-Antoine has the day off-

Antoine plans a trip to the great art museum on Huntington Avenue.

there, he walks around slowly looking at the exhibits of paintings,

sculpture, hanging renaissance tapestries and heavy-looking, ancient

Egyptian jewelry laid-out in atmospherically monitored display cases.

Antoine takes the time to stop in order to look at things which catch his eye.

at the Contemporary Wing, he might shake his head in disapproval,

but frankly, not very often.

he's learned to understand that he won’t always understand.

In time, Antoine heads for home.

there, things are also displayed for viewing. for example:

here's a poster of three unadorned doves on the wing across a field of grey.
it says: "Georges Braque: Galerie Maeght Sur 4 Murs, 1956".close by we have a  small, artificial Rembrandt: "The Artist In His Studio", darkly varnished by commercial industry replete with convincing hairline cracks.in the hallway we find Goya,–– with his famed killings at the wall; unframed $30.00. framed: $50.00. Antoine opts for Goya, framed,

and in the living room there’s an end table holding a hand-crafted ashtray, hardened in

fired terra cotta, hand- painted by first niece Penelope when she was eight years old.

now married with two kids, Penelope's ashtray is long considered a household treasure,

colored in yellows, greens and reds, albeit in a perplexing Mexican motif, a sombrero
with its high central conical protruding upward from an extra-wide brim.
he recalls her sweet instruction on how to balance the burning cigarette
within the conical's ample indentation.
Antoine's in a reflective mood as he examines young Penelope's ashtray

then places the beloved piece back upon the table with care, knowing

nobody smokes in the house anymore.

nobody stops by to look at anything in the house anymore.