---
title: 'Le Quatorze'
date: '2008-07-14T02:43:02-04:00'
permalink: /le-quatorze/
tags:
    - 'random thoughts'
---

There was a day last week when I joked with R. that the entirety of the French air force flew over our flat, a few planes at a time, in tight formations. And really, really low. I assumed it was some kind of exercise — and I now think, in fact, that they were practicing for today.

We just had a very belated *petit déjeuner* at the café on the corner, whose muted television was tuned to the live broadcast of the military parade and other festivities being held for *la fête nationale*. Almost as soon as we got back into the flat, the flyovers began; they didn’t seem to go on as long as the practice version, but I could just be misremembering.

For me, there’s little in the way of *fête* today; I’ve got to get myself back into this chapter. The summer is zipping by, way more speedily than I’d like…