Observations

I read the other day (in Quora) that successful people view the world as malleable, something that they can change.  I think that's true, but simplistic.  I suspect they find pieces that they can change, and do. I'm rarely successful at that, which I think is turning me into a bit of a curmedgeon.

Tomorrow my daughter goes away for four days to visit friends.  Some day she will come here for visits, and spend most of her days living elsewhere.  This happens to everyone, which doesn't make it any easier for me to accept.  Let alone the worry about her driving to DC on a holiday weekend, or holiday weekday. Got to happen sometime, I know.

A French person said to me you say market, for store - do you mean an actual market, or a supermarket? When I replied The latter, he said Too bad.  Small town markets are fun. I told him that in my time in small French towns, I'd never seen a market, and was disappointed.  He was astounded.  They're everywhere! Um, no.  Another said to me that I had to learn to recognize good ingredients, and was amazed when I said that I had no idea how to do that.

My local supermarket has ten billion different items.  But somehow the only  things I notice are when they stop carrying the things that I like. I rarely notice the additions, because they promote all of it, not just the stuff that actually is good, like Talenti gelato.And even then, they try to substitute a brand where they personally earn more from each sale.