Can't sleep!

In quintessential form, Monique cannot sleep because a big trip is coming up!

So let's talk about what I've been doing today. Maybe this'll make me bored, slash tired and get me ready for bed. Though, no loss here because I don't work until 1:30 p.m. tomorrow anyways. Or is it today now ;-)

AND IT'S MY LAST DAY OF WORK FOR TWO WEEKS!

Things I'm going to accomplish in the very near future:

-Assistant party slash brunch for dinner in Cannes Friday
I've got the o.j. and champagne ready for my contribution
-FESTIVAL DE CHOCOLAT in the port of Antibes on Saturday
-Finish packing my suitcase
-Job application

I guess now's a good time to mention I'm applying for my 18th job in hopes of finding some sort of work when I get back this summer. You must all be laughing at me, because each position I apply for is totally unlike anything else I've done before. You could say I have a wide range of interests.

Anyways, this one's for a college counselor at a FRENCH HIGH SCHOOL in San Francisco. I think my chances at possibly landing this are very good. But then again, what do I know...?

Things I want to accomplish when I go home:

-Scrapbook
-Catch up with some friends
-TARGET/COSTCO RUNS!
-Read at least three books
-Mooch a "free" seven-day pass from 24-Hour Fitness
-Organize my room
-Grade all my CE2/CM1 students' tests
-Fill out CAF housing assistance forms

Things I've done today:

-Went on an aimless 50-minute walk b/c my gym membership's expired!
-Gave out four tests
-Had my students write pen pal letters to California
-Wrote out my signature on at least seven students' notebooks

I kind of felt like a weird American celebrity or something. Not sure why but they all wanted my autograph today... Strange.

And I really would like to point out this piece of information:

When helping them come up with sentences to write their pen pals, I used the generic "Do you like" sentence structure. One thing someone suggested was Harry Potter. Then a few students yelled at him and said he was stupid because, "They don't have Harry Potter in America."

Au contraire mes élèves. I proudly pointed out that Harry Potter is an Anglophone work, thus it first came out in the U.K., then the U.S. and then the rest of the world.

Then since they were on the "Do you like" roll, they all wanted to know if American students loooove Tecktonik. I had to break it to them that Tecktonik only exists in France -- thank God -- and that instead of asking if they like it, they should tell their pen pals to search YouTube for it.

I got more puzzled looks. "You know what YouTube is, too?"

My response was very English teacher-y of me: "Well, look at the word's composition. 'You' and 'Tube' are both words from what language?"

"Ahh ouais! Anglais!"

Next they asked me if I could dance it. I just stared at them blankly saying, "Uhh, no thanks."

Oh. My. God.

I've become that person. I'm now associating with the "older" generations in disapproving of the crap that kids are listening to these days....

(But can you blame me?! Nearly half of my students dress like the music video I just linked above, with the rat tails, disturbing 80s colors, mullets, and weird shavings in the sides of their heads.)

Bah, en tout cas: TWO DAYS UNTIL CALIFORNIE!!!