YAY!

I thought this week would creep its way on by as I am very anxious for tomorrow, but it surprisingly flew by (like each week before it!). I had many classes, a lot of preparing, and a lot of drama with our car (thanks to the mechanics doing something terribly wrong to it and then not being able to figure out what they did wrong)!!!!  However, all in all, the week was a positive one, partially because I have been so excited for what tomorrow will bring..... MY MOM!

My Mom has had quite the travel bug lately. She spent last weekend at a very good friend's wedding (which I regretably could not attend) in Boston. She arrived back in NJ on Sunday evening. She flew out Tuesday morning to North Carolina for a little trip with her gal pals and arrived back in Jersey late last night. Tonight, she leaves for France! She'll be staying at the beautiful Best Western Hotel Belfort in the best room! Retired life is treating her well.

AND, not only will my Mom be coming, but today marks the last day (or at least this is what I have been promised) in the marathon work schedule my guy has had. Over 40 days (with the exception of the one amazing Sunday) he has worked non-stop - day and night - and usually until the wee hours of the morning. Let's put it this way - if I saw him before 10pm, it was a miracle! And, I don't really think I ever did. In fact, over the course of the last week, he was working until 2, 3, 4 and sometimes 5am!!! UGH! Glad that is over.

Not only will I be able to see my guy more, but I will have my Mom here, too... so it's perfect! I know my French man will be a perfect tour guide, and I am really looking forward to spending time with two people I really love.

I am looking forward to eating delicious food, seeing new sights, shopping, talking, and showing my Mom the town where I have lived for the past 7 months (with the exception of the one month vaca I took back home!).

I know the 10 days my Mom will spend in France will be marvelous. She will arrive tomorrow evening at Basel-Mulhouse Airport - on the border of Switzerland and France - just 45 minutes from my home!

So that's my big, exciting news! What are you all doing this weekend?

the never-ending saga of me driving a stick shift.

so last week was a bit of a horror as far as driving to work was concerned. okay, i can live to laugh about it. actually, i was laughing about it 5 minutes after it happened. however, i can assure you that i certainly was not laughing about it while it was happening.

so we needed to have our car serviced. i have just recently mastered (and was somewhat convinced i was a formula one driver in my past life) the art of driving a manual transmission. my guy told me we would be given a car to drive until our car was finished at midas (pronounced in french like me-da). i was actually looking forward to this part. my mom had a friend that was given like a 7 series beamer.

i was not so lucky. the car we were provided was probably birthed in the same year as me (1985). it also had MIDAS (me-da) written across the top in something that looked like house paint. my guy drove the car home and it stalled a few times. he was honking the horn and yelling out the windows because i was so embarrassed to be in this car! so i thought he was just too busy joking around with me which was why the car kept stalling. i didn't realize that the car actually just stunk!!! but in retrospect, the whole thing was pretty funny. him honking and waving out the windows, me cringing in the passenger seat, the car stalling... and then, the best part comes...

he got out and headed off to work and warned me that the car was sensitive to the touch and that i should be careful. i had some troubles (read: i stalled twice in the parking lot before even getting on the street) but was managing okay until i made a left at a traffic light to head up the hill to work. the car stopped. i could not get it to go up the hill. i would turn it on. go into first and gas it, and it would just stop again. she did not want to get up the hill. i just kept rolling further and further backwards and was getting concerned that i was going to roll right into the intersection. the light turned green and everyone was now sitting behind me trying to get their cars up the hill. they began honking.

i did the only thing i could think to do. put the car in neutral. yanked the e-brake on. clutched the steering wheel. and let out all the tears. i'm sure this was a very unusual sight for everyone passing me and everyone stuck behind me. it got even more awkward when they were opening their windows and trying to see what the problem was only to realize i was even weirder than they thought - i didn't speak enough french to explain the situation. i imagined it in the next day's headlines: weird american girl sits in the middle of the road crying her eyes out.

some very kind men had to push me up the hill. they told me the car was very shitty. i told them that this fact came as no surprise to me.

it just goes to show that you can always look back and laugh at something - even the things that have us bursting into tears at a dead stop in the middle of the intersection.

speaking of driving (or not driving, in my case) - have you seen the movie drive? seriously good. is it just me or does ryan gosling get better looking every day?

the little things.

I have been so sick these past few days. It started Friday night. I had a mildly sore throat that evolved into a terribly sore throat by Saturday. I didn't really mind, because I assumed it was a consequence of the changing weather and a wonderful opportunity to lay on the couch watching Felicity re-runs all day. I did manage to peel myself off the couch in time to get out for a run while the sun was still shining. It was too beautiful a day to stay wrapped up in blankets. I stopped every so often on my run to pick flowers to put in a mason jar in my living room. It is such a cute touch in the apartment. Although, I probably looked like such a flower child running with flowers in my hand decked out in head to toe pink running gear!

Sunday I was magically feeling much better and had a lovely day with the one I love. It was a wonderful day - a day full of compromising. I wanted to wake early, in time for breakfast at the hotel. I wanted to go for a romantic walk all afternoon around the beautiful town as the sun shone down on everything. My hands became full as I shed layer after layer. It was hot and we were burning in the blazing sun, but not the kind of burning that leaves you red, the kind of burning that reminds you you're alive. My guy tagged along dutifully, because the compromise was this: I chose what to do in the morning and the afternoon was all his!

Around 3 o'clock, "his part of the day" commenced. He wanted me to make lunch. I whipped up some grilled cheese and tomato sandwiches on delicious, crunchy bread I had picked up fresh from the corner boulangerie. I quickly cut up and fried homemade french fries. This has become somewhat of a staple in our little apartment. Sure, it is wildly unhealthy but for two people always on the move - comfort food is a welcomed pleasure (plus, after 7 years of veganism and I can't even remember how many years of not eating cheese, this new thing... this amazing sandwich full of butter and cheese has become somewhat of a revelation, seriously how could I have been missing out on this for all those years?). After our greasy, gooey lunch we took a long nap and watched movies all night.

To me, this was a perfect day. Besides the fact that it was his first day off in (no lie) 20 days, we both had the opportunity to share with the other what makes us happy. Me - a long walk through the winding streets and hidden trails of this historic town. Him - an afternoon of maxin' and relaxin' with his favorite gal (that's me!).

It may just be the little things in life that really do make us happy. Those little things fill in all the nooks and crannies in my heart. Whether it be a sweet package from my Mom, new flowers in my apartment, or a wonderful day spent with the one I love... these little moments, these small treasures... well, they just fill me up with the kind of happiness that envelopes me with love.  It makes me feel safe.

So as for the current state of my health.... UGH!!! By Monday I was back to being sick, and it seems to be getting worse by the day. I will try to get to the doctor, but this isn't as easy as you may think. I need to bring my translator (my guy) along but he usually doesn't have the time to take lunch let alone leave for over an hour to get me to a doctor. I canceled my classes today after my first class was a bit gross, coughing, sneezing and swallowing flem as I tried to annunciate pronunciation.

I am just so thankful that I had a small reprieve from my sickness on Sunday, allowing me the chance to have some much-needed time with my guy. Maybe being sick now stinks, but that's life and it could be much worse.   A little coughing and sneezing never killed anyone (right!?).

Now I lay me down to sleep...

a new perspective.

I think something we all need to consider is perspective. Life is all about the way you look at things, and this fact has the ability to shape your entire life. The past, present, and future. It is one of those glass half full theories. I can look back at pieces of my life and have regrets or have flashbacks of paralyzing memories or I can take the high road and consider something hard to come to terms with... maybe everything does happen for a reason. I need to truly, wholeheartedly believe this. There is an Arabic word - mektoub - which simply, eloquently means 'it is written,' so maybe each and every moment, the good and the bad were written, predetermined for us. I now have a new perspective - and can I tell you how incredibly wonderful and life changing it is?

For example, instead of looking at my new "city" as one that doesn't compare to home and to the hustle and bustle of NYC, I've learned to love it for its simplicity, its quiet streets, and its amazing history. I finally see it as a beautiful place. Honestly, it is like I have been given a new set of eyes (thankfully, still blue!). With a little bit of perspective, I am able to see this place in a whole new light. I don't want to stop taking pictures. I want to capture this wonderful city in daylight and at dusk. I want to capture the changing colors as autumn unfolds. I just want to enjoy every beautiful moment. How many people can say they have a huge fort in the middle of their city!?

And, this theory pertains to everything in life - friendships, relationships, why I picked the university I picked, why I chose the career I chose, and even why I decided to come to France - it was all written. Knowing that I can't change anything gives me more strength to enjoy and to live in the moment. It gives me more strength to be the person I know I am meant to be. What is meant to happen will happen, and I can't stop missing out on wonderful moments because I'm too busy analyzing the past or stressing over which path is the next one to take. It's like my life is a fantastic, wild ride down the Amazon. I will hit some bumps, my boat may flip over, it won't always be glamorous, but I will get back in and keep trekking down that river.

I am enjoying the ride. Are you?

Pictures from my weekend (in my fabulous city!!!):