this is the captain speaking...

To sum up my flight(s) back:

9ish : Arrive at SeaTac, check luggage.
10ish: Arrive at gate for 11:30 departure.
11:30 : Plane hasn’t landed.
12:00 : Nope, still no plane.

etc., etc., etc. won’t bore you with being over-fueled in Cincinnati or the wing breaking in New York. But suffice to say all my flights were late.

I’m not sure about this, but I think according to some UN treaties, the conditions of modern air travel fall under the category of torture. At least cruel and unusual punishment, considering I could have probably overnighted myself to France with UPS for less money and comparable comfort. Came to this realization and others at 3 am somewhere over the Midwest. Others: I’ve seen comfier coffins. And kayaks with more legroom. And these blankets have all the warmth and manageability of SaranWrap. And I’m never ever ever ever going to be able to fall asleep. And

And the next thing I know we’re on our final descent into Cincinnati.

Sweeeeeet.

So oddly enough it’s not too strange to be back in France. Back to my usual routine, showed up at school and the class time had changed, ensuing typically French discussion:

Them: We changed the class schedule while you were in the US. Why didn’t you know this?

Me: Mais…bah…euh… (shrug)

It’s nice to hear all the bells chiming the hours, to buy my baguettes fresh, have a café with friends, to see twelve year olds smoking, to walk down the road dodging dog poop and wondering just what in the world they are fed to get such results…ahhh, la France.

Learned a few new things today: Where to buy shoelaces (the shoelace store, duh,) the grammar books I bought at Martells that are imposssible difficult for me are in fact designed for and used by primary students, and that the chips in the marble courtyard walls of the main public library are from gunshots during World War II. Go figure huh?

Someone asked me today when I was walking home where Rue Delpech was. I told them “c’est juste la,” just up the street, and although I’m only 78% (fine 72) sure if that’s really where it is, darn it felt good to answer in French and feel like I knew something. Time to prepare for my tough class tomorrow, unless it’s been changed as well.

I wouldn’t know.