catch up

19 November 2007- I am awaiting the rental furniture delivery at the apartment. This will allow Chad and I to actually start living in Paris and not out of suitcase. Oh wait, we will still be out of suitcases until we get our chests of drawers. Even the cat is going stir crazy in the apart-hotel room.

I had to hoof it over here today. About 2.5 km but with lots of lights, a few more gypsies (give it a break with the gold ring scam) and hauling a medium suitcase. The last part was uphill even, which after living in Houston even a slight hill can wind me. There was no rain so I can’t complain too much.

We ordered our kitchen and spent more than expected, just like every other home improvement project. It should be installed the week before Noel, Christmas in French. Now if only our shipping container could make it that week, it would truly been a Christmas Miracle!

We did our first electronics purchase. An electric razor and a printer/scanner. The Printer didn’t come with directions in English. Just about every other language spoken here and Asia but no to the English. Luckily la internet has just about everything.


21 November 2007 - These crazy people are killing me with this strike. I was wandering yesterday morning trying to rustle up some groceries- sans refrigerator. I ran into a fleet of genderarme or French police. Man have I seen them a lot, and in large packs. One officer told me to go home and not to continue walking along this street. Not the street we live on, the next closest major one. Now Mom please skip ahead to the next paragraph. I got some groceries and got home to cook a well deserved lunch. As I am ready to dive into my pasta, I look out the kitchen window. There go the strikers marching along the street I was kicked off. I can’t say how many there were but more than the crowd after a baseball game lets out. Then the flares, and the chanting, and the smoke started up. It looked like Paris was burning. I read this included the civil employees walked out yesterday (teachers, garbage workers, and postal workers). They put the number at 700,000. The Police say 300,000. Who is counting? Our street is normally pretty quiet but it was the bustling metropolis street until about 845 last night.

My feet are taking a beating as well during this lovely strike. I even have the good shoes. I am an old lady of 31 with bunions and other traumatic feet issues. I think it was all the standing on Monday. I wasn’t able to sit down while waiting on the rental delivery. There was only the one seat in the house and I am not one to sit on the commode just for a place to sit. By the way, commode a la francais means chest of drawers. Big difference. The worst part is I took my last Advil. Ibuprofen is a controlled and you can’t buy it over the counter. I pray that air freight arrives on Friday or Saturday with my Costco bottle.

Another needed item is a cat box. I swear no one sells them. They all sell the litter but no box to put it in. Odd? Chad swears he saw one at our local quickie mart but they have yet to be open since the strike started last week. Again, praying that air freight arrives with the replacement.