Long time no type! Its been a busy week because my parents were here! It was awesome and I'll tell you a little about it, unfortunately they took all the pictures so I can't enrich my post with photos like usual. Ok so I went to pick them up from the airport and then forced them to drag all of their luggage through many metros which was a huge pain in the ass but hey thats how people get around here. Finally we got to their hotel which was in a part of town I'd never been too so that was cool. It was around Gare St Lazare. So all we did pretty much was walk around and eat. Not too bad. On Monday I had to return to Orleans because I had to work. They came down Wednesday afternoon and we quickly realized that my mom had left her wallet on the train...byebye wallet forever. Luckily her passport was not inside. Then after many administrative wallet related shenanigans we ate dinner at my house with Amanda, Raina and Mathieu. We didnt' eat just any dinner mind you... we ate Raclette. MMMMMmm melted cheese and potatoes. Then the next day Mathieu was kind enough to drive us to a castle and then to a wine cave and we got a cool little tour and many glasses for wine tasting. Then we went out to eat and to one of my favorite bars where we partied way to hard. Saturday I met back with my parents in Paris and we went to Centre Pompidou and saw a really cool exhibit by Lucien Freud. I recommend it. All and all it was a good trip for them. They really liked my friends I think and they really liked Mathieu which is awesome.
A completely unrelated but funny story. Yesterday Mathieu and I went to his mom's house to eat lunch. She lives in the country a little bit so we decided he should teach me how to drive a manual. I was a little apprehensive but whatever I have done it before. So I get into the car and he gives me a some last minute reminders and I start crying because I'm so scared (I was laughing at the same time and so was he at the ridiculousness of me crying) I think I have a phobia. So I calmed down and then started driving I even got it into second and went back down into first but then I had to turn around and I couldn't quite do a u turn so I was going to stop and do a 3 point turn. Then Mathieu starts aking what are you doing and I freak out and the car stalls because I didn't push the clutch while I was breaking or whatever. Then I really started crying because we were headed for a giant hole and I could've killed someone.
That is the end of stick driving for me... ill just have my toyota shipped over.
Love Leah
Monday, March 29, 2010
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Stickin to Croissants
Well it's official. I'm boycotting baguettes because one of them decided to injure me. I cut myself on the sneaky razorblade that is french bread. Its actually kind of a gross cut. I didn't think it was possible to hurt yourself on bread but I guess I was wrong. On the brighter....or less dark side I think it might be getting warmer...finally. I'm tired of being cold all the time. I'm tired of being told I look tired because my skin hasn't seen the sun in god knows how long. Anyway
Wednesday night we went to L'Astrolabe which is the venue of Orléans and I was pleasantly surprised at the sound quality there. There was a battle of the bands sort of thing going on but not like in Austin where, whoever has the most fans wins. Here there were actually judges. There were all different styles of jazz and some of the best saxophone playing I've ever heard. Not that I'm an expert on sax playing or anything but whatever, it was really good. I'm hoping they'll have some more good concerts because I was looking on the wall at who had come through there and it gave me high hopes that someone cool might play soon. There was however one band who totally sucked. (yep it's time for the rant) They were called the sound orchestra or something dumb like that. There were maybe 6 of them on stage, a dj, a bassist (with 6 strings mind you), a trombone player, a sax player etc... I guess since the bassist had a six string bass I assumed that they would either be good or reeaaalllly bad. Because honestly who buys a six string bass unless your trying to show off. Really good bassists can do amazing things on 4 or 5. So anyway, they turned out to be reeaallllly bad. They were just making noise. There was no rhyme or reason and it wasn't even pretty noise. The bassist was rubbing a spoon on the strings to play it. Oh I get it, that's why you need six strings, more surface area to rub your spoon on. It was ridiculous. At first we gave it a chance just in case they were just fooling us and were gonna break into some mad funk or something. Wrong. They made noise for thirty minutes. I'm sure in their dweeby minds they are making a statement about how music can mean anything. About the principle of jazz music and being avante garde and creative. Look dudes, there is a reason that people play music the way they do, because it sounds good. People have been playing music for thousands of years based on the musical theory we use today... because it sounds good. And really isn't that the principle of music? I think when people are being obstinate like that, just being different because its cool to be different, they are really missing their mark. Its hard for me to believe they actually thought what they were doing was good and interesting, but I imagine if I asked them they would have this speech prepared about what music really is and how they're redefining the scope of musical appreciation. A lot of big words to say nothing... I lived in Austin for 5 years I know how to spot musical bullshitters.
Then again maybe it made them feel good and happy to play that "music" and I can't hate on that.
Lately I've been thinking about how I should have been a lawyer, no matter what someone says I can argue with it. Maybe I'm wrong but I can usually convince someone I'm right for at least a little while. Or maybe I should have been in sales.
"He could make a woman in white gloves eat a ketchup popsicle"
Love Leah
Wednesday night we went to L'Astrolabe which is the venue of Orléans and I was pleasantly surprised at the sound quality there. There was a battle of the bands sort of thing going on but not like in Austin where, whoever has the most fans wins. Here there were actually judges. There were all different styles of jazz and some of the best saxophone playing I've ever heard. Not that I'm an expert on sax playing or anything but whatever, it was really good. I'm hoping they'll have some more good concerts because I was looking on the wall at who had come through there and it gave me high hopes that someone cool might play soon. There was however one band who totally sucked. (yep it's time for the rant) They were called the sound orchestra or something dumb like that. There were maybe 6 of them on stage, a dj, a bassist (with 6 strings mind you), a trombone player, a sax player etc... I guess since the bassist had a six string bass I assumed that they would either be good or reeaaalllly bad. Because honestly who buys a six string bass unless your trying to show off. Really good bassists can do amazing things on 4 or 5. So anyway, they turned out to be reeaallllly bad. They were just making noise. There was no rhyme or reason and it wasn't even pretty noise. The bassist was rubbing a spoon on the strings to play it. Oh I get it, that's why you need six strings, more surface area to rub your spoon on. It was ridiculous. At first we gave it a chance just in case they were just fooling us and were gonna break into some mad funk or something. Wrong. They made noise for thirty minutes. I'm sure in their dweeby minds they are making a statement about how music can mean anything. About the principle of jazz music and being avante garde and creative. Look dudes, there is a reason that people play music the way they do, because it sounds good. People have been playing music for thousands of years based on the musical theory we use today... because it sounds good. And really isn't that the principle of music? I think when people are being obstinate like that, just being different because its cool to be different, they are really missing their mark. Its hard for me to believe they actually thought what they were doing was good and interesting, but I imagine if I asked them they would have this speech prepared about what music really is and how they're redefining the scope of musical appreciation. A lot of big words to say nothing... I lived in Austin for 5 years I know how to spot musical bullshitters.
Then again maybe it made them feel good and happy to play that "music" and I can't hate on that.
Lately I've been thinking about how I should have been a lawyer, no matter what someone says I can argue with it. Maybe I'm wrong but I can usually convince someone I'm right for at least a little while. Or maybe I should have been in sales.
"He could make a woman in white gloves eat a ketchup popsicle"
Love Leah
Friday, March 5, 2010
Its a Lame One
There are two common english words that you quickly learn cannot be said in a french classroom;
Beach and Sheet. So now I say, do you like to go to the ocean and will you please take out a piece of paper.
Besides all that, classes are going ok. I still have issues with one of the classes full of 12 year olds at the ghetto school. There is this one kid that always starts teasing the other one, but quietly so I cant hear and when the other one retaliates the first kid screams at me "MISSES MISSES HE SAY ZE BAD WORD!!!!!" Of course I tell him not to interrupt me and that "if you hadnt called him a douchebag first, he might not have called you a dickhead." So that way he learns cause and effect with his english. I also taught them the golden rule. No, not that whoever has the gold makes the rules... you know the one you learned when you were little and that most people quickly forgot. Yes that one, do unto others as you would have done unto you. Obviously they don't understand...
Anyway, its not too long before my parents come. YAY. That means Im getting peanut butter :) Im excited. Then after that its not too long before this job is over and I come back to the US. I've been looking for jobs for next year here and finally I got an interview as an english teacher at a university in Grenoble. But guess what... the interview is the day that my parents are here. So I asked for another day but its not looking good. Oh well its at least encouraging to get an interview.
Sorry France, you'll have to put up with me a little longer.
Love Leah
Beach and Sheet. So now I say, do you like to go to the ocean and will you please take out a piece of paper.
Besides all that, classes are going ok. I still have issues with one of the classes full of 12 year olds at the ghetto school. There is this one kid that always starts teasing the other one, but quietly so I cant hear and when the other one retaliates the first kid screams at me "MISSES MISSES HE SAY ZE BAD WORD!!!!!" Of course I tell him not to interrupt me and that "if you hadnt called him a douchebag first, he might not have called you a dickhead." So that way he learns cause and effect with his english. I also taught them the golden rule. No, not that whoever has the gold makes the rules... you know the one you learned when you were little and that most people quickly forgot. Yes that one, do unto others as you would have done unto you. Obviously they don't understand...
Anyway, its not too long before my parents come. YAY. That means Im getting peanut butter :) Im excited. Then after that its not too long before this job is over and I come back to the US. I've been looking for jobs for next year here and finally I got an interview as an english teacher at a university in Grenoble. But guess what... the interview is the day that my parents are here. So I asked for another day but its not looking good. Oh well its at least encouraging to get an interview.
Sorry France, you'll have to put up with me a little longer.
Love Leah
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