No wonder coffee is starting to taste good

Good golly have I been busy.

As I mentioned before, schoolwork really started to take its toll right after spring break. I know that many students have had a much worse time of it than I have had with assignments, but I’m talking about me here, and in my opinion about how much stress I can take, I’m reaching new heights.

On the one hand, I have been very productive and have managed to tackle each new problem with patience, organization, and above all, determination. I have completed two exposés (oral presentations), one paper, and a slew of tests on top of all my other usual homework. I still have a book to finish and a midterm paper due by next week, but it’s manageable.

What stresses me are the consequences of living independently in a foreign country. I have had late immigration paperwork to deal with, obtaining documents for French social security, fixing faulty flight information (thank you for waiting, please hold… thank you for waiting, please hold…) that costs about a dollar a minute. And also that police report for my stolen skis. Then of course there’s the habitual worrying about managing my money properly – I have to save aside enough for rent, then how much do I typically spend on groceries, then how much does that leave for métro tickets, laundry, postage, textbooks, and some spare Euros for the occasional drink or two with friends? But I am always worrying about how I spend money, so it’s a moot point.

Just today I tried to add additional information to my police report; it took a while, struggling with my words, even though I had written down the information first, and even after they finally understood what I was saying, they asked me why I had bothered coming in, because the information was not useful to them. AUGH. (I guess we all have days like these)

However, this experience has taught me how to be resourceful, patient, resilient, and enduring. Not to mention to speak better French! No matter what, I am going to view my struggles as learning experiences. When I embarked on this trip, I mostly was curious whether or not I could do it. Am I smart enough to study at Sciences Po? Are my French skills good enough? Will I be able to handle living on my own thousands of miles away from friends and family? So far, I suppose I can handle it, and in my mind that means this adventure has been successful for me.

Nonetheless, I have decided that I much prefer living in the U.S. where I can speak English all the time, and where I am much closer to my friends and family. And although there are many things about living alone that appeal to my stubbornly independent nature, I very much miss the communal living environment of school back home.

Speaking of family, I was so glad to have my grandmother come and visit me last week. We had been planning this visit for months, and I couldn’t wait to see her. She stayed at a hotel near me, and we spent every day exploring a new part of the city, as well as Versailles. We found some great places to eat for dinner, as well as a few patisseries and a great gelato place. I am glad she made it home safely, and I hope she enjoyed her trip here as much as I did. =)

A couple more notes – one: as much as I have disliked it in the U.S., I have occasionally tried coffee here. Much to my astonishment, I haven’t disliked it yet. Today I even found myself seeking it out. It costs 0,50€ a cup from any one of the many vending machines in the Sciences Po buildings. I realized that after I combed two of the adjoining buildings looking for a machine that made mocha, I might actually like coffee. I settled for a café au lait.

Two: I made a tiny albeit startling discovery this week. I have been searching for years for shoes that uphold my standards of toe-covering. The reason I don’t own many pairs of shoes isn’t that I don’t like them; I’m just picky. If I am going to wear a pair of heels or flats, I want all of my toes to be covered. Sandals, whatever, they are supposed to be open-toe. Even if I can see just the cracks between my toes, I won’t buy them. It’s a small thing, but I don’t like how it looks, it distracts me for some reason. (Gosh, how neurotic is this girl, you may be wondering. C’mon, we all have our random pet peeves). Anyway, I bought a pair of flats on Monday (finally, I have been wanting a pair for over a year) really inexpensively, in order to break a 50€. They are very cute, but they still just don’t cover my toes entirely. I have always supposed that this was the fault of the shoes, and that I simply hadn’t found the right pair yet. But what if that is not the case? What if I just have abnormally long toes???

(Ding goes the light bulb)

Somehow amidst all these aforementioned graver things to be concerned with, things like this pop into my head.

On that note,

À Bientôt!