family discoveries

so my cousin was over for a few days. she is, in fact, my father's cousin's daughter. we'd met 3-4 times in my life, but only ever for a couple of hours or so, and mostly with other people around. so really, we had no connection. that said, when she emailed to say she'd be in town for a conference for a few days and she was staying in a hotel not far from me, i said she should stay with me. she was worried she'd put me out and even offered to stay with me only half the time, in case it was too much, but although i didn't really know her, she's family so i declined. and that was a great decision.

it turns out we get on great. we're both the first of two sisters and we are quite similar in many ways. and we actually went straight for the heavy stuff. it's exhausting, talking so openly about things you'd rather not discuss, but i think we both felt safe doing it. there was stuff she can't discuss with her family and stuff i ended up telling her because she asked and wouldn't take no for an answer. we talked and time flew by and it was suddenly past my bedtime, so i spent most of the week in a zombie-like state. but it was great and we now do have a connection, which i'm really happy about.

back in spring

it was nice weather at the beginning of April. right now, it's windy and cold. especially windy. it's the last third of May and i'm wearing a winter coat when it should be over 20°C out there!

way too early!

my car battery having died on me twice in two month, i came to the conclusion i needed a new one. plus, i can't keep getting my neighbours to jump start my car. so i bought a new battery, intent on changing it myself. except it was so heavy (i had to walk home 1.5km with it - seemed like an easy task, despite my father's warning that these things are bloody heavy) that i wasn't sure i'd be able to lift it to the right spot without problems, so i asked my multi-talented friend N. to do it for me. not a problem, he said. except we were having trouble finding a time that would suit us both. in the end, though, he said 6.45 today. cool.

i was drying my hair when the doorbell rang. it took me a split second to understand what had happened: when i'd thought he'd meant late afternoon, N. had clearly meant 6.45 am! the problem was, i didn't have time. but he was there and he'd crossed all of Geneva at this ridiculous time. so i grabbed some clothes and went to meet him downstairs, wet hair and all. he'd said he'd do it in less than 10 mns, and i'm pretty sure he did. and in the end, i realised i most probably could have done it myself after all - next time.

N. then rode off again while i went back inside and did in 10 mns what i normally do in 20 and even caught my bus. i don't drive to work - would never get there and wouldn't have a place to park. so no, it wasn't urgent at all.

Patek Philippe Museum

i'd been meaning to visit this museum for a while now, but never got around to it. until yesterday. they had an open day and the weather was terrible, so off i went with A. it was good. i learned a lot about watchmaking and a lot of it was really interesting. shame our guide was a bit annoying - he kept saying our tour wasn't the usual one, this being a special open day and all... and trying to make jokes that, if you're not that comfortable with the English language, you really shouldn't attempt (then again, i have the feeling it's the kind of jokes he'd try to make in French as well, so maybe it's just him...) but still, it was nice and i recommend it.

the Geneva marathon

no, i didn't run it. but more than a dozen of my friends ran the half-marathon, so i went down to join the cheering squad and it was amazing. seeing all these people run for good causes... some were pushing handicapped youths, which brought tears to my eyes, others were well past their 65th birthday. some were fast, some a lot slower. and some, like S., had never run before. she started training just 2 months ago, but she did really well! i believe she did the half in just over 2 hours.

us the cheering squad have no voice left. T. had brought pom-poms, which made made full use of (i had to stop after a while cos i'd got blisters). we made more noise than anybody else, shouting people's names as they ran past. and we supported everyone. one of the people who was officially volunteering as a supporter was impressed and said she'd hire us next year.

winter sunset

the weather's been terrible these past few days. as if the month of May was a winter month. after 2 weeks of gorgeous weather, i fell like i'm back in winter. thus the picture.

watching the bears

when i was in Bern, C. took me to see the bears, who are not in a zoo, but in a fenced-off area along the river. this gives you an idea of what it looks like - and the number of people who are fascinated by the new cubs! you can barely see the mother here (kind of middle-left), but you get the idea...

the great brunch

T. has been talking about this for 2 years now. a brunch at this farm in the Geneva countryside. and finally, she got it organised, and it was great!

the farm was surrounded by rapeseed fields, all yellow. the flowers around the farm were in full bloom, with tons of lilacs, my favourite. this was going to be good. we eventually found a large room with a fireplace (lit) and a really cosy atmosphere. the food laid-out was really good, buffet-style (we'd paid a set fee at the entrance). and once we were done, we went out into the garden, where various animals were waiting to be seen: geese, peacocks, rabbits, roosters, a poney and a donkey. i love donkeys. as we had a toddler with us, we spent some time petting the donkey and giving it food. that was just great. the donkey and i got on famously. then i showed little C. the lilacs - i think she really liked them too. there was also a huge husky - could have been White Fang! all in all, a great success! can't wait to go again.

fines

i bumped into my ex-neighbour the other day. he'd just come to pick up some mail that, for some reason, still ended up here. and there were 9 letters from the Geneva fines department. all sent on the same day. it must be a computer mistake, i said, but apparently, all the numbers he could see in the little window were different. i suggested he open the letters. ... they were all different cases. all speeding tickets. the 3 he opened in front of me ranged between CHF 100 and CHF 250. and dated 2 years back! i guess the new agreements between France and Switzerland on cooperation for traffic offences driving coupled with the current economic situation means they're going back some time. but 2 years? every statement had a part asking whether he was the driver when these offences took place, but who would remember whether or not they were the ones driving down X road on a day 2 years ago? poor guy. the way things were looking, he was probably facing about CHF 2,000 worth of fines and that, is a lot of money.