Although it's been said, many times, many ways...

!!! MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU !!!

Looking for you, Mr Castang

Well, well, reader, I intended to spend the afternoon doing useful things and studying and being a good girl, but I got glued to the couch by the sweet sweet christmas spirit (it acted a bit like molten toffee, you know, and then you're trapped, forever). Since I am alone at home, I turned on the TV, and then all was lost...

It started with the 101 Dalmatians, (Hugh Laurie ! Incredible ! Hugh Laurie's in that !) then it went on with the stupidest film in history called something like "two lovers at christmas" or something, and then I changed channels and went on the watch a bit of something with Katie Holmes and Buffy's Riley (can't remember his name) and that was just so sweet it was too much (gave me the feeling of having eaten too many bredalas though I haven't even started with the Christmas anti-diet yet), so I changed channels again, and IT WAS DR WHO !!! So all is lost, I guess I'll just sit here until I'm completely rotten. :3

Anyway, since they are episodes I have already seen at least twice (oh that "Blink" one with the statues... Just brilliant, that's what it is), I figured I'd get my laptop, and tell you about my parisian week-end in a few words, while raising my eyes to enjoy the sight once in a while !

So ! Paris ! It was really great seing all my friends and we had a great time ! We went to the theater too, to see a play by Edouard Baer, who's a French actor and comedian, and it was absolutely brilliant. You know that thing I had with capes ? It has not improved since "A la recherche de Mr Castang". If you have the opportunity to check his work out, do, it's really cool. And he's got that talent to set my mood to great for at least two days. So thank you V, (my best friend V) for inviting me, it was a really great play and I loved it !

Apart from that, we went around, saw the Eiffel Tower, went to the Galeries Lafayettes and the Printemps and the Palais de l'Elysée, and it was really cool. Paris really is a great city, and it's particularly lovely at christmas, what with all the lights and all.

I also wanted to congratulate my friend A. who succeeded in entering the french Police Forces, which is her lifelong dream. I'm so happy for her, I figured I'd tell you, even though I don't think she comes here very often ! Yeah for you A !!!

Well, I hope the christmas spirit has not glued you to the couch, and if it has, well, move on, enjoy the cold, bake some cookies and have a nice day !!

Christmas boogie (aka : the post whith no purpose)

Hi reader !!

Well, well, well isn't it nice ! I'm on holllidayyy !! Hark, the angels are singing ! (By the way, though I am aware this is very far from the appropriate Christmas spirit I should be showing, hark is a silly thing to sing. "Oooh Yeah, the angels are singing" or "All you need is love, the Angels are singing", I'd about understand, but hark ? anyway...)

I just finished my one and only mid-term exam, so I'm singin hark as well, and I must say I had a bit too much "Christmas spirit" myself (My roommate and I celebrated the end of my exams by having a drink, and I had apparently not eaten enough beforehand, which explains why I have to read over what I write over and over again, because I've got a bad case of christmas spirit-induced typing dyslexia.) Still, I wanted to share my glee.

Anyway, I just wanted to tell you that I'm off to Paris this week end, I'm sleeping at my sister and then spending the week-end with my friends in the capital ! Watch out, Eiffel Tower ! I'll tell you about that as soon as I come back home to Colmar, as well as a full Bredala update. In the meantime, have a nice pre-Christmas week-end, and à bientôt from Colmar !!

When I feel heavy metal (woohooo!) and I'm pins and I'm needles (wooohooo!)

Hi reader!

Some news from here in Brussels where I had my first real-life internship as in interpreter today! Weeeeeeheeee! I'm hyper hyper, I can tell you that much. High on adrenaline, I guess it's called. It did not go perfectly well, because it was a little difficult, but it went OK, and the man for whom I interpreted (a representative for Oxfam) was really nice and encouraging. All in all it was a pretty nice start, and now I can start stressing for Monday and Tuesday, when I'll have another internship. Wooohoo! I can't wait to be there!

Apart from that, I must say there's nothing much to tell you that's not been told already... I can feel the sharp energy fall coming up, so I guess I'd better go to the kitchen and eat something veeeeeery sweet in order to compensate. Short post today, but I still had to tell you!! Have a nice evening !!

PS: If you like, you can go there and listen to that cool German song, it's nice...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUTaR6ajiz0

PS2: If you speak French, you can go see the hilarious posts by Boulet about my friends the slugs... http://www.bouletcorp.com/blog/index.php?date=20081209 (Join the fight ! Join the fight !)

Félicie, aussi...

Hey reader! I got a package today! A cool package from my friends in France! A cool pirate book, and pirate gums (as in chewing gum, don't be gross!) and pirates mints with a rum flavour. I particularly liked the rum flavoured mints, and it reminded me of an anecdote which reminded me of a post idea I have had for a long time, so here comes... suspense...

The Top Three of Things Which You Thought Were a Good Idea But Turned Out to be Really Stupid.

1) Baking Bredalas. I think I told you about bredalas. In the definition in the Alsatian-Alsatian dictionary it expressedly states "Delicious little evil cookies which should be exclusively baked by someone else". Following that logic, I usually leave the bredala cooking to my mum, mostly, because she bakes duuuuh-licious bredalas.

A few weeks back, however, I decided to bake some in order to have a birthday present for a friend I have at the university. I went "yeah! It's going to smell like cinnamon and christmas in the kitchen, it's self-made and tasty, let's!". At the end of the day, the kitchen looked and smelled like the inside of a reindeer's stomach, I had spent three hours in the kitchen (three bloody hours! Can you believe that!? What have I done with my youth, reader?) and had an estimate 50 pounds of paper thin biscuits, which were hard as marble. And I cried and I cried...

2) Drinking rum to get over my cold just before my music oral exam for the Baccalaureat. Now look, I know this one sounds like it's so stupid I should be too ashamed to even write about it, but: I woke up, 3 hours to go before my exam, and I had a sore throat. I had to sing for my music exam, so what do you do?

A nice grog, that's what you do! Herbal tea, honey, and a dollop of rum. Only when your nose is blocked, you don't actually smell how rummy the whole thing is until you've drunk it up and blown your nose. At which point it is too late and you have to go complete your oral exam smelling like a homeless guy who randomly stumbled into the exam room. I did manage to complete the exam, and had a good mark too, and now that I come to think of it, maybe I should get drunk before my final oral at the end of the year. I'm sure the potential guy from the UNO in my jury would be sensitive to my impersonating Angela Merkel dancing the twist.

3) Now I believe this one is my all time favourite. I once heard a guy on TV say that putting a drop of dishwashing liquid on your glasses would prevent them from getting all misted up. It's annoying when your glasses get all misty. What's annoying too, is when your goggles get all misty at the swimming pool, because then you don't see anything anymore, and then you don't swim straight and then you bump into other people in the next lane. So what did brilliant Claire do?

You know it! She put dishwashing liquid into her goggles, and went swimming. I was 15, like, waaaay too old to say I was too young to know. I leave the rest of that little story to your brilliant imagination.

There you go, reader. A top three. Could not muster 5 things worth being told (I could have put "going to the cinema to see Scary Movie 1 with my father", in there -I do believe I've never been that embarrassed ever since in my whole life-, or "eating that cookie with nuts in it, because it looked delicious", but enough is enough, and I already told you of the time I went to the "speed-friending event" in Austria (hahahaha) and also of the time when I sprayed window-cleaning liquid on my frozen windshield to make the frost melt faster and ended up driving on the pavement and losing a hubcap).

Now the cat is out of the bag (the rat is out of the henhouse ?). If you have additions to make to the list, please, do not hesitate. Might help me feel slightly better.

It's not easy...

Well, I've written a post some time ago about songs in movies and series, and then I wrote another one about movies that make you cry, and after being (once again) reduced to a pathetic soup after listening, in a row, to all the great, great songs my friend H gave me (they always have that soupifying effect on me, but I've had a sad, sad week this week too, so it kind of soupified me ²), I decided to tell you about one particular song, which is kind of part of the soundtrack of my life, and always makes me feel better.

The song, reader (yeah, that suspense was killing you I know, it's about to end, pretty soon. By the way, did you know that it snowed in Colmar this week ? Amazing, innit ?) is called "Superman". Hence the "soundtrack of my life" comment, since you know by now that I have superpowers, an amazing strength, and a thing for capes. Nah, just kidding (about the superpower thing, I do think capes are the ultimate classy accessory, and they should be made compulsory from the age of 20 onwards). The only superpower I have is that of helping old ladies reach the can of peas on the top shelf in grocery stores. And I often demand to get paid.

Anyway. "Superman, It's not easy" is a song by the Five for Fighting, which, as soon as I steal the secret of the deezer.com widget from M, I will link here, for you to listen to. It was used in many soundtracks, because it's so beautiful and cool, and it's about Superman and how it's not easy to be great. It makes me feel better for two main reasons :

-It goes "It's not easy to be me" and "even heroes have the right to bleed" and stuff, and it's a bit like someone going "now now, darling, you're just great, it's OK to crack down once in a while" like that. Handy to have someone like that in your MP3 player for nights of desperation...

-After listening to it a little while, it makes me laugh, because as I stated earlier, I have no superpowers, and my life is pretty easy. So I exaggerate the drama queen aspect of crying to a song, laugh a little at myself, think about why my life's so easy, and then I always feel much better. I had to change the next track on said MP3 player though, because it was a song by Francis Cabrel, whom you probably don't know if you're not French, but who is a disease which can only be cured by two lexomils and a triple vodka. Now the next track is Ricky Martin's "Livin' La Vida Loca". Thank God for Ricky Martin.

Anyway. A song I wanted to share with you, so that maybe it works on you too. Have a nice day !!

You're so cute, when you're slurring your speech...

How weird I can be sometimes... I've been studying in Brussels for months, and neveer even told you about either the city or the courses I take. Now as far as the city's concerned, I do have excuses, insofar as I don't see much of it, since I live right next door to the university. I don't even have to wear a coat in the morning, I just jump out of bed, and straight to my interpreting booth. I must say it's a nice change from having to wake up 2 hours before classes start, walk to the station, wait for the train, then take the tramway to the university. But still, as a consequence of that, I don't see much of what's happening in the city outside my little neighbourhood (as well as that of my sister M, where I spend quite a lot of time as well...)

As for the courses I take, there is no excuse for not telling you about them (except maybe for the probable fact that you're not even interested, but to hell with modesty, my life is absolutely thrilling, you're going to read about the time I spend locked in my booth in Brussels wether you like it or not. Read on, faithful reader, I can see you through the screen. And stop scratching. Wash. -Private joke for my fellow Alsacians...)

Sooo, what can I say. Booths are nice. Booths -boothes ? offer privacy and shelter. They make you feel like you're all alone, and like you're the unseen being who sees it all. However, even though it is sometimes very tempting, you must never forget that though unseen, you are definitely heard, and that can cause inconvenience...

-You can't comment on what you see. And for someone who is as fond as I am of giving her opinion aaaaaall the time, more particularly when no one gives a damn, it is extremely annoying. You can't even let a "yeah right" slip when someone says something you find daft, because in a real life situation, it couls start a land war in Asia. And if there is something I learnt from The Princess Bride, it is that you should NEVER get involved in a land war in Asia.

-People actually hear you when you try all articles in front of a word in German. You can't go "Ich gehe in der die das den dem Küche" like you do in your head when you're writing a paper. People hear you think. Mostly your teacher hears you, and though he might be kind-hearted enough to acknowledge the fact that for a change, you did not just pick one by chance and pray for the best --I never do that, by the way, reader, believe me--, he still will laugh at you, and who could blame him.

-I have come to ask myself radical questions about my career path last friday when I was struck by a terrible pollen attack just before going to class. That or the bloody raw carrots in the durum I had for lunch. It was terrible anyway, my nose was running, my eyes were swollen and my voice was going. Glam effect² in the headset of my teacher. But I would hate to gross you out.

Anyway. I'm sure I answered some of the key questions you were asking yourself about studying interpretation. You're welcome. Have a nice night, I'm afraid it's more than time for me to go get some sleep too... Tomorrow's simultaneous into German (he heehehehe, I love saying that...), and I have shivers running down my spine already...

Haribo macht Kinder froh, und Erwachsener ebenso

Guess what, reader ! Yeah ! I've been watching another episode of Dr Who tonight (season 4 finale, for any of you who might be a fan too), and now I'm all blue for all kinds of reasons (I've seen a lot of my family this week end and now they've all gone back to their own abodes, --I'm afraid Claire misses her pillow and the smell of her own house--, one of my housemates screamed at me for no reason, and oh *hopeless and withered sob*... David Tennant *sob again*... broke my heart twice over *sound of glass shattering*-he's leaving the show and he... well I can't tell, spoilers, you never know.)

Anyway, my post tonight will be about sweet sweet songs and movies. Sweet Sweet Songs and Movies being, of course, a genre in itself. OK, I'm not the last one to laugh at High School Musical, I'm not the last one to laugh at anything, for that matter, and I am a very cynical and sarcastic being, I must say. But, still, in my opinion, all this silliness, this melted marshmallow and stuff, does help to make the world go round, and I sometimes wish I could stand by my opinions about all that a little more.

Bollywood musicals, musicals in general, in fact, having cute little rabbits pinned on my wall, liking pink, liking Pink (actually, I just realised, Pink illustrate about the diametral oposite of the point I'm trying to make, but I still like her...), liking all those cheesy movies and stuff, being naive -be it consciously ;) being an optimist, it's sooo nice once in a while.

Sometimes, I even think it's more of a stand to make than being a punk or a revolutionnary. It's also not so funny as being cutting and ironic, I have to say. Sweet and soft-brained is not a state I would like to be in all the time. But it is something I love once in a while. Often, actually. And I STAND BY IT, world ! Looove it what makes you go round! Sweet sweetness, faith, beauty and heroism. And songs. And beauty. Did I say beauty already? Well, you get my point, hopefully.

However, since I am not even sure of the point I wanted to make, I guess I'm just going to go now and get to sleep, because I've been living a crazy life these days. Enough craziness. Craziness makes me blue and soft in the brain. And a poor blogger. Have a good night, reader! Sweet, sweet dreams ! Involving music and love, and beauty. Did I say beauty?

As for me, Mr Dreammaker, if you hear me, let mine involve a doctor and a blue box, would you?

Because I'm a material girl...

Lo reader !

Just a little post tonight, from my little room, to tell you about my great friend M who has started selling her creations in a shop in Strasbourg. It's pretty, it's original, it's smart, in just one word : It's as cool as she is. Don't hesitate to go have a look at her blog, she's got photographs of her masterpieces there, and I'm sure she'll add new ones to her collection soon !!

PS for my friend M : Sorry about stealing the photograph of your trademark from your blog. It was in the sole purpose of spreading your genius through the blogosphere, pleaaaase, pretty please don't sue me, cause I don't stand a chance !! ^_^

PS for my beloved reader : I don't know if you've ever heard the Scissor Sisters' "I can't decide", but if you have not, then do go to Deezer.com right now, and check it out because it's really cool, though it doesn't have anything to do with anything.

Don't go breaking my heart

Well well well, reader... I've been watching an episode of Dr Who again (what do you mean, "get a life"? I have a life, reader, I went to Bruge today with my friend A, and it was brilliant. But still, generally speaking, it's nice and boring, and I can watch all the episodes of Dr Who I like.)

Anyway. As soon as you stop making impolite comments about my social networking skills, I'll be able to tell you the subject of today's post, i.e. The Top 5 Works of Filmed Fictions that Broke My Heart so Bad I couldn't Stop Crying Even After the Credits Were Over. A long title. As always, this list is not classed in any way, nor is it exhaustive. It's just the one I came up with tonight.

1. Moulin Rouge. Broke my heart. Made me cry and cry, and after I came out of the cinema, I wasn't happily ashamed of myself, like I was at the end of Amelie, when me and my sister M gave a big, loud and simultaneous sob as soon as the movie was over. I was down and sad, and it didn't go away until I reached home. Then I remembered the Elephant Love Medley and Ewan McGregor's teeth and all and I felt slightly better (also I went and saw it again and again -and again- with my best friend V, and then I was so focused on his eyes and his eyebrows smiling before he did in "Your Song" that I mostly flew home and sang The Beatles' "Till there was you" all the way). The first movie by far that touched me that much, as well as one of the first of a huge lot of great movie-going experiences with said best friend V.

2. The Dead Poet's Society. Saw it once, didn't understand any of it, saw it when I was old enough to relate, and now I still get shivers when I think about that O Captain my Captain thing when they all climb on their desks. (Yeah, I know, that's not very original, but it's definitely in my top five I think, even in the classed and exhaustive one). It's that sense of waste and the good things that are said about human nature that do the trick in this case. Faith and regret and love. I like it.

3. Well, there we go, I talked about it, I'd better write about it now, Dr Who's "The Human Nature" and the follow up episode called "The Family of Blood". Now I know I might well sound lame, it's just Dr Who, it's for kids and all, but these two episodes are simply something else. The Doctor becomes human for a change, he quits being a Time Lord (you don't need to know nor understand the reasonsfor that, really, they really are lame), and he forgets all about what he used to be. The episodes are mostly about Martha Jones, his companion on the Tardis, starting to think that even without their love being impossible, it still would be. It's one of these occurances when the screenwriters just went too far. It's too sad to be enjoyable, and it quite simply depresses me, but they still are my favourite episodes of Dr Who ever, because they say so much about the characters and they say it so well, and you know me, the Doctor, Martha Jones, I think they're just brilliant, the both of them. I must admit this might not be on my top 5 in 2 days' time, but I saw these episodes tonight, and I just HAD to tell you about them, because they are such good GOOD episodes.

4. Devdas. Oh, yeah, Devdas. The lady and the tramp (only it's rather the prince and the lady-tramp, only calling Aishwarya Rai a tramp simply won't do, not on any occasion, not even a lady-one), but which would end terrrrribly wrong. The worst ending in the history of cinema (in that it is terribly sad, of course, not in a Matrix Revolutions kind of way). Plus music, plus costumes, plus curry, plus Chandramukhi. I love it. The movie is 4 hours long, more than worth the time if you watch it on a big screen. Allow one good hour to get over the heartbreak (oooh, the heartbreak, break brrrreak, chanananan). And do not forget to take one big sister with you, it's a sine qua non condition, you definitely cannot go alone.

5. Buffy's Acathla. I'm actually still not over it. It's too mean to do that to a character, it's cruelty for the pleasure of being cruel to your character. It's beautiful and great and I loved every bit. Actually, now that I come to think of it, I'll make number 5 a global award to the amazing works of Joss Whedon : the Acathla episode was brilliant, the one when Giles leaves for England left permanent salted-water stains on the carpet of the living-room, Spike alone would deserve an entire top 5. And let us not forget the regretted team of Firefly, who managed to make me cry when watching the bonus material. I so wish we could have seen more.

There you go, reader. A new top 5. It is now officially 4 in the morning here in Belgium, and more than time for people like me to get their beauty sleep if they do not want to look like the whole cast of Dawn of the Dead rolled into one tomorrow morning (Ghrrrruuuuuuhh). And I'd like to know more about your own top 5 ! Tell me more, tell me more!

Build a Whole Bunch o'them

Well hi again ! See ! Internet in my room and I'm getting crazy already...

So, I wanted to write the necessary post about the American election, without getting all political beacuse I'm not informed enough to have an educated and clever opinion. Just wanted to say some random stuff I've noticed during the course of this election:

a) I'd rather like for our French journalists to quit talking about Obama by saying 'the first black to..." or "the black candidate". Ok, it's really cool that he was elected whatever his color, but that's my point exactly. He was elected, whatever his color. So how about we talk about something else, for a change? I don't know how it is in other countries, but it's something I also found extremely annoying with Ségolène Royale during our election, they talked about her being a woman aaaaall the time. I have eyes, I can see she is. Now how about changing the subject a little?

b) I'm afraid I'm a sucker for great speeches. Something I've noticed about me, in fact, during this election. Get me a good orator, and I'll be teary eyed in seconds, and then all my objectivity will be lost forever. Well, a good orator and a kind message, there still are some limits to how gullible I am, no matter how good they are in front of a crowd. I kind of knew McCain had lost when I heard him say "As for power plants, let's build a whole bunch o'them".

A whole bunch'o powa plants, really ?

A whole bunch?

Whereas Obama, in spite of his talking about his parents incessantly, which I can't help but find a little patronizing (I would like it better if he did not try so hard to be moving), still had me convinced. Has to do with the message, of course, but also with the voice and the words and the order he puts them in. Like Yoda. He wouldn't be as cool, not sound as clever if he said "Yeah, he's ya daaaad, Loook" in a normal voice.

c) Political or not, I'm just going to say it, I'm glad he won.

d) One of the aspects of globalisation I like most is the interest people have for people in other countries. I set my alarm clock at 3 this morning, to see who had won, because the suspense was killing me, but I was too early, so I went back to bed. As soon as the results came in, there were so many people down on my street screaming and partying that I was woken up again at 5.

I think it's great, and not (only) because I was glad he won, too, but mostly because it's great that a bunch of Belgians should get excited about the future of a country to which they do not belong. Ok, the US is kind of special in this way that it has a huge influence over the whole planet, but still, I think this has changed in recent times. I remember, during the crisis in Tibet, just before the Olympic Games, a bunch of people had organized a little demonstration in my hometown. It's small and old and rich, not exactly the revolutionary kind, but still. They were touched, and they said it. I think it's a pleasant feeling to know that even if it's far away, and even if they're not directly concerned, people actually care about what happens to other people.

Well, reader, I think I'm getting a little foggy, so I'll just go do something which involves some amount of walking around, or at least an upright position, because what with all this getting up twice in the middle of the night, if I don't do that, I'll fall asleep right here where I'm sitting. That wouldn't be cool.

Have a very nice day, and please, do check my new blog roll. I gave up on my ex-colleagues' blogs, which is sad, but they were kind of not getting updated anymore... I added new stuff, however, like Boulet, which you definitely have to check out if you're French-speaking, because he's just brilliant.

Kissing all the girls and blowin' the bad guys away...

Hey reader !

I'm all ecstatic and glad and happy because guess what: I have internet in my room ! I am right now writing from my little room in Brussels, and I don't even have to spend a penny on coffee ! How about THAT! I've been in a brilliant mood ever since I came back anyway, because I've had great holidays in Alsace, and I've seen all my friends and partied, and slept and laughed, and I feel great. Also, I did not have classes today, so I pretty much spent all day sitting here watching Torchwood and eating grapes, until I realised I had access to the net, at which point I pretty much came directly here. I guess I might be high on vitamin C, I eat so little fruit, usually... Also I've seen James Marsters, in Torchwood (you know, Buffy's Spike?) and he always makes me smile.

Anyway. So yeah, I'm back, and I can write the long awaited post about Quantum of Solace. (Long awaited by me, since I've been wanting to see the bloody movie ever since the credits first rolled on Casino Royale). I am not going to write some more about the shower scene in Casino Royale. I'm just going to mention it, because it's so great. I'm also not going to write some more about how cool Daniel Craig is. I'm just going to say, if I marry one day, I have a list from a previous post about being 7 feet tall, liking curry and wearing a cape, well, now, he'll also have to be able to lift up a moped + its rider single handedly. That was just SO cool Mr Bond, really.

But let me not be diverted from my holy mission by any weird looking Englishmen, however good they may be at lifting stuff off the ground: Let's get back to Quantum of Solace.

It is the male equivalent of a musical if you ask me. Replace the songs and dances by (truly amazing) stunts and wild chases, and leave the rest as it is. Well, nearly. It was pretty good, and really funny, once or twice, but it's a good thing that I had actually seen Casino Royale before, because the scenario is a little blurry, and it's all mostly about Vesper and revenge and understanding what happened exactly. Vesper, whom I missed a lot, because if you ask me Eva Green really did set really high scores as far as James Bond girls are concerned. She's just absolutely brilliant. Her successor is pretty good, but not nearly as good as she was.

Also, it was really moving at times, only I couldn't really concentrate because

a) I was too distracted by the weird looking Englishman's putting on his coat/wearing beige trousers/smiling (once, maybe, I think)/being extremely cool and sleek and great on every level.

b) I was too busy trying to understand what the hell was going on with the evil, rat-looking French villain (I saw the movie with my friends V and A, and some details still escaped us after putting together our different understandings of the scenario.)

c) I was too distracted by the stupid stupidheads who came to see the movie just so that they could annoy other viewers. Honestly, could anyone tell me why these guys pay for their tickets? They spend their time calling each other (on the phone, yeah), playing video games (on the phone, re-yeah) and going in and out of the cinema...

d) I was too busy trying to understand why they had chosen such a weird, uncomfortable title. Kind of understood why in the end, but I still wish they had called it something dumb like "Don't die until tomorrow", "Diamonds are nice and shiny" or "Go ahead and shoot people". Hee hehe. Daniel Craig in "Go ahead and shoot people". Now that's appealing.

Well, this post is getting really really long, so I'll just stop now, and maybe go for a walk or something, because all the oxygen in my room will soon have been used up completely. Just two things before I go:

a) Here's to F, who's in Japan. Hope you're having a truckload of fun! Two truckloads ! A lot and a lot ! Sleep a little, if you can, and go see James Bond when you come back, I'm pretty sure you'll like it. Not quite as inspiring as the first one, but there still are interesting stuff about raw materials ;)

b) David Tennant has stepped down as Dr Who. He was, is, and will probably always stay the best Doctor in the Galaxy. I hope we'll get to see him in plenty and plenty of other stuff (I hear he's going for a career in theaters now, which is great, but come on, what about me? I'm in France, I can't go all the way to London to watch you!) However, if you hear me, David T Russel, I know of a guy, he's brilliant, would make a wonderful Doctor, and keeps playing in verry verrrrry bad movies in recent times. I'm sure he'd be delighted of the opportunity. A guess, anyone ? -yeah, that one's really hard...

I am green today...

Hey Reader !

Long time since I’ve written here, but as it were, I’m out of Internet. That is, I don’t have the internet at home. That is, I can’t talk to people on MSN live from my room like I usually do. That is, I have to go to cafes or fast food restaurants if I want to do so. So I’ve been spending quite a lot of time in cafes and restaurants. I mean, I’m probably in one right now. Well, I’ll be in one when posting this, but right now I’m sitting on my bed, trying to gather enough motivation to remove myself all the way to the next café, and writing my next blog post, so that I don’t have to write it sitting in said café, a cup of coffee precariously balanced on a tray next to my computer.

I can’t sit down at the Exki without having a little movie running in my head of an old lady walking past and her long cream coloured jacket brushing the tray, and all the coffee getting spilt on my keyboard and my computer going off with a burst of sparks. Have you ever noticed how old ladies have a tendency to wear cream coloured coats? Well they do. In Belgium they do. Which is nice, because it kind of increases the dramatic effect of the espresso dripping all over it, in my little mental movie. Then I get cursed in Flemish and then I start crying and all, and the whole thing usually ends in me being offered a consolation latte by a cute waiter. I try to have destiny be fair with me even when I am watching worst case scenario mental movies.

Anyway, since I spend so much time there, I wanted to tell you a little bit about the Exki. It’s like the Belgian Starbucks. They sell plenty of types of coffees, which is cool, and they also sell stuff to eat, like chocolate mousse and coffee-speculoos tiramisu and also some stuff called some lame name with raspberries and passion fruits and also… well you get the idea. They also do the salty part of meals, and they even sell soup. Wondrous tomato and basil soup. Soup from heaven. If I could, I’d eat there all the time. Only well, I’m but a student. Maybe I should give them my CV!! Who knows! Well, that’s a good idea. Let me try that.

I’ve tried usual fast food restaurants too, of course, only it really sucked, since

a) Eating a Big Mac while typing is just impossible

b) Eating fries near a computer is not good. Not good at all. Especially when you are freaked out like me about putting stuff between the keys of your keyboard. Did I tell you about my previous computer writing 4 between every words and letters I wrote? It4 went4 so4ething4 like4 T4ehat, and made me make terrible typing mistakes because I didn’t want to leave my computer time to write any 4s. So no salt near my keyboard.

c) The music. Oh, No, The Music. You can’t imagine. 2 hours listening to the same stupid rap songs, on a loop. 4 rap songs, I’d say. Including Soulja Boy. Goes like that: ////// YAY \\\\\\ YO////// YEEE \\\\\\\ like that. Funky the first time. Gets annoying after the fifth, I have to say. Even with the little mental choreography that goes with it. There’s only so much my imagination can make up for. French rap largely exceeds my abilities.

There really is no bad thing to say about the Exki. It’s delicious, it’s not too expensive, and they have angels cooking soup in the kitchen. Said angels having, apparently, a taste for discreet pop music rather than crappy French rap. I knew it all along, but now I have proof. Also it smells like ground coffee, which is very good. Even when you don’t like coffee in itself, and I used not to, you’re still bound to like the warm, chocolatey smell of ground coffee. Ah, yes, actually. There is one thing to say against it, it’s that stuff they have with lentils. An undying, eternal love for lentils, which conquers all, even their own good sense (lentil salads, lentil wraps, lentil cakes and lentil soup, I mean, come on. No one likes lentils when they are baked in a healthy, sane way. Lentil without half a pound of butter and a ton of curry paste? No one’s eating that for any other reason than to impress their own conscience)

And also they have a tendency to put raw carrots in stuff all the time, and that makes my mouth itch, and then I sneeze as well, and then the dream waiter in my disaster film is grossed out, and then that’s really bad. But I manage to stay away from lentils and carrots from hell, most of the time, so I really have very little to complain about, as far as the Exki is concerned. As a matter of fact, you might want to come here in Brussels yourself and give it a try! Given that I spend pretty much all my time there, we might even meet! I’ll be the girl laughing to herself in front of her computer. (MSN conversations, you know…) Anyway, it’s time for me to really remove myself from that comfy spot on my bed before I get permanent back damage, and besides, is it me or is this post getting really way too long for the amount of actual information contained in it?

Have a nice day reader!

A little less conversation, a little more action

Hey reader ! I haven't written here for a long time, and the next post will probably be a little long to come, since I am currently between two places and trying to get organized a little (which is not quite my thing, as you might have gathered from my hectic use of brackets)

First news first, I am currently in Belgium, staying at my sister's and my soon-to-be-brother-in-law's (all these hyphens!) flat(s) and looking for my own place to stay while going to my classes and helping them move (hence the (s)). My life is pretty brackety these days, I have to say.


Anyway, so yeah, I am going to classes here in Belgium, where I have been accepted in a school of interpreting. Marie Haps! Yay! I heard yesterday from one of my could-be roommates that a Belgian Princess had studied in Marie Haps before me, so there, you know what my new career plan is. Courses are reaaaaally tough, but very interesting too, and I like the challenge. Only I think now is the time when all these years of laziness in German are going to catch up on me. Anyway. Beweisen, bewies, bewiesen.

So yeah, I just wanted to tell you about that so that you're not too scared about the lack of posts, as I am sure you were, poor you. Wish me luck, and I'll remember you in my prayers to Chitchatesha, the Indian goddess of interpreters...

All the small things...

Hey Reader!! A new questionnaire! Questionnaire, questionnaire!!

Pick up the first book you find, go to page 18 and write down the 4th line
I had to look a little while till I found a book in English, but here goes:
"'Fair complexion', Shambu said. 'Good at cooking. Embroidery'."
Comes from Sacred Games, by Vikram Chandra. Not the best book ever, but pretty good nonetheless. Set in India.

Write down the time, without checking your watch.

Duh... I don't know... probably around 21.13. I guess.

Now check...
21.43. Crap. I missed a whole Torchwood episode already. I wanted to check it out, but it looks like I'm going to have to wait for another week.

What are you wearing?
A long sleeved grey shirt from H&M, jeans and fuzzy, blue and yellow striped slippers. Made from marshmallows. Looove my slippers. Make you feel like you are walking in a blanket.

What were you looking at before you started answering this questionnaire?

I was here. Looking for the French version of this questionnaire.

What noise can you hear, apart from that of your computer?

My mother cutting an apple pie in the kitchen (I am a lucky girl indeed) and my father talking German with a cyclotourist in the living room. He he he... At last, something interesting to write down. Well, I'm not sure it qualifies as interesting, but it surely is original.

When did you last go out? What did you do?

Well, yesterday, I went out yesterday, with friends, in Strasbourg. Went to the movies, and then went for a drink, and had a very nice time altogether. And I'll be going out again tomorrow, and then again on Monday and maybe on sunday. Loooord am I popular... Call me Glitter-girl! Call me the Dancing Queen!

Did you dream last night?

No. I did not sleep last night because I had a terrible toothache. I day-dreamed about knocking all the teeth out of my own mouth. I day-dreamed about killing my dentist. I day-dreamed about Nurofen. I wondered if Paul Bettany would be a good dentist, and then the pain!! Oooh! The pain went away!! (Just kidding). But I did not actually dream. I ached. Loooord is my life tough...

When did you last laugh?
I laugh pretty often. Can't remember when I last laughed, because it was probably for something extremely stupid and 5 minutes ago.

What can you see on the walls, from where you are sitting?

An old painting, of a courtyard in winter, grey and depressing, which I like very much and has been here forever. A painting of a tree by a river made by my great-aunt. Paintings by my grand-mother. Paintings, paintings all over.

If you were to become a bilonnaire overnight, what would be the first thing you bought (That's kind of tough to translate... The first thing you'd buy? The first thing you buyed?)

A cocktail dress. And a sari. And jewellery. DVD packs for my favourite series. Clothes. A new mobile phone, and then I could trample mine to death. HA HAHAHAHAHA if I were to become a billionnaire overnight, I would buy the WORLD! Clean out Vivienne Westwood in my Galliano gown! Think what that money could bring! I'd buy everything! Yeah I'd have all the money in the world, if I was a wealthy girl!

What's the last movie you saw?

Wall-e. Übercute. I was all melted down.

Have you seen something weird today?

Oh, yes, yes, I have. Many music videos (How weird can you get, really...) and then... I don't know... My father's speaking german with a cyclotourist in the living room right now...

What do you think about this questionnaire?
Think? I never.

Tell us something about you that we don't know yet

I am the next James Bond girl. They don't know it yet either.

What would you name your child if she was a girl?
Elizabeth. Or Mathilde. I like these. But then again, I also like Kajal. Not only because of the actress, I just think it sounds great.

And if he was a boy?

I like David and Samuel. How original! How Old-Testament!

Have you ever thought about living in a foreign country?
Uh... yeah...

What would you like God to tell you when you reach heaven's doors?

"Yes indeed, my dear girl, everything here is edible."

If you could change something in the world, apart from guilt and politics, what would it be?
Climate. Put a little green in the desert. And I would cancel slugs.

Do you like dancing?

YEAH! Watch me groove! I move like lighting! Watch me set fire to the dancefloor!! Move both your feet and run to the beat!! Not quite. As I mentionned before, I love dancing, but am not very good at it, and I'm 6 feet tall, and being the tallest girl on a dancefloor is extremely embarrassing.

Georges Bush?

Is the question "Do you like George Bush" or is George Bush so puzzling that he is a question in itself?

What is the last thing you saw on TV?

Some kind of German thing set during WWII. I was trying to record Torchwood, and failed. Can anybody tell me if Torchwood is worth all these troubles?

There you go, reader! Now your turn!

Ché pas dannnncer, autre chose que le reggae...

Today, reader, comes a new top 5. Might actually become a top 6, who knows. It is now officially my blog's summer of Top 5s. I don't know why, but it's kind of inspiring. Anyway. Today, as I was beginning to say before starting to talk to myself out loud, is the day of the Top 5 things I'd love to do but will probably never happen. Before I even start, I must apologize for this being extremely self-centered and not including "save a life" or "end the plight of baby seals" or "find a cure for cancer". It's just about me, I and myself, and honestly, who cares about anything else ?? Let alone baby seals ???

1. Dancing like a goddess all night long at an Indian wedding, wearing a long and beautiful lenga.
Why it's never going to happen: I love dancing but suspect that I am way less elegant than I hope to be. Troll-dancing won't help me look like Aishwarya Rai. Besides, Indians are not exactly famous for their height, and being the tallest person on a dance floor is every shade of embarrassing. From red to bright red, via a little green.

2. Write a book. Not a famous book that would stay forever and get me a national burial at the Pantheon. Just a cool book that you like reading and then you forget. A seaside book.
Why it's never going to happen: Not patient enough, not focused enough, (I'll forget the "talented" part, of course, since you can get published if you write stuff about reading a tiger's mind and marrying the son of Nikolai II). One of the reasons why I love top 5s is that it's so nice and short.

3. Do that funky sommersault back-flip thing when you start on your feet, go backwards, land on your hands, and end up on your feet again. Love it. Loooove it.
Why it's never going to happen: Well. I sure want to do it, but I'm not sure I want to learn how to do it. And I would have to have a proper occasion, like during a fight against the forces of darkness or something, and then it would end with me holding the small of my back and moaning, or in me kicking myself in the face or something. Might make the forces of evil stop and laugh! Might win me time! Not such a bad idea after all...

4. Run for miles in the rain and knock on my lover's door to tell him I love him and look like a mermaid, with black tears from my eyeliner (the Leona Lewis kind, y'know...), and having a happy ending.
Why it's never going to happen: Do you actually wonder? You don't look like a mermaid after running for miles in the rain, you look like an overused mop, with red eyes like a devilish raccoon. Besides it's cheesy. Cheesy cheesy cheesy. Let him run for miles under the rain. And be cheesy. I'm not letting you in if you're not wearing a white shirt, HA HA HA ! (Yeah. I really am a devilish racoon).

5. Wear black laced boots and a skirt and a long leather jacket and a black umbrella and go walking in the rain like I'm some kind of Trinity-like supergirl.
Why it's never going to happen: Laced boots and a skirt is nice in movies, but in real life, all it does is getting you rude comments from drunks. I mean, I've never done it, but even regular boots and a skirt get you rude comments from drunks, so...

Well there we go. That was my top 5. I'd also like to be an interpreter for Paul Bettany when he wins his Best Actor award at the Canne Film Festival for his role as the "glamorous, folk-singing, dark-suited and witty Persian vampire-warrior" in the movie "300 Bloody Blunders" I've written the scenario of only nobody knows it's me because I've written it anonymously, but that might really happen sooner than you know so I decided against it...