Commemorate Bastille Day

by just cutting away the rough exterior…

for any who would like a casual Salon as a festive addendum to this afternoon’s ceremony

champagne at the entry, greetings by a certain bull terrier

This is the best Bastille Day, ever!

is dark, lit dimly with small white votives. The subtle scent of sandalwood and patchouli hang in the air. Small arrangements of poppies, peacelilies, and a smattering of snapdragons adorn the corners. The air is tomb cool and quiet….

My main interest in Bastille Day is that it is the birthday of the White Stripes….

But I did take time to read the history (of the storming of the Bastille, not the White Stripes) and was duly inspired.

The flags are arranged along the Champs-Elysees, the parade uniforms pressed and ready. Tomorrow morning, celebration will begin of France as it has become, and commemoration of the events that began one instance of the country’s liberation. But really, the day is one of freedom: freedom for the seven prisoners of the Bastille, purported by the infamous Marquis de Sade to have been held in torture and pain for their tenure there (wishful thinking, perhaps?). And freedom for the Old Country in the face of a bloody, fiery birth of the New. So, then, the birth of triumph. Like Edward Whymper, whose team of Hudson, Croz, Douglas and Hadow reached the top of the Matterhorn that same day in 1865, truimph is cause for celebration. So all over the world, and even in The States, feasts and festivals. In Philadelphia, chants of “Let them eat Tastycake” and on the streets of Manhattan, Seattle, San Francisco, and elsewhere, all manner of soirees and a festival. And of course, in Paris, the parades at daybreak, and in darkness, the fireworks at the Eiffel Tower.

And here in O/our midst, a celebration, and rightful commemoration of the freedom gained from bondage. Some Mayan drinking chocolate, a steel collar, perhaps a clarinet concerto, and special friends, gathered to celebrate the storming of a prison, the breaking and joining of chains, and unlocking of minds. What could be more appropriate?

contribute sips of a deep dark hurts-so-good Mayan drinking chocolate?

I hereby accept Romilly MacAran’s invitation. Perhaps it is time to consider binding someone I love, so s/he may later become free.

The electronic courier method of invitation is obviously flawed, so I have opted for public extension of this invitation.

The pleasure of your company is requested at an intimate ceremony July 14, to commemorate the end of a less-enlightened era, on the cusp of Brilliance. Share with U/us the past, the present, and the future, bondage and the blessed freedom it predicates, a celebration of love and bondage.

Bring your offerings of thought, talent, and spirit to this special Bastille Day soiree.

Kindly RSVP by adopting this goal. Details to follow.

There is a certain poetry in the commemoration I have in mind, using a date so closely tied to MdS (and Whymper lol) to celebrate submission, and also devotion. Invitations are forthcoming to certain like-minded souls, but any others who wish to share in O/our celebration are most welcome to adopt this goal.

Please note: whimper Whymper and the colorful Marquis (Donatien) may well be in spiritual attendance…. :)