Wonderful April!

The weather lately has been beautiful. When I say beautiful, I mean BEAUTIFUL. Every day recently has been about high 60s low 70s with just a bit of breeze to make being outside rather enjoyable! And now you also know why I have not been online as much skyping, messaging, or writing on my blog J

Last weekend, when I was at the pub, there was a couple sitting in there with their little white puppy. All the guys who worked there seemed to know the couple, so they would go up and love on the puppy, then get back to work, go back later and say hello to it again, and then back to work. It was cracking me up to see the men all fawning over such a little poof ball. I went to grab some dinner with a friend, and when I came back, the couple was back in the pub again, this time sitting close to where I like to sit. I went up to them and asked if they wouldn’t mind if I pet their dog. They were like no, no please do. I literally sat for the next two hours with the pup in my lap chatting with the couple, the husband’s brother, and another friend. They were very friendly and told me on their departure that they would come back to the pub so I could see the puppy again and get my doggy fix ha ha

Last week, as well, was the first time Obama has come to Europe since he became president. There was a huge buzz about this in Besancon, which I found to be quite funny. Everyone I knew, that knows I am American, was asking me if I was going to go see my president in London or the northern town of Strasbourg for the NATO meeting. I informed them that even though Obama and I are clearly BFF (Best Friends Forever), that I did not think I would be able to fit him into my schedule… ha ha It was really interesting to read all about the meetings in the French newspaper, as well I caught some of the French news one night on the TV at Madigan’s.

All my lovely Anglophones and I have been hanging out quite a bit lately. We made cinnamon rolls together last weekend, have been eating out, hanging by the river, and going out together at night. I absolutely love and adore each and every one of them! It’s funny because all my girls from the islands of Europe (UK and Scotland mainly that I know of hahaha) are obsessed with Jane Austen. Claire has exposed us all to this miniseries by BBC called Lost in Austen. It’s about a modern-day girl, Amanda Price, who is obsessed with Pride and Prejudice and wants nothing more than to live in that time and to know the people. Well, one day her dream comes true, and she finds that she has switched spots with Elizabeth Bennet and now finds herself in the adventures in Netherfield Park and Pemberley. The series is grand! Only four episodes, but very interesting to see the little twists they add to the storyline. (If you have any interest in watching it, you can find the episodes on Youtube. Do a search for “Lost in Austen Misslorely” then click on the link for “Misslorely.” You will be taken to a profile type page, find the playlist for Lost in Austen, then you can see all the full episodes in parts all in order, enjoy!)

Naturally, I am on a Jane Austen kick, and tried to see if I could find Pride and Prejudice online, because I realized this week that I have never read it! It is then that I came across my new literary treasure chest that many or you may or may not know about, the Gutenberg Project! If you go to www.gutenberg.org, you can download entire books for free that no longer have copyright protection on them! I highly suggest checking out the site. Took me about four days to get P&P done, and it was amazing, everything I expected and more ha ha Now I have moved onto Mansfield Park, it’s a bit slow at the go, but am not ready to give up on it yet!

I haven’t really been working on my book lately, which I ought to be. I am going to set a couple deadlines for this week, and get some more chapters done. I have outlined the majority of the book now, and keep adding onto that as I see fit, so we’ll see how it goes! As well, McOlympian and I have not been talking recently, he must be traveling or training or something ;), so no worries to those of you who honestly think I will run away and get married while I am out here ha ha

As for the strikes, they continue on. My professors have contacted me with work to do in the mean time, as well as what my exams will look like as I am a foreign student and have a different protocol. So back to the ol’ push and grind in school for me…

Hope all is well! About 50 days and I am home!

Love you all!

- C