Recent events in Paris bring me back to September 11, 2001 and its aftermath. For several years, beginning in the late 1990's, we visited Paris with friends for a long weekend in December to celebrate Flo and our friend’s birthdays. In those early years, I found Parisians to be less-than-welcoming to Americans. The cause -- whether it was the language barrier or that they didn't care for tourists -- was unclear; however, it always seemed best not to be easily identified as American.

Amid all the anger, the sadness, the hostility, the revenge minded and retaliatory rhetoric, this story from The Independent stands above and beyond.

I sat down to try to write another blog but just could not.

  I had to follow up Mitch’s blog about the horror in Paris with one of my own. Mitch did an incredible job writing about the facts. For me, today, it’s all about the emotions. As I commented on Mitch’s blog on Sunday, two days after the attacks, “My heart hurts.”    

I have very low tolerance for broken things.  Mainly because I am not good at fixing them. Most of it is a matter of patience, and when it comes to things that don't work, I have very ittle. Like when I turn on the TV and all I see is fuzz. I look around at the five remote controls in the closet, slam the door closet door shut, and ask Eve to call Time Warner, or whoever we use. (She then fixes it.)  

France has declared a national state of emergency and tightened borders after at least 128 people were killed in a night of gun and bomb attacks in Paris.   Eighty people were reported killed after gunmen burst into the Bataclan concert hall where an American band (Eagles of Death Metal) was playing and took hostages before security forces stormed the hall.   People were shot dead at restaurants and bars at five other sites in Paris. At least 180 people were injured.  

I have kept a hand written daily diary religiously since 1/1/70.  It is a ritual which serves many many purposes. Some of the positive benefits are historical and others are mental. 

The Downtown Marriott in Chicago has a nice bar in the lobby. A great big screen with six different TV screens dominates one side. Six different sporting events on one screen. The bar is a real gathering place. We were sitting at the bar. I am not sure whether we said something or the man sitting next to Flo started the conversation. It's easy to start a conversation at a bar in a hotel.