Here They Are:

They're adorable, and I love them. I think they started my shoe buying binge 3 years ago. Or re-ignited it.

And as for the definition of sling back? It's got a flimsy little back that slings around my ankle...

I Know What You Want

Tonight, when I get home, I'll post a picture of the super-cute black and cream colored Nine West slingbacks with a little bow detail on the toe which I got on sale and I'm wearing today.

I Love My Job

Today I discovered that it's just as easy for me to ignore the message light on my work phone as it is to ignore the little message icon on my cell phone.

And that it takes 7 minutes for my space heater at work to blow the power strip (and yes, the space heater has it's own special power strip). Now, I could keep the space heater on "low wattage" and never blow the power strip... but... then my work would have to not keep the temperature at approximately 32 degrees in the middle of winter.

Really, You Don't Have to Explain Football to Me.

Frankly, I don't know very much about football. But I know enough. If I don't know what's going on, I'll ask. Or I'll have a beer and forget about it.

That is all.

Why Where I Live Is Cool:

I literally live a block and a half away from the building that inspired that creepy building in Ghostbusters.

We almost got an apartment there instead of where we did, but I couldn't stand the idea that I'd come home to a Babylonian God in my refrigerator.

But I'm going to an all-day wine tasting there tomorrow.

Blog Nonsense

Alright, so all the cool kids were doing it, so I submitted my blog to the bitches at ITalk2Much.com to be reviewed. They're a pretty harsh bunch, and I knew that they'd hate my blog for my "basic blogger template" which I've modified only slightly... but hey, I'm a glutton for punishment, so I did it. And the review was posted yesterday - you can read it here. I'm generally happy with the review. When I submitted, I told myself that I'd be happy if I at least got 3 smacks, and I did, so I can't complain.

So now's your chance to review my blog yourself. Is there anything that I do that you dislike? Anything you'd like to see more of? I'd really like to know!

Public Service Announcement

Star Wars ≠ Wedding

In Star Wars, the girl running around in a white dress with a funny hairdo generally has a gun. In a wedding, that girl just has flowers.

This is What I Wore to Work Today:

It's obvious I have no regard for either proper work attire or the fact that it's winter.

You can't really tell, maybe this picture is better, but that skirt is covered with sequins and tassels.

And these shoes... Well, they're not exactly made for winter, but, well...

The good news is my boss' boss' boss told me she liked my skirt. And my boss' boss told me that I was very sparkly, and always bring sparkle to the department.

The bad news is that John said that it looked like a chandelier had thrown up on my shoes. And Julie said I looked "all flamenco and tropical, but goth."

But the one that people seemed to like the most, and gravitate towards, was that I was dressed like Stevie Nicks.

I think tomorrow I'm going to go for Cyndi Lauper.

Some Pink News from the Pink Shoe

Like whiskey and pink? Check out this crazy new concoction!

Aussie criminal after my own heart - wearing pink gloves while commiting armed robbery.

I would so go to Hong Kong to see the pink dolphins!

And... just because I love them, a link to the picture of a pink dolphin. From the Jackie Chan website. Why does Jackie Chan have a pink dolphin on his website? I'm confused and scared.

A Conversation With My Sister:

Marcia: The Husband got me flowers today!

Elizabeth: Nice! Can you get my boyfriend to do that, too?

Marcia: Well, do you have a camera phone? Because I could send you a picture of the flowers and you could show it to him.

Elizabeth: And we could schedule it so that I'm with him when I get the picture, like, "I wonder what my sister's sending me? Oh wow, look at those nice flowers! From her husband! Isn't that nice of him?"

Marcia: Yeah! That's even better than what I was thinking. When should I send it?

Elizabeth: But I don't have a camera phone.

Marcia: Well fuck.

Dear Sketchers:

It's no longer 1996. No one likes you anymore. Please change your style or fold. Or Julie will be forced to paint another picture of your outdated shoes and I'll be forced to continue mocking you.

Love,

Marcia

I Feel Like An Adult:

I've used insurance that I pay for myself to get new glasses.

Now, I've had glasses for literally 15 years, and I've been mostly wearing contacts for almost 10. And I decided that I really needed updated glasses, not the ugly ones with the 3 year old prescription I'd been forced to rely on when I didn't want to put in my contacts.

They're black and lisa loeb-ish and make me feel like Cat Woman. Don't ask me to explain that last part, they just do.

And, one of the best things, besides the fabulous gay man who helped me pick them out (he was, in a word, fabulous), is that the inside is a bright, happy blue.


Now, none of you are allowed to tell me that I really AM an adult, and offer up the proof of my impending quarter-centurty birthday. If you do anything like that, you will be NO LONGER INVITED to my birthday party.

That is all.

Sometimes...

The world just isn't going your way, but then you find salsa con queso in the fridge, and that makes things better.

Things I've Done Today:

1) I got up. At 7:30AM. It sucked. More than usual.

2) Got ready for work.

3) Drove the half hour to work.

4) Handed off the work that I brought home last night, everyone said I looked like shit. Actual quote: "Marcia! You're wearing normal shoes! What's wrong?"

5) Decided to go back home. Grabbed some easy, mindless, work to do, because I'm the BEST EMPLOYEE EVER. Or because if I didn't do it today, I'd have to do it tomorrow...

6) Bought Dayquil. And orange juice.

7) Returned my butt to the couch, from which it has not moved. For 2 hours.

I'm still ache-y and tired. But I know you don't want to hear about that.

So, here are some links to keep you amused:

My first boyfriend at Notre Dame, Brian, had just finished directing a movie in Austin called Swerve. He's starting to post pictures and comments on how the shoot went. It's really interesting. GO!

Here are two blogs that I've been reading lately that are growing on me: The Grumpy Owl and Blogography. There was something specific that I wanted you to see, but... didn't I mention that I was dizzy? I've forgotten what it was. I'm a loser like that.

Ironic.

So, I've been told for years that I should take vitamins. But I've never been able to force myself to take them - they're gross. They have bad texture and bad taste and bad... everything. So I've never taken them.

Then along came:


Disney Princess Vitamin Gummies.

And I found them two weeks ago, and I've been taking them faithfully. Seriously. Every day. I love gummies. If I could get all my food in gummie form, I would. And the fact that they're princess, well, so much the better. It's the perfect food: nutrition, princesses, and gummies.

And, the pinacle of health that I am, I get the flu. Bad. I ache, I'm mucus-y, I'm dizzy. People are complaining that I heavy sigh a lot.

The highlight of my workday was getting a bottle of grapefruit juice from the cafe and drinking it all in one gulp while my co-workers chanted "Chug! Chug! Chug!"

The highlight of my day would have been leaving the office at 2 because I was sick, except I brought home a full bag of files. And I worked on them from the time I got home until 8. Something isn't right about that. But then someone nice brought me comfort food and vitamin C, and now I'm going to bed.

What Are Lime Green Skimmers?

Why, I'm so glad you asked.


And yes, they were $13.82 at the Dillard's Basement, and yes, I wore them today even though the temperature was "33, feels like 18 because of biting, bone chilling wind."

69 Things

Kat asked me to do this vaguely suggestive list. And, as it's vaguely suggestive, and she asked, and she called me "darling," I'm going to do it.

1. What time did you get up this morning?

No work because of MLK Jr. Day... I slept in. 9:00

2. Diamonds or pearls?

Diamonds!

3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema?

I haven't been to the cinema in forever. I think the last time I went was to see the Kill Bill double feature at the Tivoli. In November.

4. What is your favorite TV show?

Right now? Lost and 24. Ones that I watch over and over? The Simpsons, Seinfeld, South Park.

5. What did you have for breakfast?

People who eat breakfast are communists.

6. What is your middle name?

Christine

7. What is your favorite food?

Sushi, homemade really good (not prego and pasta) Italian, and lately... French food.

8. What foods do you dislike?

Meat foods :)

9. Your favorite Potato chip?

Sour Cream and Onion Pringles. They're gross, I know. It's the strangest addiction I have.

10. What is your favorite CD at the moment?

Neutral Milk Hotel: In the Aeroplane Over the Sea

11. What kind of car do you drive?

A 1997 Oldsmobile Cutlass. That I've driven since I was 16.

No Question 12.

No Question 13. Someone must be superstitious.

14. Favorite drink?

Gin and Tonic. Or, if we're being nonalcoholic, I like Starbucks Mochas, iced in the summer and hot in the winter.

15. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would it be?

A warm beach where I could just lie and do nothing for days on end. With cabana boys bringing me margaritas.

16.What color is your bathroom?

White and pink with seahorses, obviously.

17. Favorite brand of clothing?

Cavalli

18.Where would you retire?

I don't plan on moving when I retire. Unless it's to Europe.

19. Favorite time of day?

Early morning, when you wake up and can just lay in your warm bed, or go back to sleep. (However, early morning when you have to get up SUCKS.)

20. There was no question 20.

21. Favorite sport to watch?

Notre Dame and Broncos Football. Avalance Hockey. And any baseball as long as it's live and has beer.

22. Who do you least expect to send this back?

Well, there's no sending involved.... so... no one will send this back.

23. Person you expect to send it back first?

Whoever in my blogroll is the most bored and least inspired.

24. What laundry detergent do you use?

Tide

25. Coke or Pepsi?

Mountain Dew or Diet Coke.

26. Are you a morning person or night owl?

Night Owl.

27. What size shoe do you wear?

7.5. Or 38.

28. Do you have pets?

Nope.

29. Any new and exciting news you'd like to share with your friends?

6 months until I move to Akron... and 18 until I move to Manhattan.

30. What (who) did you want to be when you were little?

A princess.

31. Favorite candy bar?

Dark Milky Way.

33. What are the different jobs you have had in your life?

Ones that have paid? Shaker (making milk shakes... not actually shaking anything), Bank Teller, Customer Service Rep (in person, not on the phone), and Editorial Assistant.

34. Favorite season?

Spring.

35. Nicknames you've had?

Christy, Marscala, Chicken Marcia, Cia, M-Cia, Marsca, etc…

36. Piercings:

1 in each ear, and previously my belly button. But that's been gone for 4 years. But the little hole is still there.

37. Eye color:

Brown

38. Ever been to Africa?

Nope.

39. Ever been toilet papering?

Maybe.

40. Love someone so much it made you cry?

Yes.

41. Been in a car accident?

Oh yeah.

42. What's a question no one has ever asked you?

No one's ever asked me that question before.... and I don't have an answer to that.

43. Favorite day of the week?

Saturday. It's almost always a good day.

44. Favorite restaurant?

Not that I'm going back any time soon, but the AOC in Paris is fan-FUCKING-tastic.

45. Favorite flower?

Daffodils. They always bloom on my birthday. Always.

46. Favorite ice cream?

Either Hagen Daaz Creme Brulee or Dulce de Leche. Which, if you read their descriptions, are basically the same thing.

47. Disney or Warner Brothers?

Disney.

48. Favorite fast food restaurant?

McDonalds. Caramel sundaies and the best fries in the land.

49. What color is your bedroom carpet?

No carpet. Hardwood. Parkay. It's gorgeous.

50. How many times did you fail your driver's test?

None.

51. Before this one, from whom did you get your last e-mail?

My sister Elizabeth.

52. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card?

As I don't like a single designer or type of clothing enough to pick a botique, I'll say Saks. And I'd spend a lot of money on shoes, handbags, skirts, and amazing jeans.

53. What do you do most often when you are bored?

Read blogs and books.

54. Bedtime:

Midnight. Ish.

56. Last person you went to dinner with?

My husband.

57. Ford or Chevy?

Ford.

58. What are you listening to right now?

I'm watching 24 and Jack Bauer is killing all sorts of crazy terrorists and oh my god, don't talk to me now!

59. What is your favorite color?

Pink!

60. Lake, Ocean or River?

River.

61. How many tattoos do you have?

Nada.

62. Which came first, the chicken or the egg?

I’m all about evolution. The egg.

63. How many people are you sending this email to?

How many read this blog?

64. Favorite Cocktail?

Gin and Tonic or Mojito.

65. Red or White wine?

Red. But I’m not drinking any fucking Merlot.

66. Where would you go for a girls or boys weekend get-away?

Somewhere with massages and sun.

67. What do you want to be?

Happy.

68. Republican or Democrat?

Democrat.

69. Favorite Family Vacation?

When I was seven we went to Disney in California with my cousins. That was pretty darn good.

---------

ok, that was fun... any questions?

Jessica McClintock, What Were You Thinking??

I almost bought this dress today.

Now, the pictures don't do it justice. There are gathers, and flounces, and bows, and fake flowers, and yards and yards of shiny, reflective, unflattering fabric. And oh yeah, it had a train:

The really sad thing is that in the car on the way home, we realized with the extra 30% off they were giving us (ummm... I got little Coach sneakers for $12.25 and some Antonio Melani lime green skimmers for 13.82 - a total savings of $118.93 off the original prices), the dress would have been $13.99. I could have brought it home and scared people with it, then made... decorative pillows or something. A shiny, uncomfortable pink baby blanket. Curtains. A table cloth. The possiblities are endless. And hideous.

I Need Some Help:

Will someone PLEASE tell me what is so damn engrossing about a college football video game?

I don't get it.

Well.

Last night I went to a fun party. And a guy showed up in flip flops. And I thought about it, and... it was warm enough. 65. Pretty darn nice. So, this morning, I didn't go all the way to flip flops, but I wore little open shoes.

And it snowed.

Book Club Links!

tg8 wants suggestions on what to read. Go give him feedback on his ideas.

The Idle Receptionist directs us towards a short story that's amazing.

See how this book club thing is working? John was right - it IS like a sitcom.

And if I miss your book post, e-mail me, and I'll get it up!

Wow. I need this shirt.

We had an old Apple II Plus while I was growing up (until about 5 years ago) that had Oregon Trail, Where In the World Is Carmen Sandiego, and Return to Castle Wolfenstein (only my brother played this, but I can't get the game screaming "Heil!" out of my head), and a game that I think was called "RoadRunner" where you picked up little packages, avoided the computer men, and ... well, there was orange and white on the screen and I loved it.

In Oregon Trail, I would always buy no food and then stop immediately and hunt a lot. I thought I was so clever.

UPDATE 11:20AM: I just remembered that the game I couldn't remember was LodeRunner. And I'm at work, so I can't look up a link, but that game ROCKED.

The Jennifer-Brad-Angelina Dilemma

Alright, so I like Jennifer Aniston. She's adorable. She's finally decided on her own style, and it's fabulous. She and I could be friends. Really good friends. We'd go to lunch, get manis and pedis and facials at a spa, and gab about guys. Then we'd go shopping, and buy long ruffly hippie skirts, flat strappy sandles, and gold jewelry.

I also like Angelina Jolie. She's hot. She's got great lips and hair. She helps children and women around the world. She's a little bit crazy, and I like that about her. She and I would go out and party all night, we'd crash and wake up for a late brunch over at some trendy spot, then happen to see some amazing high sexy going out shoes in a store window on the way back, go in and spend a fortune on accessories we don't need.

And Brad Pitt is gorgeous. I like him scruffy and clean shaven, with long hair and short. He's amazing as Tyler Durden, awesome as that guy in Ocean's 11, pretty cool in 7 Years in Tibet, and hot as that stud in Thelma and Lousie.

And this new baby of Brad's and Angelina's is going to be beautiful.

And a little bit screwed up.

And I still feel badly about the whole Jennifer-Brad breakup thing. I would have worn a Team Aniston shirt (but I would have secretly bought a Team Jolie shirt and worn it to paint in).

But I love the new baby, and I would babysit it for free. Because Angelina and I are best friends.

And Now For Something Completely Different:

This is the funniest post I've read in a while: The Hot Librarian.

Go bask in the glory of her Anchorman quotes.

Because 2006 is the Year of the Bookclub

Alright, there's been a lot of talk in the comments about having a blog bookclub, and I'm all for it. tg8 of Celeboganda! first brought it up, and it's recieved a lot of support... Basically, back in the beginning days of this blog, I used to write a little review of almost every book that I read - but the posts didn't get many comments, and I became less and less motivated to write them.

And so, now there's talk of this bookclub, and what I propose is this: that each of us (and basically, my entire blogroll and then some is in) will write about the books on our own blogs as we read them and feel the need to review, and then the other bloggers will read and comment (wow, this sounds like just plain old regular blogging) and (this is where it gets tricky, folks), after reading and commenting on a review, if one finds it to be especially pithy, one could refer to it in a post - it doesn't need it's own post, a call out at the end is fine. And that way everyone can be sure to check out the reveiws on blogs that they might not read regularly. Everyone got it? Ok, BREAK!

Oh, PS, tg8 has a great review of one of my favorite books, Life of Pi, up right now, and Anne has read Olivia Joules and the Overactive Imagination - which I think I'm going to have to go out and buy!

PS2, I promise I'll never have another post that uses the words "blog" and "blogging" as much as this one does.

There Has Been Some Confusion:

is not the same as

The top one is a model. The bottom one SHOULD be a model, but even though the fashion world begged and begged, she said, "No! The publishing world needs me more!"

They are, however, wearing the same jeans.

A Conversation During Dinner:

Me: I'd say that tooting my own horn is among my top 10 favorite activities.

Husband: Top 10? I'd say top 3.

Meme? Me?

Alright, so I've never done a meme, and I've told myself that I never would do one, but then CrazieQueen tagged me, and I really like her, and, well, it's not a bad meme, so I'm going to do it - but don't expect me to get into the habit of it!

The Four Things Meme: (And there were more things that "they" wanted info about, but I trimmed it down. It was getting to be a little much!)

Four Jobs I've Had:

"Shaker" at the Shake, Rattle, and Roll Diner in Clifton when I was 18. It was a '60's diner, and I made the desserts - the shakes, the banana splits, everything. I got damn good with my whip cream designs.

Customer Service Rep at a large bank in Ladue. Just after I moved to St. Louis I did this - I had a college degree and was way underutilized. And very frustrated. I cried when I quit, I was so happy.

Campaign work - For the Dems in Western Colorado in 2004. Sometimes I think it was the hardest I've ever worked. We were at the office around 6 am, and we often didn't get home until 2 am. And most of the races I worked on (except the big one) were successful!

Editorial Assistant at a medical and scientific textbook company. I work on dental, dental hygiene, and dental assiting texts. And let me tell you, teeth are GROSS.

Four Places I've Lived:

Grand Junction, CO

Farley Hall, Notre Dame

Castle Point, South Bend

St. Louis, MO

Four TV Shows I Love:

LOST

24

The Simpsons

Iron Chef

Four Places I've Been on Vacation:

Paris (Honeymoon!)

London

Many, many small towns in Colorado - my favorites are Ouray and Durango.

And California, Arizona, Michigan, Illinois, Ohio, Missouri, Indiana, New York, North Carolina, West Virginia, Florida... I think those are most of the ones I've been to "on vacation."

Four of My Favorite Foods:

Guacamole (my special recipe)

Pesto Pizza with pine nuts, onions, peppers, garlic, and lots of cheese

Sushi (I could eat it all day, every day, and not be tired of it.)

Any sort of dessert that's cream-y and vanilla-y (creme brulee, lots of sweet cream ice creams, etc)

Four Bloggers You Are Tagging:

None, because I don't want to obligate anyone! But if you WANT to do it, go ahead!

Two Things...

1) We finally broke enough of our old cheap red wine glasses to start using our new nice crystal everyday glasses from the wedding. Aren't they nice?


And well.... we don't think that we broke any more glasses. But we definitely had 2 red wine glasses before the holidays... and now we have one. It's like those socks that lose their mates - but weirder.

2) I got flowers. Delphinium. From this guy that has a crush on me.


Ok, really, they're from my husband. But - he totally has a crush on me. Don't tell.

Facts about EMPEROR PENGUINS:

Photo Courtesy gdargaud.net

1. They're monogamous. For 8 months. Then they go back to their slutty ways.

2. They would make fantastic sleds.

3. The little ones like to hang out on the weird gnarly claws of its parents.

4. Sometimes the little ones die. Or don't get born at all. Which is sad.

5. The penguin kiss, though beak-y, is remarkably tender. And then someone throws up in someone else's mouth, and the moment is over.

6. They would be good at yoga. Well, the bending over and the balancing eggs on your feet parts. Not the lifting your leg high in the air parts.

Listen Up, Everybody!

Today is the Husband's 25th birthday.

I am about to go watch March of the Penguins with him. It will be fabulous, and I'll probably come away from it with a whole set of Facts About Penguins.

In the meantime, please enjoy this Christopher Walken SNL video: The Census Guy. It's fucking funny, and it's the Husband's favorite of late. And it's his birthday, so I'm giving it to you.

Yesterday Was T-Shirt Day at Work

Well, it's a really casual place, so every day COULD be t-shirt day, but, well, we made a thing of it.

We had:

The Corporate Zombie


I Love NY


The Jedi Master


The Soul Mate

And Tinkerbell.

Basically, work rocks.

And today, we took a long lunch and played Taboo. In a conference room. My favorite clue: "It's something you give really little people, when you want them to have a good time."

Our guess? Midget Porn.

You know it's a good day when...

You buy new jeans before leaving for work.

And they're 70% off.

Finally: Christmas in Paris!

Alright, I'm watching the Fiesta Bowl, which my husband is at (I, however, didn't want to hop on a plane the day after getting back from Paris, so I stayed home) and I'm finally getting my account of the trip up:

Dec 24: We arrive in Paris around 11:30 am, make it through all the red tape with no problems, and take the RER into the city to go find our hotel. The problem is we have no idea, really, where it is. We have the address, and an approximate location, but... nothing definite. We get off the metro, with all our luggage, at the Luxemburg stop on the blue line, because we know that the hotel is near the Jardin du Luxemburg. But... it's almost exactly on the opposite side (and then some) from where the blue line comes out... Oh well. 45 minutes later, I'm about to kill Matt because I'm so tired, and we find our hotel. The beautiful Victoria Palace. I've never been so excited to see a hotel in my life. And it was everything we'd hoped it would be.

And we open the half bottle of champagne that's in the room (it's our honeymoon, after all!) and then fall asleep for 3 hours (we had gotten no sleep on the plane... and had been up for over 24 hours. We needed it!)

We wake up and head over to see Notre Dame, and Mass is going on, and there's a huge Christmas tree, and it's perfect. We talk about going in, but we're tired, and just happy to be there, and just taking it all in - and going inside seems to be more of a hassle than it's worth, so we decide to go back on Christmas. And then we go and have a kind of crappy expensive touristy meal. My salad with avec noix and rocheford had neither nuts nor any sort of cheese - but it did have canned tuna, sardines, RICE, cooked frozed vegetables (carrots, corn, peas... it looked like the succotash mix to me), and drowning in dressing. Oh well. We ate much better every day after that.

Dec 25: We get up, have the hotel breakfast, and then set out to walk around the city, which is mostly closed for the day. We walk to the Pantheon, which is closed but has a huge display of blue and silver decked christmas trees in front of it. Then we walk over to Notre Dame and do a quick, fun, crowded walk through druing Mass. Then we keep walking - see the ice rink and sledding hill that has been set up outside of the Chatelet - little Parisian children playing in the almost snow. I LOVED it. Next we went to the Centre Pompidou (the modern art museum) and go through their Big Bang exhibit - which was fun. Then - we get touristy food which we love - a gyro for Matt and a falafel for me. But you can tell you're in France because they're stuffed with des frites as well as the traditional Greek food. And we walk and eat and then go to get a bottle of wine at Sainte Severine, a little wine bar on the Seine. We each have a glass of Bordeaux and head back to the hotel. At the hotel we ask about places to eat close, and they direct us to the Montparnasse area which is about 2 blocks away from the hotel, and we head down and go to a small cute Italian place, Pizza Pino, and I have basically a bowl or tortellini and melted cheese, which is fantastic, and Matt has a complicated pizza thing - and more red wine. Then we pick up a bottle of red wine on our way home and drink it at the hotel just before we fall asleep, watching the last half hour of the Princess Bride in French on TV.

Dec 26: This is getting long. I'll try to be shorter. We bummed around the Louvre for most of the day, and then walked around the Ste. Germaine des Pres area, and Matt wanted very much the Moules et Frites at Chez Leon, so there we went. Look into the popular cafes from back in the day - Les Deux Maggots and Cafe de Flore, and they're very much more upscale than I expected. We have a bottle of wine at the Chai de l'Abbye, and then find The Moose, the Canadian Bar, and that is FUN.

Dec 27: Head to the Eiffel Tower, and it's snowing and the lines are from one leg to the other. And Matt and I have both been up in the tower, and we're NOT waiting in that line. So we head to the Musee D'Orsay. Then we try to go to a very nice Japanese place, Azabu, but they're full, and so we head over to Takara, which is closed for the holiday (and... did I mention about an hour of being lost in the finding of both Azabu and Takara?), so we go to Le Dauphin where Matt has his first foie gras of the trip, and we really enjoy the food. And the pinot.

Dec 28: This might have been my favorite day of the trip. We head to the Musee Picasso, and Picasso is my favorite artist, and they're running a special exhibition called "Picasso: Le Passion de Dessin" and my favorite things of Picasso are his drawings. And there were so many of them. And they're all brilliant. With this exhibition you could just see that Picasso couldn't sit still. He must have been drawing all the time. And I finally understand why he went to cubism - seeing some of his drawings, you can just tell that he could see so many angles, and everything that he could put in the drawing, and he just put it all in - he could see these angles, so they HAD to go into the picture. I love it. And we head up to the beautiful Sacre Coeur, which I'd never been to, and I think it's just gorgeous. And we have crepes on the street, and I love them. I just love everything. I'm kind of over the top today. Oh well. Then we ate at the AOC Cafe - it was amazing. Seriously the best food. Matt had the Cote de Normandy Boeuf, and I haven't heard the end of it, it was so good. I had a salad, which has become my favorite, with little crustini with melted goat cheese on them. And Creme Brulee. Then we went to Finegan's Wake bar, and drank Guinness with students, and I saw the funniest sign in the world.

Dec. 29: The Musee Rodin. Fun. I loved the little Giacomettis, the big Rodins, and the beautiful paintings. And lunch a little Cafe Musee near the Rodin. And it snowed. It was snowing off and on the entire time we were there. But not hard until the 30th. And then, good friends of ours had gotten us tickets to Le Lido, a caberet on the Champs Elysees, with amazing food and wine. or, REALLY good champagne. We sat next to an older British couple and we were at a table right against the stage, and we saw lots of boobs. Of all sorts. We picked out our favorites and compared. And lots of glitter and singing and dancing and gymnastics and ice skating. It was a really fabulous spectacle. I couldn't believe it.

Dec. 30: Ran out and did some present shopping, and had take out pizza for dinner. Very low key, very snowy. And I wasn't feeling the best. But it snowed like crazy, and we packed and laughed and watched Sumo wrestling and Iron Man competitions on French TV - it was really fun.

And the 31st we flew home, and I bought a Longchamps pink shopper, and we were ready to go home, but it was still sad. And then Matt turned around and flew to Pheonix on the 1st. Crazy. I couldn't do it. And now I have to get back to the game. Because we're losing 14-7 to Ohio State in the 2nd. And that can't be right!!

Really, Jet Lag still....

As the Librarian Pirate correctly pointed out - I am le tired. And I mentioned that to ma marie beaucoup de temps while I was in France - especially when we got off the Metro with le baggage at a random stop 45 minutes from the hotel at which we were staying. Because our knowledge of exactly where the hotel was before we got of le Metro was sketchy. And when I was never really over the jet lag the entire time I was in Paris.

And, besides the jet lag, the dinner at my old boss's house with the wine and the margaritas just now didn't do much for my energy level.

But I am working on that post about everything I did in Paris. I have it all in this little pink journal that my Aunt-in-Law Liz gave me, and I just need to transfer it to the computer and add links. Really. It'll be up tomorrow.

And so, it's time for Marcia to alles a son lit. And no, she does not want to stop speaking French. No matter what her husband says.

Besides, he's in Tempe for the Fiesta Bowl anyway.