Absinthe Without Leave

Actually I haven't drunk any absinthe here in Paris (yet), though I read recently in a Wired Magazine article that it's now legal and fairly safe to do so in France (all things in moderation). So maybe I will. Meanwhile I have a training seminar to prepare for, and what better preparation (?!?) than a visit to the always impressive Musée d’Orsay. Love those Impressionists, though alas the cloudy weather meant that the natural light was a bit dim for flashless digital photography - with slow shutter speeds, the Renoir nudes look even fuzzier and pinker than usual. And oh yeah - sorry about that headline! N.B. I learned that absinthe is not exactly flowing in the streets of Paris. At dinner tonight (Monday) I asked the waiter about it, and he said it's not legal to sell it here. Oh well.

Nothing very space related in this magnificent former train station full of nineteenth and early twentieth century art, but I did find an oddly arresting Moon image in a dimly lit pastel display room, a work by the Belgian artist Leon Spilliaert entitled Clair de lune et lumières. The nearly full Moon looked much like this on the way to dinner tonight. There are many fantastic works at the Orsay, but this little pastel somehow stuck in my mind.