Yes!

This post is just to display my happiness at the fact that I have been accepted into my new school in Paris (that has been for a while) but I have been accepted as a THIRD YEAR. I have already done two years of school and redoing one was really not what I had ticked off on my chirstmas list this year. The thing that makes me so very happy about getting into third year is that I will be graduating next year! Oh joy is me! Hello work force! How will I ever survive in you???
Oh well I think moving forwards is a good thing and better get started when you are really motivated to do so!
So today I share with you my happiness!
Big smiles and Peace out!

Monday's recommendation

Hello everyone,

Being sick and not on top of everything, this post is being posted (what else?) a little late. Forgive my lack of attention and please accept my humble apologies with this weeks recommendation.

My recommendation for today is:

The Wind of Fire Trilogy
by William Nicholson

This trilogy is actually more destined for child readers than anyone else. However! I really must recommend this book to you, if not to read it then at least to read it to your kids or give it to them in the future and present.
The story follows the lives of a family and more specifically of the two children, twins Kess and Bow. The characters live in a society were class is demonstrated by the color of the clothes you wear and the character, after an incident are demoted to the lowest possible class.
I really invite you to follow their journey as they discover a new world outside of their own, facing cultures that are very different from their own, to finally discover who they are and what they are really made of. I guarantee that the characters will win you over.

What if...

Have you ever wondered, really, how we would get along without electricity? Like really think about it. Think about washing machines, stoves, computers, lamps, microwaves and music.
Would you be able to function? Well, of course we would get used to it. But imagine loosing everything we have! I can't help but let my mind wander and I can tell you in all honesty that I would be more than a little lost. Especially considering that all of everyone's money is run by computers in the banks, or transferred by computers or only exists on a computer. You would lose a big part of your earnings or all of it. Not to mention world panic and theft!
Cars and all that would be gone. People would fight, steal or just kill for other people's horses. All foods that need to be in refrigerators will go bad!
My GOD!
OK.... I'm calming down. I think the worst part would be the music. I play the piano so I would be on that thing day and night, but imagine you didn't play an instrument. Maybe you, out there reading this, don't. There will be so much demand for musicians. And lots of gramophones.

Alright. I hope I didn't freak all of you out.
Peace and Electricity to you all!

Lovely lovelies

A couple years back... I can't remember exactly but it was when my family and I went to Venice. We came across a tiny little store. It sold trinkets of this and that, decorations and hair bobbins, cell phone charms and handbags. It was in this tiny store, that we found two bags. Although I'm telling you the price was something you might frown upon, scream upon, cry upon or generally turn and run away from, these bags were the most amazing things we had ever seen and (let's call it out-of-the-country-on-vacation crazies) we bought them both.
It has only just occurred to me, as I seem to lack what some people call a brain, to look up the brand of these beautiful bags on internet. And there is was Mary Francis online and ready to show me all the best bags ever.
This one is, of course, the one I would reaaaaally want for my birthday. *hint hint* *nudge nudge*

Monday's recommendation

Alright, I feel like I need a day dedicated to recommendations. So I am naming Monday! *Cue the drum roll and thundering trumpeters*
I may have said this already but I am an extreme fan of Science-Fiction and Fantasy. My own book that is going through the final processes of editing is a fantasy novel. This information is being given to you for the good reason that you should not be surprised if almost all of my book recommendations are for Sci-Fi or Fantasy. So as a warning, there you go.

My recommendation for today is:

GENESIS
By Bernard Beckett

 Unfortunately I can't tell you very much about this book because the whole point of it is to start reading knowing nothing about the world the characters live in or what is going on. What I can tell you is, for those who have problems with Sci-Fi (or Fantasy) because of its length, this book is extremely short and only took me about two hours to read. The plot is easy to follow and the writing will not make you cringe with fear at any techno-bable. I think it is its simplicity that makes it all the better as you continue through the book.
In any case this is a must read that will definitely delight and thrill its audiences.

A new family member!

I have been waiting for this moment for far too long. Years actually, if you count the time we have been on the waiting list for a puppy from Switzerland. As you might have guessed, this puppy, is not from Switzerland. BUT! The breeder was possibly the most adorable women I had met, who really put her dogs before herself (living in a mobile home while her dogs all have little houses for themselves).
So! After a one and a half hour drive, and a bit of nibbling of my fingers, I present to you...
Feanor.

My first days in Paris

So I finally made my way up to Paris to receive the keys to my new apartment! I am extremely excited and can't wait to start actually living here (if you understand my meaning). These past couple days have been very exciting. I have been running around with my friend Jess, who is attending the same school as me and moved here at the same time as me, unfortunately he did not find an apartment at the same time. Stress filled we defiled the streets of Paris with our endless torrent of worry, speeding around at impossible hours of the day to go see the apartments. We did settle however and found the perfect apartment. This is where it gets tricky...
On the way to the bank to get money - and you can only get money from the branch where you opened your account originally- we took the wrong bus and found ourselves in what we now call the french NASA. There was a giant rocket there ready to be launched and it was somewhere between Paris and the airport. It was... an adventure.
Today was an equal adventure that ends with me destroying my feet as always but I finally went to my school. Although we were a bit stared at for reasons unknown to us but -I hope- known to the people staring at us, the people there were really nice. The international student rep knew us both by name which either means he has an amazing memory or they don't get many international transfers... Oh well! We're special then.

Recommendation

I just want to recommend something to all of you. Usually when presents cannot be thought of, or someone you know already has everything, I then go for the jokes and silly presents that have no use.
As a recommendation to all of you for a birthday, a christmas, or a general need of a silly gift, I want to recommend "I want one of those".
http://www.iwantoneofthose.com/
It's possibly the silliest assortment of stuff ever.

My first ever...

Hello there! Back after a couple days of sewing. I somehow got it into my head these days that handmade objects would be so much better for Christmas. This idea then evolved into a full crescendo of ideas and now I am obsessed with sewing and all that that includes. I've never had a full time hobby other than my piano and I am really happy about having this new one.
So! Back to why I have been gone for a couple days. I started sewing, and got it into my head that I really wanted to make a teddy bear. So after a couple days of spending my nights sewing, and with a sore finger, I present to you....
Scarlet!

Two amazing things again

Two amazing things happened to me today!
I saw a William Shatner look alike!!! In French version and a little older than in this picture, but he was basically Shatner, speaking french. Score.

And!
My green bird, Milady, who IS NOT trained to go on hands or be with people. She's just a cage bird. Came on my knee!!!! Granted it was for food but she ate out of my hand!
My week, month, year, has been made!

Two things

There are two things that I am delighted about right now.

Successfully making my first ever risotto so good that me and my mom both had two helpings and are now stuffed beyond belief.

And Finally cleaning up my study, which had been overloaded with books and whatnot.

And right now I am going to make myself and my mother a cup of hot cocoa as we watch, carefully, the lightning storm outside.

Laziness

I would have been very happy to have nothing to report today, to spend my day on top of a kitchen pantry and stare down at the inferior people moving around meaninglessly as I dozed off. Unfortunately I am not my cat, Figaro. This morning was one of those 'don't want to get out of your bed' moments that you can only get lulled into by an evening of stormy weather. When you do get up, because of a loud and wet dog, you realize that relaxing is the last thing that you are going to do.
On top of the normal cleaning of the birds cage as they fly hysterically around because of the rain and your strange appearance in a fluorescent rain jacket, you suddenly realize that millions of other things have gone wrong because of the storm.
Let's include to this list, a burst tire that we changed as my mother held an umbrella over our amazing handy man who should really join the postal service (since they decided they didn't want to get wet to give us some useless mail anyway), a sudden attack of grease on the balcony because of someone forgetting to clean out the barbecue the last time we cooked there, the discovery that our tire didn't seem to exist in any garage and then the reassurance that there was a garage that had it and we didn't have to change all of our tires. Going to a shop that didn't have what we wanted in supply, going to the bank to open an account to then discover that, unlike friendly banks in San Francisco, you need an appointment and they are way too booked to see your ugly face again and of course feeling that indiscernible kind of sickness where you have no idea what you have but you feel lousy.
Sigh at least I got some cool art supplies at Truffaut and am almost done with knitting my scarf!
Whooo!

Part two of the previous post

Here are my birds.
You've already seen Valentine.

This here is the African Grey, Flip.

This here is Milady. She's a perruche de Baraban, I don't know how to say that in English... Sorry.

The project that is my birds

Great news! I am now able to open Valentine's (my cockatiel) wing, and she lets me do it! That is a big sign of trust for birds! All those hours of standing with my arm up like a perch paid off! My arm hurts and I feel great!!!
...
Since I have talked a few times about my birds I think I'll fill you in on the situation that was my birds and the project they became.
I had, and still have, one cockatiel and his name is Kess. Kess is a grumpy little bugger but he loves it when I read books to him and will gladly fall asleep to the sound of my voice. I can only pick him up when he is in a forgiving mood. (My only question is what I am being forgiven for and my only positive point - if it is one- is that he seems to like me more than anyone else. He hisses at other people...)
Apart from my a-social but book loving bird there is my brother's African Grey parrot. Now Flip was always a good-natured little fella (well big fella) but my brother for about... 6 years. If not more. Abandoned Flip. I'm not pointing fingers of blame at my brother because it is a demanding bird but I really think he should have thought twice before getting it. But boys will be boys....
Anyway Flip, being left alone, started to pull out his own feathers out of boredom. His only moments of happiness were when I would come back from school and me and mom would spend some time talking and singing to him. His feather problem, even though it does not spread from his stomach, is still there.
THUS! We come to the project!

My father loves to build stuff, if not to do it himself just to have the pleasure of having a project he can return to finished from work and admire the work that has been done. Cue our long-time friend Philip who helped build our little tower room from a bat infested box storage to a beautiful, wood-paneled, study. We convinced each other that we needed to make this bird happy at any cost and therefrom, the aviary came to life! OK not as big as in zoos, let's not exaggerate (our garden isn't that big).

Here are the pictures of the long, painful, and slightly expensive process of making our birds a better home.

And her it is finished!!! Yay!

The coming of School

I think that once the summer is over, and you are getting ready for school and work, you really need an uplifting piece of cookie.
Alright so maybe you might lose that figure you've been working to keep all summer but hey! It's time to put on all your clothes again!
Here is my, slightly pathetic attempt, at making checkered cookies.

However pathetic they may look (although I'm actually quite proud since they actually ARE checkered in a way *smiles enthusiastically*) after about five minutes there were only so many left.

We hungry people finished them after I took this picture.

It's nice to feel that your cooking is appreciated, don't you think??

My birds

Alright. So I have 4 birds in my small aviary in the garden. There's the perruche de Baraban (which I don't know the name of in English) called Milady, the two Cockatiels called Valentine (the girl) and Kess (the boy), and finally there is our African Grey called Flip.
So the two Cockatiels kind of belong to me, or at least... No yeah they belong to me. Kess is a-social and Valentine is SO social it becomes annoying sometimes.
I was cleaning, which we have to do everyday and evening (dirty birds) and Valentine has been getting in the habit of landing on the floor near my hand as I scrub away. Today she climbed on my hand and stayed there, twirling in circling motions on my hand as I scrubbed away. I don't know if you know what Cockatiels are like but they don't just sit on a hand as you scrub away.
Didn't actually catch her on my twirling/scrubbing hand but here's an idea of what she will fly on as I clean.

PS: Ignore my crazy face...

An afternoon at the beach

Having your grand-parents at your house means that you have to go to the beach. Or at least have a nice lunch at the beach. Imagine my surprise when the restaurant that we always go to, as our beach food place, has changed its design completely.
It's white, it's clean, it's very South of France.

Beautiful don't you think?

Delicious Asian Plateau with nems, yakitori and a lot of salad with soja. Yum Yum!

Decoration ideas

Don't you love the ideas that all those fancy stores give you? I think that mostly you love the idea of a piece of furniture because of everything else they place around it or how they present it. Most of the time I want everything around the piece of furniture they are selling, and usually they don't have that. Sigh... 

Pottery Barn is impressive in its deco and usually has most of the extra objects.