Avranches

Last Friday, I went to Avranches with Hélène, where she is doing her student teaching in the local high school. She invited me to a dinner hosted by her students who were raising money for a ski trip to the Alps.

It was a very interesting and wee bit hilarious evening. It was, however, not exactly like any high school dinner/fundraiser I'd ever seen in the USA.

Let's start with the commonalities:

People in rural areas, whether in the US or France, have no idea how to dress/put on make-up.
People in rural areas tend to be a bit heavier than city folk.
There are always people who live in the country but try to act like they come from the ghetto.
People from small towns are à la fois close-minded and welcoming.

A few notable differences:

Alcohol is served at the dinner.
Parents don't care if their kids are outside smoking or drinking.
A dinner means dinner: apéro, main dish, cheese, dessert, café.
Songs with vulgar lyrics are not banned. For example, a song about smoking a big joint or touching "la chatte."
There is no prayer before the meal. Church and state do NOT mix here!
The dinner/dance lasts until at least 2am.
Students come not in cars but on scooters.

Autumn Leaves

I've taken a long break from blogging. I really haven't had the time and still don't, but this is another excuse to avoid reality for a few minutes.

The fall months have flown by with the speed of a TGV. Faster even. I feel as if I've just arrived, and yet here it is the end of November. The principal reason for this blur of a season has mostly been due to my work. I've taken on quite a bit more this year than last, so it hasn't been all cafés and clopes like last year. I'm teaching 5 classes and have all of the responsibilities of a lecturer, which means roughly 35 hours a week at work, not counting the grading and prep time. Eh oui! Ca bosse!

My work life has been intense, as has my personal life. I've met new friends, reconnected with friends from last year, and yes, I've even met a boy. A lovely law student who kept me busy and smiling for over a month. Things between us right now are not quite so great. Our collective stress and neurosis have led us to take a break, and I'm not sure what will come of this, but whatever the result, I'm glad he has been around, and I hope he will remain a part of my life here, even if only as a friend.

Thanksgiving is almost here, and I miss my family and friends terribly. It is difficult knowing that they will all be together, having fun, eating my grandma's delicious stuffing, laughing... I'll be home for Christmas at least, so that will make up for missing them this week.

Meanwhile, I've got two Thanksgiving dinners this week: one at the Richter's and the other with a bunch of friends and a few colleagues. They'll both be a blast, but it is going to be a stressful lead-up to the weekend. Cranberry relish, stuffing, pies, cakes, etc. Il y a de quoi faire!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

La lunette

Two weekends ago, I had a bit of an accident in my apartment. Nothing serious, just an inconvenience really. Saturday morning, I got up and made coffee as usual. While the coffee was brewing, I went to the restroom. I was still a bit tired and not fully functioning, so I decided to sit down on the porcelain throne. Not out of necessity, but rather out of laziness. I sat down normally. Well, perhaps with a bit more force than normal. As I came into contact with the seat, I heard a pop and promptly slid off to the left, arms flailing, catching myself before I landed on the floor. I was now wide awake! I had popped the seat right off the toilet, breaking the cheap plastic clasps clean off!

Instead of going to the market, which was my original plan for the morning, I decided I had better head to Leclerc and get a new lunette, which is what the Frenchies call a toilet seat. I rode to the store, wandered around a bit, and finally found the aisle with bathroom furnishings. There were only two choices, both of which were over 35 euros, so I decided to put it off and deal with squatting for a few days.

On Sunday I called my friend Hélène and asked her if it would be possible to go to Leroy Merlin (a kind of Lowe's or Home Depot) at some point in the week. She, as usual, was more than willing to lend a hand, though she couldn't stop laughing at me and how I broke the thing!

On Wednesday, we went and I got a new, sturdier seat for only 10 euros! I was pleased. After we had finished, she dropped me (and my new toilet seat) off at the university. Needless to say, my colleagues asked lots of questions and, naturally, had a nice laugh at my expense. After I was done working, my toilet seat and I took the bus home, receiving strange looks from people along the way. "Why is he getting on the bus at the university with a toilet seat?" "Is that really a toilet seat he's got in the seat next to him?"

After arriving at home, I immediately installed the new seat and took it for a test spin. Solid, roomy, doesn't pinch: perfect!

Two days later, I closed the seat cover to sit down and put on my socks, which I usually do in the living room, but since I had a new, sturdy toilet seat, I thought, "Why not?" I got one sock on and as I bent over to put the other one on, shifting my weight, I heard a creak. A few milliseconds later...pop pop pop!! The effing seat exploded beneath me and into the toilet! So, needless to say, I will soon be taking another trip to Leroy Merlin for yet another toilet seat.

This is all that's left of the lid after my FA got done with it...

Photos

I put photos on my blog from time to time, but I have the rest of my photos on Picasaweb, so if you want to see where I spend my time, what I've seen, etc., feel free to check them out here

L'Administration française

France is a highly centralized country and is often considered to be the birth place of modern bureaucracy. As a foreigner who works for the Ministry of Education (my official employer), I've had the privilege of dealing with lots of administrative agencies.

Today, my carte de séjour, the piece of paper I need to be allowed to live and work in France, expires. As such, I had to renew my card yesterday. I should have gone before, in case there was a problem, but I was waiting for documents to arrive from HR at the university, which was waiting for documents to arrive from the ANAEM (the agency that deals with foreign workers in France). I never received the documents. To be fair, I never knew which documents I actually needed, since every time I asked someone I got a different answer. Oh, the joys of complicated and constantly changing administrative procedures!!

Yesterday morning, I got up early, ran down the street to have identity photos taken in the lobby of a grocery store (a machine, not just a random person who takes photos in the lobby), and then hopped on the bus to go to the Préfecture. I arrived at 9:05 (it opens at 9:00) and found a line out the door. I thought to myself: "If I wait three hours and don't have the right documents, I'm going to kill someone!" Once inside, I took a number, found a seat, and waited. There were people everywhere. I probably heard 10 different languages. Slavic, Asian, Arabic, and random African dialects. Some people were there to renew cards, to get one for the first time, to apply for asylum. Others, French, were there to get titles for their cars, get a driver's license, renew their ID cards. If you think the BMV is chaotic, you should visit a Prefecture.

After about an hour, my number was called and I nervously approached the window. I greeted the woman working very politely and with a big smile. Every little bit helps! I explained that I came with every document I was able to acquire. I was missing the authorization to work, but she told me just to send it as soon as I got it. Lovely woman! She could have refused me, and then that would really have complicated things. But she didn't! I had my provisional card, a récépissé, within 5 minutes (see photo above)! As such, I remain a legal immigrant in France.

Grocery Shopping

I don't own a car in France. I thought about buying a clunker, but decided against it because of the administrative nightmares that buying a car would entail. As such, I have three principal modes of transportation in and around Rennes: Pumas, buses/metro, and my bike. In general, I'm more than happy with my urban, environmentally-friendly modes of transport. There are two situations, however, that lead me to dream of my Versa and how nice it would be if I could have brought it with me: inclimate weather and grocery shopping.

Living in the center of town, I have a few options for food. I can go to small superettes near my house which are convenient, but there is little selection and the prices are high. I can go to larger, high-end supermarkets in-town like Galeries Lafayette, but they are even more expensive and entail schlepping groceries back to my apartment. The other option is to go out of the center to an hypermarché, where the selection is good and the prices low, though schlepping is still involved. For last minute necessities, I'll go to a superette, but for my main shopping, I prefer the hyper outside the center. One problem: the distance.

Before I had a bike, I took the bus to go shopping. I had to walk to the end of my street and hop on, ride for 20 minutes and hop off right in front of the store. Not too bad, except waiting for the bus and the time of travel usually made going to the store at minimum a 2 hour affair. While this was a bit annoying, it allowed me to stock up and get lots of food for little money. Now that I have a bike though, things have changed.

The Leclerc super-store closest to my place is just a 5 minute ride west along the river. No need to wait for the bus and no long ride. Perfect, right? Well almost. There is one obvious problem with grocery shopping and transporting the goods home by bike: the bike. Now I've got a system worked out where I fill up my saddle bags and once they're full, I stop. Normally this allows for a decent amount of groceries, but nowhere near as many as I could get when taking the bus. Every once in a while though, there is a problem with my system. I don't follow the system, and I get too much. This occurred yesterday evening.

I decided to stock up on some staple items since I had nothing in my place and went a bit crazy. I had the saddle bags full as well as a full reusable grocery bag. Oops! I was quite the spectacle in front of the store loading and reloading my bike. I spent about 15 minutes doing that and then spent another 5 minutes securing everything. People walked by, looked curiously, some doubtfully, but said nothing. This is a very French trait, by the way: Look curiously, stare critically, but say nothing. Mutter to yourself or someone you're with, but don't speak loud enough to be heard! I love it. Eventually, I got everything loaded and was on my way, down the dirt path along the river, steady, confident. I arrived without incident, proud of my logistical skills. There was just one problem to resolve: where to put all that toilet paper!

Health Care Reform

Watching the so-called debates on health care reform over the summer made me thankful that, for at least another year, I will be fully insured through the state run French system Assurance maladie.

The advantages of the system are without question: prices are low, everyone is covered, there are no long waits, people choose their doctors, and quality is excellent. The system is not perfect, but it seems to me that Americans could look to France as a model or starting point for a single-payer system in the USA. Opponents of single-payer systems often cite the UK and Canada, which are good systems, as reasons why we should avoid this type of solution because they have more problems with "rationing" and long waits. Are we so anti-French that we cannot admit that, for once, the French have gotten something right and their health care system actually is an example of good "socialized" medicine?

Another advantage of the French system, aside from the aforementioned cost and coverage benefits, is that a state-run system allows health officials to better prepare for pandemics like the H1N1 Flu. Upon arriving in France, posters and announcements greet citizens and tourists alike explaining symptoms and the proper course of action to take if such symptoms occur. These posters and announcements are in airports, train stations, buses, and other public places, as well as on TV and radio. If this really turns into a deadly pandemic, the French have the public health structures in place to rapidly and effectively deal with the problem, and since everyone is insured, people will not hesitate to take the proper steps to be treated. Will this be the case in the US?

This winter could teach Americans a lot about how well our health "system" works and how vulnerable ordinary people really are. Hopefully this is a lesson that can be learned without unnecessary loss of life.

Retour à Rennes

I was in Rennes on Monday, but for less than 24 hours. I went to Dijon on Tuesday morning to go see Julie, Sabine, Stéphane, Julien, and some other people at CIEF. I was a lovely trip. The weather was good, and I got to catch up with old friends.

The first two days I stayed in the dorm with Julie and the OSU students. The students were all scrambling to finish work at the last minute, so I helped Julie answer their questions, edit papers, etc. It was kind of fun to be working with French again, if only for a short while. I got a chance to talk with some students about their experiences: how was it, what do you miss about home, what drives you crazy about the French, etc. It was rather interesting. The biggest complaint for most students was convenience, which comes as no surprise since lots of things close in August. Some students complained about the food, but when I pressed them on this they admitted that they really hadn't tried much. I, of course, lectured them on the importance of diving in and trying new and "weird" things.

The following days were spent at my friend Julien's place, where we did little except watch "How I Met Your Mother" and eat and sleep. I needed to recharge my batteries, and he had had a long week at work, so it worked out well for both of us. He's a very nice guy, and it is always a pleasure to see him.

Throughout the week, I got to hang out with Sabine and Stéphane, who are quite simply two of the coolest people on the planet. We talk politics, culture, food, and usually do all that while eating or drinking. I brought them some micro-brew beers which I hope they'll like. They're both always looking to try a new beer, and I figured this was a good way to show them that not all American beer sucks (They only get Bud in France).

It is Sunday, and so I am doing nothing. I have to get used to everything being closed again. I still have to unpack and organize, so hopefully I'll at least get that done. I have no food, so I may have to bite the bullet and go to the one place that is open (all the way across town) and pay too much for a few basics to get be through tomorrow.

My week should be calm, but I have meetings and things to prepare at the university. We start classes next week, and I'm teaching two, so preparation is in order. I also have to go to the Prefecture to renew my carte de séjour this week. That will hopefully not be too much of a hassle!

Arrival in France

Well I'm back in France. The trip started out wonderfully. I arrived at Port Columbus and there was not a single person in line at the Continental desk, so I checked in with no stress. We arrived in Newark, NJ ahead of schedule and I had lots of time to kill, so I walked around, stepped outside and read some, and then went back through security. From there, I went to the duty-free store and browsed a bit. Totally normal.

We boarded our plane late, but it looked to me like we were going to get out without too much delay. As soon as we started to taxi, I saw a line of planes that must have been at least 15 planes long. We got in line and didn't move for 2 hours. Evidently hurricane Bill had caused the normal path to Europe to be closed, so all of the planes were waiting on a re-route. We eventually got it, but that meant we arrived in Paris over two hours late. Normally that wouldn't bug me too much, except I had booked a non-refundable 62 euro ticket on a train that was to leave at 10:27. By the time I got through immigration and got my bags, my TGV was long gone. Actually, I got to the station at the airport just 10 minutes after it left. Why does SNCF have to be on-time today!? I booked another ticket (59 more euros), and I'm waiting in the gare right now.

My dear friend Hélène was supposed to pick me up at the station in Rennes, but I called her (and woke her up) to let her know I wouldn't be there. Unfortunately, my phone had less battery than I thought, so I was unable to tell her exactly when I arrive. Hopefully she'll be there when I get to Rennes!

I'm surprisingly not that tired, thanks to a little Tylenol PM on the plane. I'm sure the train will rock me to sleep though. It always does. Even when I'm wide awake. I'm getting sleepy just thinking about it. Off to grab a tiny café!

Updates

I know there are millions of people out there just waiting for an update! I'm sorry about my negligence, but I do plan on trying to make a better effort this year about posting more often. Stay tuned!

Hélène Richter

For some strange reason, I've somehow forgotten to adequately mention my friend Hélène in my blog entries. Hélène has often reminded me of this grave omission, so I am going to try to make up for it with an entry devoted solely to her. Here goes!

When I arrived, I met a lot of people. I'm very thankful for all of my friends here: Nina, Sarah, Cynthia, Lisenn, Perrine, Axel, Youenn, Madison, Emma, Franche...the list goes on. They are all great and I am really glad to know them. Hélène, who I met very early on, is a special case. I chatted with her at work, and we were amical, but we never really did anything together. I wanted to get to know her better, so I invited her to actually do something outside work. We had a blast. We still have a blast! She is really amazing: smart (though at times a bit slow), funny, clumsy (like me!), athletic, honest, loyal.

She even invited me to go eat with her family, who I now see rather frequently for dinner! They are really great, and they've welcomed me into their family like I was one of their own. They have really made me feel at home here, and I'm very thankful for them. I often miss my family, but knowing that they are there is really comforting for someone whose family is thousands of kilometers away.

I think I'll stop now. I don't want Hélène to feel too important! Thanks for being you Hélène. You're amazing! Dommage que tu sois une fille. ;)

The Gays

This week was dominated by a theme: gay. There seemed to be gays/gay themes all over the place this week in my life. Sign on to Facebook and my friend Jon is uploading pictures of his trip to Winter Party in Miami, a big gay party weekend. I started going to a gym this week and, of course, where there's a gym, there are gays. The French government announced that new family law would no longer mention "mother/father," but rather "parents," opening the door to finally recognize gay families. On MSNBC, they were discussing the California Supreme Court deliberations over the constitutionality of Proposition 8, which takes away the right of gays to marry.

On Friday, I went to see "Milk," which tells the true story of Harvey Milk, the first openly gay elected official in the United States. The movie was excellent and Sean Penn was fantastic. He certainly deserved the Oscar! The movie is really heavy, and it really makes you realize how far society has come (or hasn't come) over the last 30 years. The film is powerful for anyone who believes in human rights, but it is especially moving for someone like me: a homo. It really makes you appreciate how much people struggled and fought so that I and others like me can live my life openly, honestly, and proudly. It was difficult to watch in parts, because you hear the arguments that people were making against gay rights in the 1970's and they are the same as those of today. The major contributor to the hatred and intolerance of gays and lesbians was and is still religion. We all still have a lot of work to do to really be treated equally and to live our lives as we wish, where we wish, and with whom we wish.

My "BIG GAY WEEK" ended yesterday/today. I went out with my friends Hélène and Sarah to some gay bars in Rennes. I had been neglecting this part of my social life and it was really starting to bother me. Don't get me wrong, I love going out with friends to straight bars, but there is something to be said for hanging out in a gay bar. First, the music is always better. Second, the atmosphere is a lot more fun, crazy, colorful...gay. Sometimes you just need to be around people who are like you, and I really needed that this week. We went to a "bar de nuit" that stays open until three, and then Hélène and I went to Espace, a night club that is gay friendly. I was sceptical, but it was a blast. There were homos everywhere, good music, and even drag queens! It was like I was back home. I met people, danced my ass off, and we left at 5:30 in the morning.

I had almost forgotten how much I love being gay! If you're gay, you know what I'm talking about. If not, just take my word for it; we have a blast!

Voyage à Dijon

Well, I was supposed to leave for Dijon at 7:05 this morning, but the train didn’t leave until 7:40 because the police evidently had to intervene on the train coming from Brest because two “voyageuses de comportement fortement aggressif” were causing problems. GIRL FIGHT!

This retard of course meant that I missed my train from Gare de Lyon to Dijon. I sprinted from the bus with my backpack and bag and arrived on the platform just in time to see the train pulling away! Putain bordel de merde! While sprinting to the platform, I saw my old “friend” Guillaume. If you know me well enough, you know who I’m talking about. If not, you should get to know me better! I seem to cross him randomly and always at inconvenient times. Plus I’m sure I looked hot running and panting like a draft horse through the gare. Way to go Todd!

I did get a seat on the next train, but that doesn’t leave until 1pm, so I‘ve got time to kill. Donc, the blog entry. There is Wifi in the station, but I never set up my account from my service provider, so I have no access. Double putain!

Another nice thing about the train stations in France (which I’d never noticed before because I am always here in the summer) is that there are really no walls and no heat. Alors, I’m freezing my balls off! Gotta love it! There are waiting rooms, but they are packed full of people and I would rather hang out with the pigeons. And sparrows. One of which just came up to me, begging like a gypsy in Rome! GET A JOB!

While I’d rather be on a train right now, it is kind of fun to just sit here and watch the myriad of types walk by. Lost Asians, Muslim women in hijabs, old widows with mangy poodles, FLAMING homos, children, more old ladies, MORE old ladies, and half-awake SNCF personnel. Oh, there are lots of beautiful women too! That’s for Jake.

I’m looking forward to 10 days with Stéphane and Sabine in Dijon. For those of you who don’t know, Stéphane is a teacher at the program I’ve done the last three years in Dijon, and Sabine is his wife. They are both AMAZING and I love hanging out with them. Only thing is, I hope my liver won’t fall out after this week. We always drink WAY TOO MUCH when we’re together. I’ll also get to see Julien and Clarissa while I’m there, as well as Sebastiano and his wife Margaret, also linked to CIEF. I’m not sure if I gave this address to any of my students from this summer, but if they read this they will all be jealous. The girls were OBSESSED with Sebastiano. For a 60-something Italian, he sure does well with the young ladies!

That’s all for now. I need to put my mittens back on before my fingers fall off! Take care!

Weekend

This weekend, like most of my weekends, was lazy, but somewhat productive. I went to the market on Saturday with my friend Sarah, just like I do every weekend. We found a new fromager (cheese maker) and got some really excellent cheese for a wine/cheese gathering Sarah was hosting. The people that work there are really nice and really helpful. I wanted something to go with the vin jaune (literally yellow wine) from the Jura region that I bought and the eyes of women working there lit up. She hooked me up with an amazing Gouda, aged for 48 months, and a Gruyere. I have a feeling I'll be stopping there every Saturday from now on! Hopefully I won't go bankrupt because of cheese, but it's possible!

After we did our shopping at the market, we went to a Quebecois café that I found in a magazine. It was really nice. They had brunch (just like in Canada (and America)) and the atmosphere was really nice. I'm sure I'll be back there soon too!

The rest of the day was spend running errands and then baking an apple pie with gruyere cheese in the crust. After, we drank wine, ate fresh oysters, cheese, pie...it was a good evening. My friends Cynthia and her boyfriend Matthieu were there, as well as one of my bosses, Lisenn. Lisenn and I were sitting next to each other all night joking around and talking about tout et n'importe quoi! I'm really glad I am getting to know her better, little by little. Both of my bosses are really cool, but it is easier to hang out with Lisenn because Perrine is married and has kids. Too bad!

Today was spent in my apartment, as are most Sundays. The weather was not so great, so I just decided to stay home. I made a roast with vegetables and some apple bread, so time was well spent. It is so much nicer to have an oven! Maybe now I'll gain some weight back.

This week looks like it should fly by. The strike continues, so it should be calm around campus. Friday I'm off to Dijon for a week of vacation. Updates to follow. Have a good week!

Sorry! My blog went on strike!

The last time I posted was December 2nd. With the holidays and the beginning of the semester, I've been rather busy. And lazy. But mostly busy.

I'm teaching 3 courses this semester, which is in addition to the responsibilities I have of holding interviews with students and office hours. I am teaching two courses for first-year students, known here as L1. One of my classes is WONDERFUL! The other is not so great. Hopefully they will get better, but I can only do so much. The other course I am teaching is for first-year Masters students, and they are fantastic. I walk out of that class everytime with a big smile. They are very motivated and they are open to anything, which makes for lots of fun and good results. Overall, I'm happy with the way things are going.

On the other hand, the university is undergoing some reforms and the teachers, most of whom are left (or very far left), are not so happy. As you may know, when people are unhappy in France, they strike! Both this week and last week were marked by strikes, and I have a feeling that this may go on for a while. I'm not on strike. Nor are the other anglo-saxons who work there. We are not affected by the reforms, so there is really no reason to strike. I have been trying to get as much info as possible about why everyone is so unhappy, but it is difficult. The people who strike use a post-marxist, propaganda-like discourse, so it is difficult to take things they say seriously. The media is covering it, but there are biases there as well. I'm sure I'll take a position on it at some point, but I'm not there yet. I'll keep you all posted, since I'm sure you're dying to know what I think about this issue that has nothing to do with you!

Otherwise, life continues to fly by. I go to the market every weekend, I cook, I bake, I eat. I eat. I cook some more. I drink wine. I drink beer. I walk. And walk. It rains, rains rains. Random sun appears and it goes away five minutes later. Life, quoi!