I recently read an article by a former Wall Street honcho who wrote that he had changed his job and his life, downsized, got rid of most of his stuff. He says he feels lighter, better, and happier than he ever did when he had lots of money and material goods. And I thought: hey, […]

  “The French don’t smile” is a comment I’ve heard many times, sometimes by visitors to France, sometimes by people like myself who have lived in France a long time.  As I was writing “Joie de Vivre“, I began wondering:   How could I say the French had joie de vivre if they (supposedly) don’t

I’d heard the story so many times I was starting to think it was an urban legend among Americans in Paris. But the last time I heard it – from a young half-French, half-American fellow – I gave it my full attention.   This was definitely a winner in my collection of cultural differences. He told