18.10.08

This is strange. I'm listening to Eli Gold on Yahoo sports.

"The wind is swirling," above Bryant-Denny, evidently.

And it's 9:31 p.m. in Chantilly. Arthur and Adèle are taking their baths and then
I promised them a Disney movie. I got a good feel for what being a housewife
is all about today (it's Caro's day off and I'm babysitting.) Gymnastics lessons, polo match, playing at a friend's house
for 1.5 hrs, cook dinner, clean, do laundry, ask nicely, get frustrated, etc.

Molly, I watched Adele's gymnastics class for about 30 minutes today and had the
strangest flashbacks of Mountain Brook Gymnastics. What was that weird
stretching that you and Mom did every night? And what was my ballet teacher's name?
Beth? The little girls in France aren't nearly as hard-core as y'all were. No matching
leos (they wear pj's, t-shirts, baggy leos, etc) and no stretching or crazy conditioning.
I think the point of gymnastics here is to look cute. Kind of like how I feel that the language
is mainly there to sound pretty. They share the facility with some
sword fighters and wall-climbers.

Did you know that corporal punishment is outlawed here? Thoughts?

Here comes the Tide. How about Eli's vivid language?


....4 hours later. We BARELY won. Now that my heart rate is up
I'm going to attempt to go to bed. If it wasn't already official, it is now.
The Renauldons have to think I'm crazy. I've been listening (not watching,
that's not possible yet) to a game online for over 4 hours. I would have listened in my
room but the internet signal doesn't reach my room so I've been sitting under a lamp in the living room. They got
home from a party 30 minutes ago (12:30 a.m).

I took a few breaks throughout the game. One to pour some drain stuff down my sink that isn't draining.
New appreciation for plumbers. One to fold my laundry. One to unload the dishwasher and wash 3 pans.
Mom, I know you're probably laughing right now. I've never done 3 loads of my own laundry in one day. I
did that today. (It was only 3 loads b/c it is a small, economical French washing machine, not b/c I've been letting it pile up,
fyi.)

By the way, mom sent a shaker (I requested it) with Katie and Amy last weekend. Today I gave it to Adele.
What was her first inclination? To use it as a duster. And mop. Both make more sense that the way we use them in 'Bama.

Then she rode the shaker like a horse. Then Arthur took it, put it on his head and said he looked like Michael Jackson. I'm still confused about this one. But right after he made this comment he went to my computer and youtubed "Thriller". Michael wears red in this vid if you recall. And that is the only connection I can make.

Then Adele put the shaker in her mouth. "Alabama dans ta bouche," I said. (Bama in your mouth.) I tried to explain that Bama is a state "etat" in the United States "etats unis." Now there is confusion over the difference between American football, Alabama, shakers, red and white...and whether red and white are "America's colors" or Alabama's.

I'm getting confused myself. Off to bed.

Roll Tide Roll.

3 comments:

Molly McNutt said...

I love how they used the shaker...they sound so adorable. Man, I bet it makes you really miss AL football when you hear ole Eli Gold's voice. I'm watching the Nick Saban Show right now. What do you think of all those housekeeping duties? I find it humorous picturing you unloading the dishwasher. Remember when Mom used to give us cleaning to-do lists, and put one of us in charge of vacuuming the playroom or something? It was like pulling teeth for her to get you to do it, now look at you...laundry, dishes, cooking, etc.

pam said...

hyperstretch....we were insane back then...I wonder if we still are? I have to say that I am deriving some kind of sick maternal pleasure thinking of you being frustrated because the children don't mind. I don't believe the interrogators at the Hanoi Hilton could have tortured you into making your bed....it is a wonder that you lived to write this blog!!

How about a video of Adele and Arthur singing "Sweet Home Alabama" in french. Complete with roll tide roll and shakers. We've had the Indian "Roll Tide" video, so we need a French version. Even more awesome would be some polo players in white pants (from a distance of course---so they retain their hotness illusion) doing a little roll tide... We head to the land of rattails, missing digits and jorts on Thursday morning..we are gonna put a little whoopassing on the fat boy. We will miss you. Good luck PRing in Goa.

macdaddy said...

I'm impressed with your domestic skills. Pam, your hard work maybe paying off. This is good. I'd love to see a French version of "Sweet Home Alabama"