By the Arc de Triomphe

by the arc de triomphe
Originally uploaded by span

Yet another carriage sighting in Paris by way of flickr. This time, we find ourselves in the middle of the Mother of All Traffic Circles--the Place d'Etoile. (One of the pluses of climbing to the top of the Arc de Triomphe, in a addition to the view, is watching the motorists below navigate the 8-lane, 12-street intersection below.)

Going around even the outside of Logan Circle with a single horse at a walk makes my lines a little clammy. I can only imagine taking the Place d'Etoile at the trot with a pair.

The photo raises a question, though. It shows the carriage and newlyweds on the innermost lane of the traffic circle. How many times did they have to go 'round before they got out? Did they end up braving the Champs Elysees?

Those beautiful black horses with their long team pole seem to be saying, "Attention, Monsieur SmartCar! Nous sommes les heritiers des palefreniers du Moyen Age. Nous vous percerons d'un coup de lance!" ("Look out, Mr. SmartCar! We are the descendants of medieval warhorses. We'll run you through with our lance!")

Happy circling!

Gentrification, then... Aristocratization?

Our carriage company sits in an increasingly-dense forest of half-million dollar townhouses and condominiums. They're springing up like dandelions this spring. Already, we've been in a battle with the construction guys across the street over where they park their backhoe (Answer: NOT in my boss's parking space next to the yard the horses use for R&R).

Daily movements to and from work are a maze of blocked streets, cement mixers, backhoes, and a particularly aggressive construction-cantina-on-wheels driver. Getting hay in and manure out is a headache.

So, it was with great amusement that I read this article in that great fake news source, The Onion:

Report: Nation's Gentrified Neighborhoods Threatened By Aristocratization

WASHINGTON—According to a report released Tuesday by the Brookings Institution, a Washington-based think tank, the recent influx of exceedingly affluent powder-wigged aristocrats into the nation's gentrified urban areas is pushing out young white professionals, some of whom have lived in these neighborhoods for as many as seven years.

[...]

"A three-block section of [Chicago neighborhood] Wicker Park that once accommodated eight families, two vintage clothing stores, a French cleaners, and a gourmet bakery has been completely razed to make way for a private livery stable and carriage house," Kennedy said. "The space is now entirely unusable for affordable upper-income condominium housing. No one can live there except for the odd stable boy or footman who gets permission to sleep in the hayloft."

Be sure and read the whole article.

Maybe aristocratization would help the horse and carriage business, after all.

This has been your bit of random sillyness for the day, brought to you by thedrafthorse.com.

The photo of Scott and Rex on Fourth Street is brought to you by b a r t on flickr.com.

Looking back at the Taco Liberty Bell

Twelve years ago, Taco Bell ran the following full-page ad in The Philadelphia Inquirer, New York Times, Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, Dallas Morning News, and USA Today:

Taco Bell Buys The Liberty Bell
In an effort to help the national debt, Taco Bell is pleased to announce that we have agreed to purchase the Liberty Bell, one of our country’s most historic treasures. It will now be called the ”Taco Liberty Bell” and will still be accessible to the American public for viewing. While some may find this controversial, we hope our move will prompt other corporations to take similar action to do their part to reduce the country’s debt.

The sad thing is (or rather, sad things are):

1. Some people believed this.
2. Some of the people who did not believe this didn't find the humor in it and were gravely offended (even though Taco Bell gave $50,000 to the Park Service for the upkeep of the bell).

But, I guess that's what makes this the #4 all-time April Fool's Joke on the Museum of the Hoax's top 100 list.

You can read more about the Taco Liberty Bell April Fool's Day Joke here.

(By the way: 1.) You can't buy the Liberty Bell to pay off the national debt because the federal government does not own the bell or Independence hall... Philadelphia does. 2.) The city of Philadelphia tried to sell the Libery Bell already, in 1828, for scrap metal, but gave up--for good, it would seem--when they got no takers.)