- Almost two hour delay in new york. And now i'm on a puddle jumper plane. Woo hoo! Not. Here i come minneapolis !
- At the airport in boston. Heading to msp for the night. Then back to the homeland. When will i travel again?
- i have an appointment at a mac store for apple care - woo hoo! meeting at 3pm in cambridge. then cosi and then a movie...
- I can't walk! Indian buffett and chicken naan. I can't move! How will i get home?! @rwhigginson will have to carry me.
- On train from boston to new york. Then in bos until friday. Sushi, friends, and angry emails to united are on the agenda. Woo hoo!
- in cancun - just checked out and got the bracelet cut. heading to airport and then nyc, baby! one more week of vacation...
- still pulling sand out of my hair (and other places)... *sigh* birthday week in cancun totally sucks.... not...
- pictures of cancun - you know you want to be jealous! http://wanderlust-ndstyle.b...
- just now getting on twitter to see the birthday wishes - thanks everyone! and happy bday to fellow may 19er @cbruels!
- Birthday on the beach in cancun! With sex on the beach drinks and swimming on the ocean. Delicious! And only terra says happy bday...
- Boarding flight to cancun. Here i come little piggy disease! Back stateside on saturday...
- too hot outside in vegas. sitting in air con catching up on greys anatomy. glad i'm not melting anymore...
- passengers.
- Just landed in vegas baby! Why did a woman SCREAM on the flight when the plane took off and any time we hit turbulence?! Scream i tell ...
- I can't believe i'm still awake. In msp heading to vegas. Plan to be asleep in less than hour on the plane.
- 15 min to pack for flight. crap!
- zack & miri reminds me of why i am not going to my hs reunion....
- zack & miri + wine + mango sorbet = mmm mmm good. even if i now have to wake up in 6 hours...
- oh AND i'm only half done with my bottle of wine. can't let a good, brand new bottle of organic french wine go to waste.
- i'm not tired but i have to get up in 7 hours to get on a 13 or 20 or 100 hour flight. something like that from paris to vegas...
- zaz!! posted some videos of where i'm staying in france. http://bit.ly/11ZGjE
- i've been trying ALL DAY to upload mini videos from my digital camera to my blog. it's taking FOR EV ER...
- still blogging while in france - luggage delivered today, btw. weee http://bit.ly/L3Xww
- holyshitmotherfuckinglazyass stupid unhelpfully rude french air france workers. bags NOT here when they said they would be. worst trip ever
- united is now telling me my luggage won't be delivered until MONDAY. wtf.
- yeah... freaky old houses in the middle of nowhere france are kind of .... well, freaky. def taking down pic of dead little boy above bed..
- in carcassone, the south of france. fabulous house for 20 people. going to go have apertifs by the pool. weeee!!
- it's official @delicateleah confirmed fargo is 5th drunkest http://bit.ly/1a2iQM
- @delicateleah - can you send link to proof that fargo is 5th drunkest city in nation??
- what a non-vacation so far! lost bags, sticky and groggy, had to buy new underwear... http://wanderlust-ndstyle.b...
- Just landed in gay paris. First part of trip complete. Now to get keys, nap, and shower.
- Holy crap! I made it. And holy shit. Sitting next to woman reading 'catalyst - journal for catholics.' how do i get a seat in business c ...
- hear from me again means i did.
- Just landed in chicago. Still on plane. Ramp workers are inside because of lightning so no one is going anywhere. Not sure i'll make fli ...
- Flight is supposed to leave in ten min and no one is on the plane. Now worried i'll miss my flight to paris. Would be not good!
- heading to the airport - eek! i feel like i forgot something...
- got the cousin to join twitter - welcome @trmenier!! good luck on the bat hunt @suite6
- hanging with the cousin and fiance watching tv, drinking champagne (go cinco de mayo!) and spending the last night stateside...
- RT @losethefatnow is giving away a FREE brand new copy of P90X.go here to learn how to get a free copy: http://budurl.com/freeP90X
- may day post! happy birthmonth to me! http://wanderlust-ndstyle.b...
Sunday, May 31, 2009
may twitter archive
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
happy birthday to me!
greetings fair weather friends!
and the weather is more than fair here, that's for sure! i am in cancun, mexico at the moment. sitting in the lobby trying to catch up on emails and read the news and download podcasts - all of which is sacrilege for my friend, elaine. to her, the computer is the enemy while on vacation! i can understand why, but for me it is a dear friend. especially since i thought most people forgot that yesterday was my birthday. i only got one text from my cousin, terra. i forgot that i turned twitter off since it costs a lot to get texts abroad and i also couldn't check my email last night. then today - i log on and bam! instant recognition and validation of ingraining the one day for me into other's heads. it's amazing how instantly i felt better knowing i wasn't forgotten. so to all you who emailed, texted, tweeted, commented on this blog - THANK YOU!! you made a girl feel special.
so back to the trip. i'm in cancun. i was in vegas over the weekend. i intended to blog, but it was such a quick trip - half the time was spent getting over jet lag from paris and the other half was spent applying sunscreen so i didn't burn. it didn't work. and i'm really annoyed by that. vegas was fun, as usual, but i can only effectively work in large groups for short amounts of time. i'll have to go into more detail about the trip later. for now, know that i am safe and healthy in cancun - no sign of swine flu anywhere yet. i'm a bit groggy and have a tumbling tummy, but i think that has more to do with me forcing elaine and myself to drink copious (but not tooo mch) amounts of free alochol by the pool and ocean yesterday in honor of my birthday than little piggy disease.
and despite constantly applying spf 50 and 70, i got red in vegas - not fun and yesterday again i got red. i'm really afraid of skin cancer, so i have been avoiding the sun today. and the heat. i practically melt out here! so i am staying inside today, which is just fine with me. i have a good book and someone needs to get use out of the air conditioning! i might go sit under an umbrella later today. but i think i will save myself for tomorrow. i plan to get up early and do laps before its too hot out. we'll see how that goes...
it appears the internet connection is a bit dodgy, so i'll post this while i can and work on some more fun stories about my trip. a bientot!!
and the weather is more than fair here, that's for sure! i am in cancun, mexico at the moment. sitting in the lobby trying to catch up on emails and read the news and download podcasts - all of which is sacrilege for my friend, elaine. to her, the computer is the enemy while on vacation! i can understand why, but for me it is a dear friend. especially since i thought most people forgot that yesterday was my birthday. i only got one text from my cousin, terra. i forgot that i turned twitter off since it costs a lot to get texts abroad and i also couldn't check my email last night. then today - i log on and bam! instant recognition and validation of ingraining the one day for me into other's heads. it's amazing how instantly i felt better knowing i wasn't forgotten. so to all you who emailed, texted, tweeted, commented on this blog - THANK YOU!! you made a girl feel special.
so back to the trip. i'm in cancun. i was in vegas over the weekend. i intended to blog, but it was such a quick trip - half the time was spent getting over jet lag from paris and the other half was spent applying sunscreen so i didn't burn. it didn't work. and i'm really annoyed by that. vegas was fun, as usual, but i can only effectively work in large groups for short amounts of time. i'll have to go into more detail about the trip later. for now, know that i am safe and healthy in cancun - no sign of swine flu anywhere yet. i'm a bit groggy and have a tumbling tummy, but i think that has more to do with me forcing elaine and myself to drink copious (but not tooo mch) amounts of free alochol by the pool and ocean yesterday in honor of my birthday than little piggy disease.
and despite constantly applying spf 50 and 70, i got red in vegas - not fun and yesterday again i got red. i'm really afraid of skin cancer, so i have been avoiding the sun today. and the heat. i practically melt out here! so i am staying inside today, which is just fine with me. i have a good book and someone needs to get use out of the air conditioning! i might go sit under an umbrella later today. but i think i will save myself for tomorrow. i plan to get up early and do laps before its too hot out. we'll see how that goes...
it appears the internet connection is a bit dodgy, so i'll post this while i can and work on some more fun stories about my trip. a bientot!!
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
domaine les homs en france
woo hoo! i feel like a future movie maker! i just filmed a few short segments walking around the house here in france so that you all can see where we are staying. it was really fun, but i know my limits technical and otherwise. this was just a quick video using my digital camera, its not even a video camera, so it doesn't allow me to film more than a few minutes at a time. it kept stopping on me until i wised up to it and started stopping earlier. hopefully it makes sense... if you have any questions, let me know! enjoy!
Sunday, May 10, 2009
this was supposed to be the best trip ever. what could go wrong?
- creepy shower in dirty sauna room
- forgot first dude
- lost bags
- united airlines doesn't recognize what an important person i am
all the things she said
jerry springer was recently on chelsea lately. i really like him. he’s self depricating, completely understands what his show is worth, admitted that tv guide voted his show the worst show on tv EVER. ever since i saw him on dwts, i have really liked him. he reminds me of when phil donahue and sally jessy and all the others used to have talk shows. geraldo. arsenio, etc. back when i was in elementary school and would be home during the day in the summer. i never understood why sally had red glasses. anyway, hopefully this clip will work...
and watching this video made me think back to a post that i had half-written while in france. so i went back and found it and finished it. it's not completely finished because i was trying to type in english as they were talking in french, so part of it is just a direct translation. here it is...
jerry springer is alive and kicking in france!
keep in mind, this is not actually jerry springer - this is the french version. the host is the sort of guy you would ignore on the street but with a microphone and phony suit, he looks a little slimy. behind the stage is a red brick wall and big, burly body guards in tight black tshirts and black jeans on the side. i didn't know they made frenchmen that burly. today's special (at 12:30am on Virgin 17) is about a woman in her 20s who confronts her father who doesn't love her. "pourqoui tu ne m'aimes pas comme ca?" the guests are actually not grossly dressed, like they are on the US version, although they do not look like they walk down the champs elysees a lot. the audience, however, is picked right out of an american trailer park - they are either overweight or wearing clothes that cover half their body or a combination of both. ooooooo.... ca chaud! this is getting good! he just admitted to not loving his daughter because she looks like her mother. if only the US's problems were as simple as this.... oh la la! they just brought the soon-to-be stepmother on. she just offered the daughter a room if she wants to finish her studies! and she broke up with the father since he doesn't love his daughter (she didn't know that) and now the two women are bonding and the dad is getting pissed.
the dad just stormed off stage!
i dont think you deserve a woman in your house. lots of swearing and its only -12!
the next story... a 23 year old living at home with his mom and his mom's cousin. the cousin is actually his momo's girlfriend! the father asks the son, "will you come live with me?" and he replies, "never in your life." 'jerry' asks the father, "why do you want to tell him?" (about the mom being a lesbian). the dad's very rational rationale, "because he loves his mother more than me." the son says, "i'm an adult, i can decide what i want to do." and because he's so upset with his dad, he moved his chair from his father and the bouncer pushed it back next to the father. then the mother comes out and starts yelling at the ex-husband. "we're divorced. i can do what i want. don't start with me! please!" so rien fait (nothing happens). she complains that he never loved her and was an egoist. she admits to her son, "yes, i am bisexual." he's sad, "why didnt you tell me before?" the mom's reason? "i didnt want to disrupt your studies." a woman in the audience stands up and says to her, "bravo for leaving your husband who showed neglect for you." and then asks the father, "why did you come here?" his telling response? "i wont answer that." the son didnt end up moving in with the father and was fine with his mom being a lesbian. the father seemed really upset.
then, at the end of the show, this disclaimer:
ca va se savoir. les cas traites sont interpretes comme les acteurs.
"we'll see what happens. these situations are carried out by actors." does the american version use actors??
[this part originally written 11/08/08.]
what's your favorite jerry springer episode?
and watching this video made me think back to a post that i had half-written while in france. so i went back and found it and finished it. it's not completely finished because i was trying to type in english as they were talking in french, so part of it is just a direct translation. here it is...
jerry springer is alive and kicking in france!
keep in mind, this is not actually jerry springer - this is the french version. the host is the sort of guy you would ignore on the street but with a microphone and phony suit, he looks a little slimy. behind the stage is a red brick wall and big, burly body guards in tight black tshirts and black jeans on the side. i didn't know they made frenchmen that burly. today's special (at 12:30am on Virgin 17) is about a woman in her 20s who confronts her father who doesn't love her. "pourqoui tu ne m'aimes pas comme ca?" the guests are actually not grossly dressed, like they are on the US version, although they do not look like they walk down the champs elysees a lot. the audience, however, is picked right out of an american trailer park - they are either overweight or wearing clothes that cover half their body or a combination of both. ooooooo.... ca chaud! this is getting good! he just admitted to not loving his daughter because she looks like her mother. if only the US's problems were as simple as this.... oh la la! they just brought the soon-to-be stepmother on. she just offered the daughter a room if she wants to finish her studies! and she broke up with the father since he doesn't love his daughter (she didn't know that) and now the two women are bonding and the dad is getting pissed.
the dad just stormed off stage!
i dont think you deserve a woman in your house. lots of swearing and its only -12!
the next story... a 23 year old living at home with his mom and his mom's cousin. the cousin is actually his momo's girlfriend! the father asks the son, "will you come live with me?" and he replies, "never in your life." 'jerry' asks the father, "why do you want to tell him?" (about the mom being a lesbian). the dad's very rational rationale, "because he loves his mother more than me." the son says, "i'm an adult, i can decide what i want to do." and because he's so upset with his dad, he moved his chair from his father and the bouncer pushed it back next to the father. then the mother comes out and starts yelling at the ex-husband. "we're divorced. i can do what i want. don't start with me! please!" so rien fait (nothing happens). she complains that he never loved her and was an egoist. she admits to her son, "yes, i am bisexual." he's sad, "why didnt you tell me before?" the mom's reason? "i didnt want to disrupt your studies." a woman in the audience stands up and says to her, "bravo for leaving your husband who showed neglect for you." and then asks the father, "why did you come here?" his telling response? "i wont answer that." the son didnt end up moving in with the father and was fine with his mom being a lesbian. the father seemed really upset.
then, at the end of the show, this disclaimer:
ca va se savoir. les cas traites sont interpretes comme les acteurs.
"we'll see what happens. these situations are carried out by actors." does the american version use actors??
[this part originally written 11/08/08.]
what's your favorite jerry springer episode?
Friday, May 8, 2009
call me
i hate facebook. well... hate may be a strong word. i don’t care for it. and it really annoys me. does dislike + annoy = hate? i don’t know. you tell me. in any case, bleh to facebook. i use it out of necessity because 1) i have a crush on a guy from high school who is my friend and i use it to secretly keep tabs on him (in a non-stalking way, of course) and 2) to keep in touch with my friends from france who i’m not close enough to email, but could, theoretically, someday send a facebook note and be like, “hey christoff, i’m in frankfurt, we went to school together in france? remember? let’s meet up.”
so when i saw this video, i totally agreed. and it made me wonder why i stay with facebook. and then i remember my stupid reasons and don’t delete my account. but IF facebook comes out with those stupid legal agreement owning all the photos on the site again, i might have to delete my account. and i don’t think i would like that. there are a lot of european friends on there whose email addresses i dont have that i would like to maybe someday stay in touch with.
so why do i dislike facebook? for exactly the same reasons why i use it. people who i do not like can use it to keep tabs on me. i dont want those people keeping tabs on me! some people don’t deserve to know what i am doing these days. oh, and it also kind of sucks that I’M NOT DOING ANYTHING. thats another reason for me to dislike facebook. and i hate the whole “friends” aspect. like, all these people from high school who i didnt even talk to in high school try to befriend me. this is a smallish community, so i feel bad when i don’t accept them as a friend, even though i dont care what they’re doing now and dont really want them to know what i’m doing. and now i had to join the facebook group for class of ’99 reunion. UGH. so now i keep getting these emails about what they’re doing at the reunion and how much it is and when you have to RSVP by. and i’ve just decided not to go. my good friend, deepti, is not going and i can’t get a hold of my friend molly. other than that... there aren’t a lot of reasons for me to go. and then i read this article about things this woman learned in high school and figured, “20 years. i’ll go to the 20 year reunion and have no problems with it.” hopefully by then i’ll be successful and won’t mind showing up at my reunion.
so what do i do instead of go to my reunion in july? i read an article recently about germans "safeguarding" their language and it hit me. preparing durchstehvermögen to ensure i am ready for my impending gammelfleischparty and to prevent bildschirmbräune (all words taken from aforementioned article). basically, i have to improve my german so i can understand words like that. i think i might spend a month this summer back in germany to improve my german. plus, i want to get back to berlin, they're partying without me! in the meantime, once i am back from my trip, i am going to definitely start looking for a job. suggestions?
until then, i will keep my facebook account (begrudgingly). but the question remains: do i "friend" people i didn't really talk to in high school? or even people who i was semi-friends with back then, but probably never hung out with outside of school... should i friend them? one of my brothers friends anyone he meets at a bar and likes. i just don't feel that open and care to have others that interested in me. besides, my TRUE friends read this blog. :) so, what do you think about facebook? according to this article, people should "cull" their lists once a year. maybe i will do that to mine now... if you get axed - sorry! :)
so when i saw this video, i totally agreed. and it made me wonder why i stay with facebook. and then i remember my stupid reasons and don’t delete my account. but IF facebook comes out with those stupid legal agreement owning all the photos on the site again, i might have to delete my account. and i don’t think i would like that. there are a lot of european friends on there whose email addresses i dont have that i would like to maybe someday stay in touch with.
so why do i dislike facebook? for exactly the same reasons why i use it. people who i do not like can use it to keep tabs on me. i dont want those people keeping tabs on me! some people don’t deserve to know what i am doing these days. oh, and it also kind of sucks that I’M NOT DOING ANYTHING. thats another reason for me to dislike facebook. and i hate the whole “friends” aspect. like, all these people from high school who i didnt even talk to in high school try to befriend me. this is a smallish community, so i feel bad when i don’t accept them as a friend, even though i dont care what they’re doing now and dont really want them to know what i’m doing. and now i had to join the facebook group for class of ’99 reunion. UGH. so now i keep getting these emails about what they’re doing at the reunion and how much it is and when you have to RSVP by. and i’ve just decided not to go. my good friend, deepti, is not going and i can’t get a hold of my friend molly. other than that... there aren’t a lot of reasons for me to go. and then i read this article about things this woman learned in high school and figured, “20 years. i’ll go to the 20 year reunion and have no problems with it.” hopefully by then i’ll be successful and won’t mind showing up at my reunion.
so what do i do instead of go to my reunion in july? i read an article recently about germans "safeguarding" their language and it hit me. preparing durchstehvermögen to ensure i am ready for my impending gammelfleischparty and to prevent bildschirmbräune (all words taken from aforementioned article). basically, i have to improve my german so i can understand words like that. i think i might spend a month this summer back in germany to improve my german. plus, i want to get back to berlin, they're partying without me! in the meantime, once i am back from my trip, i am going to definitely start looking for a job. suggestions?
until then, i will keep my facebook account (begrudgingly). but the question remains: do i "friend" people i didn't really talk to in high school? or even people who i was semi-friends with back then, but probably never hung out with outside of school... should i friend them? one of my brothers friends anyone he meets at a bar and likes. i just don't feel that open and care to have others that interested in me. besides, my TRUE friends read this blog. :) so, what do you think about facebook? according to this article, people should "cull" their lists once a year. maybe i will do that to mine now... if you get axed - sorry! :)
Thursday, May 7, 2009
don't worry be happy
this trip just keeps getting better and better!!!
...
i've been trying to finish this post for a while now, but keep getting stalled because it's so sad for me and i just know it's not the end.
back up... last night, flight was delayed from minneapolis to chicago. we land in chicago and the flight attendants make an announcement "if you are terminating here, or have a long layover, please stay seated so those with connections can make it to their flight." i appreciate this announcement, but HATE STUPID PASSENGERS WHO DONT LISTEN TO IT. and i know they dont listen to it because i was in row 20 of a 24 row plane and when i FINALLY got out, there were TWO people sitting in their seats - and i'm pretty sure that they were waiting for a wheelchair. people think just because a few people in the first few rows got out right away, no one else on the plane has a flight to catch. i was trying to make it clear that i had a flight to get to, so i called my mom while i was standing in the aisle waiting for the SLOWEST people in the WORLD to get their bags, "mom, can you check online and see if my flight is on time?" she told me it was "ok, then i have to hang up because i'm going to have to run." i had 23 minutes to get to my flight and since it was an international flight, i wasn't sure if i'd make it... i get off the plane and started running. i had to go from terminal b to c which incorporates a run underground. i passed people and was so proud of myself for getting there on time. i got to the gate a few minutes before departure and i asked if it was good that i ran. the attendant agreed it was and that they were shutting the door. whew. i board the full plane and take my seat against the window. and then wait. and wait. and wait. we sat on the tarmac for over an hour due to crappy chicago weather. i was sitting next to a middle age woman reading "catalyst: the journal for defending catholicism." lovely. it ended up being fine, we both decided not to talk to each other.
anyway, no problems with the flight - normal, red eye - watch a few movies, take a tylneol PM, struggle to stay comfortable and remain asleep. no big deal. i get off the plane really groggy and sticky - like a normal red eye not in first or business class (or so i would think - i've never flown in either on a red eye). i went through passport control and the guy stamped my passport on a page that ALREADY had four stamps - wtf! i JUST got 20 extra pages added to my passport explicitely for the purpose of NEW STAMPS! grrr. whatever. sleepily i trudge along to baggages. and wait. and wait. no bags. of course, not. my flight was late. it would never think for someone to bring late bags out on the tarmac and load them on to a plane taxiing for an hour. that would make too much sense. they should put a little star next to my name in their system so that they know that MY bags are ESPECIALLY important.
i go over to the desk for lost bags. and wait. and wait. i tell the woman, in french, that i am missing two bags. apparently my french is really crap. she instantly started speaking to me in english. bleh. so she tells me that the bags will most likely come on the flight tomorrow (bleh) but since tomorrow is a bank holiday in paris (kind of part of the whole reason i am here since my friends have the day off) they won't be delivered until the day after (double bleh). i tell her that i am not going to be in paris, i am going to carcassone tomorrow. she asks me for the address which i dont have - why would i have that? again, that would make too much sense - and tells me that since its far away, she's not sure when i'll get the bags exactly. lovely.
so i head into paris. i have to take the bus to porte maillot and then jump on the metro to lisa's work so i can pick up the keys to her apartment. i'm literally walking into her office when she calls me on my cell phone to ask where i am - i'm over 2 hours late. i tell her i'm in her office. where is she? she's on the street i was just on. so i go back downstairs and we meet. i walk with her to her beautician's appointment and then to get lunch. i didn't feel like eating and was just too tired and flabby to do anything. she pointed out that i should've made more of a stink at the airport so i could get some extra miles and a stipend for my lost luggage. i hate it when i'm not on my game! after lunch, i walked to monoprix, which is kind of like an expensive target. i bought underwear, socks, and a few tops. then i went to the gap, looking for h&m, though, and bought 2 more tops and a sweatshirt. i now own or have owned, in my entire life, 5 things from gap. i feel like i'm walking with a huge sign on my chest that says "american! dumb american!" but oh well.
the metro back to lisa's was a long ride mostly because i was trying not to fall asleep in case i missed the stop. and of course her stop doesnt have any escalators, so with every step i felt as if i was lifting a 500 pound foot. i finally made it up the stairs. i'm sure i looked like death and thats what everyone was staring at me for. but its fine. the nice thing about lisa and meat's place is that it feels like home - i've spent so much time here, i know all the shops and streets and how to get to her place and the code and it feels like i never left! which is absolutely crazy. so i knew exactly where to stop for a nice baguette de chef and strawberry jam (and some of my FAVORITE tea, of course). i got back to lisa's just as she was calling the house from work. she tried calling united to give them the address in carcassone and make them feel really bad about not making sure my bags were on the flight, but - get this... the lost baggage office closes at TWO THIRTY every day. 2:30!! 2 effin 30. can you believe that? stupid french and their stupid working hours and their stupid holidays. so i end up calling the US, who were very nice and polite and ... thats me telling you what happened which is not much. i finally took a nap on the couch, but i dont remember sleeping. i'm pretty sure i slept, though, because all of a sudden there was a pool of saliva all over my hand. it must've been a deep sleep. can't remember the last time i drooled. i took a brief shower and finally feel a bit better.
now its time to hit the sack. i have to get up at 6:40 to get in the shower so we can leave at 8. more on the south of france demain... i can't wait to see what else goes wrong.
...
i've been trying to finish this post for a while now, but keep getting stalled because it's so sad for me and i just know it's not the end.
back up... last night, flight was delayed from minneapolis to chicago. we land in chicago and the flight attendants make an announcement "if you are terminating here, or have a long layover, please stay seated so those with connections can make it to their flight." i appreciate this announcement, but HATE STUPID PASSENGERS WHO DONT LISTEN TO IT. and i know they dont listen to it because i was in row 20 of a 24 row plane and when i FINALLY got out, there were TWO people sitting in their seats - and i'm pretty sure that they were waiting for a wheelchair. people think just because a few people in the first few rows got out right away, no one else on the plane has a flight to catch. i was trying to make it clear that i had a flight to get to, so i called my mom while i was standing in the aisle waiting for the SLOWEST people in the WORLD to get their bags, "mom, can you check online and see if my flight is on time?" she told me it was "ok, then i have to hang up because i'm going to have to run." i had 23 minutes to get to my flight and since it was an international flight, i wasn't sure if i'd make it... i get off the plane and started running. i had to go from terminal b to c which incorporates a run underground. i passed people and was so proud of myself for getting there on time. i got to the gate a few minutes before departure and i asked if it was good that i ran. the attendant agreed it was and that they were shutting the door. whew. i board the full plane and take my seat against the window. and then wait. and wait. and wait. we sat on the tarmac for over an hour due to crappy chicago weather. i was sitting next to a middle age woman reading "catalyst: the journal for defending catholicism." lovely. it ended up being fine, we both decided not to talk to each other.
anyway, no problems with the flight - normal, red eye - watch a few movies, take a tylneol PM, struggle to stay comfortable and remain asleep. no big deal. i get off the plane really groggy and sticky - like a normal red eye not in first or business class (or so i would think - i've never flown in either on a red eye). i went through passport control and the guy stamped my passport on a page that ALREADY had four stamps - wtf! i JUST got 20 extra pages added to my passport explicitely for the purpose of NEW STAMPS! grrr. whatever. sleepily i trudge along to baggages. and wait. and wait. no bags. of course, not. my flight was late. it would never think for someone to bring late bags out on the tarmac and load them on to a plane taxiing for an hour. that would make too much sense. they should put a little star next to my name in their system so that they know that MY bags are ESPECIALLY important.
i go over to the desk for lost bags. and wait. and wait. i tell the woman, in french, that i am missing two bags. apparently my french is really crap. she instantly started speaking to me in english. bleh. so she tells me that the bags will most likely come on the flight tomorrow (bleh) but since tomorrow is a bank holiday in paris (kind of part of the whole reason i am here since my friends have the day off) they won't be delivered until the day after (double bleh). i tell her that i am not going to be in paris, i am going to carcassone tomorrow. she asks me for the address which i dont have - why would i have that? again, that would make too much sense - and tells me that since its far away, she's not sure when i'll get the bags exactly. lovely.
so i head into paris. i have to take the bus to porte maillot and then jump on the metro to lisa's work so i can pick up the keys to her apartment. i'm literally walking into her office when she calls me on my cell phone to ask where i am - i'm over 2 hours late. i tell her i'm in her office. where is she? she's on the street i was just on. so i go back downstairs and we meet. i walk with her to her beautician's appointment and then to get lunch. i didn't feel like eating and was just too tired and flabby to do anything. she pointed out that i should've made more of a stink at the airport so i could get some extra miles and a stipend for my lost luggage. i hate it when i'm not on my game! after lunch, i walked to monoprix, which is kind of like an expensive target. i bought underwear, socks, and a few tops. then i went to the gap, looking for h&m, though, and bought 2 more tops and a sweatshirt. i now own or have owned, in my entire life, 5 things from gap. i feel like i'm walking with a huge sign on my chest that says "american! dumb american!" but oh well.
the metro back to lisa's was a long ride mostly because i was trying not to fall asleep in case i missed the stop. and of course her stop doesnt have any escalators, so with every step i felt as if i was lifting a 500 pound foot. i finally made it up the stairs. i'm sure i looked like death and thats what everyone was staring at me for. but its fine. the nice thing about lisa and meat's place is that it feels like home - i've spent so much time here, i know all the shops and streets and how to get to her place and the code and it feels like i never left! which is absolutely crazy. so i knew exactly where to stop for a nice baguette de chef and strawberry jam (and some of my FAVORITE tea, of course). i got back to lisa's just as she was calling the house from work. she tried calling united to give them the address in carcassone and make them feel really bad about not making sure my bags were on the flight, but - get this... the lost baggage office closes at TWO THIRTY every day. 2:30!! 2 effin 30. can you believe that? stupid french and their stupid working hours and their stupid holidays. so i end up calling the US, who were very nice and polite and ... thats me telling you what happened which is not much. i finally took a nap on the couch, but i dont remember sleeping. i'm pretty sure i slept, though, because all of a sudden there was a pool of saliva all over my hand. it must've been a deep sleep. can't remember the last time i drooled. i took a brief shower and finally feel a bit better.
now its time to hit the sack. i have to get up at 6:40 to get in the shower so we can leave at 8. more on the south of france demain... i can't wait to see what else goes wrong.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
damn i wish i was your lover
so, as you read this, i am most likely flying high above you all on my way to gay paree. in honor of my looong flight from msp to cdg, here is an overheard i read and my own story...
my first co-op in college was at john hancock in the financial reporting division. one day, my boss was kneeling in my cube next to me explaining a new report. it had a list of banks on it and a bunch of numbers in columns following the bank names. i asked, "what are these banks with the stars next to them?" he explained that they were "special" banks who had special privileges and belonged to an elite group or something like that. "oh! like the mile high club?" i asked innocently. my boss instantly blushed and started laughing. the co-op in the cube next to me and his boss stood up and looked over, laughing. i sat there completely ignorant to what was going on (i was very innocent before i went to college). "what?" i asked over and over again. they realized i had no idea what was going on. my boss just tapped my shoulder and walked away. i figured that the mile high club was clearly not what i thought it was, but i still didn't know what it actually was. i MEANT a frequent flyer club. only after his boss left did the guy next to me (my age) explain what the mile high club was. i'll never forget.
Thanks, Airfone!
Girl to friend: So on the way here, I joined the mile high club...by myself!
Auburn University
Auburn, Alabama
so i laughed when i read this because i was thinking about when i learned what the mile high club was. yeah, yeah, before you get excited...
my first co-op in college was at john hancock in the financial reporting division. one day, my boss was kneeling in my cube next to me explaining a new report. it had a list of banks on it and a bunch of numbers in columns following the bank names. i asked, "what are these banks with the stars next to them?" he explained that they were "special" banks who had special privileges and belonged to an elite group or something like that. "oh! like the mile high club?" i asked innocently. my boss instantly blushed and started laughing. the co-op in the cube next to me and his boss stood up and looked over, laughing. i sat there completely ignorant to what was going on (i was very innocent before i went to college). "what?" i asked over and over again. they realized i had no idea what was going on. my boss just tapped my shoulder and walked away. i figured that the mile high club was clearly not what i thought it was, but i still didn't know what it actually was. i MEANT a frequent flyer club. only after his boss left did the guy next to me (my age) explain what the mile high club was. i'll never forget.
come on eileen
whew. just a quick note - lets see what i can get out in the next half hour, which is how much time i have before i leave for my flight for paris - woo hoo! so apologies for not posting in the past few days; it's been crazy.
after driving to bismarck last friday to help player move in, my mom and i rushed back saturday night for my cousin, terra's, bachelorette party. on the way back in to town we stopped at another cousin's house to pick up a charger that i had lent them for their overseas travel. yet another cousin's baby was there - david, he's like 2 years old or something. babies. they all look the same age to me. my mom came in with me to see the baby and he ran right over to her to give her a big hug, even though he didnt know who he was. apparently he's a friendly baby and likes people. i was talking to my cousin's wife aout the charger and wasn't really paying attention. i looked down and there was baby david at my feet holding his hands up for me to pick him up. i looked at him. what was i supposed to do? i guess i didnt have my friendly face on or something and he ran away to his dad and started crying. oops.
so that night was the bachelorette party which i wasn't entirely in the mood for because i got NO SLEEP the night before in the hotel in bismarck thanks to my stupid hematoma. it kept making my arm cramp up and feel like i had a pinched nerve. combined with moving all day, i was incredibly tired and didn't want to be a party pooper. my mom and i went out and had a pretty good time. my cousin, terra, seemed to be having a GREAT time, and that's whats really important. my other cousins, amanda, sara, and kayla, did a great job of organizing the party. i just realized i don't think i've actually been to a bachelorette party before. weird. anyway, my cousin amanda had playing cards with dares on them. all the girls had to pick a card and do the dare. my dare was to kiss the tallest guy in the room. i look around. guess who the tallest guy in the bar was... my brother. yep. "forced" to kiss some random guy and he's a relative. it couldn't be some hot, older divorced man or zack efron. had to be my brother. not really how we roll here, this isn't kentucky, so i gave him a big sloppy kiss on the cheek. he must've had a few beers in him because normally this would result in a violent push away, but he let me kiss him and then i showed him the card. he looked around the room and shrugged. he was the tallest guy there.
i wasn't in the mood for partying since i was so tired and i still had to pack for this massive trip i'm taking, which, honestly, i'm starting to regret. we stayed out until 1230 or so, just enough time to meet my brother's girlfriend's mom. lindsay and the mom were at the elton john / billy joel concert in town so they decided to come out with us afterwards. we met at a bar, hoping to be quieter than where the bachelorette party was. but the party ended up finding us. apparently lindsay's parents are quite conservative - i'm not sure what she thought of all my relatives wearing penis stickers with nicknames (i was "well traveled" and my mom was the "white gloved maiden" since she's a nurse) and my cousin wearing a big inflatible penis. literally. i texted her earlier in the evening and asked how the night was going. she said, "good, i'm covered in penises." it was that kind of night. oh! and the best part is that my grandma got "tight" and came up with my cousins's wife's nickname. becky is very artsy, so they were trying to give her a name like "artist of love" or something like that. they all agreed it wasn't dirty enough and my grandma shouts out, "artist of sex!" and that's how becky became artist of sex.
anyway, the next day, the bachelorette, terra, came over to pick me up. she lives in the twin cities with her fiance just down the road from the airport - prime location for traveling cousins. this is why terra is one of my favorite cousins. :) i had to finish packing while she recovered from a teeny hangover. we got on the road a little after noon and hit the cities before 4. when we got to her apartment, her fiance, matt, asked if we wanted to go to the bar. terra wasn't feeling so hot, so she declined and crawled over the puffy chair. matt asked if i wanted to go and i said, "sure!" so we started to get ready to go. all of a sudden, terra's sullen cries from the chair, "wait! you're leaving without me?!" i guess she didn't want to be left alone, so she came along in her fragile state. but guess what. a tall glass of cold blue moon cures hangovers! she quickly felt better.
the past few days i have just been hanging out at terra and matts. we've watched movies and eaten well and had lots of champagne (celebrating terra's end of classes for a few weeks). all was going well until today. i got up and worked on finishing a few things on my to do list. i went to take a shower and discovered that there was no water. ??!! we had no idea what was going on, so i started packing my things instead. after an hour, terra went downstairs to find the maintenance guy and found a phone number to call. the woman on the other line said, "whats your address?" terra gave it to her and she said, "yes, you don't have water. you'll have it in a half hour." and hung up. okay... so i kept packing but started to feel a bit pressured - its just common airplane courtesy to shower before a long flight. we started coming up with a backup plan which included driving 30 min to her brothers house in maple grove for me to shower. she calls, "yes, hello, you said that we'd have water in less than 30 minutes." "i said ABOUT 30 minutes!" she screamed at terra. she explained that they called a plumber last week and put up a flyer that the water would be off for a few hours. well, the plumber never showed up - until today. so they just let him work and now they couldn't get the water on. ??!! wtf?? so terra calls back and tells her that her cousin has a flight and needs to take a shower. the woman was really rude and finally told terra that we'd have to go to another building to use the shower in the sauna room. so terra and i go downstairs to meet the maintenance guy to take us to the shower. he only had room for one in his car, so he asked us to drive and meet him over there. we drive over to the next building and he's not around. i was starting to get really annoyed. terra calls the woman back and finally the man comes outside. we had to go to yet another buildling. on the walk there, he says, "yeah, sorry 'bout this. can't do anything about the plumber." terra started to agree with him, "oh, that's ok." which i was having none of. "well, i think you need to notify your tenants." "yes." was all he said. now here's the thing. i'm only partly annoyed that i had to quickly pack to take a shower in a public shower with no ventilation and who knows how long its been since it was cleaned. i'm only partly annoyed that it took me away from doing other things. i'm really annoyed about how they treated us. if, at any time, someone had said, "i really apologize for the inconvenience, we didn't realize what affect this would have. i wish we could turn on the water for you, but we're not sure how long it'll be" then i wouldn't be so annoyed. a little courtesy and politeness is all i needed. i just wanted someone to really be apologetic, but no. they seemed annoyed with us that we were inconviencing them. how rude.
well, whatever. i am now clean and packed and leaving for the airport for paris in a half hour...
i'll try to be in contact while i'm away, but not sure how much internet connection i'll get. but check back because i've got some posts automatically scheduled to post in the next few days...
until then. catch you on the flip side.
after driving to bismarck last friday to help player move in, my mom and i rushed back saturday night for my cousin, terra's, bachelorette party. on the way back in to town we stopped at another cousin's house to pick up a charger that i had lent them for their overseas travel. yet another cousin's baby was there - david, he's like 2 years old or something. babies. they all look the same age to me. my mom came in with me to see the baby and he ran right over to her to give her a big hug, even though he didnt know who he was. apparently he's a friendly baby and likes people. i was talking to my cousin's wife aout the charger and wasn't really paying attention. i looked down and there was baby david at my feet holding his hands up for me to pick him up. i looked at him. what was i supposed to do? i guess i didnt have my friendly face on or something and he ran away to his dad and started crying. oops.
so that night was the bachelorette party which i wasn't entirely in the mood for because i got NO SLEEP the night before in the hotel in bismarck thanks to my stupid hematoma. it kept making my arm cramp up and feel like i had a pinched nerve. combined with moving all day, i was incredibly tired and didn't want to be a party pooper. my mom and i went out and had a pretty good time. my cousin, terra, seemed to be having a GREAT time, and that's whats really important. my other cousins, amanda, sara, and kayla, did a great job of organizing the party. i just realized i don't think i've actually been to a bachelorette party before. weird. anyway, my cousin amanda had playing cards with dares on them. all the girls had to pick a card and do the dare. my dare was to kiss the tallest guy in the room. i look around. guess who the tallest guy in the bar was... my brother. yep. "forced" to kiss some random guy and he's a relative. it couldn't be some hot, older divorced man or zack efron. had to be my brother. not really how we roll here, this isn't kentucky, so i gave him a big sloppy kiss on the cheek. he must've had a few beers in him because normally this would result in a violent push away, but he let me kiss him and then i showed him the card. he looked around the room and shrugged. he was the tallest guy there.
i wasn't in the mood for partying since i was so tired and i still had to pack for this massive trip i'm taking, which, honestly, i'm starting to regret. we stayed out until 1230 or so, just enough time to meet my brother's girlfriend's mom. lindsay and the mom were at the elton john / billy joel concert in town so they decided to come out with us afterwards. we met at a bar, hoping to be quieter than where the bachelorette party was. but the party ended up finding us. apparently lindsay's parents are quite conservative - i'm not sure what she thought of all my relatives wearing penis stickers with nicknames (i was "well traveled" and my mom was the "white gloved maiden" since she's a nurse) and my cousin wearing a big inflatible penis. literally. i texted her earlier in the evening and asked how the night was going. she said, "good, i'm covered in penises." it was that kind of night. oh! and the best part is that my grandma got "tight" and came up with my cousins's wife's nickname. becky is very artsy, so they were trying to give her a name like "artist of love" or something like that. they all agreed it wasn't dirty enough and my grandma shouts out, "artist of sex!" and that's how becky became artist of sex.
anyway, the next day, the bachelorette, terra, came over to pick me up. she lives in the twin cities with her fiance just down the road from the airport - prime location for traveling cousins. this is why terra is one of my favorite cousins. :) i had to finish packing while she recovered from a teeny hangover. we got on the road a little after noon and hit the cities before 4. when we got to her apartment, her fiance, matt, asked if we wanted to go to the bar. terra wasn't feeling so hot, so she declined and crawled over the puffy chair. matt asked if i wanted to go and i said, "sure!" so we started to get ready to go. all of a sudden, terra's sullen cries from the chair, "wait! you're leaving without me?!" i guess she didn't want to be left alone, so she came along in her fragile state. but guess what. a tall glass of cold blue moon cures hangovers! she quickly felt better.
the past few days i have just been hanging out at terra and matts. we've watched movies and eaten well and had lots of champagne (celebrating terra's end of classes for a few weeks). all was going well until today. i got up and worked on finishing a few things on my to do list. i went to take a shower and discovered that there was no water. ??!! we had no idea what was going on, so i started packing my things instead. after an hour, terra went downstairs to find the maintenance guy and found a phone number to call. the woman on the other line said, "whats your address?" terra gave it to her and she said, "yes, you don't have water. you'll have it in a half hour." and hung up. okay... so i kept packing but started to feel a bit pressured - its just common airplane courtesy to shower before a long flight. we started coming up with a backup plan which included driving 30 min to her brothers house in maple grove for me to shower. she calls, "yes, hello, you said that we'd have water in less than 30 minutes." "i said ABOUT 30 minutes!" she screamed at terra. she explained that they called a plumber last week and put up a flyer that the water would be off for a few hours. well, the plumber never showed up - until today. so they just let him work and now they couldn't get the water on. ??!! wtf?? so terra calls back and tells her that her cousin has a flight and needs to take a shower. the woman was really rude and finally told terra that we'd have to go to another building to use the shower in the sauna room. so terra and i go downstairs to meet the maintenance guy to take us to the shower. he only had room for one in his car, so he asked us to drive and meet him over there. we drive over to the next building and he's not around. i was starting to get really annoyed. terra calls the woman back and finally the man comes outside. we had to go to yet another buildling. on the walk there, he says, "yeah, sorry 'bout this. can't do anything about the plumber." terra started to agree with him, "oh, that's ok." which i was having none of. "well, i think you need to notify your tenants." "yes." was all he said. now here's the thing. i'm only partly annoyed that i had to quickly pack to take a shower in a public shower with no ventilation and who knows how long its been since it was cleaned. i'm only partly annoyed that it took me away from doing other things. i'm really annoyed about how they treated us. if, at any time, someone had said, "i really apologize for the inconvenience, we didn't realize what affect this would have. i wish we could turn on the water for you, but we're not sure how long it'll be" then i wouldn't be so annoyed. a little courtesy and politeness is all i needed. i just wanted someone to really be apologetic, but no. they seemed annoyed with us that we were inconviencing them. how rude.
well, whatever. i am now clean and packed and leaving for the airport for paris in a half hour...
i'll try to be in contact while i'm away, but not sure how much internet connection i'll get. but check back because i've got some posts automatically scheduled to post in the next few days...
until then. catch you on the flip side.
Friday, May 1, 2009
lily of the valley
i had a whole other post [almost] ready for today, but had such an exciting evening last night, i had to share.
so my little brother came over after work so that he could hang with me since i'm leaving in a few days. he walked in and announced, "danielle, since you're leaving, i'll play that stupid game you want to play. right now. just once." i jumped up off the couch and was so happy! NO ONE will play stratego with me. i don't even mind losing. i just love the game, but everyone is afraid of it. maybe they think they'll lose or something. so i ran upstairs to my old room looking for it. it's pretty much empty now, so it wasn't there. i went into my current room which is an amalgamation of my stuff and my littlest brothers stuff. i couldn't find it. i searched everywhere. i ran downstairs to my other brothers room, which is currently my rent-free storage facility. no luck. i went back upstairs. couldn't find it. i called my mom at work. she hadn't seen it. i didn't find it. so we ended up playing battleship (which i won, of course). and i'm pretty sure one of my parents saw the game and wanted to make sure that i wouldn't ask them to play again, so they hid it. or threw it out. damn them!
that was the exciting part of my day. oh wait! there's more. i got a call from my credit card company. SOMEONE GOT MY CREDIT CARD NUMBER AND USED IT. gasp. i'm now a victim of identity theft! and i have NO IDEA how they got the card number - this credit card sits in a wallet in my room and i NEVER use it. so now they're sending me a new card and i have to go on to all my accounts and see if there is any suspicious activity. and this was suspicious. on wed, the person charged $2 on bed bath and beyond.com twice. on thur, he or she charged another $2 at bbb and $24 at blinds to go or something like that. sneaky sneaky. trying to see if the card would go through! i just don't understand identity theft. WHY would someone want to hurt someone like that? and it just raises the costs for everyone. ... i was going to go on and on, but its really pointless. its such a stupid crime. it bothers me. i think i could maybe respect some criminals, but not identity thieves.
and now to this morning. i woke up and stretched my arms - happy may day! i remember when i was little, living in minot, my best friend from across the street, erin berry, would ring my doorbell on may 1st and leave me a basket of candy. then i would have to run after her and kiss her. happy may day. and happy birthday to my friend, jen. and happy birthmonth to meee!!! i love may. partly because my birthday is in may. partly because its a pretty month. and partly because i always seem to be traveling in may.
and i have a busy day ahead of me. i have to pack, go get waxed (fun!), run errands, go see my great aunt (who's birthday is tomorrow) and then leave with my mom for bismarck to help littlest brother move. i pulled out my suitcases that have been sitting in my room and put them on my bed so i could start packing. when we moved them from my old room, my mom commented, "these are awfully heavy, what have you got in here?" "just the other suitcase," i replied. so then i lifted them and realized that they ARE a bit heavy. i open the smaller suitcase inside and there's my blue overnight bag. i forgot about that! and guess whats inside it. a bunch of dvds and STRATEGO. !! i couldn't believe it. of course! i put it in there to save space. my brother better stop by at lunch to play. OR maybe i'll bring it to bismarck and force my other brother or mom to play. mwhahahaha....
so my little brother came over after work so that he could hang with me since i'm leaving in a few days. he walked in and announced, "danielle, since you're leaving, i'll play that stupid game you want to play. right now. just once." i jumped up off the couch and was so happy! NO ONE will play stratego with me. i don't even mind losing. i just love the game, but everyone is afraid of it. maybe they think they'll lose or something. so i ran upstairs to my old room looking for it. it's pretty much empty now, so it wasn't there. i went into my current room which is an amalgamation of my stuff and my littlest brothers stuff. i couldn't find it. i searched everywhere. i ran downstairs to my other brothers room, which is currently my rent-free storage facility. no luck. i went back upstairs. couldn't find it. i called my mom at work. she hadn't seen it. i didn't find it. so we ended up playing battleship (which i won, of course). and i'm pretty sure one of my parents saw the game and wanted to make sure that i wouldn't ask them to play again, so they hid it. or threw it out. damn them!
that was the exciting part of my day. oh wait! there's more. i got a call from my credit card company. SOMEONE GOT MY CREDIT CARD NUMBER AND USED IT. gasp. i'm now a victim of identity theft! and i have NO IDEA how they got the card number - this credit card sits in a wallet in my room and i NEVER use it. so now they're sending me a new card and i have to go on to all my accounts and see if there is any suspicious activity. and this was suspicious. on wed, the person charged $2 on bed bath and beyond.com twice. on thur, he or she charged another $2 at bbb and $24 at blinds to go or something like that. sneaky sneaky. trying to see if the card would go through! i just don't understand identity theft. WHY would someone want to hurt someone like that? and it just raises the costs for everyone. ... i was going to go on and on, but its really pointless. its such a stupid crime. it bothers me. i think i could maybe respect some criminals, but not identity thieves.
and now to this morning. i woke up and stretched my arms - happy may day! i remember when i was little, living in minot, my best friend from across the street, erin berry, would ring my doorbell on may 1st and leave me a basket of candy. then i would have to run after her and kiss her. happy may day. and happy birthday to my friend, jen. and happy birthmonth to meee!!! i love may. partly because my birthday is in may. partly because its a pretty month. and partly because i always seem to be traveling in may.
and i have a busy day ahead of me. i have to pack, go get waxed (fun!), run errands, go see my great aunt (who's birthday is tomorrow) and then leave with my mom for bismarck to help littlest brother move. i pulled out my suitcases that have been sitting in my room and put them on my bed so i could start packing. when we moved them from my old room, my mom commented, "these are awfully heavy, what have you got in here?" "just the other suitcase," i replied. so then i lifted them and realized that they ARE a bit heavy. i open the smaller suitcase inside and there's my blue overnight bag. i forgot about that! and guess whats inside it. a bunch of dvds and STRATEGO. !! i couldn't believe it. of course! i put it in there to save space. my brother better stop by at lunch to play. OR maybe i'll bring it to bismarck and force my other brother or mom to play. mwhahahaha....
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