Spicy!

this is so unfair. I had a spicy night and EVERYONE I usually regale with my stories is out of town. geez! my whole family in France, Carrie in Hawaii, and Carolina is somewhere in Europe. I've already repeated a really stupid story about a kid spitting up on my shoes to Krista at least, oh, 3 times. and that's not even a spicy story.

you guys need to come back soon, I don't know how long the spice will hold out.

on a semi-related note, have you ever thought about the window on the house next door to my room? I never thought anything of it, but sometime between 5 and 8 am it was pointed out that probably the old lady could look right into my bedroom. which led me to question many important things, like, would she look? has she looked? and what exactly has she seen? my life has been rather tame since St Patrick's Day, but it's still kind of weird. especially since Carrie, Krista and I spent most of last Saturday evening peeping the naked guy across the street from our balcony. in our defense, if your windows face a major street and you DON'T want to be seen naked, close the shades! the 29th street spice factor is getting better!

xoxoxoBon

The MTA gives back?!

"After four decades carrying millions of New Yorkers, 44 of the city's subway cars are now home to millions of fish.

The cars, dating from 1964, were among 1,662 that have been retired by New York's Metropolitan Transportation Authority and will be used by a number of states on the U.S. East Coast to create the reefs to buoy local fishing industries."

Read the whole article here and laugh at the sad fact that even with all this goodwill towards the fishies in the ocean, the MTA will still make the N express when it hits Astoria.

xxxAnnie

DAVID BOWIE! ! !

I just wanted to state the obvious by saying that he's cool, and I dig him, and I can't wait for you to come back so we can watch Labyrinth and The Man Who whatever and sing about chillying down. It was raining ALL DAY yesterday and was so disgusting so I watched Basquiat and man does he do a mean impression of Andy Warhol! His performance brings me to tears. Well, that and the fact that he dies.

Anyways. Carrie, Mikey, and I also participated in an Improv Everywhere mission- whee! Only it was outdoors at night and it was pouring the entire 2 hours it took place. But it was still cool as hell. Go team Charlie Todd!

that is all for now, it is almost 2 pm and I've done a whole lot of NOTHING with my Saturday. delicioso!

xoxoxoBon

The Summer of Babies

Two years ago was The Summer of Weddings. Now, apparently, all of those couples have had time to appropriately (or inappropriately, what the hell do I know) procreate and we are now entering The Summer of Babies.

HOLY SHIT.

I am frightened. Despite the fact that there is nothing cuter to purchase in this entire world than a onesie, I am very very afraid. Which is probably why I am making out in dark bars with ambiguous guys who don't even have real names. More on that later (when you call). I am warding off babies with a steady diet of drunken text messages and cheap beer. Considering the last guy I brought home was on holiday from Ireland, I would say it's working rather well.

xoxoxoBon

Do I have to come right flat out and tell you everything?

Just when I was feeling good about life in Lyon-

-the sun was shining

-I'd made peace with not studying for exams

-Abdal the fruit-n-veg man asked me for my number

-the dumbest real-life shit had to drop in and dump itself on my lap.

Today I had to call a lawyer friend and have her write a semi-threatening letter to the bank, go all the way down to the fac to print the thing, come all the way back here to register it (for 4,35E!) and then have a nice long talk with USAA about why my security deposit cannot actually be wired straight to my account and instead has to talk the scenic route via some American version of the French bank somewhere in the US before finally making its way back to me. All with costs incurred, I'm afraid.

I think I'm probably just having a dramatic moment, overreacting to this, but I really -- REALLY -- hate dealing with the bank. All banks. It's always a stressful situation for me and I would do just about anything to avoid it at all costs. Including study.

Alas, if I want to eat this month, I have to deal with the bank. Considering I have only 20E to my name right now, I'm in kind of dire straits. I never thought something like this would happen to me! I'm so responsible with my money! I pay my bills on time! I never overdraw and I always call Mom asking for more!

[To be fair, I do have a little -- verrrry little -- money in my account right now, but it's inaccessible since USAA didn't bother sending my new debit card to my French address, even AFTER I called them specifically requesting that they do so! Chalk another one up...]

But I'm all banked out right now. If I hear anything else about swift codes and ABAs I'm going pull out my bank cards and start slashing. There's only one thing left to do right now -- retreat to my bed with the remainder of my Scottish shortbreads and "study" whilst watching The Princess Bride. Because if hot hot Cary Elwes can't cheer me up, nothing can.

Once Upon a Time I Was a Teacher

Except that I never got to teach. Or rather, there was no one to teach. Unbeknownst to me, I was hired to recruit students who I would then teach, but no one wanted to be recruited.

So, once upon a time I was a teacher. For about three days, I tried to coerce students into showing up for my class (although why they would want to when they could be getting credit for talking on the phone and instant messenger instead is beyond me).

Now I'm no longer a teacher. And I know I'm not a failure, because I was never even given a class to fail. I know that if I had stayed I would have gotten to a point of frustration in which I would simply break. I know that I would not have slept, would have spent mornings frantically coming up with a strategy and afternoons ripping my hair out at an administration that doesn't give a crap. But this is just another one of those things that brings to mind the ever-present question, "What does it all mean?" Because I wanted my job to mean something. I wanted my actions to mean something more than how I pay the bills. I wanted to inspire. Maybe someday I will, will get a chance to succeed. But for now, I just feel a little sad that I tried my best and I didn't succeed. That I had such high hopes that were never quite rooted in reality. A nagging feeling that I gave up too easily.

I think I did what I do best- I dodged yet another bullet. In relationships, in jobs, in life- I'm getting better at realizing when things just aren't right, and cutting them loose before I get too invested, too hurt. That helps, but it doesn't pay the bills and it doesn't keep me warm at night and it certainly doesn't give me a fuzzy feeling inside.

I guess I'll just have to live with that.

Quote of the trip so far

Czech shopkeeper: Every woman need boy!

KK: Got one!

Susannah: Yep, no problems there.

Kat: I am a lesbian!

Random Czech woman passerby: (laughs)