Ah, this is the life.

Vacation has gone well so far here in Mayenne. Not much has happened. All I've been thinking about has been sleep and graduate school for the past several days. I got a haircut today, which is much shorter than usual. But that's the way I typically like it. I feel as if I'm getting lazier by the minute. All I really want to do is eat, sleep, and relax. But I want to do much more than that. Many people tell me I have trouble relaxing, and the truth is I have this need to have an agenda with people to see, places to go, and things to do. But relaxing is simple, elegant, and peaceful. I should take advantage of every opportunity to do this relaxing thing. In adult life, it comes less often than in youthful years.

Tonight we had walnut soup with vanilla, a simple meal with yogurt for a dessert. Simplicity is a staple of French food, and they do not like to ever overdo it. That includes actually eating it. It's something I'm noticing much more often. French people have a smaller appetite, but they love to indulge, only in smaller quantities. It's something I think that Americans can learn from the French. We Americans are so accustomed to everything BIGGER. In my personal opinion, bigger is not always better. But sometimes I have a hard time with satiating my appetite. I do have a large metabolism as a young person and I almost never feel "full" here. That's something to which I'm continually having to adjust.

This evening, I watched "West Side Story" with Theo, a young man of 14 years. It was interesting to watch the movie mostly in French, except for the songs. I enjoyed explaining some of the cultural aspects of the film to him in French so that he would understand.

Tomorrow is another one of those sleep in and relax days. Thursday, my family and I will take a day trip with sandwiches to Saint Malo in northwestern France. Should be a lot of fun. I'm getting excited about spending more time with the kids. They can be a lot of fun to hang around and play with.

As for Friday, I leave for Paris at 13h40 from the Gare Laval. I will arrive in Paris at 15h15 and will have four hours to sightsee around the Latin Quarter and the Notre Dame Cathedral before my friend comes to take me to his apartment in the 20e arrondissement. I will do quite a bit of sightseeing with him as well as on my own. Tuesday, I will go to see a play by Moliere called "Le medecin malgre lui," which is a farcical comedy. Looking forward to that.

The joys of living in France continue to shine through as my first month here draws to a close.