Mondays are not Fundays
I wake up every Monday morning just like any other; reach over to see if my beloved is late for work and wait for coffee. (He can't make home repairs or cook but he does make a decent cup of coffee which he will deliver to me in the morning if he isn't running late...) Coffee arrives.
It is good!
Rent checks arrive. (late) Children of friends announce they are not planning to renew their lease. (not good) It runs out on March 1 when I am planning to be away.
I can't locate my important papers needed for art materials. (annoying but not disastrous)
In looking for papers I discover that one of our disenchanted felines has pissed in a basket of paperwork, mistakening it for a litter box. (not good)
When I return home from class I find messages from spouse regarding bills (never a good thing.)
When I call tenant (girfriend of son of friend) I discover they want to break their lease and leave immediately. (ok, now I am officially depressed.)
My answering machine is full of messages reminding me that tomorrow is election day (unfortunately they are all from one canidate, the one I was planning on voting for but NOW I annoyed...)
I walked to class this morning and tried very hard to focus on the luminous yellow leaves demanding attention on our street. It is a perfect day. People are wearing sandles and it is November 7. Why is our heating bill so high already? I turn on CNN over lunch and there are villages all over France with rioting in the streets! My parents are very concerned and wondering why I persist in working in Paris in January... should I not go? I really hadn't considered it.
The French love to riot. Its in their blood. Their history is riddled with bloody riots from one political generation to the next. They may not believe in the right to happiness but they refuse to live without guaranteed medical and retirement benefits as well as five weeks of paid vacation time per year. I am not anxious to witness blood or fire in the streets of Paris and will be sure to stay home on Mondays, which I believe is a good rule of thumb to live by anyway.
It is good!
Rent checks arrive. (late) Children of friends announce they are not planning to renew their lease. (not good) It runs out on March 1 when I am planning to be away.
I can't locate my important papers needed for art materials. (annoying but not disastrous)
In looking for papers I discover that one of our disenchanted felines has pissed in a basket of paperwork, mistakening it for a litter box. (not good)
When I return home from class I find messages from spouse regarding bills (never a good thing.)
When I call tenant (girfriend of son of friend) I discover they want to break their lease and leave immediately. (ok, now I am officially depressed.)
My answering machine is full of messages reminding me that tomorrow is election day (unfortunately they are all from one canidate, the one I was planning on voting for but NOW I annoyed...)
I walked to class this morning and tried very hard to focus on the luminous yellow leaves demanding attention on our street. It is a perfect day. People are wearing sandles and it is November 7. Why is our heating bill so high already? I turn on CNN over lunch and there are villages all over France with rioting in the streets! My parents are very concerned and wondering why I persist in working in Paris in January... should I not go? I really hadn't considered it.
The French love to riot. Its in their blood. Their history is riddled with bloody riots from one political generation to the next. They may not believe in the right to happiness but they refuse to live without guaranteed medical and retirement benefits as well as five weeks of paid vacation time per year. I am not anxious to witness blood or fire in the streets of Paris and will be sure to stay home on Mondays, which I believe is a good rule of thumb to live by anyway.
posted by "" at 11/07/2005 04:24:00 PM
4 Comments:
Lots of challenges for you. See how the cards fall before you decide anything.
It would appear here in this case that most of the rioting is coming from 1st or 2nd generation French citizens.
I know an artist who is working in Paris at the moment. She is working in a studio in the heart of Paris without a TV and doesn't speak French. Her husband called her last week and asked her if the riots there made her nervous. She asked "What riots?"
My Dad called me over the weekend to tell me that his cousin had kids that are on holiday in Paris. They are staying in a hotel with private bath and TV for each room. When cousin called them to ask if the riots had affected their holiday they said they were too scared to leave the hotel room. Now, I wonder what role the TV had to do with this???
TV does play a role, but it is still good to be aware of one's surroundings. Aren't you the one who just told me not to long ago that people you know who don't watch MSNBC are not that well informed?
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