Bonne Année

In France, the nouvel an, or New Year, is a big deal. The French greet it with a massive smile, say good-bye to whatever has happened in the past twelve months, and open the door big and wide to the possibility of tomorrow. It's traditional to faire la fête with friends and family at home. If you are a 30 or 40 something with kids, like my host parents are, this certainly means you invite other couples with kids the same age to come eat dinner and get smashed, have everyone spend the night, and sit on the couch hungover the next day eating a beyond late brunch and watching movies until 6 p.m. Not a bad adult life, if you ask me, and the bonus is that the kids entertain themselves so you can kickback some more fine French wine. I'm taking notes already.

That aside, at the new year, the French give out chocolates to one another, and it's near mandatory to tell everyone you greet "bonne année!" (happy new year) or "meilleurs voeux!" (best wishes, with the insinuation of 'best wishes for the new year'). There's something beautifully optimistic about this considering France is a country where, as host dad's family pointed out to me when they came over to celebrate Christmas family style with all of his siblings and all of their children for a grand total of 25 individuals, people say a movie "wasn't too bad," when Americans say "that movie was KICK ASS!" In other words, we're a VERY expressive people, us Americans.

Naturally, all this talk of the new year has gotten me thinking about where I've been and where I'm going, which I guess you could say is the overlying theme of this blog anyway. What is the new year going to hold for Lindsay Marie? Here's a short list of the things I'm already aware of, but I can't account for anything fate, destiny, Father Time, any-unlisted-deities, entities, and or forces might have in store for me:

1) Application and possibly acceptance to a French university for a Masters in French Lit. Though, fair enough, a Berk professor I'm in contact with said to possibly reconsider as he'd be "remis" not to warn me that the humanities "are dismal" right now due to funding. So let's be over-educated and under-employed!

2) A latvian?: Still sort of processing this one, though I do REALLY enjoy his broken English text messages. My favorite one so far involved a comparison of skiing and sex and how skiing was better. I replied "Oh really?" His response: "Ok, maybe skiing as good as sex." This is going to be entertaining.

3) Re-patriation: and it's going to have to involve In-and-Out. And possibly some Wild Turkey 101. Thanks Kristen and Bec.

4) Fourth of July Pyro: four words: let's blow shit up.

5) Four weddings and a funeral: Ok, no, I kid. But it does involve one of my best friends getting married in July. Not to mention I'm in the wedding, and her future hubbie, who is a bit older, has some HOT groomies, as we bridesmaids have dubbed the groomsmen. Older groomies with MBA's, and I'll get to be the sweet young 20-something who can speak sexy, sexy, did I say SEXY, fluent French? I might be taking advantage of that....

6) Possible Parisian apartment hunting: this is going to suck royally. BEYOND ROYALLY. But if I have to, in the end, it will be SO worth it. I'll officially be a parisienne. New zip code: 75000! Bring it, beetches!

And who knows what else will come. Bonne année quand même!