the fabulous weekend

third in a tradition that will hopefully last many years, i spent the weekend at my best friend's summer house in Denmark. the usual suspects were there, including Ginny the dog. for once, we actually got to the beach and not just looked at it but also swam and sunbathed. the weather was quite good, the countryside looked its very best. we ate both dinners outside, were up till 4am Sat., ate marvellous food as usual and basically had an amazing time. i really had time to relax and think of nothing. the fact that i'm going to bed now is due to the general lack of sleep over the last 3 days...


the house of fun - can you imagine a better place to spend the weekend?

the possibles

so, having given up on making an effort to find a guy, i've actually met quite a few over the last couple of months. first i met V., a nice Indian guy. although we got on well, we haven't managed to see each other since, bar impromptu meetings on the bus. then there was C., a very funny Costa Rican. he really made me laugh. and let's face it, that's why we ended up going to Annecy the other day. but once there, he seemed to lose all his muster, and i haven't seen him since either. he was supposed to spend a week in Germany and visit friends and i got an email saying he couldn't make it to our usual meet-up cos he was in London! then there was D., an other Indian guy, who spent the whole first time we met seriously chatting me up, which, ironically, i hate. people seriously chatting me up, i mean. the second time, we got on a lot better. he'd brought a friend, too. a nice Italian guy. with perhaps a bit too many muscles, but nice nonetheless. saw both of them again at a concert on Wednesday, and D. and i agreed to meet up for a lunch-time swim the next day. except he never showed up, cos he had a job-related appointment at the UN (he's currently unemployed).

so where have i got so far? not very far at all. but i guess it's still more exciting than whatever else was going on before... ;)

dinner

invited a few friends over for dinner. we ended up being 6. it was nice and cosy, and we could all fit around the table on the balcony. it really is a lovely balcony to have, especially in the summer. and, unexpectedly, it was mostly a bunch of old friends i hadn't seen in a really long while, who showed up. some hadn't seen my place yet, and really loved it. and seeing the furniture from the house. it was like home away from home, they said. the food was good (even if i say so - i made it), lots of beer was drunk (practically all the stuff i got from R. at the BBQ 2 weeks ago - we never got to touch N.'s stuff, though), some skype conversations took place (the bridesmaid wanted to talk to the bride - neither is me), and we generally just had a good time. will have to do more of these intimate dinners!

Super M.'s fanclub

so, i'm a member of this online community which meets offline for drinks, parties, etc. my friend Tinkie, whom i've dragged into the community (but then, she's dragged me into the activities), thinks i should change my user name to Super M. i'm not entirely sure why, but i think it may have something to do with my energy levels (very high). she also wants to start my fanclub.

what happened was that Tinkie and i started going to these events together, and we met the same people. then we started hanging out with these people and although we always meet new ones, there now seems to be a core group. and if i don't show up to an event, everyone apparently asks her where i am. she says she has to spend 15 mns explaining why i'm not there (we work together, so we see each other every day anyway, and she always knows why i'm not around). so her argument is that since everyone's always asking about me, she'll start a fanclub... so far, i've been able to fend off the idea: if she starts one for me, i'll have one for her. as she doesn't want one either, i think i'm safe for now! :)

lake water

i finished work at 11.15 yesterday. and as work is about 2 mns walk from not only the water, but also the nearest 'lake beach', i wandered over, picked a spot for my towel, and dived in. and it was divine! not having a private pool anymore (in case i haven't said this enough), and not having been to the beach in AGES, it was really amazing. i wasn't doing lengths, just swimming around randomly (although avoiding the swans). in the current heat (which has lasted 7 weeks and will continue another 2-3, they say), it's incredibly refreshing. can't believe i hadn't been yet! will have to make a habit out of this...

the Middle East crisis

i'm sure i'm not the most informed person on what's going on in the Middle East, but what the hell is Israel doing??? i don't see how what happened 2 weeks ago is any different from what happens usually, and how that becomes blown-out war. not that i'm for terrorrism or anything, but destroying a country because of a terrorrist group is way overdoing it. maybe i'm biased cos i live in France and that obviously means we're backing Lebanon, but i really think Israel should get a grip.

i know it's a stupid thing to say, because it's obviously never going to happen, but why can't people just get along?

Annecy 2

here goes for beautiful Annecy. this is the canal leading to the lake, that you can see beyond the bridge.

lovely...

Annecy

it all started when a friend of mine told me he was going to Annecy - by train. i thought that was ridiculous. and the weather being good and all, thought we could go by car. asked a friend if she'd join us, and next thing i know there's 7 of us going. so off we went in 2 cars.

after a quick tour of the gorgeous old town (3 people had never been there, so it was an important cultural stop), we split into 2 groups: the shopping one and the swimming one. the water was gorgeous, warm and clear (as someone said, it doesn't look like a lake at all!). the shopping group eventually joined us, and after having been there a good 5 hours (in town, i mean), we finally headed back home.

it was a great day out, and i was going to post a picture with this, but for some reason, it refuses to upload... you'll just have to imagine the beauty of a small town surrounded by Alpine moutains and looking at a clear lake.

more flowers...

once more, one of my friends showed up with flowers when invited to dinner. the bouquet was huge! just roses. i don't think i'd ever received a bouquet made entirely of roses...

20 roses

BBQ

at the beginning of June, i went and made a huge portion of my mother's famous BBQ sauce, in anticipation of all the BBQs i'd have on my balcony. i found out a little later that, my BBQ being of the charcoal type, i wasn't allowed to use it on a balcony. imagine my disappointment. summer is not summer without at least a BBQ a week! :( i tried cooking my marinated chicken in the oven, but it was a disaster: there was smoke coming out of the oven and the whole flat smelled of that for days.

and finally, being already nearly mid-July, i went to my first BBQ. my friend R. had organised it in his landlord's garden. his landlord being the owner of the vineyard R. lives on, and there are rows of vats down in the cellar, with what is called, in Switzerland, a 'carnotzet' (basically a basement where men can get together and drink themselves silly). we were served all the local wines, the grapes of which we could admire on the vines next to the garden. it was an experience!

but to get back to the BBQ theme, i ate loads. not because i was particularly hungry, but simply because i didn't know when the next BBQ food was coming my way and i thought i'd better stock up. it was great!

unfortunate meeting

so last week, i went to an event where we both watched the football matches (Portugal winning was a disgrace when you think of how badly they played - England should have won!) and then danced, all in the same spot. it was great fun. something weird happened, though.

during half-time of the France-Brasil game, we went to stretch a bit, having spent 45 mns sat on a pebbled beach. we were looking for other friends who had said they'd come, and while there were hundreds of people by then, we were feeling hopefull (and we did find them, so it can be done!). unfortunately, we bumped into date guy number 4 just as we started looking for them. the one i'd ended up having a bad dream about and thus never saw again cos of the bad feeling the dream created. and not only was he there, but my friend also knew him. how much bad luck can you get? apparently, they got on rather well, too. so i was polite, although bordering on not. i went off in search of the others while these two were talking. when i came back, they were still deep in conversation. i went to find a sitting spot to watch the second half, and of course, he joined us. when i watch a game, i'm usually riveted to the screen, but even more so then. i was wondering how long he was going to stay.

in the end, he left soon after the game, when we'd started dancing. i was so relieved! i know it sounds completely crazy, but just seeing him made me feel sick to the stomach... :( but as he'd left, i was able to enjoy the rest of the evening. and boy was i tired the next day!

a novel chat up line

so there i was, standing at the bus stop, eating my sandwiches, when this guy looked at me and said: 'That's not very healthy, what you're eating. I mean, two sandwiches and a cereal bar?' to which i replied that i didn't have much choice. him: 'You always have a choice.' (he's a sports coach, apparently). and me to explain the situation (one hour, gotta cross half the town to be ready for another lesson there, and need to eat or will faint).

anyway, i thought it was funny. original. he was sweet and very good looking. unfortunately, my bus arrived just as we were discussing the problems of lack of time. i'll just have to hope i bump into him again... :)