I’m reading The Cafes of Paris … A Guide that a friend gave me last year. It’s a wonderful book, with a nice balance of historical perspective and current information. There are quotes at the start of each chapter. My favorites:

The most friendly observer cannot ignore the fact that the consuming ambition of the Parisian is to pose … He prefers it even to dawdling on the boulevards or making epigrams … And nowhere can he strike an attitude with more effect than in the cafe. — Henry Shelley

There is only one trait that marks the writer. He is always watching. It’s a kind of trick of the mind and he is born with it. — Morley Callaghan

Take-off is Wednesday night. Wow.