Parisian Love by Google - Not So Fast

This morning I watched the Google Superbowl ad entitled "Parisian Love". Initially, I found the ad to be sweet, charming, romantic and everything that is wonderful in the universe. I could hear my mind chanting "Go Love!". But then almost instantly, something dawned on me and it was as if my usually dormant cynical and bitter self awoken (which she tends to do around this time of year) and shouted "that ad was crock of bull". And then I thought about it some more, it's really not because I'm cynical and bitter that I didn't like the ad. It's because I've been living in France for the past two years that I was able to evaluate it with a bit more of a critical eye than someone who hasn't had a similar experience.

In case you were wondering here are the top 3 reasons why the ad didn't resonate so well with me:

1. Every male Anglophone expat in Paris knows that it's not so easy to impress French girls. If it were so easy then maybe the ratio of Anglophone men dating French women to Anglophone women dating French men wouldn't be as skewed to the latter. I'm not going to speculate here as to why this may be but feel free to discuss amongst yourselves.

2. Implying that one can impress a women simply by buying her chocolates is antiquated, overly simplistic and somewhat demeaning to women.

3. If it were so easy to find a job working in France having very little French skills, then I probably wouldn't get as many emails as I do asking me how to accomplish such a feat.

And in case you haven't seen it, here it is:

Transitions

As you may have noticed I've taken an extended blogging hiatus as of late. The reason being is because past couple of months have been somewhat challenging and I wasn't ready face certain impending realities, let alone put it all out there for the masses to read.

What I can and am willing to say at this time is that I'm going through a transitional phase and how things end up is anybody's guess. But stay tuned to see how it all pans out.

In the meantime, I have a few recent trips that I took that I plan to blog about in the upcoming days.

The Big Chill

During the winter I tend to sleep with the window cracked open a bit because I cannot sleep with stifling heat. However, someone has been sleeping on the job and they have yet to turn the heat on in my building and for the past couple of days it's been colder in my apartment than it has been outside. I've even resorted to pre-heating my clothing in my little convection oven for some added warmth. When I arrived home from work this evening I saw the lovely sign below taped to the wall in between the elevators.

Sent from my iPhone

Remembrance

As I sit at work reading the various status updates on Facebook, twitter and stories on various news outlets I cannot help but feel overcome with emotions. Thinking about that fateful day eight years ago my emotions resonate as if it were yesterday. I can remember exactly where I was, what I was doing and how I was feeling. Just thinking about gets me all choked up and teary eyed.

I remember when I first moved to Paris a lot of people that I met would ask me about my experience that day after learning that I come from New York. I understand their curiosity in wanting to know my experiences, emotions and thoughts but at the same time most of they could never possibly understand how raw and close to the surface my emotions remain concerning that day and most of the time I would respond as I fought back tears.

As much as I don’t enjoy experiencing this deep sadness, it’s nothing compared to the great loss that so many others experienced that day, and I welcome them because they serve as a reminder that allows me to never forget what happened on that day.

David Lynch at the Galeries Lafayette

Yesterday I went to the Galeries Lafayette with a colleague to do a little shopping. Unbeknownst to us the acclaimed American filmaker and visual artist, David Lynch was also set to make an appearance that evening as well. He was there to celebrate the 11 display windows that he designed around the theme "Machines, Women and Abstraction".

Upon leaving the store we saw his creations and we were both quite impressed with the creativity of the designs.

Unfortunately, we didn't stay long enough to get an actual sighting of David Lynch himself. But if you are so inclined the window displays will be available from now until October 4th if you care to check them out yourself.

Got a Haircut in Paris and Didn't Cry

First of all I want to thank you all for your comments regarding my previous post. I'm mostly over it now and am moving on.

Yesterday, I cheated on my beloved Logan of Serenity Salon in NYC and let a Parisian styist near my tresses. While I had every intention to remain faithful to Logan during my stay here in Paris it became harder and harder as my split ends seemingly began to multiple by the hour over the past couple of weeks. So I was really left with no choice in the matter I swear.

I managed to find the Living Room salon by chance as through a friend of mine. On top of that, salon owner and stylist Matt happens to be my neighbor. I figured these were both good signs besides what stylist is going to give a bad haircut to a client that knows where he lives? So I decided to take my chances.

When I sat down the first thing I told Matt was that I wanted to keep my length. He assured me that I had nothing to worry about at his salon. However, as I was sitting in his styling chair I couldn't help but feel overcome by anxiety as I watched him snip away at my tattered ends. A little more here, a little more there. On several occasions I even had to divert my gaze out of fear. When he began to do layer my hair using his special scissors huge long chunks of hair fell to the floor and I gripped the armrests ever more tightly. I had to keep reminding myself that it is just hair.

When all was said and done I realized that I had nothing to worry about afterall. While Matt's cut wasn't done with the same precision and perfection of a Logan cut it was exactly what I asked for and it came out looking pretty good and the price was right. So if I don't go back to NYC between now and the next time I need a haircut I will definitely visit Matt's salon again.

Living Room
22 rue des taillandiers
75011 Paris
01 43 55 66 81

Mama Needs a New iPhone

Last night I with friends to a mutual friend's concert in Ivry right outside of the southeastern Paris. After the concert we decided to head home and make it an early night since most of us were still recovering from a Noctilien bus ride the evening before. We rode the metro together until Place d'Italie where Sam and I got off to switch to our respective metro lines. I hopped on my metro, sat down, and took out the jPhone to play a game to pass the time. I noticed a tall a man standing in front of the fold down seat to my right and thought nothing of him at the time. I couldn't even describe him if I had to except to say that he was wearing an army green jacket. A stop or two later a family got on the metro with their cute young son in tow. I took a few seconds to glance at the tot and before I knew it we were at the next stop where the doors to the metro opened and the tall man standing to my left snatch my jPhone from my hands, ran off the train and began running along the unusually empty train platform. I did the only thing I could think of started to run after him in my 3 inch heels and dress. Half way across the platform I ditched the shoes because they were slowing me down, ran up the stairs and only to discover that the phone thief had disappeared into the night.

During the whole ordeal I was in complete shock as to what was taking place. During the rest of my metro ride home I felt a brief period of anger but the enduring emotion is disappointment in myself for being so careless and somewhat naive. What happened to me is one of those things that you read about and hear from other people but never think could happen to you until of course it does.


R.I.P jPhone
July 17, 2008 - April 25,2009

Technical Difficulties...

Apparently some of my blog readers have been having trouble subscribing to my blog in a reader of their choice. I suspect it has something to do with my change from a Feedburner account to my Google account.

Nonetheless, if you're interested in subscribing to my blog use the following link for the time being:
http://feeds2.feedburner.com/LtrangreAmericaine

...we now return to our regularly scheduled programming.

A Discovery in Real Paris

I love my neighborhood, which is, technically speaking the Quartier Saint-Marguerite (east of Bastille, south of rue de Charonne, north or Nation). However, I generally have a broader sense of my "neighborhood" when talking to friends. I usually try to claim anything north of the Seine and east of the Marais as "mine". I would throw in Montmartre if I could but that would definitely be a stretch. I affectionately refer to this area as Real Paris because it's generally where the working class folks tend to live except for the pockets of Bobos dispersed throughout.

Because I live in Real Paris I sometimes feel a need to defend the area and to be a strong and vocal advocat of all the wonderful things it has to offer (Marchés Aligre and Bastille, Bastille Opera, Canal Saint Martin, Parc des Buttes Charmont, Promenade Plantee, Père Lachaise Cemetery, etc.). Thanks to a friend who is way cooler than I am or can ever imagine being I've got a new endroit in my arsenal.

The place Mama Shelter, a budget hotel designed by Philip Starck. Instantly upon entering the hotel I no longer felt like I was in Paris. I felt like I was transplanted back to the one trendy, hip, design bars of NYC. To top it all off they make excellent cocktails with a proper ice to cocktail ratio which is generally hard to find in Paris.

So if you find yourself in Real Paris and you're looking to quench your thirst and you don't mind being around hipster types it's definitely worth checking out.

Mama Shelter
109 rue de Bagnolet
75020
Paris

My Relationship with Paris

I'm probably going to catch a lot of flack for this post but I'm going to proceed anyway because it's something that's been on my mind a lot.

I have an understanding with Paris, I accept her for who she is and for the most part I don't try to change her. I may not always agree with everything she does but at the end of the day I accept her the way she is. I think my philosophy has really allowed me to find contentment here. When I first came here (and even now) I never actively sought out many of the comforts from back home. For me there was so much to explore and discover about Paris that I wasn't caught up trying to replicate the lifestyle I had back in NYC. Did I miss certain things? Yes! Was I about to set out to find all things American here in Paris? Non.

Which brings me to my point, I think a lot of anglophones here in Paris get so caught up with what Paris is missing or how Paris differs from city "x, y or z" they end up pretty unhappy because they are focused on the negative.

The way I see it, one's relationship with Paris should be like that of any romantic relationship; if you go into that relationship looking to change the other person or if you are constantly pointing out his/her faults then that relationship is doomed before it ever has a chance to start and develop into something truly amazing and unique.

When Starbucks Came to France...

...I'm pretty sure they never envisioned such fustercluckery when it comes to coffee preparation.

Mind you there was an "efficiency" man that was pre-taking orders while we were standing in line to expedite the process however there was very little expediting being done considering I spent almost 35 minutes standing in line. Oh and my drink wasn't even ready by the time I got to the end of the bar.


Starbucks Opera
3, Boulevard des Capucines
75002 Paris, France‎

Former Language Assistants This One's For You

I just received the following job posting in my inbox for any former language assistants out there currently living in the DC area (or willing to move there):

Le service culturel de l'Ambassade de France à Washington recrute un assistant pour la Coopération éducative.

Cette personne aura la charge du programme des assistants de langue américains en France et assistera l'Attachée de Coopération éducative dans des tâches ayant trait à la promotion du français.

Le poste est à pourvoir immédiatement. Après une période d'essai de 3 mois, un contrat d'un an pourrait être proposé.

L'assistant devra être bilingue français/anglais. Le fait d'avoir participé récemment au programme des assistants en France est un plus, de même que toute expérience d'enseignement.

Merci de m'adresser par email votre CV ainsi qu'une lettre de motivation en français.

Catherine PETILLON

Attachée de Coopération Educative

Ambassade de France aux Etats-Unis

www.theworldspeaksfrench.org

4101 Reservoir Road, NW

Washington, DC 20007

Tél / Phone : (1) 202 944 6031

Fax : (1) 202 944 6268

Bon Courage!!

Terrorized by the Taxi Driver

I'm all about principles and I have strong convictions and I'm about as stubborn as they come. It's possible that that combination of traits will either get me thrown in jail, killed or both but I definitely won't be the one getting carted off to prison for stealing bottles of champagne at a swanky Parisian club. On the other hand it is quite possible that I would be partly responsible for the kidnapping of a friend by crazed Parisian taxi driver.

Some city dwellers when it comes to public transportation swear by taxis, some swear by the bus and others swear by the metro. I personally hate taxis. I hate waiting for them, I hate the fares and I especially hate being taken for a ride (sorry for the lame pun) which brings me back to the kidnapping story. After a night of shenanigans it was time to call it a night and head home. My two friends and I hopped into a taxi and headed home. My friend YM told the driver where we were going and we were on our way. A few minutes into the taxi ride I suggested a specific route and a modified destination to the cab driver. This combined with our speaking English amongst ourselves apparently set him off. After threatening to not pay the fare and asking to be let out of the taxi the driver took off like a lunatic throughout the neighborhood, ran several red lights in the process and eventually after sufficiently terrorizing his passengers came to a stop. That was my cue to exit the taxi stage left. YM stayed firmly planted in the backseat of the taxi while Juliet moved to the front passenger seat and the two tried to negotiated a peace agreement and a fair payment.

On principle I wasn't having any of it. I wasn't about to reward this lunatic for his wreckless behavior. After a while I let my friends convince me that we should pay the driver something, granted his did bring us closer to my place. But in exchange for the fare I asked that he provide me with his taxi driving credentials (license number, employer or something so I could report the incident) This request sent Mr. Taxi Driver over the edge and took off at high speed with 3 of the 4 doors wide open and my friend YM still in the back seat.

I realize how crazy this story sounds and I realize how much crazier it must have sounded to the Paris police officers we spoke with and to the lady at the embassy. However, for the police to act so nonchalant about it and to essentially give us the ole brush off was not cool. YM couldn't be contacted during the ordeal because the battery on her cellphone had died, which partially worked to her benefit. Fortunately, after over an hour, my friend YM was able to peacefully negotiate her release and was returned home safely and unharmed.

If you see a taxi with these plates run...

Paris Snow

This past Tuesday it snowed in Paris. Seeing snow generally shouldn't be a big deal for someone from New York that is used to seeing snow on a regular basis during the wintertime. However, snow in Paris just seems magical and it's 100x better because you get the falling effect of snow but it never really sticks to the ground long enough to become a nuisance.

Yes that IS the Eiffel Tower covered by snow and fog

Social Media Etiquette

Several weeks ago I attended the Paris Motor Show with a friend (PMS as my French colleagues amusingly referred to it as). I wrote a big long post about it but I have since deemed it not worthy of publishing. What is worth publishing, maybe only marginally so, is the following question:

What is the proper etiquette when one sees a fellow blogger's husband at an auto show? Mind you Blogger #1 has never met Blogger #2 in person or by other means and therefore by the law of syllogism one can assume that Blogger #1 has never met the husband in question that was spotted at the auto show.

And as an ancillary question how should one handle the awkward situation when they see a person that they recognize from a friend's <insert social network here> friend list?

No one wants to come across as a weird stalker freak. Trust me I know this from first hand experience.

Palm Trees in the 11th

I saw this peculiar site as I was taking a detour on my way home yesterday. I didn't investigate as to why the palm trees were there maybe someone in the mayor's office wanted Millsy to feel more at home while he's job hunting in Paris.

Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice

My friend Amy gave me all of these nice Indian spices before leaving Paris. I'm not sure if I've mentioned this before on my blog but Amy is an excellent cook and can through a great meal together out of the simplest ingredients. She can work wonders with a box of frozen peas.

Yesterday on my way home I stopped by a cute little store called Casa and purchased some glass containers to store the spices. Now I'm a little ashamed to admit this but transferring the spices from their previous containers to the new glass ones was the first time that I have touched the spices since Amy left. The problem is that Amy failed to tell me what the spices were and how to incorporate them into my cooking. So for the time being they will sit idle on my kitchen counter as decorative pieces until Amy gets her butt on a plane and comes back to Paris.

Amy also left me some spices for making homemade chai tea however each time I try to make the tea on my own it never tastes as good.

Mysterious Amy Spices

Pretty Things

I went to the marché this morning and for some reason I ended up spending more money than I usually do there. I did end up treating myself to some pretty flowers. I couldn't resist because they were so interesting looking and I can honestly say that I've never seen anything like them before. From the pictures below you'll probably also notice that I've yet to buy a vase. Now is probably a good time since les soldes started yesterday.

Les Fleurs

Les Fleurs

In other news I spent the evening yesterday with my friend Opal having a drink at Café du Nord along the Canal Saint-Martin and we spotted Angès from the French equivalent of America's Next Top Model. It was actually pretty weird because I never, ever recognize people when I see them on the streets including A-list Hollywood celebrities.

A Question

I haven't really hung out during the past two weeks that I've been in New York. Between jetlag and general ennui with the city it just hasn't happened. Yet yesterday evening I found myself in Brooklyn at a French restaurant listening to my French play the sax. What's up with that?

Je Suis Malade

Today I'm feeling a little under the weather. I've been fighting a cold for the past few days with homeopathic remedies such as AirBorne and Zicam but with little success. I've had a persistent headache for the past two days that has been completely unresponsive to my good old American pharmaceuticals.

I managed to get dressed in my favorite sweatshirt and dirty jeans and make my way to the local Pharmacy. I had to walk a bit (two blocks instead of one) because the two nearest pharmacies were closed because it is Sunday in Paris. After paying almost 2 euros I walked away with some Claradol with caffeine. Hopefully, it's the French equivalent of Tylenol or something similar and not your garden variety crack cocaine. We shall see!