one hundred four

Being four months away from our life is driving us both crazy. Yesterday, in the few bits of scattered conversation Joe and I had, our heads were completely in Paris. We're looking forward to finding the remnants of 1920-30s expatriate haunts; true Parisian cafés away from the tourists and into the French-speaking, forgiving residents; holding hands through gardens and getting back to the one place that made me feel completely at home.

Over Christmas break, we really started getting things in order for our time there. I know, it's eight months out, but when you're on a more-than-tight budget and looking for ways to use your education and socioeconomic situation to create your experience there, it takes a lot of planning... like deciding to have a wedding bank account instead of a registry with toasters and champagne flutes. (Shoot! We need to buy champagne flutes!)

When I got a Barnes & Noble gift card from a professor in the History Department as a Christmas present, I knew I wanted to put it toward a book to help us navigate the city. The rest of the country is easy enough to figure out, but when you only have a week to "see" Paris, you've got to get things down. The Metro is easy, and the people are helpful if they know that you're at least trying to work with them, in their language, instead of being un americain stupide. 

Another reason for using the gift card for the guidebook: Jon's sister let him borrow this guide book, and I was fascinated by it. The design is fun; the layout is easy; the series is long-standing; the pages fold out, for Pete's sake. It fits in your pocket and doesn't make you look like a Rick Steves loyalist... not that there is anything wrong with Steves. I just like to blend in. I know. It says PARIS. But at least it fits in my purse-satchel-bottomless-pit.

It's taking all I've got not to just drool over this all day and start planning out our adventures. For anyone that loves travel and is fascinated by successful public transit systems, these fold-out map books are for you. I wish it wasn't so much easier to fantasize about this trip than plan a wedding or write a paper about the roles of French women in colonial Indochina.

I've actually been a bit discouraged with the wedding lately, actually. Every time I get on my favorite stores' Web sites, there are Spring fashions with the same abstract peacock feathers. A J. Crew catalog came to the house yesterday, featuring peacock swimsuits. They are everywhere right now, as is vintage lace. Had I known this would happen this season, I may not have gone for it so much. I love them, but I've always struggled with being six months early in the idea and two months late in the chance to execute it.

There are a lot of fun things coming up for the wedding, though–from addressing envelopes to having Joe try on his wedding band for the first time. I've been good about not getting mine out everyday and slipping it on, just to see. I'm holding out, avoiding any jinx or curse that could come with that.