Tea at Trianon: Houses from Amazon

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Friday, August 2, 2024

Houses from Amazon

From Better Homes and Gardens:

Anyone who shops on Amazon knows it’s a great place to find pretty much anything you need for your home, but before you shop for decor, you may want to first add a new house to your shopping cart. Yes, you read that correctly—you can indeed buy a brand new house right on Amazon. The online retailer sells tiny houses that can be purchased for one full payment or in monthly payments, and they’ll deliver it to wherever you’d like. From a new plot of land to a large backyard of an existing home, as long as it fits, it can go anywhere.

Available at a fraction of the cost of an average home, tiny homes have exploded in popularity over the last few years. As mentioned, they can also be placed anywhere, making them great for people hoping to downsize or add on to their existing homes—maybe as a vacation house, too. Other positives include no mortgage payments or loans, and if you’ll be moving from a larger home, it’s a great time to declutter and follow a minimalist lifestyle.

While you’ll find a variety of tiny homes on Amazon, our recent favorite is this modern modular luxury tiny house listed for $35,000. Move-in ready, the home includes a fully equipped kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, and living space. (Read more.)