I’ve been trying to put a border around my images and I cannot, CANNOT figure out why it isn’t working. It seems like it should be really simple, even given how little I know about css.

(Apologies for the Jar-jar flashback in the title. Somehow I’ve come to use this phrase a lot.)

Do you remember? I think it was back in high school. I don’t know what happened. Anyway, to all appearances, I created undue stress for myself today, since I just checked my bank account and a hefty paycheck has been placed in it. More than I expected, in fact. How foolish I feel.

I think, am not sure, that my brother might have scraped through a costly mishap of a different nature, and I am glad he did, and though I know he doesn’t read this, I wish him all the love in the world.

So, yesterday was my last day of work until a week from Monday. That’s good, and bad, because the French decided (I think) not to pay me today for the last three weeks, so I’m both glad I don’t have to work for another few weeks and annoyed that I won’t be able to straighten this out until vacation is over.

To conclude my three weeks of semi-observation I’m going to make a list of weird, inexplicable, or hard-to-answer questions that French students like to ask me.

1) Do you like French food?
Who on earth doesn’t like French food? The British? Or what?

2) What’s your favorite singer/actor?
I don’t like famous people as much as I need to for this job. It took me several days to remember how much I like Jonny Depp and Pirates of the Caribbean, and they became my stock answers. My stock answer for the singer question is the Beatles, which I know is boring, but I don’t think they know who Ryan Adams or Aimee Mann are, and I just can’t bring myself to say Madonna is my favorite just for their sakes’.

3) What are your hobbies?
This question is easy, because I answer that I like listening to and playing music on the violin and the piano. It’s hard, though, if they then follow it up with What are your interests/pastimes? Because I don’t have any others. I mean it. I don’t have hobbies. I don’t do interesting things. Please stop making it painfully obvious.

4) What do young people in Texas think of the death penalty?
I don’t really mind explaining this, except that usually when someone asks a question this complicated, half of the class doesn’t understand the question, much less the answer. Also I tend to have really split opinions on things like this, and this particular question led me into explaining that Texas is conservative, and then I had to explain how, and then at the end of the whole topic I felt like I needed to say that regardless, Texans are really nice people whom I like a lot. And then I just felt like I was being condescending to the entire population of my home state.

5) Have you got any …
I don’t really get this “have you got” thing. I know it’s British. But I remember being told when I was six that “got” wasn’t good English.

But anyway, the kids are great. My only complaint right now isn’t with the students, the teachers, or my neighbors, who are all great, it’s with the people at the rectorat who decided they just weren’t in the mood to pay me this month.

Some English profs took me and R#2 to dinner at a restaurant tonight and it was really, really entertaining.

Plans for vacation, which starts tomorrow, are set. Am going to Lille Friday. It feels a little silly to have a vacation when I just started working but I definitely am not going to complain.

I am so addicted to them. I ran out on Friday and decided maybe I shouldn’t buy more till after vacation, but I bought some more today and I’m so excited.

I’m going to go have them with some tea.

This bizarre loud whistling sound goes on around my door when I have my window open in here. The door detects extra wind or something, because it’s really not that windy in here.

What American songs do you think would be good to use with middle school kids? The words have to be kind of easy. And I haven’t yet figured out how I’ll actually play songs for them since all we have at school are tape players.

Last night there was an impressive showing for R#2′s birthday at La Boheme. I might have pictures sometime.

It’s kind of gray out today. I didn’t really want to get up, but I got to that point where I was having the same dream over and over with more and more snippets of reality bursting in.

Last night I watched Star Academy. It was a bit bizarre.

Today I bought a duffel bag for vacations. It’s Samsonite, so it was a tad expensive, or at least more than I expected. But I would like it to last the year so I guess it’s worth it. I might be able to get a ride with someone to Lille and not have to buy a train ticket. We shall see.

Today I also bought some things for my room: a cheap little lamp and a canvas magazine-rack-like thing, whose use I haven’t decided on yet. I hung some maps on my wall too, so the walls are a little less blah. And I bought a scarf. And a shirt. Uh oh. But I did get to hang out with S, which was fun, and I saw her cozy room at the foyer. It’s cosier than my room. I’m working on it though. Check back in two weeks.

Tomorrow, more teaching, though not as much on my own. Done at 2:30.

I added some links. If yours is on there, and you want it to not be, let me know. Also vice versa. Except for Otto and Boris. You’re pretty much stuck with what I want to do.

Well I taught my first lessons today alone. I won’t be doing it again for another week since the rest of this week is just observation. I guess there’s a chance I’ll be alone with the kids on Thursday. But I think today went well, especially the t-shirt article, although it definitely confused them that the parts of the bill of rights are called articles.

So, for Toussaint, Emily W and I have decided to vacation together. I’m going to go visit Lille and then we will go to Belgium. At least I think that’s the idea. My hopes for the following three vacations include Julia M in England, Veronika Z in Germany, Ashley P in Spain, and Ireland. Also, mid-April, my dad has a meeting in Amsterdam and I’ll go visit him there. Plus Brandon bought his plane ticket to come visit me mid-March. Now I must find a place for him to stay, since we’re not supposd to have visitors here.

Well I have no more obligations for the rest of the day. Tomorrow I’m going to go look for things to buy for my room with the primaire assistant. But today I’m pretty much at loose ends. I think I’ll create some new categories.