Cravings....

Right now, I feel very content and at home. Today I just had the kind of day I would have had if I were at home. I had a bath, ran 6 miles at the gym, read some twilight, had a nap and then watched a movie. I don't know why, but I just found reassurance in all those things, and they made me feel happy and content. The only thing I could ask for would be popcorn and ripple chips. I am craving these so badly, and a little indulgence would be greatly appreciated by whatever part of the body is capable of giving me such cravings (I suppose that would be my brain... ). I can feel little bits of my personality coming back to life... I sing a lot and I have started scheming again. At home, I always have some big plan in the works. I have now started making plans for the future like I would at home. I walked to the gym today, and it was nice to have the freedom to come and go as I please. It is really bizarre, because the more I accept this as my life now, the less I think of home. But, at the same time, when I do think of home, I miss it double. It is just little things, like the scent of the bathroom that I am finally getting used to. Every time I smell it, i smile, but then I think of home and feel almost guilty. I know I have no reason to feel Guilty though, this is my time and I am going to make the most of it.

Speaking of making the most of my time, my plan for tomorrow is to study french. I now know which parts of the language I am still not really understanding, and tomorrow I am going to master them. I didn't really speak too much today, but I want to go back to school in two weeks time as a french master. I am getting the hang of it, but I want to be able to communicate fluently so badly! When I go back to school I will have been here for a month, and after a month I should be fully on my feet. This means I need to make my own friends, and stop relying on Julie for everything. I think it will be really nice to have this time off and find myself, get the language going, and then go back to school ready to take on anything!

Oh! By the way, here is my updated In/Out list...

IN
* Skate Brands (they are waaay more popular here than they are at home. Nikita is especially dominant.)
* One half of your hair pinned back
* Hair ribbons
* Birthdays! (Fortunately for me last week, everybody sings to everybody in almost all the classes, and everyone says happy birthday!)
* Racerback Bras ( I think this is so stupid, but the girls actually pin their bras so it makes a racer back. You can then see their bra straps and it looks absolutely ridiculous)
* Backless T-Shirts (to show off their racerback bras....)
* Black French Manicured Nails
* Brushing your teeth at school (I went to the washroom after lunch, and there were ELEVEN girls brushing their teeth!!!)
* Sub Sandwiches ( Regular sandwiches aren't cool enough for these guys, because everyone eats their sandwiches on sub bread)
* Wearing Hats in class ( I have not yet seen a boy attempt this, but girls wear hats, no problem)

OUT
* Binders (It took me quite a while to figure out how they organize themselves.... for every class you need a textbook and a workbook. This is all they carry. Binders are extremely rare)
* Raising your hand when you have a question (you just ask it. I haven't seen one person raise their hand)
* Changing in public (In gym all the girls change in stalls. This is weird for me because I got over that phobia in like.... grade 7)
* Showing your body. (For all the tight and skank-ish clothes, actually showing skin is rare. At the gym, tank tops are prohibited. I was the only person in there wearing shorts today and in gym class everyone wears pants)

I am starting to get the hang of Quebec and I feel less and less out of my comfort zone everyday! Although I do not abide by the in/out list ( I am "foreign" so no matter what I wear, I like to think I look cool), I think I can live with just about everything here! (some ripple chips would be sooo nice though...)

Here is some Quebecois MSN slang for you.....
JTM,
Carly

(JTM = J'taime= I love you)