you met me at a very strange time in my life...

Everyone says that going abroad will change you.  I mean, because I'm experiencing it, I really don't know or notice it, but I guess it has?  Also, it's strange because the people I met here have a very different sense of me from those who knew me from college, who still have a different sense of me than people I know from other times.  But here's a little list of changes (and not changes) I have noticed, and for those who read this, depending on your connection to me, perhaps you will find it interesting.....

1. French language skills

I am definitely more confident in my French.  At the beginning of this, I hoped to be completely fluent and AMAZING upon my return.  I feel this is/was not a reasonable goal.  BUT, my comprehension has increased in leaps and bounds, and I have much less fear about speaking.  (Slash, I have just come to terms with the fact that I will make many mistakes.)  I feel that by the end of this, I will be able to understand French movies without subtitles, which is still pretty amazing.  OH, and I am now fluent in franglais, a strange mélange of French and English.  Unfortunately, English skills are deteriorating.....

2. I now eat cooked carrots.

I feel so awkward at the dinner table, because I don't know all the names for the foods I'm eating.  Especially, the blended vegetable soups.  Being that I really will try anything once, I have just been eating what they put in front of me, like it or no.  I also don't like to complain if we eat something I prefer not to eat.  Like cooked carrots.  Despite their constant presence at our holiday meals, I have always passed that plate without taking.  But, here, cooked carrots are in everything, and they are eaten frequently at dinner.  Though I am still not the hugest fan, I will eat them.  Which was not the case before.

side note in dietary changes: I'm now obsessed with goat cheese, and will probably continue to eat yogurt as dessert upon my return to the US.  

3. Still love shoes and scarves.

My friends from the program probably have seen much of my vast scarf collection, but the shoes have been basically the same very sturdy boots since the beginning of this program.  I cannot wait for the weather to warm up, because the flats will come out and I'll be really excited.

4. I will not die when it dips below freezing.

The other day, as I walked in the 40 degree Fahrenheit brisk, sunny morning air, I noticed: My what a beautiful day.  I was such a weather wimp before France.  I also refused to wear clothes sufficient for temperatures below 70. (I was in LA, why should I have to?!)  Now that I have had to live in it, and know how to dress, I am prepared to go back to CA and never be cold. (Barring terrible temperature changes due to global warming,) California winters, BRING IT.

5. New found appreciations
For the most part, France is a totally developed country, but there are things that just aren't the same, and make me really appreciate basic amenities and practices in the US.
a. Toilet seats (or lack thereof).  At Bordeaux3, and several cafés/restaurants, there are no toilets seats.  They have been stolen, or something.  I don't know why you would steal a toilet seat, but it's the thing to do.  And now, when restrooms have toilet seats I'm insanely happy.
b. Dog poop on the sidewalks.  Yes, it's everywhere.  I liked it better when people actually use the bags provided for them. (Like in the US)
c. Internet.  Now, this might seem dumb, but I have never really appreciated the internet as much as I do abroad.  I am painfully reliant on social-networking sites (ahem, Facebook) and also chatting mediums including googlechat, facebook chat, skype, aim, anything really....  Also, the internet in France is a bit sluggish and oddly slow and poorly-functioning for a modern country.  This makes the internet all the more wonderful at home, where it's wireless and everywhere.

Alright, I have been compiling this list for days, and really, I'm not sure about how interesting or amusing it is, but there you go.  I promise more interesting things to come....I'm going to visit Salamanca and Madrid this coming weekend, and I hope to have fabulous photos and stories.  My first trip outside France!  Wish me luck!