The One About Hair

Two years ago this past September I met Logan for the first time and he was like a godsend. Logan was able to take my kinky curly natural African American hair and turn it into a work of art (not an easy task I tell you). I wish I would have found him sooner but I'm grateful to have him in my life now, who needs a boyfriend when a girl has a fabulous hairstylist? I love Logan's work so much I convinced the maternal unit and the sister to give him a try and now they are complete converts. My sister and I like him so much that we want to adopt him into our family.

This past Saturday I went to see Logan one last time to get a cut that will knock all the boys in Paris off of their feet and I'm pretty sure he succeeded. Normally, I let him cut and style my hair however he wants since he's the expert but this time I had my own vision in mind and it included bangs. Three days after the cut I'm still getting used to the new style and I'm beginning to realize how high maintenance bangs can be but overall the cut is great. I'm not sure how I will maintain my hair while I'm in France for 8 months forget coming home for Thanksgiving or Christmas, I may have to schedule a trip back to New York just to see Logan.

If you're in New York and you're looking to unleash your inner diva go see Logan. Don't walk run!

Serenity Salon
458 West Broadway
New York, NY
212-598-1182

Le Rendezvous Chez Marie

On Friday evening I went to my old French tutor's apartment for an apéro. I was warned beforehand that for the duration of the evening only French would be spoken. Given this tidbit of information I almost declined the invitation but I knew that it would be good practice for my time spent in Paris. As promised only French was spoken as soon as I entered the apartment and the bad news is that I only understood about 40% of the conversation and even that may be quite generous. Even worse I was only about to express about 20% of what I wanted to say in French. I did learn the following phrase to prevent illness when drinking wine by the gallon in France:

"Blanc sur rouge rien ne bouge, rouge sur blanc tout fout le camps"*

Overall though the evening was enjoyable and entertaining. I always enjoy hanging out with an international crowd because the vibe is usually so laid back and welcoming. I don't know what it is but I usually feel more comfortable in my skin when I hang out with such a crowd. Hopefully I'll have the same type of positive experiences once I get to France.

*Translation: White before red nothing moves, red before white everything goes to hell.

Sunday Pulse Check #5

Days til Paris: 14


How I went from elated to deflated in 30 seconds flat in 8 steps:

1. Check mailbox after spending a day in Long Island with my family on my cousin's boat
2. Discover brown envelop from the Academie de Créteil inside
3. Open envelop
4. Experience elation
5. Flip through documents in envelop
6. Search packet for arrêté
7. Notice arrêté is missing
8. Experience deflation

I'm beginning to think that someone is playing a cruel joke at my expense. Needless to say I'm still waiting and I'll be following up with the peeps in Créteil on Monday. Hopefully it was a harmless mix up and someone forgot to insert the document into my package.

This past week I ended up shelling out a buttload of money for a rolling duffel bag (which I like but is a little heavier than I had anticipated), a new Canon Powershot SD850 IS digital point & shoot camera (watch out now) and to secure housing for when I arrive. Makes me glad that I didn't quit my job last week when frustration levels were at an all time high.

While I'm happy to have secured some temporary housing the story as will be told to my future children is as follows:

Your mother arrived in Paris with 2 large suitcases and no place to stay for the night. She had $25 dollars in her pocket and when converted equalled approximately only 5 euros due to the poor exchange rate at the time.

Got it? Bon! I'm glad we're all on the same page.