So, I have finally educated myself a little bit about the "riots" that have apparently been happening in Paris (and all of France) somehow below my evidently idiot-level radar. How did we not know that a million and a half people were stickin' it to Le man just a few miles away?! I don't know, but our neighborhood has been quite unaffected, with the exception of the (not total) transit strike Tuesday, and some closed post offices/ banks. I strongly suggest reading the what the BBC has to say about it: http://news.bbc.co.uk/ There's a whole section of articles about it, and those interesting little opinion blurbs from people on the street (though less funny than The Onion's). I'm curious as to what will happen in the next couple weeks. I kind of think it will die down soon, but I'm also totally out of my element. And from what little I do know about France's recent history of social movements (1968 and on), I could certainly be very wrong. Laugh if you must, but I saw V for Vendetta last week, and the situation here calls to mind the precipitation leading up to the inevitable catalyst for more serious riots-- if you saw it you'll know what I mean. We'll see soon enough.
On a different note, do you realize you need and use words such as "tunnel," "miss" (as in 'I missed the bus'), "change" (as in coins), and "owe"? Well, you don't miss things until they're gone, and by god I missed those words, along with countless others, that I didn't know how to say, or forgot, in French. Tip: apparently the same word "change" can be used in French, although there are better words. Vocab for today: coing = quince. Huh.
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