever you are -- is just stop and pay attention, and there it > > is. Such a deal. > > > > I'll be doing the same thing as the Parisians soon, taking off next week > > for the south of France, and staying there until the beginning of > > September. I'm looking forward to that, and to other types of silence, > > but right now, sipping my café crème at the Montebello and gazing > > out across the Seine at Notre Dame, I couldn't be happier with this > > particular flavor of it. > > > > It's as if the whole city has transcended. And all you have to do to "go > > with it" and transcend yourself is just to stop and pay attention to the > > already-present silence. Such a deal. Much cheaper than learning TM, and > > in my opinion, more effective. > > >
