Routine

I am a creature of habit. Nothing is quite a comforting as consistency for me, and though my routine is usually centered around work, I have other little comforts. Everywhere I have lived, there has been some sort of garden, even if tiny, but this building is completely surrounded by concrete. To satisfy my need for greenery, and my urge for fresh herbs when I cook, I bought herb pots at the marché couvert to put on my widow sill. They are tiny compared to my gigantic plants back home, and I find myself having to wait for them to fill in enough so I can use them, as opposed to having an overabundance, but they are sufficient for me. This photo is from my Lorraine Flora album.

The Marché Couvert has also become part of my routine here. Most Saturday mornings, I can be found there with a horde of other tourists and some locals. I furnished my apartment from the vendors there. Granted, with the ugliest sheet set I have ever laid eyes on, but it covers me at night when my eyes are closed, anyway. I have not taken a photo of the ugly sheets, nor will I. I also buy produce there. The photo at right shows the indoor portion, which houses about half the food vendors. The other half are in the U formed by this building. This past weekend, two women selling mushrooms had the most beautiful purple ones! They were so pretty, I bought a bag. Unfortunately, they had a somewhat bland, grassy, hay-like taste. You can see a photo of them in my Marché Couvert photo album. The rest of Saturday I goof off and take photos.

Because everything is closed on Sundays, it is my official cleaning day. Unfortunately for me, it takes less than an hour to clean 25 square meters! I would also make it laundry day, but it's expensive, at least 8€ to wash and dry, and the washing machines are dinky! I hand wash as much as I can at home, and every 1.5 to 2 weeks tote everything else to the laundromat and cram it all into one load (luckily, I don't have many white things that really need to be white). If I end up staying in Metz longer than my current lease, the next place must have a washing machine, and preferably an oven, too. The rest of Sunday I goof off and take photos.

I was on the phone with an old friend, Didier, last night, who mentioned he had a 4-day weekend, because of the holiday, which means all of France has a 4-day weekend! I again did not plan ahead, and spent this morning wandering, looking for an open grocer. No luck. I am surviving today on lettuce, pasta and an apple. I will probably have a sandwich at Mus and Ceto's at some point (Pamukkale, 26 rue Clovis, 57000 Metz, +33 (0)387 56 95 52). You met them on my Porte des Allemands entry, when Ceto caught me sneaking a photo of his menu. They're good people. They make me laugh, put up with my crappy French and make a real effort to converse with me (and correct my French). I respect them a lot. They work their asses off. Mus is taking a vacation for the first time in 3 years this August. He plans to lie in the sun in Turkey and do nothing!

I also try to go to Maison Petry (photo left, rue Gambetta across from Metz Gare) once a week or so for coffee and a pastry. The ladies who run it are very sweet, although I do not know their names! And the pastries are wonderful, flaky crusts, not cloyingly sweet like a lot of American sweets can be, light but moist cakes. Too bad it is too late in the day to go there...

The work routine? Still accruing a salary. Whether it will be paid is another thing, but as long as my boss is still working (or at least is telling me he is) to secure funding, I'll continue to put in the effort for him. Not quite as doggedly as I was before, but then, I was putting in way more effort than my position and compensation called for.

I scan employment ads daily, and though there aren't many options for an American without a work permit, I apply on the off chance I might have something they need and are willing to go through the rigmarole for me. I am also trying to learn about the economic and business environment here to see if I can find some unfilled niche for consulting. No luck, yet. We'll see...

New News: beginning Tuesday, I am trading English conversation for lessons in French (Alsace/Lorraine) cooking with Arnaud, an Engineering instructor I found through Dominique, who runs Atout Lire Bookshop, and teaches English. He was born in Metz and has lived most of his life in Lorraine, and is knowledgeable of the local dishes. He knew most of the dishes I had on my list, except crème brulée (which was my mom's favorite dessert), but volunteered his girlfriend to teach that to me. Maybe she will want to trade for conversation, too?