My birthday yesterday was lovely. It was one of the days when my classes don't start until 10am, so I got to sleep in, which was much appreciated. Things went mostly smoothly at school, or what passes for smoothly at School 2 - one teacher complained to me that I "missed" her 9am class that I wasn't scheduled for; one teacher had her last day before her maternity leave and we still have no information about who her replacement will be; and a kid sang to himself all through my lesson and then showed up outside another of my classes to make faces at us through the window. So, relatively smooth.

In the evening I went downtown to meet Hannah, Michael, Steven, Ryan and François for dinner. At Michael's excellent suggestion we went to a place called l'Épicerie, which is cozy and friendly and delicious and also affordable on an assistant's stipend. It was the first time anyone except Hannah had actually met François, so I think after three months or so of hearing about him they were starting to wonder if he was an imaginary friend. It was good to catch up with him again - our schedules have been at odds recently, so it was only the second or third time we'd managed to get together since I moved off of his couch and into my apartment. He's currently interning with some branch or other of the French police, which he's really enjoying but which means things like armed robbery attempts have been interfering with his social plans.

Anyway, everyone seemed to get along really well, and I was pleased to find that I understood most of what French was spoken. I communicate in French a good amount here, especially with Ana, but I still have some trouble with native speakers in situations like restaurants and bars when there's a lot of ambient noise. But I don't think I had to ask for translations at all, which made me smile even if only maybe a third of our communication was actually in French.

After dinner François and Ryan headed home, and the rest of us met up with Ana at one of the péniches (bar-boats) that docks along the banks of the Rhône. I mostly seem to go there at odd times (like 8:30 p.m. on a Monday), so this may not actually be true, but they always seem to be quieter and have a much better atmosphere for talking than the other places we go (which tend toward loud and jammed). This is also the time of year when everywhere seems to be selling hot spiced wine, which is one of my favorite things. Not the most exciting birthday, but pretty much exactly what I wanted.


I really am going to try to neglect this less. I've been taking notes on things I want to talk about, but it never quite seems like the right time to spend a few hours writing about them. I'll make the time, but not tonight.

Thanks to all for the birthday wishes. :)