Mes Boeufs

We're getting ready to head out for dinner at the University, then we'll all troop back here for "Casse Noisette" at 8. I've been really excited all week about seeing The Nutcracker, until this morning when I was informed by some students who saw the performance last night that it is a modern ballet with a completely different story line set to the Nutcracker Suites. I'm so sad! Hopefully it'll still be good.

Thus far my trip has really been wonderful. My family is nice, my classes are going well, and I'm really feeling homesick at all. To be honest, I'm doing better than I had anticipated. There are, though, a couple of things that I miss, things that are radical changes, or things that are bothering me, so I thought I'd share.

The biggest change for me is definitely the family structure in my host family. My host mother stays home, cleans, does laundry, cooks every meal for the family, etc. My host father works until around 7:30 most nights. He comes home, we sit and eat dinner, then we go watch the news. The last few days my host mom has been away visiting relatives. She left a list for my dad of who will be home on what days and for what meals, as well as a list of what he should eat for both lunch and dinners. I ended up cooking both nights (shocking, I know, but I was actually happy to). Two nights ago I just put a quiche she had left us in the oven, but last night I made omelettes. This is where the difference is. When my family at home sits finishes eating, we generally help pick up, at least somewhat. My dad always says the rule is "he who cooks does not clean". This is not the way it is in my host family. We finished eating, and my host father got up and left the room without looking back, both nights in a row. I understand this is a cultural difference, so I cleared the table and cleaned up, put the dishes in the dishwasher. My host mom is supposed to come back today, so last night I asked my dad to show me how to run the dishwasher so she wouldn't have to deal with them. He wouldn't give me the soap, which I couldn't find on my own. I explained to him why I wanted to do it (and that if my mom at home came home to something like that, she would have been very unhappy). He said no, she would be fine with it, besides he didn't actually know where the soap was kept because he never runs or puts away the dishwasher. My host mom does absolutely all of the work around the house. I have asked several times if there is anything I can help with, and she always says no. I try to help in whatever way I can, clearing the dishes after dinner (which I normally have to fight to do), keeping my room and bathroom tidy, etc, but I feel like I am not a contributing member of this family and it is so frustrating. My mom even does my laundry for me. For me its an independance thing. I'm supposed to be at the most independant part of my life, and I'm not even allowed to vaccume the floor. And no, Mom, I still can't spell the word vaccum. Or however its spelled.

Clean air. I know the French smoke, I know it is a very large part of their culture, but oh goodness I'll be glad to get back to clean air. There are kids younger than Ethan standing on the street corner smoking, and they don't really care who they blow their gross smoke onto. Women carrying babies, old men and pipes, you name it, they're smoking.

Okay, I've got to go they are closing the center for the night. I hope everything at home is going well, I miss you all!!