Another fine week

Looking back on the week, as I sit here in my little apartment, watching yet another French cooking show out of the corner of my eye (it's a mild addiction, I admit it), I'm hard put to pick out anything all that special to write about. But it seems important to point out that, on each of the three last mornings, as I made my way along the canal to school, the thought crossed my mind each time that I cannot remember a time when I've been as happy. Which bolsters my conviction that one doesn't need constant stimulation, or extraordinary levels of excitement, to be happy -- it's the little things in life that make the difference. And here in Paris, right now, I couldn't be happier.

It helps, of course, that I have been lucky enough to stumble across interesting, engaged classmates, and that Bruno, our new professor for this week, and the coming weeks, is altogether extraordinary. But it's also the fun of shopping at Monoprix, of stopping for a coffee at the cafe at the corner, where the waiters actually acknowledge my presence with a smile, of watching French TV, of reading Carson McCullers or Inspector Morse in French. Life is lived in the details.

The week's cultural highlight was definitely seeing the hilarious "Avengers" production of "Midsummer Night's Dream" in French. I also caught up with my friends Nancy and Gabriella for lunch in the Marais on Wednesday. As I had no afternoon classes, we had a leisurely meal and strolled around the Marais afterwards. Where Santa has made an early appearance:

And where one felt at times as if one was back in San Francisco:

Tonight I have nothing more ambitious planned than to heat up some delicious pasta in the microwave and watch the NCIS marathon on Channel 6. Certain habits die hard! Weather permitting, perhaps tomorrow will be the day I finally get to Giverny.

I leave you with a couple of photos taken earlier this afternoon in the courtyard at school: