New Kicks

So, a while ago, I showed a picture of a dress one of the Moroccan ladies in class brought back from her summer at home.  Now, I just wanted to take a brief moment to show you the new shoes that another student brought back from Morocco.
They are nice and bling-bling, huh?

I would say that no one else would ever wear the same shoes as me, but then again, this student brought a matching pair of shoes for my colleague too, so no such luck.

End of an Era - the bank edition

Just a few steps closer to the end:  I closed down my bank account today. 
After two years of grief from my bank, I was thrilled (and somewhat shocked) at how easy it was to close my account.  So, bless the bank.  Oh, and by the way, on my way out, my account counselor gave me a stuffed Alvin the Chipmunk for a souvenir.  He said I could give it to a younger sibling, but seeing as Jon's 23 now, I gave it to someone at the office who has actual children.  Still, it's the thought that counts, right?
So task number 45: Close down bank accout?  Check.

Snow and Being Katherine

So...I move home in 9 days, and this Paris experience of mine will come to an end.  Incroyable.  But I won't go into all the bittersweet feelings concerning this upcoming change. 
Instead, I'll say that for the moment, life continues as normal, although there is something a bit foreign on the ground...

We had a huge snow in the Paris area today.  From my experience, this kind of snowfall is unexpected for this early in the winter, and while Stephan groans about it and says, "I'm African.  I'm not made for this weather!", my spirits remain high.  I think snow is beautiful.  And most people around here have kept fairly positive about it (when they're not driving, that is).  As I was sloshing home in my soaked-through shoes, my neighbor was shoveling out his car, and he laughed when he saw me slipping past and said, "C'est Noel!"  And I do think that snow is pretty great during the Christmas season.
Today, I was passing through Les Halles and saw this church.  No matter how cold and wet the weather, snow does add a lovely touch to already beautiful scenery.

It's been a while since I shared an anecdote, so before signing off, just wanted to relate something that happened yesterday.
I was preparing to give my class when a very small, round French woman came into the building, and without preamble, said, "I've come to help out."
She turned out to be something of an odd duck.
She asked my name, and I told her, "Katie."
She replied, "I'll call you Kathy, then, because I don't like the name Katie."
Later on, she asked me if it bothered me that I had a diminuative form of a "real" name.  I told her no.  She said I should consider legally changing my name to Katherine, being as so many queens have carried the name Katherine.  I tried to act as though I were considering the suggestion...
Later, I made some Moroccan mint tea, and I had handed a glass out to each of the ladies, and I offered her a glass too.  She took it and drank the whole glass down.  When I offered her seconds, she said, "It's really far too sugary.
"Well, that's how they like it," I told her.
"Alright then.  Let me have another cup just to be sure," she said.  Sure enough, she drank the last glass down, telling me again how sugary it was.
She'll be coming to class again tomorrow if the snow doesn't keep her at home.  I hope to come out alive and with more stories...