May is the beginning of tourist season here in Paris. Usually I spend a few days walking out-of-towners around my neighborhood, taking them to my favourite haunts and giving them a few tidbits of interesting information at each one. It’s not exactly a walking tour since I forget

People from ma vie avant (my life before) in Los Angeles ask if I miss driving in my car. Not for one minute. Here in Paris, I take the Heel-Toe Express most places with occasional rides on the Métro. Now that the weather is warming, going from the fast lane in LA to a slow stroll in

Did you see it? Where did he get that bag? Did a grandkid give it to him? Was it a free promotional item at a market? Did he laugh and say, “I need to have this.” Did he always want to be popular? Is he? I shake my head in disbelief and gratitude for this moment. He and hi

“I thought you’d never come,” she said. To this, he bowed deep in his white tuxedo and handed her a pink flower. “My deepest apologies,” he replied. “I would have been here sooner, but that sun was caught up in a deep conversation with the clouds. Y

When I was a teenager, I went to a teen church retreat. The theme was about not conforming to what other teens (the bad ones) do. “Everybody’s doing it. Join usssss.” But as I sat at this retreat filled with loud songs about Jesus’ love, I realized that I had b

I have arrived at the end of a long road. After three and a half years of writing, I have handed in my manuscript. The book will be out in February 2014 and after things are finalized, I’ll tell you all about it. But in the meantime, fatigue is on me like a shadow. I find myself

Do you ever scroll through the photos on your computer and think: “Yeah, I’ve got to deal with that.” I was scrolling around 2007 when I came across someone that I don’t want to see ever again—in my digital photos, in person or otherwise. I actually shrieked al