Comme envie de crever ton chat...

Reader, I can't take any more. I'm not like that, usually, I don't ever talk about politics, not here, at least, but well, this is the Internet, and on the Internet, any fool can express their opinion, whether sufficiently informed or not, so this here is mine. The opinion of an uninformed fool. Here are 5 things that, truly, really, profoundly and deeply annoy me about France these days.

1. I cannot deal with the blatant populist crap that's been vented by the people in power over the past few months. We are dealing with all kinds of troubles, these times, a terrible economic crisis, war in Lybia, it's not like it's a light news week, and yet, what do we talk about? We go on and on about state subsidies for the poor and how that's too much already. We start a 20th debate about Islam in France. As if that was going to make anything better. As if the problem with Islam and France was not that we talk about it as if it were a bloody problem.

2. Follows on 1.'s heels: Why can't they see that it doesn't work? Why can the moderate right-wing people not just wake up already: the number of their supporters are plummeting, the extreme-right party is getting more and more successful... Maybe it's time for a change in strategy, what do you think? Come on! Come on! I listen to them and they remind me of Fox News maniacs. I like my country better when it's lukewarm. The outdated racism we are dealing with these days makes me want to come home and fight. It makes ME! want to go home and fight. You might not really know me, reader, but I'm one of them half-hearted, don't really give a damn kind of people. What I'm saying is: It's bad.

3. That thing with the head of the IMF. I don't know if it's a terrible ploy against him as a person or if he just snapped, I don't really care, to be honest, it's a sad story either way. But in any case, that's one more interesting candidate for the French presidential election 2012 down, and it's depressing.

4. Follows from 1 and 2 as well: people are getting louder and louder and feel less and less guilty about voicing hateful, racist points of view. I've seen a piece on TV today, a typical xenophobic rant, things that I might have found... well in a way normal from an 80-year-old, because well, it takes time to know enough to not fear the people coming over to your country. From a bus driver. He might have been 40 something. Is that really what it's all coming to? Are we not a little bit cleverer?

5. The media, too. I'm not really blaming it on the reporters, they do their job and report, but maybe, maybe if we did not jump on every occasion to broadcast racist rants and backward remarks, we would have less of a problem with people broadcasting their own racist rants and backward remarks on the bus. But then I might be wrong about that, because, as they say, know your enemy.

Well, I sound just like the holier than thou pains-in-the-butt that I would like not to become, but it just had to come out. I just had to say it. This is NOT GOOD, and I really, really wish it would stop. Self-righteous rage is not a good look for me.

Roses are red, violets are blue...

Well, reader... I've got an annoucement to make. Also, I wanted to get rid of that previous post, which was quite lame and stayed up for too long.

I'm in love.

I thought you should know. I thought this blog might be a good way to announce it. Share the joy with you, with whom I've shared quite a lot of stuff over the past few years.

We met on the internet. He's a polyglot, like me, and that what we bonded over, at the very beginning. Well, basically, I needed someone to help me with my work, so I went on that forum, and then... I met him... And I stayed. He's always ready to help if I can't find my words, he's brilliant at communicating, he's got a load of cool friends, whom he's not afraid to share with me, and even though there is no real reason, I trust him entirely. I feel secure that he won't lie to me, he's one of the most reliable guys I've ever been around.

He's not the prettiest, granted, but he's strong as a lion, and he's very talkative, very open minded, he always looks at all sides of a problems, lists all the possible solutions for me, so that I never feel lost. He's always available for me, 24/7, always ready to listen to me and give me advice.If I'm at a loss, especially now that I'm abroad, and don't know what to say, in any given situation, I know he'll always be there to help me on.

That's love. And all you need, is love. His name's Leo. You can find him here, we're in a more... open relationship at the moment :)

Gotcha?

Gotcha?

I'm my own grand'pa

Hullo reader ! Well, I haven't been writing here in forever, so I thought I'd drop by, and keep you updated on my status, because, as is famously known, my life is rivetting. So here are 5 random news from Cologne.

1. I still love it here. I love my room (which is actually furnished now, and very comfy too, thanks to the generosity of... we'll say Santa Claus, but you know who you are), my flatmates are still great, and if only I could manage to drag my butt out there, I'm pretty sure I'd even enjoy the city in itself. I've been a little short on time, in fact, these days, and haven't been to the city center this week. Maybe it would be a good idea to get some fresh air. And ice cold wind. And rain.

2. I went to a techno party with flatmate N the other day. I went mostly out of curiosity, but I really did love it. I think it's not really music. And I don't mean that in a grandmother "that's not music it's noise" kind of way, obviously. It's just, it doesn't talk to your ears so much as to your ribcage. It's music that you can actually (cheesy-alert) listen with your heart. I mean that literally. Because it vibrates. Follows that you can also listen to it with your lower intestine, but that's a really cheap joke. "Bässe massieren eure Seele" I guess is what I mean, but Peter Fox said it better than I can, though it's a little pompous for my purpose, I guess.

3. I'm going to Senegal next month, to work. I'm kind of scared. I don't know what to expect, there are going to be hundreds of us out there, and I don't generally like such huge gatherings, but I'm still very excited and can't wait to be there. It's probably going to be sunny as well, which really will be a nice change, the weather here is just plain depressing. I already got my shots and my passport, and my plane ticket and all, but I still feel like there's no way I'm going to Senegal in a week or so. Still, it's going to be very cool, and my friend J is going too, so I'm guaranteed to have a lot of fun.

4. I've been watching too many stupid videos on the internet lately. Especially Muppets video. Therefore, I've had stupid songs stuck in my head for days, like the Manah manah song, or the one that goes "I'm my own grandpa ! I'm my own grandpa ! It sounds silly I know, but it really is so, oh I'm my own grandpa". It has been a constant and conscious effort not to start yelling them out in the kitchen randomly. I'm holding on. I think it may burst out of me some time, and then, though I will still find my roommates great, they might change their mind and throw me out on the streets. Thanks for nothing, Jim Henson!

5. I've bought a salad today (rivetting, I told you). One of these pre-mixed, ready to eat things with mayonnaise in them. I thought it was perfectly innocent coleslaw, carrot-free and delicious. It actually containted PINEAPPLE. PINE-APPLE in COLESLAW. Germans are mad.

Well, that's it from here, I believe. I hope you're well. As for me, I'm going to go have a look in the kitchen, see if there's something reasonable I can scavenge.

It's just a thought...

Fiiieeeeeewwwh!

I'm back home, and what a week (or a couple of weeks) it's been. I've been to Lyon, Paris, Limoges, Metz, Chalons en Champagne, Troyes, then back home for a night, then Cologne, then Lille, then back home, where I am right now, sitting on my parent's couch, as usual. It's been crazy and exciting and cool, and I wish I had that much to do more often. Maybe not all the time, but it definitely was cool. Maybe all the time would be ok once I get used to the rythm.

Anyway. What I wanted to tell you about today, reader, is Cologne. I don't know if I already told you this, but I intend to go there for a while. As in I don't really know how long. Maybe a few months, maybe a year, maybe less, maybe more, in any case, I want to go there for a while.

Might never even happen, who knows, but it's the plan. And here's why. It's going to be a long post, but there's very little to read. I'm very sorry about the quality, all pictures were taken from my iPhone, and I'm not quite used to it yet. By the way: Thanks go to my best friend V for giving me her iPhone, it's so cool to have an internet access all the time! I love it.

There. Is it not nice? The Rhein, the big bridge and the Cathedral? I like it. The light was a little strange, half grey, half twilight, half sunset (Ok, that would be thirds, then, but you see what I mean). There was a big crowd there, and everyone was rushing back to the city and trying to see the view at the same time, and for a second, I had a weird feeling that all these people, coming directly from the Koelnmesse, men in suits and women in high heels, were about to jump in the river like lemmings. They did not. Anticlimax of the century.

There seems to be quite a lot of things going on as well. Ok, Kylie Minogue and Wir sind Helden may not be my all time favourites, but still. Plenty of concerts. And Charlie Winston was there just yesterday. Besides, I don't really know Wir sind Helden that well, and I'm ready to believe they really are heroes. Who knows.

Also, Cologne is apparently in Mordor. And if that's true, then Aragorn can't be far. And that's good, isn't it?

They are not completely barbaric. They know how to live (that's a Comptoir des Cotonniers shop and an "elsässisch" restaurant in case you can't read. It really is very blurry, but it makes me very self conscious to take photographs of ridiculous things when I'm on my own, so I did not take more than one shot.)

My sister M, who likes this kind of things, will have reason to come and visit me. Is this big guy not awesome? I find him awesome.

And also, also :

Need I say more? If I ever go, I will come back a different woman. As in 80 pounds heavier.

I have to show you this however. I am sorry, but I have to. Germans will be Germans...

Several things spring to mind when seeing something like this. Things like, "oh Lord, that laughing piglet wants my soul". Things like "A bag full of lard? Really, Deutschland? Is that a marketing concept?". And in case you were wondering, I did buy the bag. I could not bring myself to take a picture of such a ludicrous thing in the shop. So I spent good money on it. Then I figured, hell, it's just marshmallow, and I opened it. And I ate it all. I am full of shame and fake lard.

Have a nice day, now, reader.

Not in Notthingham

Well well well, reader. My mood has been going from bad to worse over the last two days. Isn't it terrible? TWO DAYS of terrible mood? Has any creature on this earth ever suffered such a terrible ordeal? Am I overdoing it already? Sorry...

Anyway, I figured, "go back to your blog and complain some more, it helped a little bit last time". So here goes. 5 things I don't like about being in a bad mood (because, as you know, many people enjoy being in a bad mood... See, I started out kidding, but I for one must admit, I sometimes cultivate my bad moods by listening to K's Choice or the Babyshambles, which have got nothing to do with one another, but still both work very well either way. But tonight's bad mood is one of those you'd just like to go away, like a toothache...)

1. I hate that I'm not happy for people who are happy. I think that's really bad. People write e-mails to me, saying "I've got a new girlfriend, and so does everyone, new love grows on trees*, life's beautiful, my holidays went great, and I'm loving life..." and I'm all bitter and mean and I think "well good for you, you schmuck, how about you stop polluting my mailbox with all your... happy?" and then I turn into a big ball of self-hatred.

2. I hate that I blame it on the bad weather, the stars, the atmospheric pressure, what I ate for dinner last night, the book I'm reading, anything but just my mood. And then I get annoyed because I figure: why could I not just be unhappy and in a crap mood? And then I get annoyed at myself because the answer to this question is: because I have no good reason at all to be unhappy and in a crap mood. And then I turn into a big ball of self-hatred.

3. I cry and talk to myself and rationalize and think about why I'm so down, and then, it figures, I can't think about anything but me. Which is just exactly the problem. I am the problem (which is good news, really, since I am also the only thing I can change, in here), and I can't think about anything else. Then I figure this is all both silly and very selfish, and I turn into a big ball of self-hatred.

4. When I'm bored enough by number 3, I start thinking about what's really not going well outside of my head, and then I start blaming things on tectonics, destiny, German, my grand-parent's neighbours (of all people, yes, I blame it on YOU, Mr P. from OberE. in Alsace), freakishly-tallness and Charlotte Brontë, and then I turn into a big ball of self-pity.

5. I talk and talk and pester everyone with my petty problems. I know this sounds like I'm fishing for "noooooo, you don't bother us", but I really am not. It's related to number 2, I think. I can't think about anything else but why I'm down, and then I can't talk about anything else (because talking, in most cases, though not always in mine, requires thought prior to execution.) Then I find someone to talk to, and I figure "stop it, stop it, mayday! mayday! your mouth is talking! incessantly! quit it! now!" and I just can't, because it's coming out and out of my mouth like... well like I'm being sick, really, which is gross, but in most cases you feel better afterwards.

But you know what, reader? Moods like that, they go away after a while. Maybe tomorrow, I'll get paid, the sun will shine a little bit for a change (it's bloody August! It's like 15 degrees outside, and it's been raining for days on end!), I'll call both my sisters and my brother too, maybe see my friends and make cookies, and I promise I'll come back in a better mood. C is for cookie. That's good enough for me.

* That's not mine, of course. That's courtesy of Pete Doherty, whose permission I did not ask.

We'd up and fly, if we had wings...

I am not in a very good mood right now, reader. Not in a very good mood at all. My sister F left, after spending nearly 2 really cool weeks here in Colmar, I am home alone, the weather is crap, and I am experiencing a bad case of the MSN annoyance. So I figured I'd log off, and come over here and write an annoyed post. Which reminds me that I have not written anything on the Cranberries concert I went to last week, invited by my best friend V, and which was great (zoommmmbie, zoooommmbie), even though... well, I'll write something about it soon.

Anyway. In order to spread the joy and surf on the mood, here it is : the top 5 things that annoy me about clothing these days.

Let me, first of all, say that I am not a fashionista. The sheer fact that I say "fashionista" proves this. I am not good a getting dressed, I was laughed at throughout junior high for wearing jeans that were too short and having a haircut that made me look like that thing you use to scrub the burnt part at the bottom of pans and pots. My hair hasn't changed, though I manage it a little better, but I now only wear jeans that are a leeeettle too long, to compensate (hell of a challenge, when you're more than 6 feet, I tell you). Still, I enjoy shopping and choosing clothes. They are, also, a necessity (I don't know if you had noticed this fact, but they really are). Sometimes, however, designers seem to take a particular delight in making them as inconvenient as possible...

1. "Dresses" that have no skirts. Oh come on. Ok. Mini-skirts are sexy, we live in a modern world, and I have no moral objection to them as such, people should just go ahead and show as much as they are comfortable with. But then again... How about you guys give us a choice, maybe? How about you just add a teeeny little bit of fabric, so that we can sit down, and maybe even stand up, and maybe, even better, not have to pull everything down and look daft everytime there's a tiny breeze? I'd like a study to be made about that. I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one annoyed. Once again, I'm freakishly tall, which only makes the problem worse, but still...
You find the puuurfect dress, English old lady style, but slightly modernized, maybe with some tiny pearls sewn on it, or maybe with a little lace here or there, and then you take it from the rack, and it's actually a glorified t-shirt which would suit Kate Moss, but no one else. I hate, hate, hate clothes that are too short.

2. Trapped clothes. You go to the shop, you find a lovely, black t-shirt, with the right cut and a nice neckline, you're happy as can be, and then you turn it around, and there it is, a huge pink heart, bedazzeled by a colorblind maniac, with ruffles all around, and something like "Lovebirds are forever" written in gold lettering underneath. I think having stuff written on you clothes is, generally, something one should be circumspect about (cf that guy we saw the other day in Strasbourg with "iPood" written on his T-shirt, and a guy sitting on a toilet drawn underneath. Oh puh-lease).

3. Clothes with a piece missing. Armless pullovers more than anything. Things with only one shoulder. Things with only one sleeve. Ok, sometimes I find these pretty on other people. But armless pullovers? They are pretty too! Oh, of course, they are pretty, the fiends ! But then: why wear a bloody pullover if it doesn't KEEP YOU WARM AT ALL? Why, why, why? This is probably "so last season" or something, but it did really drive me mad last winter. Impossible to find any stupid pullover with arms on it. Are you trying to save money, Mr H&M? Well, you sure won't get mine. Said the girl who'd been looking for a sleeveless cardigan for weeks...

4. The fact that the clothing industry manages to change my TASTES. It freaks me out a little. One of the most ridiculous clothing items I heard of over the last few years is most definitely the "sneakers with frills" footwear thingy that I saw for the first time in the Parisian subway, maybe... three years ago. At the time, I figured: aw come on, this is just ridiculous, sir (yes. It was a sir, not a miss. He was wearing white sneakers, but the tip was shaped like that of those italian mocassins things, all pointy and aggressive). And the other day, I saw a lady in the street wearing one of these ridiculous pairs of Converse with heels, and I thought "Oh, cool". I don't like it very much when someone proves that I have no opinion of my own...

4. The fact that they had me convinced that I couldn't tie my shoes anymore, there, for a while, because tying your laces is not "fashionable". Are you crazy, people? I'll tie my laces the way I want, you're not the boss of me. Ok. So maybe I will hide the knot a little bit, just in case someone looks at my feet and laughs. Because nothing interests people more than the way I tie my laces, apparently. One more Junior High trauma, there. Because I figured "hey, who cares if my jeans are a little short, honestly" and then people did care. It was an insult to their sense of fashion that you could see a thin slice of my socks between the bottom of my trousers and the top of my PROPERLY TIED sneakers. Life's tough this way, when you're 12 and don't have a care in the world.

5. Jeans that are meant to be worn low on your hips, (actually meaning that you can't sit down in them unless you are wearing a long t-shirt (or maybe, say, a "dress") on top), high heels shoes in which you can't walk, those t-shirt you never can figure out quite how to wear. But hell, that's also what I love about clothes. They are unconvenient and sometimes, you need to have a little imagination and be a little clever, cause they're not just meant to keep you warm. They're here to make you feel secure (which sometimes involves giving you blisters, just to remind you of their presence), pretty, and sometimes proud, when you've tamed them.

Anyway. Here was my rant for today. If you are now in as bad a mood as I was 20 minutes ago, you can watch this here. Will make you feel better. Or this here. Won't make you feel better, but it's still nice, I figure.

Basket case

Hey reader...

Well, I'm back from Belgium, where I've worked a little (not too much) and had a nice time with my sister M and my sister F whom I visited in Paris, managed not to melt completely in the process, and now I'm back in Colmar, wondering about Fate and Destiny. It's kinda nice, having time to wonder about Fate and Destiny.

I think my Fate and Destiny will be to go to Berlin next year, for a year. What do you think about that, reader? One year in Berlin... I think it's exciting. I think they have Dunkin Donuts, in Berlin...

Anyway. I was looking through my stuff the other day, and found a bunch of doodles I did while working over the last two years. Since I haven't posted anything here in a while, I figured I might as well share, and also, maybe it will reassure you as to my ability to draw. It's not always as bad as what I manage to do with Paint. Sometimes, it's worse (ha ha ha)...



















That's an owl. It's trying to keep its eyes wide open during a particularly boring speech.

That's a bunch of jellyfish. And an octopus.



That's me at different times of the day. Really cool job, this one, but a little... let's say intensive.




































That's a dragon and his big dragon buddy...

That's when life's tough

That's when it's time to go home


I have no idea what that is. It says "let's talk about shrimp". NO IDEA. No memories about it whatsoever. This is very strange.

Sadly, I lost my notepad from Copenhaguen, into which I had drawn a lot. I also complained about people dressed as yaks, the fact that no one was listening and the cold, and wrote down some of the weirdest things I heard over there. And I did hear some really really weird stuff.

If I ever find it again, I'll be sure to share what I find in it with you...

Life, oh life... [edit]

Well, reader, looks like I lied. I said I'd be writing here much more often now that I am in Germany, but nothing as thrilling as going to a goth club happened to me in a little while now. Here's a 5 steps update on my status, however. Because I'm sure you're dying to know.

1. I have a terrible, terrible backache going on, and I wish it would just stop already, because I'm going slowly crazy. Also, I don't know if you noticed that, but as soon as you back hurts, you want to sneeze every 5 minutes. Which only makes matters worse. Why is that, reader? Why do I have back pains NOW that the allergy season is full on? It is not nice at all.

2. My roommate M went to Switzerland yesterday to pick up the last things that were still missing in the kitchen. This means that we now have a fridge, a stove, cupboards, knives and forks and even sharp knives that you can actually use to cut onions without crying your eyes out. Ever tried to cut up an onion with a butter knife? Don't. But our new kitchen? I like it very much. Kitchens rule. I love cooking. I'll come back in a few days, and say that I don't have any ideas left, but as of right now, I love cooking and I am the stove-queen. I don't know, I seem to have something with royalty these days...

3. I have a truck-load of translations to do, which is great and will help a lot (money-wise) with my "find a dress for you brother's wedding" mission. I can't WAIT to go on THAT mission. A dress! A dress! I get to buy a dress! I love dresses! I'll try not to pick anything with tiny flowers on it. But you never know. Maybe I'll just go crazy and wear a Victorian gown and a gas-mask, like that girl I saw the other day at the gothic thingy. How about that? A Victorian gown and a gas mask... And then, once I have a dress, I'll actually go to my brother's wedding. HA HA! 5th of June! 5th of June! When will it finally be the 5th of June??

4. My room is in a terrible, terrible mess, even though I cleaned it yesterday. I don't know why this keeps happening to me, but I really, really hate it. OK today it does have a little bit to do with all the stuff my roommate brought back from Switzerland, but my "corner" of the room, with my bed in it and all, is in a terrible mess. I think some kind of evil spirit comes up in the night, while I am sleeping, kicks me in the back and messes up all my stuff. I'm pretty sure there is a Japanese ghost who does exactly that. And he's currently on vacation in Holzgerlingen. Stupid bugger.

5. I have been catching up on series the last few days. I now have seen all the latest episodes of Ashes to Ashes (not as good as it used to be, if you want my opinion), Glee (anything that sings hs got my vote) and Dr Who (I'm so glad Matt Smith is good. He really is good. He really is very very good). Series make me unreasonably happy. I still have some catching up to do on the Big Bang Theory and How I Met Your Mother, but I just can't keep up with the breaks and stuff.

Well, here we are, reader, 5 very important news-flashes about me. I hope you are doing good, and wish you sunshine.

And also :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wik2uc69WbU you can no longer live without this. Sing with us !

I'm feeling glad

Reader, I have annoucements and news. Today : Five good news.

1. Spring's come. Definitely. All the signs are here: radish, tulips, cherry blossoms, runny nose, itchy eyes, sunshine, sunshine all around, and I'm feeling happy. I was really, really fed up with the winter and the cold and the crap weather. I had lunch with my friend V today, sitting outside in Kaysersberg, eating a salad in the sun, and I just felt happy that winter's over. (Also we went and partied all night on saturday, and went to a concert, and I had not done any of this in a long time, and that evening was just perfect. I think I really needed to go out and dance all night. I should do this more often. Anyone care to join me? Murder on the dancefloor? Dancing Queen? No? Ok then. I'll just go brush my teeth and listen to Rihanna.)

2. I've watched Dr Who, yesterday. The brand new Dr Who. The one without David Tennant. The one with Matt Smith. And it was absolutely great. Now, I'd hate to rush things, it might still go wrong, but he passed, Matt Smith did. And so did his brilliant Scottish friend Amelia Pond. Way! To! Go! I really missed the one-shot episodes (as I am not a great fan of large-scale plots. It's the same with every series. X-Files more than the others perhaps, because I really, really hate Mulder's little sister, and I wish he'd just give up on her already. Melissa! Melissa! Melissa was eaten by aliens, Fox, get over it, and back to Eugene Tooms. He scares me. He scares me everytime I go to the bathroom, and here's the catch: I've never even seen the bloody episode!)

Anyway, one-shot episodes seem to be back, and it was a really good one at that. I do hope it will go on like this, and stay that cool. He said "Carrots? Are you insane?" about three minutes in, and I was lost. Maybe the BBC can do it again! They made me love David Tennant and Christopher Eccleston, I am willing to love Matt Smith too. And all the new characters that have been added seem really cool too. C'mon, c'mon, c'mon!

3. This is my 200th post. I wrote 200 of these (good news to me, not so sure about you :D). I do hope I'll reach 400 and maybe even 1000, as long as you are willing to put up with my grammar mistakes, my constant whining, and stay interested in my slug-filled adventures and detailed classification of post-2000 Hindi musicals, characters with hats, and English actors' backsides. I love blogging, I love the format and the medium, and I love comments, and I'm very, very happy I've got you, reader.

4. I'm going away again. I was born under a wandering star. Maybe. Which is going to take me as far as Stuttgart. I've been spending too much time on my parent's couch doing nothing at all. So I'll be off next week, in one last and desperate attempt to improve my German enough to claim I actually speak it.
I've found a room, a cool flat-mate, and though he also owns a pack of live scorpions, I'm pretty sure I'll feel at home real soon (provided he doesn't choose to lock me up in his basement and feed me beetles, I've only met him twice, you can never be sure). In any case, I'll be going to Stuttgart, and having brand new adventures on German-speaking land. Wish me luck. I will tell you all about it. What I won't do is crawl under my bed and indulge in my most sociophobic behaviors. No watching series all night, sleeping till noon, and hiding away as soon as someone makes a noise in the hallway! No nervous giggling and sudden, shameful silence in the middle of a sentence I am sorry I ever started. Open, sunny, easy-going Claire I'll be, and my brain will have no choice but to remember that it exists and knows better. Mark my words.

5. My brother and his fiancée S are getting married. Two months from now. 5th of June. I'm very, very happy, and I can't wait. Two months! Not even two months! Here are the details. And in my blog-roll. Weeeeeeehehehee! A wedding! Drinks all around! And then guess what? They might even stay in France! No more expat interviews! He he... Happy news \o/

There you go, reader. I have a feeling maybe part of the crap actually is melting away under my very eyes. And it makes me oh-so-happy. I hope you're happy too.

White blank page

Random fact time ! No top 5 today. Just random facts:

-My "official" computer, the apple of my eye and the essence of my days, has been fixed by my super-powered brother in law V. I can now type with reasonable intervals between the keys, which is really nice. Feels like luxury, after using me eeeePC for so long. Like for a week, that's how tough my life is... I'm very glad about this, and so here we are: an Internet tribute to V, whose week-end was spoilt by my merciless nagging.

-Have you ever listened to Mumford & Sons? I heard of it on Craig Ferguson, the other day (today, in fact), and when he said "English pop-folk band", and said their album was named after a Shakespeare sonnet, I knew I'd love it. I was right. I mean, what's not to love? English, Pop, and Folk. With a little Shakespeare thrown in. Do listen to their songs, they're really brilliant, I hope they're really, really successful, and I likes them much. They have banjos and they sing together and they're like the band that needed to be invented just for me. At the crossroads of Joe Purdy and Flogging Molly. (And a little bit of Damien Rice, as well, though that's not my favourite side of them, with all due respect to Damien Rice. There's only so much Damien-Riceness I can take, and Damien Rice himself should stay in charge of it).
Go on Deezer right now, reader, and tell me what you think. (I have discovered them today, I might have forgotten all about them tomorrow, but I don't think I will.)

-What I like best about modern society and the internet is THIS type of things. I don't know if it's me, but it makes me cry. This one does, and the Belgian one in a train station where everyone starts singing "The sound of Music" too. And then I feel better about life in general.

Here are my news for today. Three random facts. I have to say: This month of fFebruary has sucked. I hated it (apart from some cool stuff, like my sisters coming over, or going to the movies with my friends). I hope March will be better, and I'm sure it will, with the help of flash mobs and Mumford and Sons and sunshine and more good stuff. Blank slate: now, it's time for the spring.

Lots of love,
Me

Fire and snow

Well, reader, it's me again. Why, you ask ? Because, I've... got... chills, they're multyplyin', and I'm looooooooosing controwowol... No. Sorry.

Actually, it's because I've got... some serious work to do, so it's started an irresistible impulse to come over here and blog. It's pavlovian. In any case, I came over here to tell you about the top 5 things I found out hanging around in temperatures below zero over the last two months. Started in Copenhaguen, went on in Colmar, continued in Berlin, and kept on freezing in Rovaniemi, Finland (which was not so bad, even though it's in the polar circle). Did I tell you I love my job? I do. I'm not being ironic.

1. There are not many things prettier than a tree covered in snow. Not many things prettier than a quiet city street covered in snow. Not many things calmer than the sound of snow falling on snow. Not many things that look more comfy than a newly snowed layer of snow, all puffy and soft under your feet.

2. Even if you are feeling at peace with nature and romantic and ice-princess-like, it's best to resist the impulse of touching the snow, for several reasons : it turns into muck, it's wet, it's cold and it makes you trun lobster red. Also, even though everyone knows that suitable snow-shoes are for cold-footed sissies, it's best not to go out with stupid city-chick boots. Keeping your balance hurts your hips and makes you really tired, really fast. As well as look very stupid. Especially when surrounded with tough Samis who are very, very far from being cold-footed sissies.

3. Even if you are feeling at peace with nature and romantic and ice-princess like, it's best to remember that you have chapped lips, a red nose and that your hair is a mess : in a word, you look more like Rudolf the Reindeer than like the ice-princess. This, to avoid a dreadful shock the next time you encounter a mirror.

4. Forgetting your scarf in Brussels when going to the arctic circle is very, very stupid. Still, I bought a cool new scarf, soft as a feather and warm as... a scarf, which is nice. I now have two of those...

5. Danish socks and my DocMartens are all I need to be happy in the Arctic. And a crash course in deer-hunting, I guess.

... and a happy new year !

I may, or may not have used the same post title last year, but, well, it's seasonal. And appropriate.

In any case : Happy New Year reader ! I am off to Berlin, to celebrate the new year with my friends and enjoy a bit of the German atmosphere. First time in Berlin in my whole life, though I've studied German for... wait... 12 years. Quite a lot von die Motivation !

My plans for next year : Eat less, work more and spreaaaad love. What about yours ?

I wish you all the best, anything you might wish for yourself (except if it involves whatever form of death and destruction), and love, health, glory and riches on top of that !

Fahlala lala, lala, la, la !

** MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU **

I wish you all the best, a very, very merry Christmas, and also this :

Loooove all around !

Rows and rows of big dark clouds

It's Sunday. No big and interesting adventure ever happened on a Sunday. I hate Sundays. I don't really, cause they also mean sleeping till 11 a.m., only since I don't really have a job these days, I can pretty much sleep all I want any day of the week, which robbed sundays of their sole purpose. And outside of family reunions, I really do hate sundays, because there is nothing interesting to do on a sunday, and I don't know why, but they seem to be rainy all the time. So today's top 5, in honour of Crap-Sunday-Weather, will be the top 5 things I sould remember not to do when I am down on a sunday, together with possible solutions. I do not actually believe there is a cure to sunday crap-ness, but you never know. There we go. I should not :

1. Listen to the music I want to listen to. What I should do is choose whatever track I feel like listening, and then pick its exact opposite. I should avoid, in particular, listening to sad tunes (it only ever makes things worse. Patty Griffin nearly killed me today. By the way, about Patty Griffin... Is it cool to listen to Patty Griffin ? I like it, but I also have to be pointed out what's cool, so I'd really like to have your opinion... Long Ride Home is such a nice song...)

Also, listening to rock music that you believe will make you more... say tonic and... wake you up is not a good solution. I tried the Babyshambles (whom I really, really love), and all it did was adding a wish to kick the furniture and punch innocent walls to a feeling of down-ness. Whatever you call it. It's no good.

Because then either you stay aggressive till it's time to go to bed, or you do punch a wall, and then you hurt your hand, and then you feel so stupid you want to punch yourself. I would say... stupid hip hop stuff. Or maybe also "Superman (It's not Easy)" by Five for Fighting. But that might just be me. Cause it's a sad song, but it makes me feel happy, somehow. Scouting for Girl also does the trick (especially "James Bond", which is really cool).

2. Go back to bed and do nothing. Then I feel bad because I haven't done anything worthwhile with my day and it adds guilt to the lot. Baaad idea.

3. Start making a complicated recipe that I always wanted to try. Are you crazy, Reader? On a gray sunday under the sign of Craponus, roman God of failures? Usually, I find out that I am missing a key ingredient AFTER I melted half a pound of butter. Then what do you do with half a bloody pound of melted butter? Drink it? So no complicated recipe.

Then again, you might never have thought of baking a cake just because you're down, but that's what comes up first when I think about things I could do when I am bored. It's also valid for any creative work. Start with what you do have, and then figure out what you could do with it should be the general guideline.

4. Procrastinate. Cause it's sunday and you're supposed to rest and you're entitled to do nothing. No good at all. The logical thing is to start on the most boring task you can think of. Like... I dunno... cleaning the windows. Because, look at it this way : you are already bored to death doing nothing, so why not go on being bored to death, but at least figure you've done something worthwhile at the end of the day? (There, even I would argue that cleaning windows is really not worthwhile at all as long as you can see through them. But I'm sure you see what I mean).

5. Go. On. Facebook. Going on Facebook when you are bored will only EVER make things worse. I don't know why I like Facebook so much. I think I like the Facebook pages of other people so much that I pretend I like it myself in order to absorb some of their coolness... Doesn't work. Three hours spent on FarmVille are a good equivalent to drinking half a pound of melted butter.

Now, reader, time for me to follow my own advice and go 'glossarize'. I promise I'll write something a little more... interesting and cool next time. When the sunday afternoon jinx is gone again. Have a nice week-end!! Hu hu hu... that sounds kind of cynical now, doesn't it? Well go ahead, then! Clean the windows!!

Elle est dans ma tête, elle ne m'abandonne jamais

These, readers, are the words of a stoopid French song. They mean "she's in my head and she never forsakes me". It's exactly what happened to me with the stupid song, which is now constantly playing in my head, and driving me crazy. Call me Jukebox-girl.

Anyway, I'm not here to complain about the radio (yet), but to say hi, because I have not been writing in a terribly long time. I've been sitting the Big Oral Exam From Hell, which I passed (yay!), and then going to Cracow in Poland on an internship (yay again!).

The internwhip was great, except we interpreted for a guy for 4 hours, and he then proceeded to tell us that he had actually understood the original version all along, and we needn't have bothered, with the happiest grin I had seen in quite a long time. But it was a nice experience anyway, and we would just have sat there and been bored if he had told us he didn't need us any sooner, so no big deal.

I then moved back to France, and slept for 10 days straight, which was nice indeed, and now I am in Paris, working, which is nice too. It's sunny here, and also I'll get paid at the end of the month (yay!) and I have a little time to blog on my lunchbreak, which is nice too.

Of course, it would be a good idea to work on my thesis and/or on my German (which I'll have to sit again in Spetember... could someone please do something for my grammar?) during my lunchbreak instead of coming here and telling you all about my rivetting life, only you know me... besides, my fingers are all sticky because of the soy sauce that came with the japanese meal we ordered for lunch, so you'll understand that I can't possibly write anything serious with sticky fingers. (Just kidding, IT guy who probably reads my blog like 15 milion other readers at least, of course, I washed my hands thoroughly and never eat anywhere near my keyboard).

Well, I'll have to run, now, I just wanted to say that I was still pretty much alive and give you some news, before writing something more interesting and focused some time soon, I promise. Have a nice day in the meantime !!

Explosions in the sky

Hey reader !

I bet you don't know the song, because it's not very famous at all, but it is still a song, and most appropriate for tonight's post. As you probably know, Brussels, Belgium, is the capital city of Europe (Kind of. I believe it's Strasbourg, people in Luxemburg believe it's Luxemburg (har har) and I guess people in Germany believe it's Berlin, because of the symbol and all.) But Brussels, I think, is the real capital city of Europe. It's the most European place I've ever been to, whatever that may mean.

So tonight, they had a great European celebration (the Festival of Europe, it's called) and there were fireworks tonight, which I saw from my window. And here's tonight top 5, therefore, the "Top 5 random things that went through my mind while watching the Festival of Europe's fireworks" (that's one top five I bet you did not expect. I thought about doing the "Top 5 actresses I'd most like to look like", but then I changed my mind. Maybe later)

Anyway.

1) I don't know why I hated firworks so much as a kid (apart from their being noisy and loud and terrifying, and the fact that I'm afraid of big crowds, especially the ones that drink stale beer from plastic cups on the 14th of July (and I do mean 14th, it's not a typo, I'm French, goooo team baguettes, I heart frog legs and snails, give me my beret, I need to go on strike and march down the streets singing the Marseillaise)

2) If I hear someone tomorrow saying "I wish they would not use up all our taxpayer's money to blast stupid gunpowder in the sky for 15 minutes, we're in a recession and all going to die, they should save it to subsidise baby seals' feeds", I might get a tiny little bit agressive. I'm glad we can do something pretty and light and poetic with the taxpayer's money for a change. Without that, it would all just be business, and I do hope Europe's more than that.

3) I'm very glad I chose to become an interpreter. It's because of Europe and all, international community and stuff. I'm glad I chose to become an interpreter. I do hope I'll manage to get my diploma. WRITE THE DAMN THESIS, CLAIRE ! (I read my own blog, so why should I not leave a little message to myself, huh?)

4) At some time during the fireworks, however, I decided that I did not have a good enough view from my window, so I joined my roommates who were watching it from the roof. The next thing that went through my mind, as I was climbing the fire-escape ladder barefoot, was how important it is, in life, to have the appropriate shoes. One should always take time to consider footwear before coming out of their room (especially in their pyjamas at midnight in Belgium). Might help one not freeze to death and enjoy the fireworks without one's feet turning blue. Also they looked like they had been barbecued, since the floor up there was an iron grid. Things are better now. I added a hot water bottle to the comforter I was wrapped up in before, and things are going great.

5) Even if you don't feel like you belong and you don't know what to tell them and they look a little puzzled everytime you open your mouth, it's nice to have roommates.

So there you are, reader, tonight's Festival of Europe fireworks. Hope you had a nice saturday and will have a nice sunday too. Any random thoughts you'd like to share with me?

Chanda mama

Hey reader !

I was a little tired today when I came back from class, and I needed to get to work but did not, and then I felt a little bad, and then I went there

http://www.playingforchange.com/episodes/7/Chanda_Mama

And I suddently felt much, much better. So if you're feeling tired and down, go there, listen to this one and the other ones too, maybe bake some brownies or something, and everything will suddently feel much, much better.

Good evening !! (Next time, I promise, I'll post a real post and not just a link)

<3

All you need is...

Reader ! Reader ! Hark !

This weekend, my sister M got married. Look at her! Is she not pretty?

Yes she is.

The wedding has been "being prepared" for nearly a year, now, and I've been wanting to tell you, and then I felt silly, because you know, when something's big like that, you never really know what to say, and though I'm OK with being silly, it's more difficult to... well... that's it right here. A very good example.

The ceremony and the party were great, I got a chance to see all of my huge family, and also the huge family of my brother in law, V.

I see my sister M and her brand new husband V pretty often these days since I am studying in Belgium where they are currently living. In fact, V is Belgian, like the chocolate, and that's not the only thing they have in common. Indeed, V is very very nice, and has a knack for being supportive when you're down.

(V, if you hear me, sorry again for the total meltdown this summer, after the interpreting school incident. If you had not been there to look slightly confused and make me a nice, strong coffee, I'd probably have been reduced to an alternative form of life. I'm so very glad my sister M's got you to make her a nice, strong cup of coffee and look slightly confused whenever she needs it, because I wouldn't want my sister to be reduced to an alternative form of life). Indeed :

My sister M's perfect as she is. Have you seen her? Scroll back up, and get a second look. There are not so many things you can be sure of, and everything changes very fast, and nothing is ever for certain, and why did the chicken cross the road, and what about black holes and the speed of light, but one thing I know for sure is: Everyone, everywhere, needs an awesome big sibling like the ones I've got. I should know, I've got three.

I wish I could tell you all about my big siblings, and I wish I could tell you all about how great it is to see all my family and my mum and dad and aunts and uncles and grand-mothers and cousins, only I can't, because by the time I'd be finished just with the immediate circle, I'd be old and gray, and I've got important things to do (like seing them in person). But let it be known that my family, new brother in law included, is the awesomest in the whole universe, and I wish you the same one.

Spread love, Reader!

PS: The great picture's courtesy of my friend V (she's not the same person as my step-brother V. Same initial is all :)! What a nice picture! Thanks!

Call me up before you're dead, we can make some plans instead...

Heeey reader!

I told you this was going to happen... I said "I'll have to work on my thesis, so I'll be here babbling away pretty soon"... Well, here we are. I sat down half an hour ago, highly motivated and wheezy (stupid month of April strikes again... And it's even worse than last year...) and here I am already, not having written a single serious word...

Anyway, still, I'm going to try to keep it slightly short, so that I can still manage to do some work before it's 6 pm.

I just wanted to tell you about a few articles and blogs I have read lately, and how you should go have a look at them and all.

a) This blog, if you want to see beautiful pictures (better to know French, but you can manage without it too). Eerie and cwoool.

b) This interview of David Tennant and Russel T. Davis. I know I should be ashamed. But today, they are showing the first of Tennant's last four episodes as the doctor. Please indulge me. Besides, it's a cool interview.

c) This blog. It's huge and it's funny and it's updated every five minutes or so (I'm sure that woman does not exist. She can't possibly do that many things all alone. I think she's a team. I wish I could have a team, then I could stay on my bed and read her blog all day. Only that's not true, my dream life is not to stay on my bed all day being a no-life. That's just my life in Belgium. Hu hu hu...)

Anyway. I just wanted to tell you about these three. I'll try to go on to write something interesting and serious and academic now. Please, please, let me write something interesting. Please, please, please, I so wish I could hand that paper in some day.

Have a nice day, reader! A bientôt!

Don't ever let your mind stop you from having a good time

Hello hello !

It's been verrrrry long since I have last written here, and I really am sorry. The good news is that I have plenty of things to tell now! I've had plenty of internships lately, and then my awesome friend V came and visited me and we had a great week together in Brussels, partying and visiting and sleeping a lot too, I must admit, and now I am back in Colmar for two weeks holidays before.... oh before something, reader, if you knew :) (Only you probably do, since 5/6th of my readership is part of my family) --I promise I'll tell you, only I need to figure out something, like, really good.

Anyway, I've been going all over Belgium, one city a day for the past few weeks, and it was great. I want to Ostende (internship) and to Blankenberge (for fun !), both of which are on the Belgian coast, which is always nice (I've got a thing with the sea. No matter how ugly the coast might be, if you turn your back to the land and watch the far-dom, it's always, always a nice feeling. Also I like to play in the sand and bury my feet in it and write stuff in it with my fingers and look at the shellfish, and then when I get bored with the silly stuff, it makes me want to lay flat on my back and wait forever. It's a feeling I get a lot, lately, I must say. The urge to lay flat on my back and wait. But then I get bored with that too, get up and go eat some free-trade chocolate.

I also made a stop in Marchienne au Pont, on an intership, before Blankenberge and the fun part started. Whatever you do, in your life, wherever life brings you, I would recommend that you avoid Marchienne au pont on a friday night at 7 p.m. It is probably the most depressing place on earth, even on a bright sunday morning at the beginning of spring, but on a rainy evening, when it's just getting dark (you know that particular twilight light that makes everything look a little bit dirty) it is really very depressing. Go to Blankenberge instead. Avoid Marchienne au Pont.

Anyway. I also wanted to tell you about another thing which is very nice to do on the beach, and that is listening to I'm Yours, by Jason Mraz, sharing headphones with your best friend. We went to see him live with V and our friend A (who was a perfect hostess and provided Cecemel for all) last tuesday, and it was just brilliant. Really really nice. The first part of the concert was Marit Larsen (if you don't know her, she's made a very fast and amazing climb on my "The people I'd like to be if I wasn't me" list, check her out on YouTube, it's really nice and very very sweet. Maybe too much so if you're not in the mood, but still).

And then the second part of the concert was Jason Mraz, I already told you about him, and I must once again thank my german friend A (hey A! Haven't talked to you in forever! I hope you're doing good!) for making me aware of how great he was, and I don't just mean "I'm Yours", though it is the best song ever written (This week. Might change soon. But this week it definitely is. Honestly, who can resist I'm Yours? It's so nice! It's nice and pretty and it makes you want to smile. I love that song.)

Well, that's basically the news from me, back in Colmar. I promise that I'll try to write a little more regularly over the newt few days (probably going to happen since I have to work on my thesis (also called "*shout curses* bloody paper from hell *shout curses again*", but don't tell anyone I said that))

I have to go now, shopping time, but have a really nice day. And here's to V for coming to Belgium to visit me even though she'd already been there and for being awesome and taking cool pictures that I can put on my blog.

Spread love ! (what do you mean, "stop that hippie crap, Claire, the concert's been over for a week now"? Go pick some flowers and bake cookies, and don't be so cynical.)