Notes for July

Well, it's summer, so here are a few non-arts thoughts from your moderator:

Ruth, David, Stephen, John Paul, and especially Anthony: thank you, thank you, thank you. A rare moment of sanity in the United States government.

The Tour de France without Lance, Jan, Ivan, Francesco, Alexandr, Tyler, Joseba, and many more? We will still be spending our n mornings watching at the Ionarts household.

On behalf of my colleague from Munich, "Die Mannschaft wird jetzt Weltmeister" (the words of German Bundespräsident Horst Köhler). Yours truly will be rooting for Les Bleus tomorrow, but bravo to Germany, advancing to the World Cup semifinals. If France beats Brazil, probably unlikely, it would be an all-western European semifinal.

If you want to have a real French experience, La Maison Française is hosting a big-screen viewing of the France-Brazil game today (July 1, 3 pm), with the French-language coverage on satellite. Allez, les Bleus!

UPDATE:
Well, I didn't make it to La Maison Française to watch the game, but I wish I had. There must have been extended celebrations -- uncorking of the special vintages far down in the cellar, one imagines -- when France's single goal was enough to sustain Les Bleus over the inferior play of Brazil (1:0). So, it's an all-Europe semifinal, and for now things remain amicable at Ionarts. If Germany beats Italy and France beats Portugal, well, then, it's Lederhosen versus croissants.