A Superior Nose

I was at a dinner party the other week and someone commented on the bottle of wine that I'd brought. I know nothing about wine or whether it is 'good' or 'bad', all I know is what I taste. This is the reason why I like the wine that I go for: it must not be too acidic otherwise I get physical discomfort from drinking it. There you go, as far as I'm concerned it's as simple as that. Well maybe I also like how it makes me feel after a couple of glasses as well, and this photo is probably a good illustration.

The comments made were something along the lines of it being 'fresh' and 'young' and I had no idea what these terms really meant. It had been described in the supermarket as 'smooth' and 'mellow', and having tried it before I agree with the store's description.

So what is all this wine know-how to do with? I mean why bother? A recent report that I read suggests that even most experts cannot distinguish between a very expensive bottle and a really cheap one if the really cheap one tastes good, and from my experience they can do.

Gone are the days where if something comes with an expensive price tag do I believe that I'm necessarily getting quality. As it turned out, my young and fresh wine was appreciated by all but here is the rub. When the other dinner guests congratulated me over my choice, why did I feel so bloody superior?

Banning of the Face Veil in Public Places

What has provoked me to write about this touchy subject is the fairly recent decision by the French government to place a ban on the wearing of a full face veil in public places. And ... this photo of me, dancing the night away and feeling so free and radiant at the time. Shouldn't this be everyone's birth right?

My problem is that as a western white woman, whenever I see a woman wearing a full face veil, my instincts and sentiments dominate and I immediately think ‘what a shame’, and ‘how can that be right’, because it looks as though she is being subdued and has waivered certain freedoms.

I find that for a long time after I’ve seen a woman wearing a face veil, I am left arguing with myself and trying to work out whether my feelings are justified – or not. Whether I am being defensive or narrow minded at best.

There is also a nagging doubt that maybe the woman has been made to wear one, or feels that the social confines that she lives within, insist upon it. If that is the case then should our western democratic society, based on freedoms that many of our ancestors have fought for, be sanctioning the wearing of them? Should our government be following the example of the French?

I have to say that I am not a very logical thinking person and that my instincts in most of my life decisions have always won out over the years. On this thorny issue however I seem to be at logger heads with many of my female friends, a majority of whom do not wear the veil. A majority of whom also think that it is a woman’s basic right to chose what she wants to wear and how. “Well that’s just fine then,” I always end up raising my voice over this. “But what woman in her right mind would seriously want to completely cover up her face?”

“Me,” says my very attractive blond friend. “Every morning. I cannot leave the house unless I’ve got full makeup on; base, blusher, lippy, you know. If I could just shove a veil on then I could have an extra fifteen minutes lie in.”

“You would hate it if you had to do it every day wouldn’t you?” I countered.

“I’m not so sure. It could give me a new lease of life not to have to worry what others thought about what I looked like.”

Well maybe she has a point. I just do not know for sure what to believe on this and will wait the outcome of the French decision with a great deal of interest.