The sun set at 9 pm today.
The weather has been bizarre today, which I’m beginning to think is normal in Villers-Cotterêts. At breakfast it was cloudy and rainy; when Sarah and I went to the médiathèque this afternoon, it was warm and sunny, but just as we were getting back to the lycée, we spotted some dark clouds on the horizon. Soon there was a massive storm, complete with rain, hail, strong winds, and the students outside scurrying for cover. I stood at the door and laughed at them as they ran by. It felt good.
May 1 is a holiday in France (as if the French don’t have enough holidays already), something like the French Labor Day, I think. And May 8 is another holiday, because it’s the day World War II ended in Europe. Anyway, May 1 falls on a Thursday this year and the school closes for it, which apparently means that all the boarding students have to leave Wednesday evening, come back Friday morning, and leave again Friday evening. Heather could tell the students were leaving because her room was cold when she woke up; I could tell because I heard their suitcases clunking down the stairs when I woke up. I’m going to try to convince Heather and/or Sarah to walk to McDonald’s with me on our day off.
Nathalie couldn’t take us shopping this afternoon, so I walked to L’Epicerie d’Or and bought a baguette for dinner. I felt awkward walking back to the school with it under my arm. French people can do it so easily - I’ve seen them carrying four or five baguettes and walking their dog at the same time - so I guess it’s something that takes practice. The same goes for bagging your own groceries, which everyone has to do in France.
I’m worried about what Sarah will do when she’s the last assistant left; she doesn’t go back to Beijing until June, and after that she’s coming back here to teach for another year. I’m planning to keep in really good touch with her so she won’t be too lonely. But apparently there’s a student who’s been giving her problems, and the Chinese professor absolutely refuses to do anything about it. (That Chinese professor pisses me off to no end for the way she treats Sarah. Would it be so wrong if I prayed for her to suffer horribly?) Anyway, I’m determined to talk to Madame Camus or Monsieur Courtine about it before I leave, since Sarah doesn’t really know how to complain, get mad, or say no. And apparently I haven’t been a bad enough influence on her for her to learn from me.
I had a sort of random revelation yesterday. For some reason, I was thinking about middle school, and it occurred to me that yes, it was hellish, but in the end, it made me a stronger person.
May 1 is a holiday in France (as if the French don’t have enough holidays already), something like the French Labor Day, I think. And May 8 is another holiday, because it’s the day World War II ended in Europe. Anyway, May 1 falls on a Thursday this year and the school closes for it, which apparently means that all the boarding students have to leave Wednesday evening, come back Friday morning, and leave again Friday evening. Heather could tell the students were leaving because her room was cold when she woke up; I could tell because I heard their suitcases clunking down the stairs when I woke up. I’m going to try to convince Heather and/or Sarah to walk to McDonald’s with me on our day off.
Nathalie couldn’t take us shopping this afternoon, so I walked to L’Epicerie d’Or and bought a baguette for dinner. I felt awkward walking back to the school with it under my arm. French people can do it so easily - I’ve seen them carrying four or five baguettes and walking their dog at the same time - so I guess it’s something that takes practice. The same goes for bagging your own groceries, which everyone has to do in France.
I’m worried about what Sarah will do when she’s the last assistant left; she doesn’t go back to Beijing until June, and after that she’s coming back here to teach for another year. I’m planning to keep in really good touch with her so she won’t be too lonely. But apparently there’s a student who’s been giving her problems, and the Chinese professor absolutely refuses to do anything about it. (That Chinese professor pisses me off to no end for the way she treats Sarah. Would it be so wrong if I prayed for her to suffer horribly?) Anyway, I’m determined to talk to Madame Camus or Monsieur Courtine about it before I leave, since Sarah doesn’t really know how to complain, get mad, or say no. And apparently I haven’t been a bad enough influence on her for her to learn from me.
I had a sort of random revelation yesterday. For some reason, I was thinking about middle school, and it occurred to me that yes, it was hellish, but in the end, it made me a stronger person.