Good, I hope that got your attention. It’s not that the French avoid sex, drugs and loud music for eleven months of the year. But they are more discreet about when and where and how. When August comes, people remaining in Paris assume they’re just about the only ones left, only tourists are walking the streets, and no one is looking out of windows—a Parisian pastime. Clearly, that’s not the case.

I’ve been worrying about this for two years and I’m not exaggerating. Would I or would I not be allowed to stay in my adopted country? There are “eight million stories in the naked city” and I was certain each and every one of them would befall me.

When the French government banned smoking in restaurants three years ago, no one thought people would go quietly in the night. Most assumed you’d hear a lot of yelling and screaming and the tobacco addicted would ignore the law. They were about half right. People began congregating outside bars and restaurants without terrasses and annoying neighbors. But, there's a new and disturbing trend.

It’s August when well-to-do Parisians flee the city like lemmings, leaving the other critters behind. But for the past eighteen years, I’ve opted to stay here. To be truthful, August is my favorite month in the City of Light; it’s the one when you can veg out and, yes, restaurants are open. Honest.

When I ask the question Where is home, I’m not referring to where you were born. Rather, it’s where you feel the most comfortable. At what point do you become an expat and not someone who's simply visiting a place for an extended stay? If it’s in another country, what compromises do you make – or do you?

It’s not unusual for people to fall in and out of love. Isn’t it wonderful when a relationship goes on forever and a couple feels the same fervor for one another the day they die as they day they met. It’s not all that usual. Wouldn’t it be nice? But falling in love with a city or a place - isn’t that something else? I had an epiphany…..

Paris is considered to be expensive and it can be. But there are ways to beat the system and spend relatively few euros. It just takes a bit of planning and not that much. Go with the flow and enjoy.

Most people are all for going green until it costs them something or limits their freedom, merci beaucoup. Yes, here’s to a more sustainable environment—but what’s the price we’ll have to pay.

Ah yes, it's the season. We're okay, you and I, because we know better, right? We know—and we care—so we don't stick out like sore thumbs, like... well, tourists. But here are plenty who don't know, don't care, and frankly don't give a damn, and probably (I hate to say it) wouldn't know how to dress for the situation or the occasion.