Les Vestiges de L'été

I can't believe that summer is almost over. Blink of an eye and poof. I am feeling nostalgic for the summer I didn't experience. I almost cried about it this morning driving back from les monts du lyonnais, one more house rental complete, more dirty laundry to wash...I am regretting the ears of corn, fresh tomatoes and soft shells that I did not eat at the Jersey shore. This is the first summer of my life that I was not at least in the US for a few weeks. It feels weird.

But what I did do here in France was amazing. Early summer days in les monts du lyonnais (my house was rented out a lot but I still managed to squeeze in a few days,) fun but brief road trip with Ka to Le Tarn et Garonne, fabulous Vampire Weekend concert at beautiful Fourviere, my birthday celebration at le Bistrot du Boulevard and two weekends in Paris.

The funnest thing about this summer though was the flea markets and the daily search for new products—my passion. Every weekend there was a local vide grenier or brocante within driving distance and I did my share of scouting and buying for Basic French (haha.)

The vestiges of this summer will not be memories of Jersey Shore meals, the sound of sea gulls or a good tan (I am so pale that I am going to get some of that progressive tanning cream, here in mid-August.) The vestiges of this summer will be delicately painted virgin relics, lots of dog walking, funky 50s plaid tablecloths, late-night meals in les bouchons lyonnais, never-used vintage linen dishtowels, a pyrogene (porcelain bistrot matchstriker,) getting to know Ka (who I have worked with for 8 years but only seen twice,) retro teapots and pitchers, wildly colorful foutas, espadrilles and market baskets from the Pyrenées and a new appreciation for what I have experienced and evidently taken for granted all my life...Long Beach Island, New Jersey.