Friday
Started my day off early with some letters to friends and family. I packed a little bag and headed off to the bus stop- I was on my way to Lyon for the day. At 2:30 I had scheduled a haircut. I was super scared to get a haircut in France! It seems like every 20-something man had the same haircut and it just screams “I’m an asshole.” It’s long on top and shaved almost completely on the sides, it is incredibly rare that it actually looks good on anyone. I’ve been getting men’s haircuts in the states, but I was really worried about doing it here.
I had about an hour or so to spare before I need to be at the salon, so I took my time wandering there. I grabbed sushi and ate in a park next to a church.
Finally, it was time for my appointment. The man I spoke to on the phone greeted me when he arrived (I was a bit early). I learned that he had lived in London in the 80s. He enjoyed the rock music scene there and laughed recalling how he thought the city was expensive then and couldn’t imagine living there now. It was super easy to communicate what I wanted and to make adjustments along the way. We chatted about why I came to France and where I was teaching. I told him that I lived in Pont-Chéruy and he told me that he thought it was a disgusting town. When I asked why, he said thought that because the town was full of Turks. Yikes. Just another explain of casual racism from the French. At the end of the appointment, he charged me the student rate (which is about half of the normal one).
It had been my goal to do a bit of shopping before I went back for the day. I was meeting my neighbor, Catherine J, around 5 because she had an appointment in the city and agreed to take me home. I didn’t have much time in reality, so I went in the direction of where we were meeting.
Catherine J picked me up from the clock tower after her appointment. It was about an hour and a half ride home in the rush hour traffic. I felt absolutely exhausted after several hours in the wind and cold (definitely did not wear the right coat for this outing). It was difficult to keep up a conversation in French, let alone the ones she kept choosing. Catherine seems really focused on my dating life here. She asked me why I don’t date French boys. I told her I just don’t find the way they dress attractive. Most of the guys here wear joggers, huge sneakers, and hoodies everywhere they go. Just not my style- not a big deal. However, Catherine thought it was and that I was being too choosy. She insisted I be more lenient with men because surely I liked to wear cozy clothes around the house 🤦🏼♀️ Next, she wanted to know what food I planned to make for dinner. I said pasta because it was all that could come to mind. She inquired about sauces and cheeses I would put on it and I said I didn’t know. She wanted to know what French cheeses I liked and of course I couldn’t list any. She went one by one to see what I said and launched into a lecture on the ethics of goat cheese farming. Finally, she said that I shouldn’t ever order food from take-out places because it was full of chemicals. When I tried to explain that I don’t like to cook and sometimes I am just too mentally exhausted to even crack an egg, she INSISTED I come over whenever I needed to eat. Very kind, but missing the point that if I’m eating out I do not have the strength to talk in French. OOF what a car ride! It felt like an uphill battle all the way through the conversation- nothing I said could be right.
When we arrived home I passed out and napped for a few hours. After a good rest I felt ready to make some food for the evening. I put on some crappy movies and enjoyed a glass of wine while I revised some letters of continued interest for law school.
Mary-Est-En-France 