![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM08_Svl2jhw4Nbd8tatXs_tkfe_8jssdF_ldjqQiZiZ3-d1R-OOMgKrnUbw_mWE27TayETeXSjOvveALN3utEOG8KUXdU7UcLascjIR1PPMvV98nigIhZG42KmYyxTH8PHDpnPg/s320/CIMG5882.JPG)
It's Jewish new year. In the spirit of the holiday, my Ad Land soul-sistar -- who happens to be Jewish -- hit me up from Australia and asked me to pray for her.
I am not a dedicated praying person, so I jokingly offered to set wish-infused paper boats afloat on the Seine. It turns out she dug this idea -- which meant I was committed.
I bought good tough paper this week, 'specially for the cause, and studied
this video on how to make boats that actually float. Then I wrote out my wishes for her, and carefully -- carefully! -- began to fold.
When the boat, chock-full of hopes and dreams, was ready, it hit me:
The Seine may not be prime. I don't want to send wishes out on the same river the Mob uses to dispose of malcontents. (I also don't want to mistakenly touch the water and grow a finger out of my finger.)
Where to go, where to go? The
Jardin du Luxembourg -- whose miniature sea* has borne vessels of all crests for well over a century -- was the logical choice. I also needed a cameraman, so I called a fellow American expat, who turned me down but asked me to send a wishboat for her too. (I made one
toute de suite.) Then I called my enduring amigo Klaus, who happens to live nearby and was totally happy to play gofer.
Here is the footage.
The inside of a wishboat:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi49_MJVv2-fZUEgNtZhUY-qzJVUf39O3NwZYH5MDvfOPq4aWneMUnKoVmTyI_WVaXtEQbfT1AwDVsg8jMea-WxiyKNcdbJ81ehDX64SlrSjZfRzhFGnubBzjzctsLgMRVtih7Kjg/s320/CIMG5881.JPG)
The Jardin du Luxembourg in late afternoon:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAjIyH88ivJrWRW_O1Wmaoj0-HnfZwOj6z8bGwa_A5QlcOdgMe0_IvTK9jMZkJi4PDa2FCZn6y8r7QTjvj6uL4io333YV9jR0q8REnylGl_G8Q69_JLmk8wZtsnizADR7GjIjKFQ/s320/CIMG5883.JPG)
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWliUAfAeaBd5tvYaNy_okqKJGkyy88b7VizRW4Zezo3zbs7Go0OGUxFm_wqKDEEfw1GlvasW4VECcabpX08SNHwTmZSr4_TdT6VuwJ10lFqJKdrMFJ44OO_X9cctVNwy-FU5Ccw/s320/CIMG5884.JPG)
Prepping dreams for liftoff:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8Q3kM_bfeUzgsRP3Rxw6wa0qtqIr-JmfE9FYHYzSeSBRfLTt424GLA52ZfyUsAUMsP9OxW0_US0AVebrZC9GmxYpaQvbpXD9EyPHTkra7ql-_zY30wJJYTFrsSl40afK5F0166A/s320/CIMG5887.JPG)
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc3usx10t51x_CluqNjfeMbkINFYdHGbdFAD213FD5FPBRGJv4oy417qyBCk2e_Q-anC9d7gKrSi6vc1ESwsnSnK2WLIBONvKtirnOd7gEWCDssUIg0PbiWG5jGVJDx5PCMUdM4Q/s320/CIMG5892.JPG)
Off they goooo!
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieN-I6cmwD3LNnjtO5rqIeKStcNzE6xvKY1k_1XtrsA_tnkecakDR4CYh-5_TIwEJtwv4XfMO0nKuDybMcFOV0OHM32-VZLxTJsB1iEhwwWYvZHpf3hb5Hvb2Zuak45ljCcedesQ/s320/CIMG5898.JPG)
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzjv_qZRpdE2orORU76BNVstpDOxkOzU6A4yOjUxjY2yED3BnxgYyOY36QRghhfzrTGKwIM8TeeX3I7Zg4jE-l4JGly-MARKrXZBlw9axWEeG2X0IJNZY4lpW3002pQjyMNe-uLA/s320/CIMG5901.JPG)
The boats up-close, floating marvelously. I like this shot because you can see the names of their recipients:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYTmwTxfNmgRCRPbjKRfIMBeX2qX7vzC31JM7UyWEtGfxpDWqNarbWMAYpRyjs1J0tMaOi0Rxh5pXw8vr6BANXe-20O3TtCxS2nRXH7BDE8cafZx2Ta_urPUplsgecNA4w4WXqYA/s320/CIMG5909.JPG)
One poke for luck:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzj7dvE2MOcSZI84nMEpbe8XZY4Cs1ED3D97OGFT7Ih-03iSWfBG2L7uLqI8wW8Sqy4Ca9H4BHSk8g8hiE5DG7eDzF-70tw3WYLlEHbnPje1wdIBJB1yDBnpLbByQkaqUZa2Pf-Q/s320/CIMG5911.JPG)
...and into the sunset with ye:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcYm9vmvzdsruK5R7J150mmMxxzCrTrKN-S2Iy8xIigQxHIHcWeEShKpbxiJexScl35xQxkRNDbmIlavvMys9Z-wRSdTLXrEWEU0T5NJS4uDX2WsODE6ugs88wU4lH6JSYzcbw2w/s320/CIMG5907.JPG)
Satisfied by a day's work (that is, playing documentarian and keeping an eye out for the cops), Klaus sat back and consumed a sandwich.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW0WHT749o49nxtDpdydfTdY7E0YQ0trgoUOG7tCblu8cFk-XVb9c7vPM_6xgFz59sho6AdfiTz1hHHidlMycd9uWnwDu1cIN-Lu4OOqysl4yxRBfZ5kJ2aZmlEkKS4ontJ9RmIA/s320/CIMG5914.JPG)
Then we went to see the love of his life, Sainte Geneviève.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEF7H-fDHzPiOMqea-LelmsFHwv8RZH-_DBuvXEYYedc3s8I4ltaHxuPv5Ukwryj-FTJUkIo4uKXqW8SYH7Lmr2FOBmfF0Z9oovXkB3RyTOFbeBUPW2FByWrKK7shkq9oLOvh8wQ/s320/CIMG5921.JPG)
She is the patron saint of Paris, so I stood before Her Awesomeness™ and paid tribute. It was fitting, given that, at least for me, Paris is where good wishes go to be born.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib8boZ-pTlr3WRzuNnLmyASM7ucLmhTJQM6Y3Wnj_o3Kk7GKd_lH1Vl1NRsQ0fU3186zPYKl5TkojFsVH9phiraTDp_ux1kEabh-LTc90oTyy_6CaGK-neCRvyKqPoaNGjCu5lzQ/s320/CIMG5920.JPG)
PS. @
lenkendall just reminded me that today is Pirate Day. Score for timely boat-building!
---
*Okay, it's a fountain.