What's France Like?

Upon returning from France for the first time, you must learn to answer one thing:

“What’s France like?”

Topping the list of frequently asked questions, it is of course the most difficult to answer. 

Thus, part of the reason for this blog is to give you an idea of the life here.  It is a long term solution.  An ongoing answer.

Paris is dense in experience.  Distilling the virtues and troubles into something coherent provides challenge.
 

Answering in one sentence feels unjust.  There is the city itself, but there is also the interaction.  No one is an island in their environment.  This experience for one reverses when told by another.  In the summation of the cacophony you have the answer.

And to further complicate affairs, the other side of the coin exists.  Most times life is conventional.  You eat, sleep, and breathe the same as you would in Wichita. 

At least if you do it differently, typically it is not for long.

So here exists information to synthesize.  Hopefully you find a good start.  And if you want to know more, the work is in progress.

Warm Weather

By now, you may have noticed the lack of a post this weekend.  Spring was in full swing and by all accounts it was simply too nice out.

So this means the normal schedule was pushed in lieu of the park, a run, and a picnic.

Hopefully the weather where you are is treating you as it would here.  Three cheers for springtime.

Central Time

A realization that seems obvious now, but was unexpected at first, was the impact of time zones on your life.  When moving from one clock to another, or when working with many geographies, you must plan your life not only around where the sun is at your current location, but where it is for others as well.

Having some awareness of this already, it is surprising how critical it becomes after you significantly change your time zone.

When you work for a French-owned company for five years, arranging overseas calls is not a new thing. You call France in the morning before they leave for the day.  Simple.

Now living in France, and working with Asia and the US, it is a bit more complicated.  But work pales in comparison to your personal life, which is much more difficult to arrange.

We humans like habit.  Most of us do not vary our weekly schedule in any significant manner.  This consistency can put one at odds with the schedule of someone else.  And unless the cycle gets disrupted, it can be difficult to reach people on the other side of the ocean.

And while this is still a concern at work, the office is where we spend the largest consistent block of our waking hours.

Consequently, this block of time at work makes the windows of personal time much smaller.  Between work and the want of social life, it is difficult to connect with your overseas attachments.

And thus, it’s not just miles that may separate you from someone, but also the time.

Saturday Morning

Paris has a busy night life.  It seems that many people tend to enjoy the night much more than any other set of waking hours.  So much more that Saturday morning is rather peaceful.

No matter what is open or not open, Saturday seems time for relaxation.  If you are not passed out, you are sipping a coffee, taking a long breakfast, or otherwise enjoying life away from most other people.  You are not out in the midst of the city doing your shopping, working, or exercising.  Of course, this is just the majority.

If you are not in the majority, however, it is a very peaceful time.  It is possible for brief moments, uninterrupted from returning party-goers, to have an Omega Man experience.  Even the sounds of cars and transportation get muffled by the limestone corridors of Haussmann’s.

It is an experience to feel.  Something to enjoy if you make the trip.

Or are staying for a while.

Parlevouzfraancais?

This weeks will be late.  So, for some filler, here is a blog from one of my friends.

Texts from my mom. 

Happy Easter!