Countdown: 2 Weeks

Waiting for my visa to arrive. Nothing new to report until that happens.

Waiting...

Countdown: 3 Weeks

Some time ago, a pigeon made a nest on our back porch. We left the cardboard box our BBQ came in sitting on the balcony, and a lovely pigeon named Sasha decided it would be the ideal place to raise babies. I think J discovered the nest one evening when he was grilling. Anyway, fast forward several weeks, and we have watched Sasha fall in love with a fairly aggressive pigeon named Fernando, we have seen her disappear into the box for days on end while she sat on her eggs and Fernando brought her food, and we have seen 2 small yellow birds grow up to be as aggressive as their father. (Not kidding about the aggression. The babies fought off an intruding pigeon this morning all on their own. Badasses.)

According to Wikipedia, the next step in a young pigeon's life is to be kicked out of the nest by its father. As in literally kicked out of the nest. Fernando will chase his babies off the balcony and if they survive the fall by flapping their wings, fine, and if not, I guess he and Sasha will have to start all over from scratch.

But the concept is interesting, isn't it? Only by falling may one learn to fly. I keep telling myself this, as I say goodbye to everyone in my life, pack what looks like a very small amount of clothing into a suitcase, and practice saying things like "Help the thieves stole my passport!" in different languages.

Only by falling may one learn to fly.

Countdown: 4 Weeks

I have always liked foreign currency. My dad used to travel for work and bring back coins and bills from far away places; pounds from England, francs from France, rubles from Russia. My Canadian grandparents once sent me a framed set of Canadian bills and coins. Perhaps because of this, money from other places has always reminded me of Monopoly money, with pretty pictures, colorful images, and zero value (at least in L.A. County).

Now, for the first time, I actually have to take foreign currency seriously! In a few weeks, Euros will cease to be value-less pieces of paper that hang framed in my bedroom, and will become train tickets and museum entry fees and food. Because of this, I have been avidly following dollar to Euro exchange rates.

For instance, at this very moment, one American dollar is worth 0.779 Euros. If a (hypothetical) American student had (hypothetically) saved up $4,000 for her (hypothetical) semester in Paris, that means she currently has 3,116 Euros to live off. Last week, the same (hypothetical) $4,000 was only worth 3,000 Euros, when the exchange rate was 1 : 0.75. If 116 Euros doesn't seem like a lot to you, to this (hypothetical) American student it is 6 days of food, a train ride to Oktoberfest, or a weekend in Normandy. Stick that in your pipe and smoke it.

But only if you happen to be in Amsterdam.

Countdown: 5 Weeks

Today I was ecstatic to receive an email from the study abroad people. Usually their emails do NOT make me happy, because they often demand that I either fill out more paperwork or pay them money, but this email made me smile. It listed the roster of all the lucky people who get to spend time with ME in Paris!! I immediately tried to find some of these students on facebook and I'm hoping they see this as a nice gesture of friendship rather than creepy. Yikes.

In other news, I have learned that while shopping for clothes for France and making new friends is awesome, figuring out how to say goodbye to one's boyfriend of more than a year is...not awesome. If you have any advice, send it my way!

I guess being simultaneously sad/scared and excited/high on life is a common state of being when one is living liminally...