Random thoughts from September 10th

HAPPY GARDEN

There it is and it works. I've still got a little bit of cosmetic work to do around the ground, but other than that it's good to go. Unfortunately, other than the day I took this picture (late one afternoon), the weather has looked like this since it's been completed, about a week ago.

This may look somewhat similar to a picture on our website. Trust me, it's the same piece of panoramic bliss, it's just covered by fog (I guess it's called fog although if I drive down into the valley and look up I call it a cloud. All about your point of view I guess). Anyway, it is apparently rainy season here. I don't know if all this rain is normal, but if it is the roads don't show it. There are several spots on the road that have large portions of earth and trees now encroaching in on them. Not a huge deal back home as you can see a road hazard well in advance, but here they tend to jump out at you, making driving even more of a white knuckle thrill ride.

Normally the driving isn't to crazy. For the most part people allow you to be a slow defensive driver if you so chose, they just don't follow suit. There is a 3 km section of road on the way to our house that the kids have dubbed the "crazy road". We started using it versus a longer (probably safer) route, because we are really trying hard to "live like the French". As a general rule we find this seems to make life easier. Then one of the tutors showed up (10 minutes late) to our house and asked, "Do you take that back road?" "You're crazy". Apparently not all French people think it's a good idea.

For the folks that do use this road every day, it is cleary a different story. Dana has a couple of wide spots where she routinely pulls over to let people pass. I'm not sure this is what they want, in fact, I'm convinced it's the opposite. As close as they follow, they've got to be drafting. Europeans are much more conscious about fuel comsumption, you know. I, on the other hand, never let them pass. I just ignore them. Or.....Two days ago, I was coming up the road by myself, one of my favorite songs was on the radio (via my iPod of course), I was feeling good, and a BMW turned on the road right behind me. I hit the gas, started going through gears and my goal became to make sure that I didn't have a car tailgating me when I made it to the top of the hill. Mission accomplished, by the time I made it to the top I had two cars tailgating me. Even worse was that I was treating it like the Grand Prix with a concentration level to matchh while the guy directly behind me was checking his Email. Maybe the real problem was my VW minivan.

School is still going well, or as well as can be expected. By that I mean that the kids like going and seem to be having fun. As for what they do at school, who knows? In hindsight I should have expected to be clueless for a while, but it has kind of hit Dana and I like a 2x4 (or the metric equivalent) to the head. For those of you that know us well, you know that saying that Dana and I like to be on top of things is putting it mildly. Well, toss that out the window. Here is a standard conversation after school with Audrey (the poor kid)

Us: "How was school?"

Aud: "Good"

Us: "What did you do today?"

Aud: "I played outside and Lane chased me some"

Us: "Ok, what did you do in class?"

Aud: "I don't know"

Us: "Do you have any homework?"

Aud: "I don't know, look in my yellow folder"

Us: "Yes, Audrey, it's all in French. Do you have any idea what you're supposed to do"

Aud: "No, it's all in French"

Us: "ummm, OK"

Repeat every day

They tell us that this is normal and that she'll figure it out, as will we. I sure hope so, because it's hard to do anything about it. Before I chilled a few degrees, I decided that one morning I'd just ask her teacher how it was going. Her teacher speaks less English than I do French. It was a short conversation. However, via broken French and body language I gathered that there was nothing to worry about. Hope so.

Dana and I decided a long time ago that this was an excellent opportunity for the kids. They'll learn a second language at the best possible time and be better off for it. Everyone we talked to agreed, it's a fact. However, it seems a little like me saying that I want to run a marathon. It's easy to see yourself thinned down and in great shape on raceday, the part you gloss over is getting to that point. Well, that's where the kids are now. It is a lot of frustrating work. Honestly it's probably harder on Dana and I, but it's going to be a long month and a half till the first break.

Speaking of the first break.....Here is where we are headed.

http://www.bandbnormandie.com/

We are really looking forward to it. Normandy is about an 8 hour drive, but it should be fun. We'll leave early and break it up

A couple more notes about school. The kids stayed for lunch (a.k.a. Canteen) yesterday, meaning that I dropped of the kids at 8:15 and picked them up at 4:30. A very long day for them, but it went great. They loved it. Their lunch is hard to believe. They sit down for close to an hour and have four courses. From what I gathered, their menu was as follows: 1-Some sort of seasonal melon 2-Ravioli and sauce with cheese 3-a cheese course of some sort 4-Desert was a collection of seasonal fruits. A little different from your standard cafeteria fodder and the alloted 15 minutes (maybe) to inhale it. The flip side is that it should be for 5 euros each per day. They certainly view food differently over here and it starts at a very young age.

On Saturday we went to our local "Forum des Associations". This is a fabulous idea. Sports are not school related in France, they are public and are village or city related. Every Septembre, there is a Saturday devoted to signing kids (and adults) up for everything from pottery class to ping-pong. If you are new to a town, you don't have to search out who is in charge of what. It's all right here in one large room on one day.

Everyone got signed up for something. Yes, everyone. Dana signed up to play some volleyball one night a week and I signed up for local basketball, which I was told actually travels to play against other villages. I took this as an excellent indicator as to the level of play. Who would waste their time at something they suck at? Well, apparently plenty of people. I haven't actually been yet, but since signing up I spoke with a local ex-pat and fellow Midwesterner who did not give me good reviews. Oh well, we'll see. I'll be sure to update Hopefully the volleyball is a little better.

As for the kids, they are very excited. Audrey is signed up for ballet. She could not be more exicited. She starts next Wednsesday after which we will probably have to buy shoes and a tu-tu. For Lane, we'll be buying a judogi, that is the name for the judo uniform. He hasn't been to one lesson and already acts the expert. It gives him an excuse to run around chopping and kicking (like he needed one). We've been told that the teacher is excellent and stresses discipline, so we'll hope he likes it after he's told it's not just running around doing karate like SpongeBob.

WARNING: The following story conatins graphic images. It is not for the easily queasy.

Do you remember me mentioning the slugs? I wasn't joking around. It's like a plague of locusts only they're slimy, terrestrial, and slow moving.

This picture is of the beginning of my children's "slug collection". They were bored one afternoon so they decided to start hunting. They used Audrey's butterfly net to bring them to a pile 3 feet from my chair, which, at first, I condoned. Slugs are slow, but when you leave to collect a net full a few sprinters can start to get away, which was constantly interrupting my book reading. (terrible, I know) Plus, for some reason this upset Audrey. She wanted all the slugs to stay together, in their "family". So, I (scientist that I am) constructed a simple cheap "slug prison". Unfortunately this prison, like most prisons, was constructed before the number of known inmates was determined, which is always many more than you ever thought possible. Part of the reason for the increase in number is that they somehow, someway got Dana to help them collect.

What you are looking at is 300+ slugs in a circle of Sea Salt. Who needs TV.

I say that jokingly because, the anser is me. I was oblivious, until Sunday afternoon (our time), to the current status of American sports. Then an email alereted me to the fact that it was opening Sunday for the NFL. I suddenly had an acute attack of home sickness. Now, I'm working on eventually gettng a satellite dish that includes some NFL games, but I don't have it yet. So, I started searching frantically for some way to scratch my NFL itch. Specifically the Bears. I figured that, considereing all predictions, I'd better watch some of the 1st half of the season, because I probably wouldn't care by the second half.

The good news is that I actually found a way to buy all NFL games via the internet for those out of the U.S.. The bad news is that, for some yet undiscovered reason, our internet is extremely inconsisstent in the evening. So, there I was late Sunday night cornocopia of NFL games at my disposal and my internet would not stay connected for more than 5 minutes at a time. I was not a fun person to be around. Luckily (for me anyway) the games are archived and the internet works like a dream during the day. Good thing I don't have a job to get in the way!

GO BEARS!

The First Day of School

I'll be honest. During some of the more frustrating moments of the last month, I smile at the oddest times. It is because I know that I am experiencing what I like to call "blog fuel". As I've mentioned before, this blog is my therapy and I enjoy writing it; therefore, I am sadisticly happy at every new bit of culture shock. Odd, I know, but that's me.

Despite all of this, I was hoping and praying that no "blog fuel" was experienced by any of us on the first day of school. We were all more than just a little nervous about it. New school, new language, new protocols, new parents, new everything. Also, it was Lane's first day of school outside of preschool for two hours two days a week. We were ready, but it was a bit daunting. Nothing looms like the unknown. I tried to explain this to Audrey during one spell of anxiety one night, but the concept was lost on her.

Well, enough build up. I am unbelievably pleased to report that the first day went without a hitch. It was great. We got there on time. Dropped the kids in the right spot and they were happy to go. I picked them up for lunch and both were excited to go back . I then picked them up at 4:30 and they were all smiles and stories. They are both excited to go back on Thursday and are even excited to stay for lunch (canteen) some day, although they did enjoy eating lunch at home watching a movie in English ( I know I would have wanted it after a morning of French).

Communication was not a huge problem either. Audrey sat by a bilingual girl, who was helpful, and she said she even understood some words on her own. She did say that a boy kept talking to her during class and that she couldn't understand him. This was probably a good thing as she also told me he was later playing an imaginary trumpet. I doubt he had anything helpful to add. As for Lane, well, he really doesn't listen to anyone anyway so language isn't a huge factor. I doubt he'd noticed if his teacher has used only clicks and grunts.

The bottom line is that we can't thank the Good Lord enough for how well it went on Tuesday and can't pray enough that it continues. I'm sure I'll get plenty of "blog fuel" from school down the road, I just didn't want it on the first day.

The swingset.

Almost done. It is completed, just not quite anchored yet. Throughout the process of building it, I was actually impressed with it's construction and lack of cheap materials. That is until I got to the anchoring process. It was a joke. These tiny little anchors had to be placed in concrete just before it set and at the exact right spot. Then you attach the legs to these tiny anchors. At least that's what I could surmise from the pictures as there was no verbage of any kind. Likewise there were no measurements given to tell you where to put the anchors. So, I decided to wing it. The jury is still out on whether or not it will work well enough to keep it from flipping over during play time. I'll keep you updated.

Putting it together didn't go too badly. It took the 4 of us about 5 hours, which is to say that Dana and I together could have done it in 4.

There was only one minor hiccup: Judging by the name, I'll assume that Murphy was an Irishman, so I don't know if the French have a translation for "Murphy's Law". Regardless of whether or not the name exists, the law does. It must be like gravity. Like the students that always claim that Newton made the Law of Gravity or how Ben Franklin invented Electricity. Nope, they've always been there. Anyway I opened up my shiny brand new metric socket set (purchased in the U.S.) to assemble "Happy Garden". Right away we noticed that the 10mm socket was somehow missing. I have no idea how. Since you can see where this is going, I'll skip the stories about Dana and I tightening every hard to reach nut with a socket wrench and a pair of pliers. I can skip it because, you've probably been there. Like I said it's "Murphy's LAW" and not Murphy's theory.

I'll include some pics of the kids playing if and when the anchors set properly.

Oh, by the way, Happy Belated Labor Day. We didn't get it here, but don't feel bad we get plenty of others. We did however miss some things that typically happen on this day. Dana missed the big Labor Day Parade in Pana and I miss sending them to it so I could go Dove and/or early Goose hunting.

The solution to my vertical mowing challenges.

Well, I mowed again. Yes, it is only the second time in about 5 weeks. I'd like to tell you that with the different climate that grass just doesn't grow as fast, but...... Ok, it doesn't grow quite as fast as back home, but pretty close.

The truth is that with vacation and school coming we've been busy. Also, I now know how much work is involved, which means I wasn't really trying to find time. On the bright side, the knowledge of what awaited also prompted me to "work smarter, not harder". So, before I decided to tackle it again, we went back to Castorama and spent way to much money on one item. Or so I thought at the time. Turns out, I'd have paid twice what it cost. A Ryobi brush trimmer (with a novel containing directions in probably 70% of the known languages in the world) turned out to be a godsend. It still took me 3+ hours to mow the lawn using both pieces of equipment, but it was done with less effort and much less chance of serious injury. Check out the picture closely. Another welcomed addition was an accident. While going through some boxes I found an old pair of softball cletes that I never meant to pack. The work much better than my golf shoes.

For those of you that think I'm exaggerating, let me know if and when your coming. I'll make sure the grass is nice and tall for you.

Swingset Update

On Wednesday, I returned home from the aforementioned Fiesta to find a slip in the mailbox that I couldn't completely read. Unfortunately, I could make out enough to suspect that someone had attempted to deliver the two missing pieces to "Happy Garden". Now. the rest of the swingset is sitting there in the carport open and uncovered. Why oh why couldn't the driver have left it. But, they don't do that here. You don't come home to find packages from UPS on your door step. If you aren't there the first time, you go find them.

Our first order of business Saturday was to do just that. Despite the 40 minute drive, each way, it was collected without a hitch. I am happy to report that I now have (I think) all of the pieces. Our plan for this afternoon (Sunday) is to work together and get this thing assembled. Just in time for the kids to go to school everyday.

Another Birthday Wish!

Happy Birthday Gpa! Have a great day!

Love ya!

Pop

Happy birthday to Pop, Happy birthday to Pop, Happy birthday Dear Pop, Happy birthday to Pop...cha, cha, cha!

We love you lots!

Dana, Matt, Audrey and Lane

And vin, vin from Audrey

stories from 8/27

The armoire

So, as I mentioned before, we purchased an armoire on Saturday with the intention of picking it up later in the week. Here are a couple of tips for anyone about to do some antique furniture shopping in Europe (I realize it may not be many of you, but bear with me)

Tip #1. Make sure your vehicle is "big enough". I'm still getting used to my new VW Touran. I thought we had plenty of room since the armoire broke down into several pieces. "Big enough" is a relative term though. For instance, my Touran was big enough to haul the armoire, just not big enough to haul the armoire and James, the friend who foolishly agreed to ride along and help.

It only took about 2 pieces to realize we were going to have a problem. The owner of the antique store looked at us and said "Vous avez une autre voiture?" (Do you have another car?) When we said "non", he repeated the question, assuming we had just misunderstood. Nope, just idiotic Americans.

He then offered to lend us rope so we could hang it out the back of the open mini van. I didn't feel like seeing my new Armoire spilling out across 4 lanes of traffic doing 130 km/h, so we opted to make a phone call. Unfortunately, Dana was still a little sick, so his wife got to leave work early to come and get us. Fortunately, it was only a 45 minute drive, each way.

Tip #2. European rooms are small but furniture is actually quite large. I don't get it either. Next time, I'll take a tape measure. I don't want to say that the new piece doesn't fit in the new room, but it certainly dominates it. I just have to move the ottoman every time I want to grab a clean shirt. But seriously, that should only be once maybe twice a day, so I guess it's fine.

The first jog

I'd put it off long enough so yesterday I decided to pick up running again. The fact that we live on a and in the mountains became much clearer. I'm not saying I didn't notice the mountain before, of course not; however, it was much more evident after jogging on, or rather, up it. Now the course I jog is a circle so theoretically it should be the same as jogging on a flat course. Whatever distance I run up.....I get to run down. I did like the running down, but I guarantee that I don't go fast enough running down to make up for the pace going up. Not to mention the altitude. It'll be a while till I time myself. Wow.

The crazy part is that the French are out biking and jogging up the mountain all the time like it's nothing. Most of the time the guys you see are older than me, much older. Even into their 60s. It's crazy. Dana saw a guy going up the mountain today, a good 4 km from the nearest town, in a wheel chair. No big deal. Amazing

The play date

Me, 15 crazy kids and 7 women. That's how I spent my lunch today. A back to school "fiesta" for all the kids that go to Ecole Notre Dame. I'm not about to let the kids miss out on playing with other kids just because I don't want to go and feel awkward, but.... There is a scene in "Mr. Mom" where Michael Keaton has a beard, is wearing a ratty flannel shirt and is playing poker with the local housewives. My mind flashed on this scene a couple of times. Discussion topics ranged from school, to settling in, to mops. Your laughing now, but I didn't mind. Why? because I fear what they'll talk about once they "get used to me being around".

While at the party, I cleared yet another culturla hurdle. The double cheek kiss greeting. I assumed it would happen some day, but I wasn't ready for it today as I thought all the women there would be American mothers, and thus not cheek kissers. I was wrong. One invited mother was from the UK and caught me off gaurd when she grabbed my arms and leaned in. It may not sound like a big deal, but it's not like you practice it. I've seen it a million times since moving here, but for all I know it's like some secret fraternity handshake. I'm afraid if I make one wrong move or sound I'll be shunned for the next 3 years. Luckily, it's no big deal. Whewww.

Dana

If you call Dana in the next few days, speak up. She's got two ear infections and can hardly hear. It's getting better. She doesn't have much pain now so it's really just a little comical. For me anyway, she didn't think so today sitting in meetings today. It was in English, but in 3 different accents. I think she just nodded a lot.