Leap year.  The gift of an extra day was the email I sent on Feb 29th reminding friends and family that 2/29 was a gift of a day, make it count,  make it memorable, you won’t see another for four years.  Invited by friends to have dinner at La Grenouille to celebrate a belated birthday, we chose Leap Day as the perfect day to gather.

The conversations were at break-neck speed juxtaposed with perfectly timed service.  It is always a meal to be savored with a little liquid effervescence, and last night ended with a soufflé of Grand Marnier.

The owner, Charles Masson, is the master of the infamous floral decoration and is always there to greet and keep a doting eye on his guests. The table bouquets were a collection of carnations, and the bar’s tall bouquet cast a shadow on a glass vase of Hellebores with an unusual coloration of green petals dappled with deep claret.

In the restaurant, forsythia branches burst from vases like sun rays towering over guests while occupying the coveted banquettes.  They are interwoven with yellow oncidium; and are anchored with white lilies, yellow callas and alstroemeria.  The arrangements at La Grenouille are at the same time an appetizer and a dessert. In all of this elaborate beauty, there was the quiet reminder that even a single blossom can speak volumes. Heaven knows we did that evening…

A little Leap Year math:

An extra day!?  Well not really, just a way to keep the calendar on track.  Pour quoi?  Well, it actually takes the earth 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes and a few odd seconds to completely circle the sun.

If the spirit moves you, you can do the math, but trust me…it works out that if we did not add an extra day every four years then every 100 years the calendar would be off by 24 days…..

Filofax…Outlook…an elegant Hermès diary….whatever you use.  I wouldn’t want my calendar messed up…would you?

 From our archives, articles about La Grenouille and Charles Masson….

March 2, 2012