Didya miss me?

It has been a busy week, as you can probably ascertain from the lack of postings. Here's what's been going on...

• I found a job that I want to apply for back in the US. This will be taking up most of my time for the next few weeks, since I have to take the windows of opportunity that I can to use the computer. Part of me can't believe that I'm actually dusting off my resumé already, but then I remember that it's a good opportunity, so I'm going for it. If I get it, I'll be teaching geography full-time, beginning this fall. Keep your fingers crossed!
• I continued working on my grave photography project. I got a long list of requests from a guy in Spain, so I've actually had to go in to the "conservation" to ask the cemetery employees for help. This is good for my French skills, so I've been trying to make it a point to go alone (i.e. not with Colin). If anyone else who speaks French is with me, I tend to look to them far too quickly for help when I don't understand something. In this case, I have to do it myself, and it's not so bad.
• I was passed on the street by a serious criminal. How do I know this? Simple. There were three dark blue gendarme vans, sirens blaring, that raced up Gal. Leclerc the other day. The middle van was closed; the front and back van had their sliding doors open, and men with semi-automatic rifles were squatting in the doorways, ready to shoot. I don't know what or who was in that middle van, but I sure as hell wasn't going to go find out!
• Didge has gotten fat again. Oops. Last winter, he gained 10 pounds because we fed him the same amount and didn't exercise him. I'm not sure if he has reached that record yet, but I'd rather not find out. So, Didge will be getting more exercise now, despite the fact that it has rained nearly non-stop for days now. (And when it's not raining, it's COLD!)
• I've learned to make French tartes. My first attempt was to make tarte aux fraises (strawberry tart), which turned out almost perfect. Rachel, Colin and I analysed the taste in great detail while watching women's figure skating, and I made adjustments based on our observations. Tonight, we try tarte aux pommes (apple tart), using a modified version of the recipe from the tarte aux fraises. We're taking it over to Colin and Maggie's place tonight for dinner, so I'll have to report the results another time. If it turns out as well as I hope it does, I'll post the recipe here. I'll wait to post the pictures, too, since I can't get them to upload right now anyway.
• The bird flu is in France now. This is going to be quite a problem for the fois gras industry, no doubt. Colin read today that Japan has already cut off all of their imports from France's poultry industry.
• In spite of that last point, we are going to the Salon d'Agriculture tomorrow (the agricultural fair) with Colin and Maggie. Apparently, this is a really big event, and all of the French politicians are expected to show up and do something "earthy" to prove that they are still connected to the little folks. I'm just looking forward to seeing how they get the animals to behave in a convention center.

So, that's what's going on in our neighborhood! Once I get my job application put together and sent off, I should be back on track for blogging regularly. In the meantime, I'm enjoying the e-mails! If you haven't sent one yet, there's still time to win a postcard! :)