French Word of the Day: fille de malchance (fee duh mall-shonce)- badluck girl

The bakery by my school still has the best pain au chocolat ever. I’m convinced it’s just chocolate wrapped in a huge stick of butter. This has nothing to do with the rest of the entry; it just needed to be said.

Also, my ear infection is better!

The rest is a bit of a rant until the very end. You can skip to the end if you would like. I marked the end. The rant explains why I haven’t updated in a week.

I have finally moved into my foyer where I have met all of five people. One of these people calls me “fille de malchance,” because I had an unforunate first few days in the foyer.

I was set to move on Monday. My class ended at 5pm. Shelley sent me an email at lunchtime that said, “You need to be at the new foyer by 7pm, or you’re S.O.L.” Only in French. (That’s not a direct translation, but it was the essence of the email. I don’t think there is a French phrase for S.O.L.)

Problem: My first foyer was over a half hour from school, I had to sign out of that foyer, and I had to drag my stuff across Paris to my new foyer. I wasn’t entirely sure I was going to be able to make it. I was making contingency plans in my head for the night in case I missed my 7pm deadline.

Through sheer willpower and adreneline, I made it with about 10 minutes to spare. Corrine, the director, showed me to my room which was awesome. It has a kitchen and a bed with sheets, and a bathroom… And I didn’t need to move anymore! What more could I ask for?

Except the lights were mysteriously off. Corrine fiddled with the switchbox, but there was still no light. Or running water. The guy from my foyer (I don’t know his name- malchance guy?) came in and also attempted to make it work to no avail. At this point, Corrine begun speaking in rapid French about electricity, and I realized that my room and I would be seperated for yet another night.

I finally got into my new room the next morning and unpacked. It was beautiful. “Now,” I thought, “I can use the internet! Yay internet!” I bought the internet package the foyer has and signed on using the password they gave me…

… and got an error message. When I went down to talk to Corrine, she informed me that I would have to wait at least two days to talk to the other director of the foyer.

The internet and I have a very intense relationship. I’m very dependent on it. It’s a very one-sided relationship; I’m the needy girlfriend that calls 10 times a day. Not having the internet has been very difficult. I still have no idea how people existed before it. I assume you actually had to talk to people and look up things in books.

I won’t be getting the internet until Tuesday, because that is when the director of the foyer and I are finally in the building at the same time. I have Fridays free, so I assumed I would get it today, but he takes off Fridays. And Saturdays. And Sundays. And never is in the building by the time I get home from school. Really, I’m not entirely sure he exists.

END OF RANT

Other than a lack of electricity and internet, the foyer has been lovely. My room is new and pretty. I’ll show pictures when I have my real computer back.

The only problem with my room? The walls are big and white! I need some pictures, but I can’t print things out. I have a favor to ask of everyone willing to do so: can you send me pictures or postcards or something random you printed from your computer? Email me at mehartsell@gmail.com, and I will send you my address. I don’t even care what the picture is of: a leg, an arm, the backyard next door, but I do ask that it does not contain:

1. Someone naked
2. Vomit/ Blood/ Guts
3. Pro-Cubs sentiments

I’ll send everyone who gives me something a postcard with a poem written specifically for them in either French or English (sender’s choice! note: the English ones will be better), and make a special section on the blog dedicated to these poems.

Pain au chocolat count: 18