A Network of Curious Souls

Let me tell you how I spent a rainy autumn evening in Paris last night. I was invited to a party at the storied Harry’s Bar to support a project close to my heart, one I’ve been following since its earliest days. It was a reminder of the power of people who believe in people.

You might recall that last spring at the Paris Writers & Readers Club we hosted Patrick Dooley, a passionate young barman from Harry’s who had taken the risk of reviving an old Jazz Age magazine he’d stumbled upon in the dusty archives of the storied Right Bank bar. You may know the famous cocktail, the ‘Boulevardier’—but it was actually named after that very magazine, which Patrick has been tirelessly bringing back to life. Within its pages he discovered a long-lost essay Ernest Hemingway contributed a century ago. When we read it aloud at our club meeting, we all got goosebumps—it hadn’t been heard in over 100 years.

Fast forward a few months: last night, as we crammed into the basement of the iconic bar to see the Boulevardier come back to life, I was delighted to run into members of our very own Paris Writers & Readers Club — several had since joined Patrick’s project, and one even became the magazine’s editor! And as the cherry on top, Hemingway’s great-grandson turned up to the party.

Proud of Patrick, proud of my club and proud of this ever growing network of curious souls – I walked home under the rain feeling a little bit better about the world (and not just because of the open bar serving Boulevardier cocktails).

If you’re curious about Patrick’s project and to support the revival of a Paris Jazz Age magazine — which will be publishing that re-discovered Hemingway piece with the blessing of the American writer’s estate—take a look at the magazine’s beautiful new website. It was designed by a club member (see the site credit) who serendipitously volunteered to read aloud the long-lost Hemingway piece at our Paris Writers & Readers Club meeting back in April, never imagining where that moment would lead her.

I just want to take a moment to thank you dear readers, for all the passion projects you’ve helped support over the years, both mine and so many others that you’ve read about on Messy Nessy. More than you know, you’ve made a difference. So here’s to people who believing in people.

I’ll leave you on this rainy Autumn evening with a warm batch of 13 Things I Found on the Internet Today.

Stay curious,

Nessy