To Catch a Thief

"It’s all business" is a curious locution which might be discountenanced by depth psychologists and readily embraced by prostitutes. What really is the difference between work and play? It’s all work or all play, depending on your vantage point. Some might even argue that working on the assembly line at the Ford plant could be regarded as a form of play. Really all relative. A matter of how you deal with your time. For instance, if you were laid off from your job at Ford, you’re more likely to regard your days working as play, as compared to collecting unemployment and worrying about your future. Idle hands are the devil’s work. Jumping to the other extreme let’s posit the life of a sexy and desirable couple who retire to their villa next to Tina Turner in Villefranche Sur Mer. What greater description of play! But lo, summer on the Cote D’Azur turns out to be work. First of all, Remember To Catch a Thief which took place in the South of France. That film was tongue in cheek, but today you have to deal with all the thieves for whom the Riviera has become a true destination and cynosure. When the “beautiful people” are not fending off all those who regard them as obvious hits, they have to deal with their social calendars and position—which might be more work than the most deadly repetitive labor. Imagine having to attend dinners in Chateaux with only weekends off for nude sunbathing by the pool, not to mention all the traffic getting from one glamorous event to another. BTW it's work having everything a person could want and still feeling you’re missing something.  “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy,” types Jack Torrance (again and again) in one of the most terrifying scenes of The Shining.

Read "Why Big German Words Like Vergangenbangenheit Carry Weight," by Francis Levy, HuffPost