Cats, Car rides and courses

Hello readers,

Firstly, you might notice that I've had a little play with the layout. I like to stay fresh and relevant ya'll!

Secondly, The result of my language testing-bizzo is that I get 100 hours of FREE french lessons every afternoon (except Wednesdays) 2.00 - 5.00. Cool huh?!?! Where was that 8 months ago though I wonder when I was forking out big bucks to go to the college?? Anywhoodle, no need to be bitter as I'm so glad I went to the college earlier in the year, I may have completely forgotten pretty much everything I learnt (pronouns and the subjunctive tense can bite me) but I made such nice friends who I still keep in touch with so...having these freebie lessons is just a huge bonus.

So I went to my first class and....let's just say this will be interesting. The course is "mixed ability" which is coolio, except that everyone else in the class seems to speak pretty much completely fluent french (eeek), and yet they spent the entire lesson writing out etre in the present tense and reflexive verbs. Whuzza? Huh? The teacher gave me a series of tests (more butchering of the language in written exercises) and said that I'm far more advanced than the others......wha.....??? Me no speak-y good! Wha? Hopefully I can ask for oral and listening activities as, along with conversational practice, that's what I really need.
Anywho, not looking this gift cheval in the bouche. hee hee hee.


So we got up at the crack of dawn to watch the 'cracker' of a Grand Final. Whee, the jokes just keep on coming today.

We were going to go to Nice to watch it at the pub or the Kookaburra Bar (yes, that's its real name) but that required getting up even earlier so, we 'canned' that notion, an stayed in Cannes. Ok, I'll stop now I promise.

Marie came over too and we watched it live, supported ably by a HUGE pot of coffee, bacon and egg sangas and, for the other two brave souls, a couple of beers. This is a photo taken from our balcony at half time. Yes, the sun is only just coming up. erk.

(Yes, he is wearing his Crows gurnsey. Yes, he knew they weren't one of the teams. Marie wore Saints colours and I wore Cats. M likes to be different apparently......)

I was the sole Cats supporter (more out of loyalty to Jaime and the desire to one day have my way with Jimmy Bartel than anything else) out of the three of us and it got TENSE in the dying minutes. I giggled when I received a text from Jaime later that day saying that she'd been reduced to going for a walk around the block in the last quarter. Too funny. A great game, so close. I felt so sorry for the Saints players though, such a weight of history on their shoulders and they looked positively gutted. Plus, I'm a sook and always think it's sad when big, tough footy players cry. Not Riewoldt though, he's a sissy.


After the game M had to head in to work.....on a Saturday....again....after working til 10.00pm most nights. Boo. But the big bid finishes this week so I may actually get to see him again. Yay! As French law states that he couldn't work on the Sunday as he'd worked the Saturday (bless their little socialist souls) he suggested we go for a bit of a drive and find a random spot to have lunch, so we did.

We visited a little town called Tanneron, which is up behind Mandelieu - west of where we are. A lovely, very french lunch and a bit of a walk around followed by a scenic drive home. Bliss.

It's on days like this I am very pleased I live in France. We are so lucky.