The Universal You

That’s when you say “you” in English, with the intention of not just addressing one person, but several. You see in English there is no plural form for you anymore. Evidently, that went the way of the English possession of Southwestern France at the end of the middle ages. Though naturally (and as an aside) there remains a hell of a lot of vestiges of the English presence- from the passion for rugby in the region, to Rue Richard Coeur de Lion in La Reole.

I am somewhat bitter that there is no separate plural you, but it does allow me the opportunity to explain to my classes the intricacies of a mixed group being addressed as “guys”, “dudes”, and “peeps”- at least once we’ve cleared the hurdle of “how is everyone?” (Everyone is fine- at all times and all places, no matter what- except for the occasional brave soul who is just ok).

That, and it just seems really new age too, to refer to it as the Universal You, it just seems like a ploy to make people feel empowered and connected. I think linguists picked up the term from watching infomercials at 3 AM.

Sometimes when I’m thinking about languages, and the fact that no matter how good of a dictionary you have, you can never overcome how no two languages exactly parallel each other. Even English and French, which are quite similar, never really match up too well- especially when you get past the basics. The problem, which is of course the problem with everything- is people. At issue is the fact that language is tied to culture and worldview. One can argue all day, which came first- the language or the way of life- are the French so structured and precise in their social practice because their language requires it, or vice versa?

Either way, it doesn’t matter- the point is, one can speak another language perfectly (not that anyone would accuse me of doing so) without truly grasping the intrinsic or implied meanings which may be obvious for a native. But what do I know. At the end of the day, language is made up of basically arbitrary sounds, which have no actual metaphysical correspondence with that which they describe- other than perhaps for the occasional otomatapiae.

My problem- which I think I share with many people who are learning a second language, is that I am far too “first language centric”. Sometimes I fall into feeling like, for example- a bed is what the thing I sleep on is actually called- while the French just happen to call it a lit. It’s all very Platonic, if Plato’s creator of forms spoke English that is. Upon further reflection, I suppose I need to learn Greek, or else I’ll never get a legitimate night’s sleep again.

The other direction it can go is just existential despair (this is France of course). The sinking realization is that language and words are in fact inherently meaningless- In the most vicious way possible of course. But that’s no fun- besides meaninglessness isn’t all that bad.

I shall now attempt to explain why in lieu of a blog entry, I wrote a sociology paper.

For those of you who know me well, know that when life gets difficult and I don’t feel like dealing with it, I retreat into the safe havens of pseudo intellectual unnecessary-isms. This time is no exception. I’ve had a bit on my mind as it is- what with the impending vacation, and all that that includes. But also I’ve come to realize that that means afterward, I’ve got to start deciding what comes next. And actually deciding and doing something about it to. Voici the rub.

I really didn’t expect time to go by this quickly, so it’s strange to think that my job is actually pretty much half over. Furthermore, I didn’t think Jon would be getting here so fast- its going to be amazing, but I know that he’ll be here and gone in what’ll seem like seconds. But that’s the way it always is- I could have sworn I was better at living in the moment than this.

You see, I really want to do this again next year. And I know that I need to begin that process immediately, but of course I have procrastinated- just like last year, probably because I love parallels. At any rate, I know that I will eventually return to the States at some point. I’m not in any way bothered by that fact, I love it there and my entire life is there. But slumming around Europe is a pretty cool way to make a living as well, and I want to prolong it as long as possible.

But I know it can’t go on forever- not as a language assistant anyway. So that means I’ve got to find something that I can actually do permanently, and I suppose that unnerves me.

So, there’s that.

But the future holds nothing as compared to Monday, when it comes to my being unnerved.

So, as I am waiting Monday afternoon for my train to take me back to La Reole from my most recent weekend in Bordeaux- a group of police officers come up to me and demand to see my passport. This has happened to me before- though only once, and that was actually on the train itself- not just out of nowhere. So, I show him my passport and I expect that to be it. He looks at it, and then flips to the visa page. He arrives there, and points out to me that my visa has expired. Dammit.

(I should point out that this is not unexpected- my visa is only valuable long enough for me to apply for my resident card)

So, he asks to see my carte de sejour- my resident card- which the government still hasn’t gotten for me yet. Lovely. Now, in the mean time- they do give you a receipt for the application- which lasts for a long time. But naturally I don’t have that on my person. So, to my horror- the officer has to take me aside and call the prefecture- the regional government, to make sure whether or not I am legit. All in all, it wasn’t a huge deal, since I do have my papers in order and everything. And it all took only like 5 minutes all told. But it sure seemed longer.

That, and during the ordeal I managed to lose most of my French abilities due to stress- which really made it a lot more fun for all involved I’m sure.

So right, that’s what’s new in my life. Nothing too thrilling I suppose. But it only accelerates from here on out. I wish it would slow down, but it’s picking up steam, much to my chagrin.

It looks like I might have found an apartment in Bordeaux (crosses fingers) which I might be able to move into in January. So, we’ll see how that works out. It would be nice to spend the rest of the school year in my own place on the days I don’t work. Settle into a nice domestic life. Heh.

Finally, Friday morning- Mr. Jon Boyette shows up in Bordeaux, and it is going to kick some serious ass. First Bordeaux, then La Reole, then up to Paris and all of this culminating in a trip to lovely (I’m assuming) Kettering, England for Christmas with an old friend and former French Prof. Matt Kemp. Hell yes.

And then, just when it seemed it couldn’t get better- back to Paris and Bordeaux to spend new years with my family. Rock on.

So, if I’m not around for a while on this medium, rest easy with the knowledge that I’m doing something that is even more fulfilling that writing in my blog.

Peace.

Goals

So first, in the human events section- Maria, the Spanish assistant has left Bordeaux and La Reole entirely to head back to Spain for a real job that pays a heck of a lot better than being an assistant. Which is great for her, and not unexpected- but a real shame for me. Because she was really cool, and was essentially my French teacher. Oh well, I'm sure I can find other people to learn French from. On the positive side though, now I have some place to crash if and when I visit Spain.


Anyway... I've had to readjust my outlook a tad since I hopped the pond.

I had a bit of a pie in the sky attitude towards my ability to survive in France before I left. I really liked the idea of being fluent in French, and perhaps really soaking up life in a small town. I really didn't appreciate how crappy my French skillz truly were. I conveniently ignored how much trouble I had understanding simple spoken conversation in French when I was studying it at FSU. I think I assumed that now that it was "real" and "submersion" I would just jump on in and "get it" and whatever other buzz words I can through out.

I think that I also didn't grasp the gravitas of what an immersion experience really is. My fault.
I think that the first time I recall feeling meaningfully frustrated with my immersion is when I had to come to terms with the fact that I couldn't be as funny as I wanted to be. Thats not to say that watching me make a fool of myself isn't humorous, at least a little- but what I'm talking about is the ability to be intentionally funny. Thats the rub.

Looking back over the past couple months, I think the happiest I've been with the French is when I can make them chuckle by appropriately using their language in conjunction with my wit to make something both (reasonably) grammatically correct, and at the same time ammusing. Yeah... it doesn't happen often- but occasionally there is a serendipitous juxtaposition between something funny I want to say, and a way for me to say it with my somewhat petite vocab... and those times have made my stay worth it.

However, while Ino longer attempt to both break laws of grammar and physics at the same time (see: j'ai arrive demain) I am not excactly speaking french couramment. So, I am working on not being so timid, and just putting myself out there more and more, because if I don't speak and make mistakes and accept correction and learn and blah blah blah ........ I will never get better, but instead just remain more and more afraid to learn. Ah well, no biggie.
So, I have updated what I want from the near future between me and Francais: dans le futur proche.


1. I need to eventually learn to say voila without feeling like a complete tool. I blame American's poor usage of the word, because it's soooo tacky when thrown in randomly in an English conversation. However, within its legitimate context, its absolutely invaluable- I just can't normally bring myself to say it without either doing it quite haultingly, or feeling like a phony.

2. I should probably sit down, just me and a text book and unlock the mysteries of venir (the verb, to come) . It would be so useful, but I have only passing familiarity with its uses and conjugation. Which is a real shame since i attempt to use it daily, and i typically don't usually completely follow right away when someone uses it in conversation- then I feel dumb.

3. The French have much cooler and more concise phrases, but, just like my problems with voila I can't help but feel silly using them. For example Bon Appetite, I know its polite to wish it to people when you eat, but all I can think of is the damn food magazine- so yeah. I need to get over that. But there are other good ones. Of course there's bon week-end, bonne journee, bon apres-midi & bonne soiree. But my favorite has to be bonne continuation- its just so no nonsense.

4. Just in general, I need to work in some more adjectives into my daily speech, and it would be cool if I could eventually wean myself off of the cognates. Because not everything is superbe, or fantastique after all. But at the same time, I feel pretty cool and American when I refer to most things as c'est cool. I hope that it burns into their heads that cool is our word first, and only theirs on loan. Either that or its our way of saying thanks for rendez-vous, encore and menage-a-trois.

We'll call it even.

I Have

Where to begin?

Strange times are afoot here in France. I'm in that 6 weeks of nonvacation that afflicts me from time to time. So, what do the French do when they have to work? Well, sometimes they go on strike. Voila! Thats what we have going on at the moment. That and I am enjoying my first real Autumn in years. Finally, the seasons actually, visibly change. The colours are incredible, and being from Florida, its nice to experience some cold weather for once.

Me, I have been hit with the double whammy of a teacher's strike at the same time as my 3rd rail strike in as many months in the country. Because they can't help but fullfull steriotypes. Its not really a big deal, just fun to observe. It really wouldn't feel like the truest french experience if not for the greves. At any rate, life marches on, even when the trains don't.

Since vacation ended, I've been back in La Reole during the week and spending less and less time out and about. I tend to prefer doing things when I am in Bordeaux. I think the charm of a small village is lessened a bit due to my French prohibiting me from taking full advantage. That and everyone at my school encouraging the hell out of me to get away on the weekends. So, there has been no real attempt to get to know the town, other than the occasional cafe and trips to the supermarche.

The final straw in this regard was that Maria, the Spanish assistant moved to Bordeaux. Now, I really am tout seule here. Oh well. My friends in Bordeaux, Shannon and Danielle bought a futon, which they refer to as "Mitch's futon"... nice. But despite having friends willing to put up with me on weekends, I really need to find a place of my own after Christmas- so I can have a place for people to visit me. Sweet.

Classes continue to get better and better. I feel sorry for the students I had in the first couple groups, because I really had no idea what I was doing in front of a room of students. Now, I kinda sorta do, which I suppose is an improvement. That, and my communication with the students has improved. Before when the kids spoke French, either to me or to eachother, I had a hell of a time trying to decipher. Now I'm a bit better, which tends to make things go smoother I hope.

I do intend on doing this next year, but that all depends on where I get placed. I really would like to go to Bordeaux again, but I suppose at the same time I should plan on moving on with my life, and doing grad school before I get too old. Hehe. Whatever.

Recently, Bordeaux has gotten fun. I went to my first show since I got here. Devendra Banhart. If you are unfamilliar, he is a folk singer from San Fransico, and very cool. The show was a bit expensive, but it turned out to be worth it. They played for a solid 2 or so hours, and the best part besides the music of course was that the between song banter was in English- so me and Katie- who went with me were about the only ones who knew what was going on. Good times.

So, thats about it. I'm not so much in a rut as I am in a comfortable place. Thanksgiving is tomorrow, and I am working. Oh well, I'll try to do something seasonal I guess. Who knows. Ciao.

Life (How to Look, Feel, Act and Smell Homeless for only 100 Euro's a Day)

I think the most plausible reason for my prolonged absence here lately has to be that after my pilgrimage to Oscar Wilde's grave I had to face the reality that I will never be even half of his stature as a writer. So, i spiraled into depression, and every time I tried to write, I couldn't go through with it.

Either that or I have been too busy living la vie francaise to stop and write about it.
Maybe a synthesis of the two.

At any rate, sorry to all who still check here, in (almost a) month since my last post. Rest assured, my life is still amazing, and I am both alive, and frenchish. See, the thing is the French schools have a lot of paid vacation during which I am practically forced to travel. Oh well, it could always be worse.

So, since I have let so much time slip away, I am not sure of the best way to systematically update the masses on my life. I think bullet points are necessary, then a brief exposition shall follow.

• Teaching is still pretty good- the good kids make it all worth it, those who really want to learn. In general its pretty easy, and I have been somewhat lazy when it comes to prepping for classes. Oh well.
• Vacation was amazing. I went to Paris for 4 days, which was what I expected it to be-- Big (too big) and packed with stuff you have to see when you go to France. Though by the end of the trip there I was ready to head back "home" to Bordeaux
• Also during the Vacation I spent 3 days in Lourdes, in the Pyrenees. It was amazing, and I took an excursion even deeper into the mountains. It was really important to me to see the mountains again before it got too cold. Cirque de Gavernies is something everyone should try to see.
• Bordeaux feels like home now. I know the city well, and I am there literally every weekend. Myself and several English assistants have settled into a solid core of friends. Its a good thing. I am now completely certain that I will be moving into the city after Christmas.
• I climbed the tallest sand dune in Europe, then ran down it to the Ocean. hell yeah

So yeah, thats my life in summary. That and I've been drinking alot of wine. Its been alot of fun. I've given up on drinking beer simply due to economics. I bought a 7.50 E beer in Paris, which pretty much convinced me that I would never live in Paris. But since thats about the only negative I have to report, things must be going well.

So I lied. The other negative is FSU football. But isn't it always like that this time of year? You can set your watch to it. Oh well, by October, I am used to looking forward to Basketball season, which should probably be a solid 20 win season for the third year in a row, not that it matters, since we will still just be in the NIT. Because we are FSU.

As described above, my vacation pretty much kicked ass. What I failed to mention is that I was literally forced by my school to live on the road for the duration. Right before the vacation commenced, I made what I believed to be small talk with the people at my school about my plans for vacation. I told them I would be out and about, which they mentioned to be a good
idea.

What they didn't tell me was that the internat would be locked up and inaccessible during the holidays so unbeknownst to me, the things I took in my backpack that friday would have to last me for two weeks. Glad I brought a change of clothes. So, i lived on the kindness of friends, and hotels for vacation.

Evan and I went to Paris, and did all of the necessary things there.
We climbed the Eiffel Tower, because you know its so much better than taking the elevator. Sans doubte. Did the Louvre for a solid six hours. It was neat and all, but by the end it was just a painful walk through.

I did experience something crazy though, as I was leaving the Eiffel Tower, Evan and I ran into our friend Esther from Bordeaux. How do you have a chance meeting like that in a city of 5 million? Then to top it off, when I was in Arcachon with some friends to see the Dune De Pyla, we ran into Esther there! Crazy.

So, after Paris, and a couple more days in between in Bordeaux, I was ready to go to the mountains again to pass the time. So i headed to Lourdes in the Pyrenees. It happens to be the largest Catholic pilgrimage site in France. Wow, the cheese factor was high there, enough kitsch to make Christian bookstore owners blush. But the mountains were incredible, and the train ride into the city was amazing as well. Unfortunately, my camera, which i did not charge before the holidays died before I saw the truly impressive stuff past Lourdes. Oh well, I guess i'll have to go back sometime.

So that was my vacation. Now i am back in La Reole for school, and yeah... I am moving into the city after christmas. I'd only be there for the weekend, but its quite awkward begging for couches from friends literally every weekend. So i am going to get a room at one of the Youth Foyers, and still sleep at the internat during the school week, and then have a place to live on the three day weekend in Bordeaux. I think it will be worth it, since my life really is in Bordeaux, and I have made plenty of friends. Yeah, sweet.

Upcoming... Mr. Jon Boyette will be moving to Europe in December. He'll be in England for his job, but you best believe he'll be visiting, and me the same. But before he starts the job, he's going to stay with me for a week or so in France and then we are gonna do it up in Paris before Christmas. Its going to rock.


So, sorry about the infrequency thing. Paix.

When I Was Yellow

Just a small update this time, I think.

I like teaching. Its pretty fun. Of course, I only have groups 1/3 or smaller than a "real" class- that and we are doing such simple things that I really have no idea what teaching is actually. But I like what I'm doing. Whatever it is. So, in class- we have been playing vocabish grammary type games, which the kids seem to enjoy I suppose, and it gets the job done.

My strategy these days is to go somewhere. Anywhere, but somewhere else on the weekend. Because La Reole is a bit slow. Bit slow. Last weekend I was in Bordeaux, and really had a great time. The one issue was that England had the audacity to beat France in rugby. I might be the most Anglo person in the world to have been saddened by the game, but I've gotta keep up apperances of course.

The game experience was pretty awesome though. They have some huge tv streams set up in downtown Bordeaux by the river and the place was packed and the crowd was very lively. I watched the match there with some other assistants, almost all of them from the British Isles... guess who they were rooting for? We had a box of 6 bottles of wine (Bordelaise of course) which we made short work of, particularly me and my Irish buddy, Rob.

In other news, the Spanish assistant at my school pretty much illustrates the difference between Europe and the United States. Me, I speak a bit of French and for the most part can communicate. Hmm. Yeah. However, she kicks my ass any day of the week she choses.

Upon arriving, she found me and- as is natural in this country- begins speaking to me in French. I do my best, but fail pretty decently. Finally, exasperated, she says "can I please just speak to you in English, I really need to know what's going on here".

Thats right! She speaks English, French and Spanish perfectly. Why not me? Hmm. Well, maybe by the time I leave. We'll see. But she's been very cool, and it's nice to have someone else around my age with whom I can hang out with. That and because of her, I have the courage to explore the townie bars, without feeling completely awkward.

I need to plan what I am doing for the upcoming All Saints holiday, nine days from now. Paris for sure, and maybe a trip to Sweden. We'll see.

Living in French

Its funny how a little linguistic misstep can cause you to reappraise the world you live in.

Its also perhaps funny that it wasn't my own that has forced me to ponder things. Not for lack of opportunities, but call it censorship for reasons of economy . After all, if I were to mention one of my own malapropism's it wouldn't be fair to leave any out... the situation would cascade out of control.

Can't have that.

So, I've been in France for a month. Pretty strange, I still am taken by the oddity, just as often as it feels like home. Occasionally when I wake up, my first thoughts are to remind myself where I'm at. Other times- well- of course I live in France. Gotta live somewhere.

As I have been observing classes, and began to teach, I get asked a lot of questions- which is fun. One question in particular has gotten under my skin lately. One girl asked me how I like "living in French". She quickly corrected herself, "living in France"- but the damage to my fragile psyche had already been done.

Living in France is an incredible experience, like nothing I've ever imagined, and very little drawbacks thus far. Living in French is a different story. Its a tad bit unrelenting. I try not to let it become a problem- however its fun to muse about the good ole days when I could go into a store, restaurant, ect. and be reasonably certain that I could communicate efficiently.

Its funny to think that most of the time, its quite difficult for me to have anything but a passing conversation with the people on the street. Its just a different world, but its a fun challenge. My French is steadily improving, even my English teachers tell me so- but I miss being able to be (intentionally) funny, or at least not have to hurt my brain every time I want to discuss the future- past- or anything involving... ugh... the subjunctive.

See, French has never been more than a passing hobby. Sure, back in school it was fun for a while, but after a good 10-15 minutes of speaking broken French with another American, you would feel sufficiently snobby enough to relapse back into the mother tongue. After all, it was just messing around.

No biggie, just a new paradigm.

So as they say- this is the big leagues now... play times over and this is for real. Uhm... if you ain't cheatin you ain't tryin.

Anyway, out of metaphysics and into the disquisition.

As stated in previous blogs-so far things are amazing, and I haven't been nearly as homesick as I should be. The people at my school have been more than kind to me- they drive me to the supermarket, they have furnished my room, they make sure I get my laundry done. Yeah, it rocks. But, its La Reole- a lovely town, with a shortage of entertainment options.

I spent the last weekend in this minitropolis, and I do think that it will be the only time I do so. Evan came and hung out on Saturday, but we couldn't even find a supermarche to buy some beer to consume during the rugby match... Then sunday, one of the ladies I worked with arranged to have me go with her and her traditional Gascon dance troupe to a fete in a small town in the next department over.

Thanks to my wonderful oral comprehension, I wasn't particularly sure what I was getting into until I got there, which made for an exciting car trip. But it was alot of fun, I got a chance to speak with people in the town that I wouldn't have otherwise, and they were all extremely nice and it was a good experience.

Finally though, I've started "teaching" if you can call what I do in there "teaching". I will refer to it as such, and will even go so far as to remove the "" from the word "teaching" from here onward.

My teaching method thus far is a bit difficult to describe, I think you could call it post avant garde, which is probably a euphemism for crap. It seems like teaching a foreign language, in said language, to teens is definitely walking a razors edge. On one side, if you talk down to them, you lose. On the other side, its over before it starts if you talk above them.

The real fun is when their comprehension is so low you manage to do both at the same time. Welcome to my world.

That isn't to say that its been bad- some of the classes have been marvelous. Just today I had two different classes of three girls each, both of which went great, and we had good conversation, and I day say they seemed interested in speaking most of the time.

Then... I had a class from the vocational side of the school. Yeah. I went over like a lead balloon. I spent the whole hour asking questions that were supposed to lead into interesting discussion, but instead got one word, off topic, and occasionally franglais replies. Can't win em all.

Fortunately, my teachers are extremely sympathetic, and they realize I'm not going to work miricles with everyone. But there are some students who do certainly want to improve, and its best to focus on that.

This weekend, back to Bordeaux- the semi finals of the rugby world cup are here and Saturday its France vs. England!!! Hell yeah. Hope you all are doing well.

Later on.

Bollocks

well, i had a long Post mostly all written out, and then I managed to delete my progress.

It had a lot of good stuff about my goings on in Bordeaux last weekend. My assistant's orientation in Bordeaux, and a nice write-up about not being able to return to La Reole until the morning because of my First French Rail strike... But thats all gone.

You would have read about how the people in my school at La Reole have been amazing, they gave me a fridge in the room they also gave me. They helped me set up a bank account, otherwise I would still be there 8 hours later, looking helpless and mumbling quoi...? to myself.

That and someone set me up with the schools laundry equipment, and drove me to a supermarche for some provisions to go with the fridge. So much for the French being unfriendly, eh?

Yeah... well you will never find out about all that due to my carelessness.

but I do leave you with an anecdote.

I started observing classes today at my school, and the students were asking me questions (in English) and it was lovely.

Then, one of the students asks if I spoke French.It is at this point the teacher, who is my responsable, starts laughing, presumably at the thought of me trying to speak French.

Yeah.

And he tried to stop, but couldn't for a while.

Good to have a rep.

Well, sorry for the truncated post. More to come when I feel like it. Love you all, other than those of you who found my blog randomly. But I am at least fond of you.

It's Raining, It's PAU-ring

Well, I've been "living"/wandering/mooching/drinking in France for what will soon be three weeks, and I haven't started my strenious 12 hour work weeks yet. Therefore it seemed that I needed to do the French thing, and take a vaccation. Fortunately for me, Evan agreed and we decided to head south east, into the Pyrenees-Atlantique department of Aquitaine to check out the City of Pau.

We hoped we would avoid the bad weather in Bordeaux by going south, but that didn't entirely work out. But the views of the mountains were still incredible. So Tuesday we headed out to Pau, which is about 2 hours by train, and for the most part a fairly boring trip through pine forests and corn fields. But the closer to Pau, the prettier the scenery becomes.

When we arrived in Pau, we met up with another English assistant who will be living there, and we decided to check out the Chateau, which housed Henri IV, who is probably my favorite French king. So we took the tour, in French- which was kind of fun, even if I didn't neccisarily follow it entirely. After which we parted ways and Evan and I tried to find the hotel we had reservations at.... this is where it gets fun....

So, we get a bus map, and decide to take one of the ones that goes to the north side of town, where our discount 30 E hotel is located. We hop on the bus and promptly take it to the extreme south- get off- miss the next bus then wait for half an hour for the following one.

Finally headed in the right direction, we go the entire route north of town- and try to locate the hotel on foot. We must have taken the wrong bus to the north because we walked for nearly an hour until we located it (with some help). Well, at least the hotel itself sucked.

Lets see, it closed its gates at 10, it had an amazingly disgusting communal bathroom, no complementary internet, and no food anywhere nearby unless you took the bus (which of course stopped running at 8)--- this killed any chances of doing anything that evening. We got our revenge though, as we tracked a days worth of suburban hiking through our room with vigour. So, we checked out a day early and found a more expensive but well worth it, hotel in the center of town, and started fresh the next day.

(I should also mention we ordered a 5 cheese pizza, delivered- it was good- it had brie- sweet)

So, with one day to do Pau, I basically did what I was doing in Bordeaux, wandering. Stopping. Eating. Wandering.

I did get some really good Basque chocholates though- that was fun. Unfortunately the clouds never did let up completely, but that did create a nice effect, if difficult to reproduce photographically. We wen't out that night with Kate to get something to drink, ended up with a bottle of the local red wine, which was pretty good. I'm going to try to make a point of sampling the local stuff whereever I go, that'd be cool I think.

Unable to find the must see sights after the chateau and the Av. des Pyrenees, we decided to head out a bit earlier than scheduled. Back to Bordeaux- and then me back to La Reole. Its strange how quickly a completely foreign place becomes home so quickly. If only I could speak my neighbors language, eh? Eventually.

Next up, Back to Bordeaux again. May as well live it up before orientation on Wend. Then... the job actually starts on the 7th.

My Favorite Cognates- La Bieramide. (that and an update about La Reole)

Well, I haven't updated in a long time. But I have a good excuse. Maybe two. I have a ton of mixed emotions about things, and more recently, I have been quite busy running around Bordeaux. Since my last post, I have moved to my charming little village of La Reole- sat in my enormous and free room, and have wondered what the hell I was doing in France. At the same time, it really doesnt get much better than what I have going for me at the moment... And I do what I can to keep that at the forefront.

Its absurd to think that I am living in France, making decent money, and doing so for free. It doesnt seem right. La Reole is a charming place. The trainride into town last tuesday went through some beutiful wine country. I was pleasantly suprised with how hilly it is. That is until I tried getting my luggage into town. Oh well. The town is very picturesque, and the school is at the top of the hill overlooking the river. tres jolie. Since my arrival there, everyone has been so extremely nice to me. It really is so amazing. They have provided me with a place to stay for free- my own room in the boarding school, with the keys to access everywhere else I want, I am quite fortunate. While the boarding school itself doesn't have an adjoining kitchen, I am intitled to meals at the school for a mere 2,40 E a meal, which are really nothing like school food in the states. The teachers and I drink wine with them! Sweet.

I've met many of the students, and we had a good time figuring out the best and most expedient way to communicate- with varying success depending on the topic. But they have been nice, and its been fun for the most part. Despite all of their openness to me, after a few days, I came to realize that I have nothing really to do in the town- as the job doesn't actually begin until October 7.

The language gap began to wear at me, and I began to feel more and more out of place since I had yet to take on any official capacity in the school, I started to get a bit bored, and a tad bit timid. I hope that my timidity didn't rub people the wrong way at the school, because they are more than wonderful , but I think that it caused me to keep from updating my blog...

So, as the weekend approached I planned on spending it with my friends in Bordeaux. The great thing is, my English teacher at the school lives in Bordeaux, and he even drove me into town- they really have gone out of their way to help me.

Since Friday I have been back in Bordeaux hanging out with Evan, and meeting new assistants in town. Although I had to spring for a hotel for the weekend, since no one had moved into an appartment for me to crash at yet, it was worth it to get to meet everyone. My first night in, Evan and I watch France DESTROY Ireland in rugby 25-3. During which we did the only appropriate thing and drink some Kronenbourg- the only decent French beer. Voila- la photo.

I stayed at an awesome and yet affordable hotel in Bordeaux from Saturday night to Monday morning which came complete with a kitchenette and cooking equipment--- and sketchiest of all-- the maid hadn't been to my room before i checked in, so there was food in the fridge. Salmon chunklets, and two chicken fillets. I hadn't as of then been able to show of my culenary genius, so this gave me my chance...

My friend Carolyn had some rice on hand... so we attempted to make a lunch of salmon and rice, with some fake butter (also from the fridge) as the only seasoning. I'm pretty sure that there's better catfood to be had. However dinner was a bit better, with the help of wine, galic salt and some bread, the chicken was pretty decent i guess. Niether of us got sick, which I suppose is the best that could have happened.

I have met with about 7 assistants in Bordeaux now, and its nice to make connections and be able to speak English, but I suppose it will make going to La Reole again a bit harder. Though I can feel that my French is getting better every day. Forstalling my return there, and because it seems neccisary to travel some before the job starts, Evan and I are traveling to the city of Pau, in the Pyrénées to see some more of the country before we begin our jobs. There will be pictures I assure you. That and I am sorry it has taken me so long to update. Don't hate me.

Quand Bordelais Eyes are Smiling

So, Almost a week into my French travels... and so much good has happened. I can even get people to almost understand whatever the hell it is I am saying when I speak the language.

For the past couple of days, the Rugby fans have made hotels so scarce that Evan and I had to backtrack to the Suburb of Merignac, near the airoport (and nothing else) to find a hotel. This looked to be a serious problem for us- the first day after we checked in, we tried to find our way to some sort of recogizable civilization- and somewhere to eat.... We easily walked 3 miles until we got to the Merignac centre-ville. We choose the first restaurant- which was a semi-creepy pizza place, where we split a pizza, which was really quite good.


(as an aside, and because I have made worse gaffes already, I need to explain the situation surrounding our bill)

After eating, the waiter approaches us and asks us If we are ready for "l'addition" the bill. Thinking that it had something to do with ordering more food, Evan says "no, merci", because I suppose in all honesty it would be better if we didn't have to pay. As Steve Martin said... Its like the French have a different word for everything.

Refreshed, we depart and continue trying to find something to do, so far from the city. It apeared that we would have to find out what the hell is up with the city's public transport. A ways down the road was the first stop in the tram line streaching from Merignac to Bordeaux proper. After fumbling around for a bit with the machine we finally unlocked its secrets--- for 1,30 E. you can get a ticket that allows you unlimited access to both trams and buses for one hour. For more money you can go longer, and so on and so forth.

It is at about this point we realize that there is a bus stop at the corner by the hotel. Damn.

For the past two days I have been traveling by bus and tram all over Bordeaux. Seeing new sites, and sometimes just going places already traversed just because its more fun when you arn't walking it. If only I had a bit more boldness in me I would have found out about this marvelous system earlier. Ah well.

On a more international note, I watched my first rugby match last night. Ireland (the Irish more or less own the city at the moment) vs Georgia. Not the state, but the cetral asian country--- at first I rooted for Georgia as the underdog, until I realized that the hotel I'm at would be filled with drunk angry Irish--- I quickly changed my allegences out of fear.

Rugby seems to be a very interesting sport, but since it was announced in French, which I can only slightly understand when spoken at normal speeds, and am hopeless with at sportscaster speed- it took a while for me to figure out what was going on.

From what I could tell, it was a good, close match and a bit of a defensive struggle. Kind of like the FSU game, because it would apperantly be imposible for the Noles to break 20 against the likes of Colorado. In both games, the good guys won- and the Irish are happy drunks today.

Next up... I've got to figure out the train situation since I am off to La Reole on Tuesday. Here's hoping that my next post will be from a permenant situation, since living out of my suitcase is starting to become a bit expensive. Cheers.

moi, je suis americain.

I have heard that you can spot a tourist because they are always looking up. If thats so, than thats just another way that I can be identified. My french is a bit rusty... as the woman who took my lunch order found out. At one point I made the claim that I arrived in France tomorrow- the laws of physics seem to disagree.

But things are generally pretty agreeable. I met with one of the English teachers at my school, and he has been extremely helpful with everything. Apparently, my school can offer me a place to live at the bording school if I so choose. The teacher, Pascal, who I met with advises me to commute from Bordeaux, which is what he does. However, I think I would much prefer the convenience of living in La Reole and then doing the commute into town whenever I want the city atmosphere. We'll see.

I'm scheduled to meet with everyone at the school on tuesday at 11ish, hopefully I can make my way through the train station decently. Unfortunately for me and Evan, we don't have hotels lined up from Saturday through Monday night. I suppose thats what is on the agenda tomorrow.
If everything goes the way that I want I will start living in La Reole soon, so hopefully I won't be living out of hotels. That would be nice. Then I will actually feel like I have a life here, and will be a little less touristy...

Well, thats all for now.

Play La Marseillaise, Play it.

So, I'm in France. I'm in my little hotel room in Downtown Bordeaux, which is swarmed by rugby fans, and I am finding it difficult to believe that I am here.

What's perhaps more shocking is how smoothly everything went in my travels. Everything from drinking up as much wine as Air France would offer me, to me actually being able to navigate through Charles De Gaulle and make my connection. I even found my hotel without much difficulty, walking around like a stupid and fatigued tourist in a brand new city/country/continent/language.

Along the way I met some helpful and interesting people, not the least of which was the old man in Place Gambetta, who pointed me (mostly) in the right direction to my hotel.

But the day was not without its failures, even though it mostly went perfectly. I have done what I can to use French as the first option when engaging people--- however, for the most part, the response has been a slight smirk, and a response in English. J'espere que je peuvais parler francais juste un peu comme les francais...

Tomorrow I meet up with one of the English teachers at my lycee, and meet up with Evan, who is another assistant with whom I am splitting hotels. That and I hope I'll be able to get out and see more of my new city.

My Last Weeks Here- A Review

I really had hope that I would have had reason to write an entry concerning how great FSU was doing on the football field this year. Ah well, reality threw a wrench in that one, and its going to be a long year.

Despite the let downs in Clemson and Tallahassee, I remain optimistic that the coaches will turn it around as the year progresses, I suppose time will tell.

All that aside, My waning time here in the states have been quite pleasant. I've been with my family for most of it, and its been great being back home in Jax before the adventure that is France. My mom and step dad have been very accommodating, and I have spent a great deal of my time either sleeping, drinking or watching scrubs- got to get in as much American culture as I can.

Also, I've been able to see a lot of my Dad and Step Mom as well- he just turned 50... Accordingly there was quite the celebration, which allowed me to see the extended family before I left.


However, I did get one last go around in Tally, and got to see most everyone I wanted to one last time. I really will miss that place, and can't wait to get back next year. Well, I head to France tomorrow, so who knows when I will be able to post again. Whats worse, who knows when I'll be able to watch the Noles. I'm off to be French for a bit.


A bientot mes amis...

France, you Tease; or, My Latest Tango with Bureaucracy

So here's the deal. I'm off to France in 10 days. Pretty damn cool, I must admit.

I made the prescribed pilgrimage down to the consulate in Miami last sunday, in order to be near the first in line the next morning- and that worked out nicely, I was #4. Sweet.

Consequently, my parents took me there, and used it as an opportunity for a truncated Miami vacation. Despite having lived in FL since I was 6, I'd never seen Miami before. I need to get out more.

It turned out that the hotel we chose happened to be in the same building as the consulate itself, pretty damn convenient, nice hotel too. Monday morning, I was in the consulate, with my applications, pictures, passport, etc... everything seemed to be in order- then I noticed the signage- NO VISAS WILL BE GIVEN OUT WITHIN 24 hours.

So, I give the woman all of my materials, she checks them out, and says- you can pick up your passport on wend.... ahhhhhh. So, she sees my discomfort at this, and explained that I should give her an express mail envelope and the passport can get mailed to me... So thats what I did- headed to the Post Office, got what I needed, took it back the the consulate and that was that.

My passport arrived today, and that is the very last road block to safely and legally making it to France. Stoked.

I am glad I didn't wait even longer to go to Miami. So, moral of the story is that nothing happens in one day, when dealing with the French Bureaucracy, and this is just phase one. haha, get used to a year full of it. C'est la vie, non?

Wait, what am I doing?

Oh, thats right. Moving to France.

16 days. Starting to feel a bit o' pressure.

Its not so much the new country, or continent. Neither is it being away from family and friends. It isn't that I'll be away from the creature comforts of home. It isn't alot of things.

Mostly its because I don't speak French, which I understand to be crucial over there.

I know, I do speak French. However, its been a while.

Back when I was speaking it on a daily basis- over a year ago- there was always a linguistic safety net. No matter what, you could always break the suspension of disbelief created in a college French course, and parle l'english. Not anymore.

Ah, whatever. No reason to worry. The Whole point of this whole French thing was to do something out of the ordinary for once-- I think living in France qualifies.
And there's no better scenery for learning French then the French countryside (I assume). I do wish I knew the language a bit better though.

(please note, the almost completely superfluous french cartoon featuring Futurama)

Football, Futbol, Football Americain, Soccer & Baseball

My life has been reduced to a series of countdowns for the last couple of months. Most recent of these is (as of today, August 14th) 20 days. No, that isn't when I leave for France, but instead its a much more important day, the first FSU football game. We play Clemson to open the year, on Labor Day, and once again I am in nervous anticipation for the new season. Consequently, it is one of two FSU games that I will be in the US for. Unfortunately, I seriously doubt I will be able to view either in person.

I have to come to grips with the fact that I will be without football americain for a year, other than snipets and scores from whenever i can make it to an internet cafe. This just won't do. I know that to survive I am going to need my sports fix, so I am doing what i can to immerse myself in the ins and outs of European football. I have already adopted my new "hometown team" the Girondins de Bordeaux, who play in League 1, the highest level of French football. I watched their most recent game on saturday, which they won 2-0, and are now tied for the league lead. Of course the season is only two matches old...

Lets not get into Baseball, because while my Braves are just a few games back from the damn Mets, I'll be missing out on the whole playoffs, and the last couple weeks of the regular season. Oh well, these are the sacrifices I make to get to live in France. I'll take one for my teams...

do everything one last time.

So, i'm out of tallahassee in 5 days. I've made peace with the situation, and said most of my goodbyes. It's been a good run, I'm cool with leaving this town. I'm just now experiencing a sort of misguided desire to do everything somewhat meaningful in this town one last time. Its mostly pointless to try to redo things out of pure sentimentality, but whatev.

Add to that, I've been saying my "goodbyes" to people now, for what feels like a month solid. By the time I actually leave it's going to feel rather anticlimactic. Meh, maybe not. We'll see. Next on the agenda; learn to speak french.

the future is now! Yikes.

I'm no fan of the passage of time. I really thought that this summer would last a hell of a lot longer. But its more or less over, and I have about a month 1/2 before I head off to France. I find that alot of me is quite resistant to the whole change thing. That being said, much more of me is stoked out of my mind that I will be in France so damn soon, I really find the whole situation hard to believe (I see that as a function of me never having gone anywhere before) SO... I've got more or less a week left in tallahassee, and a ton of goodbyes to say.

Meanwhile, I haven't started packing, haven't gotten my visa, and haven't heard back from my school. So, the plan is, I'll show up in France, homeless. I really can't imagine a better story. Vive la France.

dix septembre here i come

Well, today I booked my flight. Everything seems to be accelerating faster than I thought it would. Less than one month left in Tallahassee, then I only have one more month in the states after that. I was fortunate to find an inexpensive one way ticket from Jax, not just into France, but into Bordeaux, so my first act in France won't have to be finding my way from CDG to the gare--- which would suck. So now, I will be arriving in Bordeaux with 3 weeks to acclaimate myself with French culture before I have to teach. Ohhh yeahhh.

More on LPO Jean Renou

Well, I managed to find my school online

http://lyceejeanrenou-lareole.net/rubrique.php3?id_rubrique=1

beware, it is (obviously) en francais. it looks absolutely charming, and deffinately small. I've e-mailed them, but haven't heard back. more to come- soon i hope.

La Réole!

I am somewhat amazed that the notoriously slow french bureaucratic system has delivered me my arrete de nomination by mid june. For the next year, starting in septembre, I will be living in the town of La Reole, population 4000. I can't wait, I really wanted a small location that was close to everything. I am 35 miles outside of the city of Bordeaux, and on one of the mail rail lines, which is perfect, since i can get away from the town virtually anytime i want, Bordeaux is minutes away and a trip to Paris or Spain would only be a few hours. Insane. I will be teaching at the LPO Jean Renou, which is the equivalent to an American high school. The School itself is right in the middle of downtown, and a block away from the river. since its such a small town i shouldn't have any problem finding a place to live close enough to walk or ride a bike to work every day. absolutement parfait, n'est pas? Anyway, more to come when I know more.

start... now

Well, this is new- putting my thoughts and experiences out there. Chalk this up as a practice round, the real fun doesn't start til septembre, then things get interesting. so long for now.