1. This morning when I greeted Arnaud, he said, "No, it's 2009. From now on, it's French only." This is really scary. My French is still limited to extremely simple sentence structures, and when people speak quickly (so - normal speed for them) I don't understand. But Arnaud is right - the more I speak French, the faster I will learn it. This, of course, is obvious. So from now on, whenever I can say something in French, I will - no matter who is around to laugh.
2. Song stuck in my mind today - "Furious Angels" by Rob Dougan - a great song that equates love to an invisible bullet, a dirty needle, a blow to the head, a cold piece of steel between the ribs, a knife in the back, and a death sentence. A blow to the head, btw, sometimes results in dizziness (i.e. the whole world spinning around), severe nausea, and vomiting (much like the symptoms of Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo). I'd say this song has it just about right. I've never experienced a blow to the head, but I've got love and Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo down pat, along with the various symptoms shared by both. This song, ironically, is included on my ipod in a playlist that I will have had for three years in February, and that I both loathe and love. Mostly loathe. I should just delete it. But then I might miss it. It's a conundrum. But if you think I'm equating love to being sick...well, wait...yeah, I actually am.
3. Speaking of three years, I hate the number three...bad things happen in my life in random spurts of three days, three weeks, three months, or three years. It is my personalized unlucky number. We'll see how it all looks in thirty years, huh?
4. It costs 60 CHF to replace train passes. My customer number was 454 as I stood in line to learn this. Unfortunately, this is one replacement that will have to wait until at least next week. Oops, Nicole, I can't go to Lausanne with you Saturday night. Happy Birthday, though!
5. You know those girls we all hate who primly twist the chapstick all the way back down the tube before primly replacing the cap?? I HAVE BECOME one of those girls. And I didn't even realize it until today. Help!
6. Allow me to vent for just one minute, ok? Where does the blasted bank get off charging me 60 CHF to block my cards? It took the man less than two minutes to go onto the computer and do whatever was necessary to stop access to my accounts. And they're already charging me 40 CHF to get the new cards. And another 14 just to withdraw cash without a card. "Excuse me, sir, I'd like to report a possible future fraud." "Ok, miss, thank you. That will be 100 CHF, s.v.p." GRRR...I miss 5/3 Bank. Over the years, they've replaced my cards four times, with no charges at all. And I didn't even have a good reason to lose those ones - I found more than one of them afterwards in various coat pockets, which, in retrospect, weren't good holding places for bank cards. It's not my fault my bloody cards got stolen - they were in a bag inside another bag which was zipped and hung tightly over my shoulder. How did those gypsies do it?? And it isn't as if the Swiss banking system isn't among the world's richest and most stable. Do they need my 114 CHF, I ask you?? NO! 100% NO! Do I?? YES! Money-hungry blighters...And outside the Poste there are people begging for signatures on a petition to raise the wages of women who work for under 3000 CHF per month. Petition, bah - they should petition to get rid of the bloody banking fees. A pox on Swiss banks.
7. It only cost 5 CHF to replace my LIBRARY CARD! Life is worth it after all! This is why I live!
8. I spent time with some best friends today - books, at the library. And what books did I finally check out??
A. Emily Dickinson (poetry, in French and English) - because imitating her makes me want to read her.
B. Hilda Doolittle (same as above, and by the same publisher) - just because it looked cool.
C. Gone With the Wind - frankly, my dear, because I can personally relate (note the last bit of the story), and because it's time to read it again.
9. And since my mind is on literature right now, today my favorite poet is Elizabeth Bishop. Her poem "One Art" is very lovely. Tomorrow, or even tonight, my preference might change, but for just now, this is it.
10. A man on the bus today huffed and smacked his lips whenever we got stuck in traffic. He also grunted and shook his head loudly (causing his sagging cheeks to shift about somewhat) as he read the newspaper.
11. The front page of the newspaper on the bus had a story about the new Twilight movie. I have decided against watching this movie, or even reading the books. They look completely adolescent, exactly like the people who read and love them. If that was what the man on the bus was huffing about, then I thoroughly agree (though I don't smack my lips).
12. It'd be nice to see my mom. I miss her.
13. Felix loves teaching me the incorrect genders for French words. His eyes twinkle when he does this. He's charming. I love him!
14. IT'S OFFICIAL! I'VE LOST 30 POUNDS SINCE COMING TO SWITZERLAND!
15. I need new clothes.
16. Today I made a list of things I needed to do in town, and as I did extra things, I added them to the list - just so I could check them off. I waste lead and ink doing this fairly often.
17. My mind has become a running monologue. All day long I blog things internally. Curse you, blogspot!
18. The man at the Churreria always makes me feel happy. He knows the trick to getting repeat customers (of the female variety) - smile a lot, and flirt just a little. He is old, and Wise.
19. Churros make me feel happy too - but (as with the flirting) not a lot of churros...just one or two.
20. Topic studied in French class tonight - past tense verbs. Yay! My life has finally learned its past! But when will it ever learn its future?
21. Today I wondered - When does "Bonjour" technically stop and let "Bonsoir" take over?
22. Today I decided that were I more punk and less unbalanced (please note my subtle, yet correct usage of double negatives), I would learn to ride a skateboard. It could be a handy skill.
23. All day long, I have known I am blessed.
And there you have it - my day - in a delicate but tough little nutshell - so probably a pecan shell, when I think about it. It's supposed to snow tonight. Maybe it will be good for happy snowmen!
La lumière frappe, tombe sur moi.
Je sursaute -
une feuille, fendillée, craque sur le dallage -
angoisse - déroute.
Je sursaute -
une feuille, fendillée, craque sur le dallage -
angoisse - déroute.
Anticipating, yet with mixed emotions (or, as always),
That girl in Switzerland
Three is my favorite number of all time...it always has been.
ReplyDeleteI don't know about #21, but I'm pretty sure this is as bonsoir sitiation, so i say "Bonsoir!"
ReplyDeleteI'm glad bloggin has taken over your brain, it's nice to hear about you. Makes me feel like I just wandered into your room and heard you vent about your day.
*Hug* (Because I miss you)
Tiff - don't worry...it can still be your fav num. Things like this are completely relative.
ReplyDeleteMel - guess you can wander into my room and talk to my replacement, eh?? *Hugs back!* I miss you too! It'd be nice to have a really good vent together again.
Number 16 will come in handy someday. Trust me. Someday, when your husband walks in the door and says, "What HAVE you done all day??? This place is a mess!" you can just whip out your checklist and say, "THIS is what I have done all day. How long is your list?" :o)I always thought you were crazy with your lists, but since being married and trying to keep up with two people's stuff, bills, food, etc., I, yes I, have become a list maker. Curse the day. Ptooey! Ptooey! (For any of the less educated of you reading this, Ptooey is French for that spitting sound).
ReplyDeleteLove ya, girl!
Jessica (I didn't mention earlier that this is Jessica that now lives in Missouri, not Jessica that formerly lived in NC).