Parlez-Vous francais?

These last few days I have been doing some research for a trip to Southern France. Looking at several locations, I think I have it narrowed down to two areas, Languedoc-Roussillon, specifically the Aude Department, and Provence & Cote d'Azur. 

Languedoc offers beautiful wine country, somewhat centrally located in the southern region, and amazing medieval cities. And if you're wanting to pop up to Paris, the TGV will get you there in four hours. The town of Carcassonne is a perfect base point for seeing many other cities, but also has a lot to offer in its own right. It boasts a fully restored medieval town, sitting on the bank of the Aude River, fine dining and local bistros, as well as quite a bit of culture to explore. Just northeast of Carcassonne is the region of Minervois- perfect for the wine aficionados. You can do wine tastings and see the small, ancient towns that dot the countryside. The famed commune Chateauneuf-du-Pape is a mere two and a half hours away, if you want a truly incredible wine experience. In the Roman town of Narbonne streets are lined with cafes and patisseries, a foodie's dream come true! Narbonne is a great day trip, easy to walk the entire town, and not too far from home base. Carcassonne is also close to Montpellier, the must-see college town of Toulouse, ski resorts, the coast, and the Catalan influenced town of Perpignan. 

Carcassonne (Via Carcassonne Hotel Reservation)

As for Provence, there is so much to see there as well. Just to smell the lavender fields there would be amazing. For lots of hustle and bustle, you can spend time in the city of Marseille, visit the bird sanctuary in Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, in Arles follow Picasso's footsteps, visit the Picasso museum in Antibes, or just relax seaside. A friend recommended the town of St. Remy as a base point. Like Carcassonne it's centrally located in its region. Here, you are within driving distance of the city of Avignon, Nimes, Montpellier, and Marseille. Some of its famous residents have included Nostradamus and Van Gogh (he committed himself here after cutting off his ear). Others like Gertrude Stein have spent holidays here. And in more recent times, you'll spot a celeb or two "hiding out" in St. Remy. The Gallo-Roman architecture is absolutely stunning, bistros are abundant, and don't forget to stop in at the chocolatier Joel Durand's atelier to see how his delicous bon bons are made. There are festivals going on in town practically year round, so there is bound to be always something to do. 

St. Remy de Provence (via French Essence blog)

Of course, if you really wanted to go all out, there's St. Tropez. Where jetsetters and movie stars populate the beaches. Hang out on your yacht by day and soak up the high-voltage nightlife in the evening. Be prepared to hand over some serious cash and show off your biggest bling. And as I recall, the train running into St. Tropez was infrequent at best. You can hire a car, but you will be sitting in quite a bit of traffic during the peak travel season. However, that may give you time to explore the gorgeous towns that surround St. Tropez. 

St. Tropez (via Style Pill)

Which location would you pick? Provence or Languedoc? Carcassonne or St. Remy? Or St. Tropez? Have you booked your flight yet? :)

Sources: New York Times Travel & French Entree.com

Good Boss, Bad Times

Robert Sutton, Professor of Management Science at Stanford, was interviewed for the McKinsey Quarterly in regards to how to be a good boss during a tough economy. Be it whether you're handling layoffs or paycuts, there are several do's and don'ts he mentions that really caught my attention. Namely, do not make layoffs in multiple rounds. I happen to have quite a few friends who are currently enduring this painful process. Sutton says this is both detrimental to productivity, the staff, and the staff's mental health. Watching the stress build among my friends working in that environment, I completely agree with him. Secondly, he says to give your subordinates an in depth, but understandable explanation of why layoffs need to occur. If possible, promise your employees that there will be no layoffs or paycuts for the next X amount of days. This will give them a small piece of mind, so they are not walking into work daily expecting it to be their last. And finally, treat the survivors well. It builds loyalty to you as a boss and helps keep productivity up during the trauma of letting people go. 

I was laid off back in December, but it actually had little to do with the economy. We were doubling in size as a company and consolidating the finance department. While my company treated me very well during employment and also handed me a generous severance package, I felt many things could have been handled better during the transition of workload from our team to the team in Pittsburgh. Policies changed daily to accommodate the sales department, rules that were in place to protect the company's assets were disregarded, workload was transferred to Pittsburgh then back to us when they weren't prepared for it, the hiring freeze on our team required less people to do triple the work. It was an extremely high stress work environment. By the end, no one on my team had motivation to operate at the same level we once did. Arguments would break out between our bosses and some of our teammates, as no one felt as though they were being heard. By the time Thanksgiving rolled around, we were so ready to be out of there. So, I think my experience fell right in line with what Sutton describes. 

Watch the video in its entirety to get the full scope of what he has to say. It's very interesting and makes you put your boss under review. 

Do you have any good boss or bad boss experiences during this economy or other hard times in your company? Or can you share any experiences as having to be that boss during a difficult economy? It's certainly easier said than done. 

Memorial Day at the Vineyard

Hope everyone had a fabulous and RELAXING holiday weekend! I hauled it out to Southwest Texas to do a little work on the vineyard. We dug holes and moved rocks- it was fabulous! We camped on site and were privileged to see some gorgeous sunsets, a few rainbows, and storms roll in off the mountain. We also took a couple of quick trips into Marfa and Terlingua, Texas. What funky little towns! Below are a few pictures from the weekend. 

A storm passing by Cathedral Mountain. It finished raining just in time to see a great sunset. A little brisket and Carignane for dinner, and smores fireside, made for a lovely first evening.

The next day we were hard at work planting 500 new vines- Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and Cabernet Franc varietals. The white boxes on bamboo stakes protect the new vine for almost a year.

Of course we made time to play as well! We found an old frame and took plenty of goofy shots with it. Our fearless winemaker leads the group. You have no idea how long it took to get this right- and it still isn't perfect!

A glass of Grenache overlooking the vineyard. We surveyed our handy-work from atop a rock near the campsite and toasted each other on a job well done. Oh, and yelled at the javelina to get out of the vineyard.

Southwest Texas truly is a beautiful place to visit. Most people are surprised to see mountains and such unique plant life. The scenery is simply stunning. I highly recommend the trek out there to Big Bend or the Davis Mountains area. You'll come across some fantastically strange towns with true characters residing in them. I'm now sunburnt, sore, and exhausted, but it turned out to be a productive yet relaxing weekend.

Renzo Piano At It Again

(via DO)

I absolutely love the city of Chicago. My mother and her side of the family all hail from the Southside, so we have spent a great deal of time in the city. Well, over the past years Chicago has made some drastic improvements: see Millennium Park and rooftop gardens. There is always much to offer in regards to culture, and I make it a point to fit a stop into the Art Institute on each visit, to see the latest exhibit. I hold the Art Institute in very high esteem. Friends, it just moved up another notch. Perusing Design Observer, reading today's post about Renzo Piano's new Modern Wing, I squealed with delight! I adore Renzo's beautifully functional buildings. Always stunning. And I have the privilege to live in a city with a Piano design residing in it- The Nasher Scupture Center in Dallas, Texas. 

This new wing is expansive and yet delicate. Julie Lasky quoted Piano in her post and applauded him for succeeding at channelling Chicago: 

Piano noted, the new urban grid aligned with true compass points (“When you look north, north is exactly what you see”); Chicago’s architecture and its occupants related straightforwardly to their sites. Strength, delicacy, lightness, rationality: Piano sought all of these attributes for his new addition and largely succeeded in imposing them. 

All I can say, is Piano has done it again. And how did I not hear about this project beforehand?!? Go to the Design Observer site to see more photos and read some of the background. I absolutely cannot wait to see his work in person. It will be my first stop next time I'm in Chi-town! 

Penne Pomodoro Lakewood

I love Lombardi and his Family Concepts. Taverna, Toulouse, Cubanita, Sangria, Penne Pomodoro- I could eat at each restaurant every night of the week. Penne Pomodoro has always been a mainstay for brunching on Sunday. However, we had to drive to Snider Plaza (a whopping 15 minutes away) to get there. And with their $1 mimosas and bloody marys, it made getting home a little more difficult. 

But, now all our life problems have been solved! Penne Pomodoro has moved to Lakewood (a mere 3 minutes away)! Our little neighborhood is burgeoning with Italian restaurants, and we need another like a hole in the head, but at least we're finally getting high quality Italian. So last night we ventured over there to check out the new scene. We started with some appetizers they carried over from Taverna- focaccia and bruschetta. For an entree, I had the pizza bianca with prosciutto, which was delish! Plenty of house specials were offered, all of which sounded tasty. They are featuring gluten-free pasta and several other gluten-free items. Which is great for those who either want low-carb pasta or are actually allergic. 

Lombardi typically goes into spaces that include a patio, or at least have patio potential. Alas, this little space, does not. I was hoping for at least trattoria doors, but they're non-existent. However, this may be due to some crazy Dallas city codes, because I know we ran into several strange ordinances when times ten was being built.  I guess we'll have to make due with the mural of White Rock Lake. Or, simply walk over to the winery afterward and sit on our patio! 

The space that they went into was formerly Kitchen  1924, which received all kinds of rave reviews, was successful for a short while, then shut down. And before Kitchen 1924, it was La Dolce Vita, which actually was open for a good while. On both occasions, I felt the food was overpriced for the quality. This was especially true for La Dolce Vita- as I would have rated that food mediocre at best. So, here's hoping Lombardi can break with tradition and have Penne Pomodoro become an East Dallas institution! He's already on the right track with a time-proven template. 

Be sure to support your local businesses in this economy, when you can!

White Rock East Garden and Artist Show: A Review

We could not have asked for better weather. It was a perfect Sunday for strolling through the neighborhood, admiring the gardens. Artists, including silent G imagery, were set up in a few of the yards. The ones selling outdoor/yard art seemed to fair well, however, we only did so-so. People's focus is definitely on the outdoors and gathering ideas for their own gardens, photography probably wasn't the best fit. But, we were at a gorgeous home, in a beautiful yard, with lovely weather, had perfectly nice homeowners, and sold a few pieces, so all in all a fairly successful event. The organizers should probably try to narrow the scope to just yard art, in the interest of both the tour and the artists, next year. I do have to say, that it was nice to see the community come together. I'll keep this post somewhat short, as I'm blogging from my phone and in jury duty. Cross your fingers that I'm not selected!

Feel the Love Friday: VII

Paws in the City will be at Bo Concept, on Alpha Road, for a special pet adoption event. Come by between 11am and 4pm and help these pets find a loving home! Below is the address for Bo Concept:

5301 Alpha Road Dallas, TX

Village on the Green Centre, just north of the Galleria

I scheduled Bailey for his "big snip" today. Remember what Bob Barker said, "Help control the pet population. Have your pet spayed or neutered!" Well, I am being the responsible owner and doing just that, but I doubt Bailey will agree with me. Poor guy, he'll never know what hit him.