trois jours sans mes affaires

So, I'm back in France and I'm starting my first [real] blog post of 2010! I wrote this long entry a week ago about whether or not I should make resolutions and being in France and blah blah--I even added some funny cat pictures! But in the end I realized the whole thing could pretty much be summed up in one concise thought: I don't want to do resolutions anymore. There, I saved you about eight minutes.

bye bye Tucson!

In other news, I arrived on Sunday evening after another nightmare traveling experience. I'm not sure why I seem to be prone to awful travel dilemmas--canceled trains, canceled/delayed flights, sitting next to obese people and/or screaming babies, lost luggage... It's really no wonder I have such terrible travel anxiety now. The night before I travel, I lie in bed, eyes fixed on the ceiling, stomach churning with anxiety. Such experiences make me want to forget this whole adventure and come home and lie in the comfort of my own deliciously warm, pillow-filled bed and never move. Ever. Again.

This time, amongst the delayed, rerouted, and canceled flights, I arrived in Toulouse with no suitcase to follow which was a pickle as I didn't leave much here in the way of warm clothing. So I had to go three days wearing the same jeans and sweatshirt I left in, no computer charger, no good clothes and no make up, but at least I had my books and my ipod to keep me company. I got to teach classes and walk around looking like a complete schmuck for three days which I guess I wouldn't normally mind doing so much back home, but here the caliber for looking good is slightly different. I'll never really get their whole looking-good-all-the-time mentality, but it's crazy to me how so many people can look so good and coordinated in their outfits all the time. Particularly the women--I have older women in my adult classes that dress so freakin good and look stunning for their age. Definitely no Sears mom jeans here, people.

I'm not gonna even mention how cold it is here because I know there are colder places in the world and I don't wanna bitch too much. But remember when I said it rarely snows here? This is what I had to come home to...

brr

Aye yay. What's up with this weather? Why did I leave the beautiful sunshine for this? OHHH well.

Ok, in news unrelated to France, while I was at home, I got to ride around in my friend Tyler's dad's 1959 Corvette, a car that I've been drooling over since I was eleven when Tyler showed it to me (he lives across the street). Needless to say, it.... Was... LEGEND--wait for it!!!...

 

....DARY!

WOOHOO!

We just ran some errands for Tyler's mom and it took less than an hour, but it was still pretty uh-may-zing driving around Tucson in the middle of the day on a Friday. I can't believe how many double-takes and thumbs-up we got. I could definitely get used to riding in a car like that. Driving it, on the other hand, no way jose. I did not want to be in any way responsible for it. Plus, it only has three gears. Ancient!

Anyways, I guess that's all for now, I'll add some more exciting pictures of Toulouse and France a bit later on, when the sidewalks aren't covered in ice and going outside isn't suicidal.

bisous!