Posted on

Statuemania

“So, you read the title of this blog and automatically assumed I was going to share my opinion with you concerning recent events around our country. You were interested to know what I thought about the desire and the movements to destroy or relocate certain statues, paintings, or other memorials that certain people might find offensive.

No, I wanted to talk with you today about the deliberate destruction of approximately 1,750 bronze statues throughout France during the German Occupation of World War II. Not since the French Revolution had so many statues been destroyed (albeit for different reasons).”

These were the first two paragraphs to my blog, Statuemania, we published on 2 September 2017 ⏤ almost three years ago. Frankly, I had forgotten about the reason why I first wrote the blog or the first paragraph; which now takes me back to the events that inspired me to write the original blog.

Pedestal without a statue, Parc des Buttes-Chaumont, Paris. Photo by Coyau (May 2011). PD-GNU Free Documentation License v.1.2. Wikimedia Commons.
Pedestal without a statue, Parc des Buttes-Chaumont, Paris. Photo by Coyau (May 2011). PD-GNU Free Documentation License v.1.2. Wikimedia Commons.

I guess my reason to re-post the blog is pretty much the same reason I gave three years ago. While I don’t necessarily oppose certain statues, busts, or flags being taken down or done away with (e.g., statues or busts of Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest, the flag he represented, and the Washington Redskins name), I do think we go overboard sometimes. Shouldn’t we step back and determine if we can turn something negative into a positive? I’m speaking about the lost opportunities to help educate, raise awareness, and try to make sure certain events or thought processes never happen again. I think it’s a better and more positive approach than pure destruction. Hate confronting hate doesn’t solve problems. Read More Statuemania

Posted on

Cyndi Lauper and the Naked Princess

Note: My sister-in-law once told me how the title of this prior blog (October 2014) caught her eye and she was compelled to read it. When we looked at the number of people who visited the blog, it confirmed there was a lot of interest. So, we decided to reprint the blog (albeit in an expanded version). Hope you enjoy it!

My previous blog was about a male musician (Jim Morrison) so I thought I’d give equal time to a female musician. One of Cyndi Lauper’s more popular songs was, “Girls Just Want to Have Fun.” I thought of this song as I was researching Pauline Borghèse (aka Pauline Bonaparte—Napoléon’s sister). Actually, I’m listening to Cyndi’s CD while writing this blog. As we’ll see, Pauline was just a girl wanting to have fun. Watch Cyndi Lauper’s music video here.


Did You Know?

I have no idea if these quotes, habits, or known facts about Napoléon are true. But it’s fun to speculate:

*  “The Little Corporal” wasn’t that short at 5 feet 7 inches. The problem was his bodyguards towered over him and so he was considered short.

* Napoléon cheated at cards and all other games—he hated to lose. I’ve always said, it’s good to be king or in this case, emperor.

* The Emperor loved long, hot baths. See below.

* Napoléon was extremely superstitious. He was once asked if he wanted smart generals. He responded by saying no, he wanted lucky generals.

* As a warm-up for the next four habits: Napoléon liked to pinch people—both men and women.

* Prior to returning from his travels, Napoléon always wrote to his wife (or mistresses) instructing them not to bathe until he returned. Was this because he loved long, hot baths with a companion or was it a smelly fetish?

* As a lover, Napoléon wrote to Josephine once, “Take wing and come, come … A kiss on your heart, and one much lower down, much lower.”

* Continuing with Napoléon’s dirty talk—the 19th-century version of sexting: he once wrote a woman “How happy I would be if I could assist you at your undressing.”

* Finally, great speculation has been passed down for more than two hundred years that Napoléon’s penis was whacked off during the autopsy and given to a priest. Fake news about his dismembered member or was he a Bone Apart? Watch more here.


Let’s Meet Pauline

Portrait of Princess Pauline Borghèse. Oil painting by Robert Lefèvre (c. 1806). Palace of Versailles. PD-100+. Wikimedia Commons.
Portrait of Princess Pauline Borghèse. Oil painting by Robert Lefèvre (c. 1806). Palace of Versailles. PD-100+. Wikimedia Commons.

Pauline Bonaparte (1780–1825) had quite a life while living in Paris and Rome. Never one to hold political or society ambitions (she basically owed her society existence to her brother’s position), Pauline’s life was one of moving from one affair to another (being married never stopped her). Simply put, Pauline just wanted to have fun. She was very loyal to her brother as evidenced by her moving to Elba to be with Napoléon during his first exile (along with her mother, they were the only family members to do so). She liquidated her assets to support him during this time. After Napoléon’s defeat at Waterloo and ultimate exile, Pauline moved to Rome under the protection of the Pope. Read More Cyndi Lauper and the Naked Princess