rhinestones

Mm, the last few days have been busy, in a nice way, where shops are open and parks are full of people to eat lunch next to me on benches, and watch children play.  Both yesterday and today the studios were open, so I've gone in to give myself barre and put on pointe shoes (they're slowly getting less scary).  It's amazing how close to in shape I am and yet quite how much I'm missing to be ready for a show.  Doing ballet class and yoga all summer was great, and I'm hoping I'm stronger now in different ways, and yet three hours is less than half of a full day of dancing (er, next week is gonna hurt).  But along those same lines, it's been 3 months since I performed, since I got to go to work and dance all day, and I miss it.  Granted, if I didn't, I'd be in trouble, because that's what I came all this way to do.

I have a DVD of Giselle, our first program, which is exciting to think about getting ready for.  It's the classic of all classics, a story designed for dance so explicitly, but with just enough mysticism, nuance, thrill, and romance to carry it through a few centuries.  I got to see PNB perform it in Seattle in June, which was the first time they'd ever done it, so the first time I'd ever seen Giselle at all.  Lots more thoughts about it to come when we actually start rehearsals (or I even know my casting), for now I'm just excited about the idea of it.  I'll get back to you when I've had pointe shoes on for 5 hours, we'll see how happy I am about it then ;) 

Hm. In other news, I am thinking of starting a section of the blog called European Delicacies, or oh Europe!, or something like that (name suggestions svp).  It can the lovely home of stories like the very macho man going by me on his motorcycle in his tight black t-shirt, slowing to do a little drive by elevator eyes, to which my very clever inner monologue responded: oh yeah mister macho? There are rhinestones on your shirt, aaaand they are pink.  Too bad he didn't slow down long enough for me to translate "rhinestones" or we might've had something. (a sparkle = un éclat... Maybe Les Éclats Europeans as a section title?)

Also part of that section could be brief little snippets like: ah, yes Logan, that was an Alfa Romeo I passed on my way to the bank today.  Wanna see?

Let me know your thoughts for the title of that little section of tidbits, I've got enough inner monologue snippets to keep it flowing for a while.  It's amazing how when you can't speak that well, your brain becomes quite the narrator.  Anyway, 2 "productive" days later, I'm the proud owner of a carte pastel -- card for the bus and metro -- with a month of unlimited rides, I've sent my information to the official immigration place so I might be able to stay the full year, and I've set up a bank account.... I need to figure out a little bit more on that front, given I don't have access to the mail box until the family comes back from vacation, and I need the secret codes they're sending me only by mail to access my account... Working on it ;)  I'll let you know more about the mailbox adventures tomorrow.

Sorry about my font difficulties, I've had some serious formatting trouble with my phone-email-blog love triangle.  You'd think menage à trois's would go smoother in the motherland, but apparently not.  Maybe I'll have more patience for that tomorrow too. Til then, my humble apologies.