a day in the life

Or, more specifically, yesterday.

7:00 am - Get Up
I'm in the habit of getting up when Steph does, unless I'm sick. I feel too guilty if I lay in bed while Steph is going to work. I may not actually do anything but sit on the couch, but at least I'm awake.

Morning - Coffee & Homework
After watching a bit of morning television (to work on French comprehension, of course), a bowl of cereal and a cup of coffee, I settle in to do my French homework. For those of you playing at home, we've been working on the difference between Imparfait and Passé Composé.

12:00 pm - Lunch for Two
Now that we're living in the village where Steph works, he has the time to actually come home for lunch. This has created a problem for me, since I've gotten used to finding little things to eat during the day and only having to worry about meals for two at dinnertime. The good thing is that it's given me the opportunity to try out new things and solicit people for new recipes (if you're feeling generous, please feel free to fill up the comments box!).

1:30 pm - On the Road Again
On those days that I drive to Troyes for my French class, Steph walks back to work and I get the car (bwahahahaaha!). It takes about half an hour to get to my destination and I have three villages to drive through before I get there. As I pass through the first village, I see children running around in front of the Mairie, or town hall. The reason they're running around the town hall is that it doubles for the school, and they're waiting to go back to class.

2:00 pm - 4:00 pm - French Class
Yesterday we went off on a tangent and starting talking about cooking fish. Every single student (except me) recommends cooking and eating fish with its head intact. Apparently the brains are very tasty. My classmates come from VietNam, Cambodia, India, Marrakech, and Haiti. The teacher and I recommended trout on the grill, which they hadn't tried before. I love when we get off track and just sit and talk like this. The best part of my French class is that I'm learning so much more about the world.

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4:00 pm - 6:30 pm - Shopping
I won't always have choir rehearsals on Thursday evenings, but when I do, I have two hours to run around and do what I want. Yesterday, I packed a lot into two hours. First, I went to one of the hypermarchés, or supermarkets, in Troyes. We have little grocery stores in my village, but the ones in Troyes are like Super Walmarts, with everything from televisions to fresh bread. I took the opportunity to pick up a couple of things that I can't find at home. Before I left, I stopped in the cafeteria for a fresh crèpe with Nutella and a cup of coffee.

I didn't linger too long over coffee, though, because I had another errand to run. Running out of time, I drove back to the center of town, parked and put too much money in the parking meter, rather than look for exact change, and walked briskly a few blocks. As I crossed across the square in front of the Mairie, I noticed that they are selling roasted marrons already. The giant carousel is lit up like a dream and playing a waltz. A mother was taking a picture of her daughter, smiling down from a lit-up sleigh. A young couple not too far away was dancing a little waltz in time to the music.

I turned the corner and found myself at my destination: the clothing stores. In less than ten minutes, I ran through the two stores I had targeted, looking for a new black sweater to wear to a party on Sunday. Having found one, I learned at the register that it was on sale for less than 20 euros (!!!). Bag in hand, I headed back to the car to drop off the sweater and get my music. This time, the carousel is playing Elvis.

6:30 pm - 7:30 pm - Choir Rehearsal
Not much to report here. It was a women's sectional, so we were concentrating on some sticky spots. Since I just started back to the choir last week, this music is still new to me. The first piece was easy but the second one is going to require some extra time. Some time next week, I'll likely take a rehearsal room at the conservatory and pound out notes on a piano.

8:00 pm - Home Again, Home Again
After half an hour on the road (with nobody on it), I finally make it back home. Steph has a request for dinner (which is rare): a little ditty we call "Instant Raclette." It consists of potatoes with saussison sec and raclette cheese piled on top, then thrown in the microwave for two minutes. Those of you that know traditional Raclette are probably horrified, but we're ok with that.

I checked my emails, played a little bit online, and crashed around 11:00 pm. Wash, lather, repeat.

Actually, I chose yesterday to write about because it was a busy day, but in a good way. Today started with cleaning the bathroom, and nobody wants to read about that, do they?