scandinavia is QUICKLY losing points....

OK. so i have quite the bone to pick with scandinavia right now. mainly iceland, with its dumb dumb volcano ruining all my friends travel plans, and subsequently making them very sad (luckily i am toooo lame to be going anywhere). i also have a fight to start with norway at the moment, but that is a WHOLE OTHER STORY. interestingly enough i am actually half scandinavian (1/4 icelandic, 1/4 norwegian, as it were...haha), and total sweden lover (thanks largely to my totally amazing swedish friend julia....), but seriously, get it together, or feel the wrath.....ok. so there probably wont be any wrath, not from me at least (seeing as i am more of a lover than a fighter...haha), but somebody might really get uber-annoyed.

on a sunnier note, literally, the weather here in paris as AT LAST reached the 'acceptable' level...and today, despite the 'massive ash cloud' that is apparently surrounding us, it reached a full-on 'fantastic' level. i plan on protesting the ash by remaining outside as much as possible and tanning through the pain.....hahahahah.

french singing

so...last friday was epic fun. we went to an 'irish' pub/bar/club thing in paris, which i was uber stoked on considering i had heard it was awesome. no lies. it was. best part, however, was the AMAZING playlist of english party classics (imagine YMCA and Grease soundtrack tunes mixed with normal club plays)....no picture non-english speaking french people JAMMING and singing along to these songs....i have never IN MY LIFE heard anything as funny as a french person, accent and all, singing the WRONG WORDS to 'Grease Lightning'.....disgustingly fun times...haha.

Weekend spending = Food and Drink

Ok. so the title is seemingly self-explanatory, but not so much. I have come to the scary realization (and by realization I mean that I 'realize' this every week...) that basically ALL of my paycheck gets spent on non-tangible goods. i.e. food/alcohol/etc. In my defense, if the saying 'it's the thought that counts' was really true, I would have loads of money saved up, as every sunday/monday, I am determined that my excessive spending over the previous weekend (usually on $12 malibu cocktails since its uber expensive in Paris, and I am lame and have the alcoholic taste-buds of a 15 yr old) is ending and I am starting anew. This is then followed by a Monday, the likes of which instigate a thirst for said alcohol and therefore the planning commences for the following weekend as to where I will be spending entire paychecks. So, for the record, I really am stopping this. At least for one weekend. This sounds like a good plan. Except that I know that tomorrow I will have come to the determination that visiting the O'Sullivans Bar on Grands Boulevards is simply non-negotiable, and that not going would be perhaps robbing myself of the very cultural experiences motivating my time here. If only justifying frivolous spending was an Olympic sport....

What's in a name?

Title is a rather stupid question really, but the point of this short story is that I've decided that in order to be able to share all my lovely stories in full detail, that unfortunately, in some future cases, names will be changed. I know that this probably seems a bit overboard, but trust me, when the stories start, you will understand the need for protection. hahaha (hahaha said in a wicked cackle. Wait,is that even how you spell cackle? Irrelevant.)

Blog title and weather

I personally feel, as an expert blogger with more than 45 minutes of experience behind me, that no two subjects are better suited for each other than blog title explanations and weather reports. I know, you re thinking 'duh, why didn't somebody think of that sooner? it makes perfect sense!' And you re right, it does make perfect sense, however, as I am clearly light years ahead of the majority of bloggers, I cant give you an explanation as to why it wasn't previously paired, because its evident that my brain cannot fathom the thought processes of such simple creatures. haha. totally joking. obviously.

but anyways, here it is:
croissants and caca.
well, to me it seems clear, but i suppose to some, the second part is perhaps the more confusing. "Croissants" is simply representative of France (aka where I am), and coincidentally the base of my food pyramid since arriving. "Caca", is, quite honestly, the French word children (or parents while speaking with children) use to mean 'poop'. Glamorous, I know. Please try not to be jealous. And, believe it or not, the latter is by far more prevalent in my daily conversations as an au pair than the former. Lovely. Welcome to my life.

Weather (such a smooth transition, I know.)
Today, like yesterday, has been a sh#tshow of snow. Ok, so not quite that bad, but nonstop nonetheless. Its mainly just annoying, as we are housebound. However, I must admit that while the 2.5 inches of perilous white fluff is restricting, if I'm being honest, its probably more to do with the 3 year old being housebound with the chickenpox. I personally find it more fun to blame the weather. It makes me feel like a true snow-storm gangster. well, kinda.

Au Pair job description

Ok. So everybody always asks me, 'so, like, what do you do?'

I could give you a methodical, wikipedia type answer on the definition of an au pair; but no. I think this will explain better. (this is a joke, made by me, and actually doesn't represent my totally awesome host family, but rather, au pair life in general, including real experiences from my fellow au pair friends here).

HELP NEEDED

French family seeking English-speaking Au Pair Girl to be part of the family!

French family is looking for a native English-speaking female au pair to continuously take advantage of while she works for peanuts watching our unimaginably ill-mannered children.

Family consists of one obsessive compulsive father, working in international business and making loads of money while managing to maintain steadfast stingyness, whose hobbies include yelling excessively in French, spouting claims that France is the greatest country in the world, and propelling acient ideals of male superiority to his children, or anyone in earshot. Also, one mother, complete with a Prozac-worthy case of guilt over having a job rather than staying with the children and a complete lack of disciplinary abilities with said children, but, of course, outstanding fashion taste. Also, three children, aged 4, 6, 10. Four year-old boy attending French school 30 hours per week, however, seems unable to speak coherently, and instead prefers communicating through a never-ending stream of cries alternating between dog whistle-like shrieks and vomit-inducing faux sobs. Older children both attending school full time, needing to learn English, and will enjoy regarding you as a house servant not deserving of any respect.

Family is willing to pay 70 Euros per week, plus room and board, in exchange for '25 hours' a week of help. However, in reality, family will expect non-stop, 24 hr assistance should the need arise, including surprisingly regular requests for housework. Also, included in wage is 4 nights per week of babysitting, usually on demand and with no notice, regardless of your previously made plans for your free time. Additional work will be paid at 5 Euros/hour, although frequently, best attempts will be made to avoid paying this, through strategic avoidence and/or awkwardness.

If you are interested, please don't hesitate to call/email us. We ensure we will sound totally welcoming and friendly right up til you get here!

Famille LeBaron

Day one. Better late than never?

Ok. So, granted I have been here for about 7 months now, so I'm a little late on the whole blog bandwagon, but whatever. I like to think of myself as a free spirit rather than a laggard when it comes to these minor timing issues.

Basic back story, here it goes:

Came to France from California in June 2009, to work as an au pair (basically I live with/work for a family, and watch their kids, boys aged 3 and 7). I live in a suburb outside Paris, about 25 mins from the city once I'm on the train. Ok, yeah, that's basically the whole set up, the rest is just going to be random entries on everything from what I did, ate, saw, read,to funny (to me at least haha) stories about au pair life to random commentary on French culture. You know, blah blah blah. I have a few I might transcribe from a paper journal I have had for about the last month, but I'm not sure if that takes away from the 'in the moment' factor.