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      Le Marais around the Pompidou is jammed with five storey apartment buildings.  There are a few tourists spots besides the Pompidou—-Picasso Museum, specialty food and clothing shops–but not enough to make the vibe more Disneyland than Paris. Parisiens in this area of town expect to linger at lunch, argue politics and comment on books and art. Wine flows, there is laughter and singing too, if it is late. 

Nudity, making love, discussing love, openly kissing and holding a lover is normal behavior and frankly, quite sweet to witness. People watching is rewarding, because the locals are  interesting and seem to lead  balanced and rich lives—- equal parts friends and family, a smattering of concern for career and plenty of leisure time for good food and books. It is a human culture designed for human enjoyment on a human, rather than corporate, scale. 

In the States our work drives our lives.  We squeeze in time for ourselves only if our career allows.  A business book promising greater efficiency, not John Burdett, is on the night stand. Work first—- underpaid hard work at that— is the only way to keep pace.  No time for the frivilous. And we all know the cost of being a cog in the corporate American economic machine: alcoholisim, pill addiction, high divorce rates, crime rates, road rage. “Freedom Fries,” indeed.