What a Wonderful World

Hi friends,

I'm going to let this beautiful video speak for me today...we all have so much to be grateful for in this wonderful, beautiful world.

http://www.flixxy.com/wonderful-world-david-attenborough.htm#.TvR3HRTGwOw.mailto

I said "wow" and "awww" as I watched, and then I watched it again and said the same things. I've watched it three times this morning, and each time it leaves a smile on my face. Hope it does the same for you.

Best wishes to everyone for a love-filled, happiness-filled, gratitude-filled 2012!
love,
Gina

La Nuit du Fruit!

Oh la la...what a fun evening!

A few dear friends came over last night for the first of what I imagine will be a few little housewarming parties. I was showered with beautiful gifts, champagne, cookies, and more fruit than you can imagine! We laughed and laughed and had such fun. Thanks friends...I love every one of you!

Potter played the part of the host, welcoming and rubbing on people in addition to attempting to check on the food once or twice--a duty he was relieved of, and quickly. Gracie played hard to get and hid under the bed. We all have our roles to play, right? 

In addition to having great friends, sweet kitties, and a whole lot of fruit to be thankful for, I'm thankful for the crazy website of FREE case studies I found while working yesterday. I need case studies for a couple of my classes, and I think I may have hit the jackpot.

And I'm thankful for skype, free phone calls to landlines, and all the great technology that lets me keep up with my parents while they're adventuring around.

So what about you? Anything you care to share with me? Thanks for stopping by!

bisous

Time off

Hi friends,

How's it going? Me, I've had a pretty productive day for a day off work. Got the cable situation resolved chez moi. Now I can watch tv in my den...and so much tv! I have an enormous number of channels! I got tired of flipping around 300 and stopped. Who knows how many I actually have. There's a possibility I can call and go down a level. Or two. I didn't want a lot of channels...just a few select ones. Also got caught up on my laundry and got a good amount of work done for two of my courses next semester. Still plenty of work to do, but I feel good having gotten started.

So I'm grateful for the things I got accomplished today, for another seven days off work, for absolutely gorgeous weather today, and for a nice Christmas. I really missed spending it with my parents, but I did get to talk with them a bit.  I hope you all had a great Christmas.

Thanks for stopping by!
bisous

Friends

Hi,

My friends L&P (I don't know if they want to be named, so I'm going with initials) are in town for a few days, and I'm so happy to see them! We had dinner at my favorite restaurant last night...yum, yum, yum. And we're dining together tomorrow night at an as yet unnamed restaurant...we're just gonna try our luck. On Christmas Eve. Yeah, I'll let you know how that goes.

In addition to being grateful for getting to spend some time with great friends over delicious food and having partners in the adventure that Christmas Eve dinner could prove to be, I'm grateful that my favorite restaurant continues to meet my expectations with their delicious food, that I have snoring kitties to the left and right of me, that we are snug in our sweet little apartment, oh, and that I have TEN days off work starting tomorrow! Ok, not totally off work--I have a ton of work to do to prepare for next semester. But I can do 99% of it sitting on my sofa in my pajamas. Pretty good working conditions, huh?

So, what about you? Anything you'd like to share? Thanks for stopping by!

bisous

Feet Treats

Hello friends,

How are you? Things are good here in chilly Paris. Right now I'm particularly thankful for heaters!

My friend Donna and I had talked about needing pedicures (I haven't had one in two years!), and she mentioned a pedi place that she used to visit pretty regularly. So using a tactic my friend Ann and I used from time to time when we wanted something but felt guilty for buying it, we gave each other pedis for Christmas. Clever, non? I am now the owner of cute, professionally painted, Christmas-red toes. Très cute.

A good pedicure feels great, and even though this one wasn't the best, it was a nice treat. I also had another nice treat today--lunch with my friend Philippe and a friend of his. I've found a great little Italian place in my neighborhood, so we went there. Delish.

So I'm thankful for treats for my toes and belly, time with friends, a warm cozy (cute) apartment, a little work this week followed by a full week off next week, and friends coming to visit soon! It's odd not going home for Christmas, and I miss my parents like mad, but Christmas this year will definitely be interesting.

So how about you? Things going well with your Christmas planning? Would love to hear what you're grateful for! Thanks for stopping by.

bisous

Strawberry Twizzlers

Hey friends,

How are you? Are you ready for Christmas?

Today I went to the Marché de Noel at Trocadero. It's beautiful with its little chalets, an ice skating rink, and a little mini version of the Alps in case you can't get away for a little ski holiday this winter. I treated myself to a little vin chaud. Mmmm...vin chaud is one of my favorite winter treats. I chose the wrong shoes and thought my feet were going to fall off, but I'm home now, and I think they're gonna make it. They've found their way into some super warm bedroom slippers that an ex-boyfriend brought me back from Nova Scotia or British Columbia...or somewhere else on the chill side. (Thanks Bobby!)

It has been a beautiful day too...cold but sunny with blue skies. A gorgeous Sunday. So I'm thankful for a beautiful day, the beautiful marchés de noel, yummy vin chaud, warm bedroom slippers, and strawberry Twizzlers which came in my Chrismas pack from Mom and Dad. Yes, I know, it's a little premature for me to be enjoying (er, to have finished) my Christmas Twizzlers, but I was moving and needed both the box and the packing stuff inside. That's my story, and yes, I'm sticking to it.

Here's an interesting pic for you. This is a building on Avenue Rapp that I noticed today when I was walking back from Trocadero. It is gorgeous in an odd sort of way, and it is totally out of place amongst all of the conventionally beautiful buildings that surround it. As I stood across the street to take the picture, two (American) guys were walking by. They looked to see what I was photographing, and one said to the other, ''yeah, that's beautiful." Yes, it is.

bisous!

Bookends

Happy Friday mes amis!

I've got a kitty to the left of me and a kitty to the right, and I'm happy being bookended by my two favorite little warm fuzzy beings.

Today I'm so grateful that it's Friday because that means tomorrow is Saturday, and the next day is Sunday! Tomorrow I'm going to finish cleaning the old apartment and drop off the keys. That'll feel awesome. Then I'm coming home to organize some more. I'm also glad to have friends to see & social things to do tomorrow. Then Sunday, I'll walk up to what I hear is a fabulous marché de noel at Trocadero. (I love that I can walk to it from home!) I'm so grateful for all these things and more.

And I got an awesome surprise yesterday...one of my best friends in the whole world is coming to Paris for an unexpected work trip in a couple of weeks, and she's spending the weekend with me! I can't wait!!!  We are going to have so much fun!

I'll save the story of my commute to work for another day, but suffice it to say, it was a total breeze this morning. What a welcome change that is!

Ok, let me know what you're grateful for!

bisous

Home

And we're here. Finally.

So, the day started out with the mover not showing. And not calling or responding to my calls. At the end of the first hour, he texted and said he'd be there in 10 minutes. 45 minutes later, still no one but me there. So I texted again, called him again...no response. At the end of the 2nd hour, my friend Donna said she'd call him. He answered (now why wasn't he answering when I called?). She texted me after about 5 minutes and said he'd made a mistake and to call him. So I did, and this time he answered, blah blah blah...was across town but would come right away. So instead of starting at 10, we started after 1.

But I'm grateful, so grateful. Grateful that he finally showed, and that we got me moved in. Grateful that my meeting with my previous landlord went well. Grateful that I get to stay here all day tomorrow and get unpacked and organized. And supremely grateful for my awesome new apartment...it has so much more space and is incredibly quiet compared to the last one. A friend asked me if the princess was installed in her palace, and I have to say that comparatively speaking, I AM in a palace.

And when I got off the metro, I got a "welcome to the neighborhood" from the lovely Eiffel Tower which I'm sharing with you below. Ah...home at last.

bisous

J-1.5

Salut mes amis,

I'm going to start by saying just how grateful I am for ibuprofen! I've spent the day cleaning out, throwing away, and finally, packing. My back can tell you every detail. But it's almost done. Almost...still more to do than I probably realize. Now that I've got a bunch of boxes packed, I don't know where I'm going to sleep the next two nights...there's practically no room to pull out the bed! Ha...I should have thought about that, huh? Mind you, in two days, I'll have a BED-bed, and I won't have to pull it out--just walk into the bedroom. Ah, a bedroom...I'm looking forward to having one again.

So in addition to my soon to be bedroom and all of the other great things about my new apartment, I'm grateful for the help I'll have moving into it and the time I'll have to get settled in and start making it home.

And ibuprofen. Merci my friendly little orange-ish pill. What would I do without you?

bisous!

Gingerbread men

Hey friends!

Hope you've all had an awesome Saturday. I ventured outside of Paris today with a friend and was richly rewarded for it. First we visited the Emmaus store where we found fabulous furniture, dishes, books, and Christmas goodies. We both bought a few well-priced Christmas pieces...and now I have no choice but to get a tree. We also spent a little time, although not enough, visiting the beautiful little town of Saint Germain-en-Laye. It is a very chic little area with beautiful streets and stores and a Marché de Noel complete with rides for the kids and...Santa! In case you were wondering, Santa speaks fluent French. The man is quite impressive.

I'm grateful for the fact that I can so easily visit charming little towns like this, that I have a fun, adventurous friend who likes to discover new places (or in this case, re-discover since she had been there before), that I have a good excuse to buy a tree, that I have a no-plans night to stay in, warm and dry, with my babes and a nice glass of red. And, in case you've forgotten, that I'm moving in just a few days!!!

So as for you, what are you grateful for?

Here's a picture of a little cake and cookie shop in Saint Germain-en-Laye called "Petit Gateau" where you can see gingerbread men hanging in the window along with the other Christmas decorations and where, inside, you see kids making gingerbread houses. So sweet!

bisous

A Sense of Accomplishment

Salut mes amis!

Don't you just love it when you finish the day and have a real sense of accomplishment? There are many days when I couldn't really say I had accomplished much, but yesterday was not one of them. Yesterday I got my Christmas shopping for my parents finished and got it all shipped off. And whew, was that a great feeling! I also think I got both of them some things they'll love--another great feeling.

Got a few things accomplished today too. I just love checking things OFF my to-do list.

I'm also grateful today for not getting caught in the rain (yes, it is STILL raining in Paris), for catching the metro home without a wait, for the nice people on the metro today (there were a couple of them...sadly, it's unusual), for the wonderful peeps at the pharmacy who have saved boxes for me, and for the fresh brussel sprouts at the market today -- gonna sauté those babies in a little butter, mmmm, mmmm, mmmm!

Here's a pic for you. It's of a little Christmas tree lot of sorts at one of the florists on my street. Taken around 5:00 this evening, what you can see of the sky is beautiful. Notice how most of the trees are short, squatty little fellas.

Care to share what you're thankful for? If you're reading this, I'm also thankful for YOU!

bisous!

"If you get, give. If you learn, teach." ~ Maya Angelou

Sardines

Hey!

How are you? I'm once again in one of my favorite places--under a blanket. Why? Because it is COLD out there! And rainy, and it's warm and dry under my blanket. Can't wait until next week when my blanket and I will be hunkered down against the elements in our cute new apartment!

Today was the most cram-packed day I can remember ever on the metro. I think I've mentioned before how my line is THE busiest in Paris...well, today there was a problem (the rule rather than the exception) right around rush hour, and at one point, so many people jammed themselves in and pushed all of us together so tight that my front side and my back side were touching...each other. But I made it. I exited one stop early and walked the rest of the way just so I could breathe.

So gratitude...I'm grateful that I could get off one stop early and walk...grateful for comfortable shoes that are nonetheless cute, and grateful that the rain had stopped. Also grateful that the electricity, telephone, etc. are all taken care of for my move next week. Grateful for a day to do some shopping tomorrow...have GOT to get my parents' gifts shipped toute de suite!

I'm also grateful for all of the different Christmas lights all over the city. Neighborhoods have their own stuff going on, so everywhere you go there's something new to see. Here's a picture of the Lamarck Caulaincourt metro wearing its Christmas decor. Pay no attention to the Manson-looking dude exiting. Really, how did I not see him and wait until he had passed to take the pic? ;)

bisous!

Bad acting

Hi friends,

I'm sitting here checking email, and I have 90210 on the television...the original 90210. Sure, some of the actors are ok, but some are soooo bad. It's so entertaining though.

Long day at work today, but things went like clock-work which was nice. First, I decided to take the bus instead of walking (because I had a ton of papers to carry) or taking the metro (horribly packed in the morning), and the bus arrived at the bus stop about 30 seconds after I did. Sweet! Then, surprise of surprises, I had a seat (!), and there was almost no traffic, so we arrived at our destination in record time. And when I got out of the bus to walk the rest of the way, the rain had stopped.

At lunchtime, I stopped by Sephora where a lovely transvestite helped me pick out a lipstick. And this evening at the bank, my checks had arrived, and all of the information was correct. Finally, I hope I cleared up the little insurance problem that I found out about over the weekend. (Seems they changed my insurance from my old apartment to my new one a little prematurely.)

So I'm thankful for buses that aren't cram-packed, rain stopping just in time, somewhat well-behaved students today, a head-butting Potter snuggled against my arm, getting a customer service person on the phone quickly, and many, many other things today. Hmmm, now that I think about it, I should have bought a lottery ticket!

Et toi? Anything you'd like to share?

bisous

Done!

Salut mes amis,

Today I spent the entire day grading papers. I had close to 200 midterms to grade. (Aside:  why do I continue to do this to myself? There has got to be a better way.) Anyway, I got it DONE! Yes! It is so nice not to have that hanging over my head anymore.

And the best part was that just as I was nearing the end of my rope and thinking the pile was actually reproducing instead of getting smaller, I got a gift. The last 10 or 12 papers were already graded. I had started them this week and been interrupted, and I had totally forgotten that I had already graded some. Talk about perfect timing. Et voila, numero uno on the gratitude list.

Number two:  the beautiful church bells I heard ringing on and off throughout the day today. Three: André Rieu concerts on Sunday night tv from time to time. Beautiful music, beautiful location...lovely way to end the week. I'm also thrilled to have found a Christmas gift for my Mom that she's going to love.

Hope you've had a great weekend! Would love to read your gratitude list. Thanks for stopping by!

bisous

Dark chocolate with bergamot filling

Hey! Happy Friday!

I love being busy, but I am so glad this weekend has arrived. I'm exhausted. But it's a good exhausted which is actually a pretty good way to end the week.

Tonight I treated myself to a little chocolate, and one of the pieces I got was dark chocolate with bergamot filling. I'd say it was good, but that would be a huge understatement. Man, was it awesome. The good news is, I only bought one. The bad news...you got it, that I only bought one.

So on the gratitude list today is the pleasure of a weekend well-earned, the incredible deliciousness of good chocolate, friends heading this way for Christmas (yay!), and only TEN days between me and my move!

And you...anything to tell me?

bisous

Where has the week gone?!

Hi friends!

Is it Thursday already? I got caught in a whirlwind of busy on Monday, and I've just swung out of it but not for long because tomorrow is going to be a busy one too.

But it's good! I'm glad because it has been mostly work with a little fun thrown in. Yesterday my friends Eric and Steve took me to Ikea just outside of Paris. I had plans, big plans, but Ikea didn't come through for me, so I didn't leave with the haul I had planned on. Oh well, it was a lot of fun.

Today I'm thankful for such sweet friends who would spend their day helping me shop for my new pad. They are so much fun too, so I absolutely loved spending the day with them. We even had drinks and watched the news together in the evening...I loved it.

Believe it or not, I'm grateful for the cold, drizzly day we had today because I came home and snuggled in with my furry companions, a big blanket, and a list of emails a mile long to catch up on. That just means I'm loved and wanted though. :)

I have so much to be grateful for, today and always. What about you?

Here's a pic that Eric took of Steve and me as we embarked on our big day o' fun. We are READY with our bright yellow sacs!

bisous