Meet my friend....

I had my English-speaking girlfriends round for pasta, wine, bitchfest and to meet Kenny.



I had never heard of the film, another brilliant offering from our friends down under and I think it may have replaced Muriel as the best Australian movie in my eyes. I have not laughed that hard in yonks, fair dinkum!

It took my mind off the fact that I have to tell lover boy about my future flatmate and I have not figured out how to do it yet. I know what you are thinking; why should I a) even bother telling him, 'tis none of his business b) be worried about it as he STILL lives with his wife and I can do anything I want and c) still be involved with him. I suppose that I think that it is the right thing to do and would like to be told myself if the tables were turned.

Since I have been in hermit-mode of late, I have been spending a bit too much time in blogland. I discovered a great blog about two weeks ago and look forward to new posts and find myself wondering how the girl behind it is getting on (go have a look from the beginning here). It is a silly habit, I know, to identify with total strangers, but it is a simple pleasure for me, which is why I was disappointed when I read this.
I also was a bit down because I found PetiteAnglaise's blog and she has posted on all of the subjects that I wanted to post about, just better, and now has a book deal. Snif.


Random thought of the day: what is the point of Twitter? I still don't get it.

ah the subtelty of the French

Seeing this ad puts me in a good mood for the whole day. The cheesiness of it, the blatantly obvious sexual innuendo that you know was intended but you still wonder if it was done on purpose. Given that my 11 year old got it, I can only assume it was.
For those of you who don't understand the text, it says '50 cms of pleasure'.

good food & more randomness

Randomness for the day:
I saw two girls on a tandem bike on my way to work

I went out to dinner with my birthday buddies last night and we had a lovely meal at the Clochier Pereire. It is a small, cozy restaurant with original offerings and not that expensive (30€ for the fixed-price menu). The service was a bit slow, but very friendly and worth the wait.

I also learned some new words:

• Omble Chevalier: Arctic charr (a fish... one that tastes like sand)
  
• Col vert: mallard duck (I didn't know they were edible)
• Cromesqui: deep fried something (polenta in this case - very good)
  

Things I learned about myself:

• I don't like fish
• I am still very American in my taste in food, even after 17 years here, seeing duck on a plate still creeps me out.
  

random blurts

I saw the strangest thing in the metro this morning: a woman was standing there with a heart of lettuce and nibbling on it.

You know you are almost 36 when you contemplate buying anti-wrinkle cream for your chest.

I'm a fuddy duddy

Got a text from Sandwich Boy yesterday in response to my invitation; I had to have my friend C translate it for me as I don't understand text speak, much less French text speak! Text speak reminds me of NewSpeak and I revolt against it, even if it is a pain to type out full words on a teeny tiny cell phone.

Anyway, he was out of town and suggested that we meet for a drink this week, which is going to be difficult since I already have plans tonight and Wednesday and am leaving at sparrow's fart on Friday. I will go have a quick drink with him but am not very excited by the prospect, especially since he wrote 'bisou' (couldn't even type one more letter for it to be the correct spelling of bisous - I have to mistrust laziness, sorry), which is just way too familiar for someone I don't really know to write me.

Talked to P and dropped a not-so-discreet hint that we would have to lay down ground rules for our cohabitation.

Slow Saturday

Not much to report from this side of the pond today. It is a damn shame that I am always at my laziest on Saturdays since you can't get anything done on Sunday here, but I did manage to escape the house around four and took Bibi to roller blade.

The kids have talked me into playing MarioCart on the Wii and after a few games Bibi looks at me and says: "It is no wonder you don't have your driver's license - you suck.". Love that kid, really I do.

I texted Sandwich Boy, suggesting he meet me at two tomorrow and no answer. Hmmm, could he be giving me a taste of my own medicine?

I'm going to ask sandwich guy out

He called again tonight, but I was on the phone. Since the kids are off on holiday (lucky buggers) on Sunday morning, I'm going to see if he doesn't want to go meander with me to les Puces.

Not like I have anything better to do! Oh, I started another blog ... no comments as to my lack of posting on just the one blog necessary!

My house on the interwebs

Google street view is now available in Paris (and the burbs)... too cool

Here is my house
Here is my local
Here is my office


and, what do you think of the new template? I got it here...

an update, finally

Some of you (ok, just one of you) has asked for an update on my so called life. Not much to report, except that I have become a member of the PTA, which I got sucked into. I did warn them that I wasn't a PTA kinda gal, but here I am, now manager of a Google Group for the association. It is rather fulfilling, but rather sad as it has made me become aware of the fact that I spend way too much time on the internet (the other parents check their e-mail WEEKLY).


So, other than spending my time on-line, I'm still trying to be the perfect 50's housewife (despite the fact that I'm divorcing, work full time and can't do anything properly). Tonight, I tried to make pumpkin purée (yes, they consider pumpkin a savoury dish in France) and failed miserably and am also trying to embroider coasters for a craft swap at the end of November.


So, for the semi-exciting part, I'm sitting here eating an artichoke (which I finally figured out how to cook much to the kids' joy) and looking at my almost done coaster when the phone rings. Very surprised to be receiving a call at 9:45 p.m., I pick it up w/o looking and .... it the sandwich guy. Wow. I totally blew him off and he is sticking with it! OK, he was a bit pissed but still, you have to give him points for perseverance. I promised I would go see him for a coffee after work tomorrow.


What else... hmmm, my new roomie is arriving in two weeks for a five-week stay. Will give you a hint: his name begins with P. Wonder what the other P will have to say about that???

why you should have kids

so, I had to work late again. Really late; I got home at 10:15 pm and so am not tired at all and am waiting for my evening to start, which is pointless because it is already over. Sigh.

Monster #2 is better at guilt than her father was. She greeted my announcement that I wouldn't be home until past her bedtime with "I never see you - why are you working later and later when we are here?". Great thanks, me feel guilty?

While I'm on the topic of M#2, could someone please explain to me why a child who, at 8, is incapable of remembering that she has to: brush her hair, wash her face and brush her teeth (seriously, have to remind her of that ritual EVERY MORNING), remembered to dig out her tooth fairy pillow and put it on my pillow so that the "tooth fairy" (aka me) would remember to put her money it? And because of the guilt, I put 10 €. Maybe that is why ??

***warning the anectode that follows is funnier if you speak French, but I will try to translate for my Anglo friends***

Anyhoo, I get home to a clean house, half a pizza and chilled white wine (gotta love your girlfriends) and my friend C, who assumed her babysitting duties marvelously, says "hmmm, the homework checking took longer than I thought". Really? Yes, M#1 told her he had to research a dinosaur. "OK", says C, "what kind of dinosaur?". M#1 responds "A nebachudnezzar" (in French, dinosaur names end in "-saure", i.e. stégosaure, Brachiosaure, et al and nebachudnezzar rhymes with saure they way that they pronounce it). Took C about 5 minutes to recover her breath to ask which class it was for. Turns out it was for Religious Cultures, for which he also had to define the Apocalypse.

Have I mentioned that I hated Jr High the first time round, but that it is worse the second time?