"There are good marriages but no delicious ones"

So said French aphorist La Rochefoucauld. "As the French know, love -- like good food and wine -- is a stimulant best consumed in small, very pretty portions." Nice article on love as practiced by the French and a brief tour of their major love lit. The writer reminds us that “for many years Parisian lovers traditionally met between 5 and 7…and then went home to their spouses and children.” A civilized affair: why does it seem so un-American? We do our affairs like gym workouts: sweat, intensity, strain.