Laundry time

This is a picture of the options on my washing machine which my mom took because she was so amazed by all the different ones!

Doing laundry is a bit different here than in the States, here's why

Convenience – The French win out here (vs aparment dwellers in the US). The washer is usually in the kitchen, sometimes in the bathroom, of French apartments. There's no seperate laundry room, only open certain hours. So you can throw a load in whenever, what can beat that?

Time – American washers take, what, 25-35 minutes?? Here....how about up to 2 and ½ hours?? The shortest cycle is the delicate, which on my machine is 45 minutes. Synthetic cycles are about 90 minutes, and cotton is 2 hours, except for coton att 60 degrees (warm) which is 2 hours and 20 minutes. Why the warm water cotton cycle is longer than the hot water cotton cycle, I have no idea. And acutally, my machine has a “Chronotime' cycle also, only 30 minutes. For “lightly used outerwear”.

Cycles – All the washer I've used in the states, had 3 or 4 cycles – hot, warm regular, warm permanent press (never did figure out what this was) and cold/delicate. Basically I did whites in hot, cold water stuff in cold/delicate, and all other colors/fabrics in warm. Not too tough.

Here, I have
Hot cotton
Warm cotton
Cold cotton
Warm synthetic
Cold synthetic
The 30 minute rapid one
A “Daily Magic” in cold for, um, I think lightly to normaly soiled clothes, as opposed to normal-to-heavy like everything else
Delicate cold
Delicate really cold
2 Wool options
Handwash
And all sorts of options if you want to stop before it spins, spin only, rinse only, etc.
Whew!
And i've discovered you really have to be careful to not mix colors and pick the right cycle – i've already made several items pink, and some white stuff has a greyish caste.

Oh, did i mention you can choose the spin rate as well?

Stains – Could usually get stains out in American washers, but not always. Here, they always come out. Is it the washer, the stain remover, the detergent, the fact that i'm applying stain remover right before washing instead of applying Shout then leaving in the laundry bag for a week or more? Who knows.

Noise – I guess American washers are loud, but i usually didn't stick around in the laundry room. My washer now terrifies me. The spin cycle is LOUD. Not only that, it vibrates and makes me think it's going to explode. I would love to be able to throw in a 2 hour cotton load right when i go to bed, to take advantage of the heures creuses, the cheaper electricity hours. But i tried that once, and it was so noisy i couldn't get to sleep.

Dryer – Standard in States. No so here. They have them of course, but do to space issues, many people don't buy them. They do make here combined washer/dryers though. I don't have one, but it hasn't been a problem. Most non-cotton items i've always hang dryed anyway. And the cotton loads I usually just run across the street to the laundromat and 2 euros and 24 mintues later they're dry. No biggie. This does have to be a weekend though. No time during weekday evenings to wash 2+ hours then dry before laundromat closes!

Love in an elevator

I bumped into Glasses guy when exiting the elevator this evening on my way to Monoprix. He was with another guy, and said "Bonsoir". I was so flustered, I
a) said "Bonjour" instead of "Bonsoir". Bonjour is only for the daytime!
b) didn't think to be polite and hold the elevator door open (there's an automatic door, but also a door you have to open)
c) didn't hit the botton that releases the lock on the door to the courtyard, which is near the elevator, so had to backtrack

BUS

I have a discovered a new way to commute to work - the bus! Instead of 2 metros, then the suburban train from Gare St. Lazare, I take the bus straight to Gare St. Lazare. It even leaves me off at the side of the gare I need to be at. It doesn't take longer than the metros either. Though my actual metro time was about 5 min on each one, there was so much time walking, transferring, etc. Now I can sit pleasently on the bus for 20 min, read my book, or watch Paris go by.

Well, this morning, I was running late, so there was more traffic, which slowed the bus down, and it was very crowded, so I had to stand. But at least there was entertainment. Apparently a man bumped against a woman who was sitting down, and she started berating him. She went on and on, telling him he should go the other way, how dare he touch her thigh with his butt, he should move away, etc. She was loud enough everyone could hear her, and everyone seemed very amused. Then she started telling the men if he did that in Isreal, he would be locked up. ??? This is where she started to lose me, she kept going on about Isreal, and the color of the man's eyes. After she got off at her stop, the bus was at a red light, and she stood outside, still yelling. The whole time, the man spoke back, but more in a bantering tone.
After the bus pulled away from the upset woman, someone said she's done that before, it wasn't the first time, and other passengers agreed. I guess she's the crazy lady of the No 80 bus!

je fais une course

For those of you concerned, my knee felt well enough to go biking on Sunday. During my ride, I had yet another “will i ever learn this language” moment.

I was pedaling along, approaching an incline, and there was a woman in front of me, going more slowly. I passed her on the hill because I felt if i didn't, I'd have to slow down so much that i'd go backwards, rolling down the hill. It wasn't like I had to charge to pass her, I just kept along at the speed I was going.

She said as I was going by “Tu fais une course, Mademoiselle?” (note: a rare time someone has called me mademoiselle instead of madame! Maybe my sporty sunglasses and baseball cap made me look young).

What she asked was, if i was racing her. But my brain did not properly remember that “course” means race, instead i thought she was asking if i was following some particular bike route, or course. “Course? Moi?” i dumbly ask. “Ah, tu n'es pas francaise?” - you are not French?

“Une course, eh, pas en particulier” i respond. It wasn't until I had sped away that I realized what she was asking. Argh! So that's one more person who think i'm a non French speaking idiot.

Oh well. I had a lovely ride, along the Seine, and into the Bois de Vincennes. I ate a sandwich there and amused myself watching little French kids kick, or try to kick, soccer balls. And speaking of soccer, even the French are quite admirative of the plucky Americans, down a man, holding the Italians to a 1-1 tie!!

OUCH

This evening i went for a nice little run in the Champ de Mars (park in front of Tour Eiffel). Some of the Champs is seperated from a parking area by a series of chains, and when exiting the Champs I tried to hop over the chain, something i've done several times before. This time, my foot didn't quite go high enough...

Spalt! I landed right on concrete, busting up both knees (one much worse than the other), my elbow, and the palms of my hands. Not to mention my pride. "Ca va? Ca va?" several people asked as they scrambled to help me up. "Are you ok? Are you sure? Look, your knee!" two Latin American looking guys asked as they also helped me out. Another guy ruffled through his bag to get me some water to wash the scrapes, but i told him it was all right, i lived near (true). So the one good thing I learned was that French people, and Latin American tourists, are much nicer than Americans (at least new yorkers) when helping people from a fall! I've fallen a couple of times off my bike, in view of people, and no one bothered to see if i was all right.

Sooooooo, my knee is killing me. My elbow already is getting bruised and swollen. I'll keep icing, i hope this doesn't prevent me from biking on Sunday. Currently i'm limping, but it did just happen a few hours ago. :(
I'm definitely popping open a bottle of wine tonight.

Residency card

Today I picked up my "carte de sejour" (residency card)! Whoo hoo! I'm officially a resident of France!

In other news, shared the elevator today with a cute neighbor. Not the nice glasses guy, and i don't think the didn't-help-with-bike guy (could have been, so many cute guys in France, i can't tell them apart). Now did I take advantage of us sharing a small enclosed space for 10 seconds to say anything witty, introduce myself, anything? Of course not. Sigh.

Smack smack smack

It is a sound i here far too often, especially on the metro. No, not the sound of chewing gum. People kissing, making out. The French seem to be very into public displays of attention. Much more so than in NY. I've seen more couples gazing soulfully into one anothers eyes in 3 months than I did in 10 years in NY.
This morning on the way to work, smack smack smack, as a woman deposited kisses up and down the neck and face of her beloved. This evening on the way home, squishy smack squishy smack as a couple voraciously devoured one another.
Of course I probably would not be so sensitive to this if I weren't single. And i admit it, sometimes I think how nice it would be if everyone married, dating, involved in a relationship, etc, would either
a) disappear off the face of the planet, or
b) at least break up.
I'm sorry, did you say i was bitter? Oh, not at all. :)

But still, even if i were blissfully happy with, say, Monsieur-cute-neighbor-with-glasses, I don't think i'd be playing tongue hockey on a crowded metro!

Il faut chaud

It was well over 30 degrees today. That's well over 86 for you Farenheit folks. I went to the gym for the first time in weeks (week in Amsterdam + sick+ running and biking outdoors) and there was NO AIR CONDITIONING. It wasn't broken, there just is none. I had sweat beading on my face before i stepped on the treadmill. It was terrible. I figured the gym would be better since it was a suana outdoors and i'm a little tired of my champ de mars/eiffel tower/seine route. Too many places i have to stop for traffic. Yes, i live in paris and i'm tired of the eiffel tower!
How will i run all summer in the heat???

Blog is back

Hey, i can finally go online at home! I said screw neuf telecom, and signed up for Wanadoo, and 5 days later I had the modem, the connection, everything.So yesterday afternoon, after seeing my parents off (they were here 5 days - a lovely visit!), I bought a bike! A used bike, a city bike, nothing fancy. It's a Gazelle, a Dutch brand. The Dutch are serious about their bikes, so you know it's a good one!

I had it in the back of my head since selling my road bike in NY that i wanted to get just a basic city bike, but after being in Amsterdam a few weeks ago, and renting a bike there, the idea became more concrete. Unfortunately Paris is not as cycle friendly as Amsterdam, but i still had a blast biking around for 3 hours after I bought it. And it was a GORGEOUS day. My parents were so lucky - we had such lousy spring weather in Paris, rainy, cold, drizzly, miserable. But the whole time they were here, it was sunny, not too hot, just lovely, and it continues.

The photo is of my bike - it has a bell, but no, no basket in front. I had a successful ride, and managed to find my way to the big park, Bois de Boulogne. Only almost got run over once. :)Then when I was entering my building, a cute neighbor was also entering, and opened the door for me, but then he hopped into the elevator without seeing if i needed any more help!! hello, i was going to try to fit my bike in the elevator! Though i don't know if it would have fit in the tiny parisian elevator. So i lugged it up 4 flights of stairs.

Can't wait to go biking again this Sunday - some of the quais along the river Seine are closed to traffic on Sundays in the summer.