Just back from quick holiday

I can hardly believe that it is snowing in Paris. It's not very much, but at least it has the look of this time of the year. Now it's time to get active and walk off the oysters, foie gras, deer and everything else that was eaten over Christmas. The one tradition that I still can't get used to is the obsession with the Christmas log cakes that people insist on eating. They are cake slices rolled into a "log" with plenty of sugary icing and kitsch decorations and they make a Duncan Hines cake sound appealing. Besides that, a lovely break with an old friend and no shortage of fun discussions.

The downside was coming back and learning that a good friend of mine from Texas died two days before Christmas of a heart attack, which was a shock to everyone since he was only 38 and seemed to be in good condition. He leaves behind a wife and 10 month old baby and devastated parents. I never knew anyone who died like that at such an age but it was only two months ago that the father of my sisters children died at 37. What a year it has been.