10 days triathlon

So ever since my daughter was born the holiday season has become a triathlon of celebrations because not only is there Christmas and New Year's Eve, there's my daughter's birthday which is on New Year's day.

At the end of every year I eat and drink a week's worth of food and liquids for Christmas, give myself a week to digest it all in order to prepare for more eating as I stay up late to ring in the new year only to get up early to meet the expectations of my smiling happy daughter full of expectations on her special day.

But that doesn't compare to this year when I went back to the states and celebrated a total of 9 times (8 of which where in the span of 10 days):

Dec 15th: Early Christmas in France
Dec 23rd: Parent's 41st wedding anniversary lunch (after having landed the day before)
Dec 24th: Christmas Eve dinner
Dec 25th: Christmas dinner
Dec 28th: Niece's actual birthday lunch
Dec 30th: "Winter birthdays celebration" party
Dec 31st day: Paternal grandmother's death remembrance day lunch
Dec 31st night: New Year's eve dinner
Jan 1st: Celebration of daughter's actual birthday

I guess you would call that 10-Days-Triathlon of celebrations.

I'll take my normal triathlon of celebrations any day. 

family vacation

2019

all the, small things

So my mom loves all things small.  When once looking for a spoon for my kids my sister said "Doesn't mom have one she love small things".

"If there's a small thing store your mom is keeping it in business" once said my brother in law.  

So if only for this mere fact that my mom is incompatible with my husband, who is giant.

Take the other day when my husband put my son in a stroller my mother had lent us.  On the way to the car I heard him say "Is this stroller for kids?"

In order to reply "Duh, in what world do they make strollers for adults?" I turn to him and see what he actually means.

He's hunched over almost at a 90 degree angle in order to acess the handle which is probably around his crotch.  It might have been easier had he walked on his knees.

Haha. 

intern

So we have an intern in our office and in typical French fashion it's not really clear why he's here and what he's suppose to be doing.  I caught him sleeping at his desk after lunch. 

I had some free time so I asked if he wanted to come with me and discuss a little about what it is that I do. 

Me:  So what's the objective of your internship?
Him:  I need two internships to validate my diploma. 
Me:  Ok, so do you have a personal objective?
Him: [blank stare]  Not really.
Me:  Ok so what have you seen so far?
Him:  I dunno.  Stuff.
Me:  ... [Mind wonders back to a lunch conversation I had with a co worker that spent some time with him.  It's complicated he told me.  He lacks... the basics]

So I started talking about things like sales and marketing and turnover and margin.  His eyes glaze over.

Did I mention he's 15?  I can't remember the last time I interacted with a 15 year old; I think it was in Japan when I taught Japanese kids how to say "banana".

Me:  [Lightbulb]  So do you learn English at school?
Him:   Yes but the level isn't that good.
Me:  Well here's your chance to practice.
Him: [Big nervous smile and even a little giggle a sign of at least a little interest?] Ok.

I'll have to give it to the kid he wasn't afraid to try.  He reminded me of my Japanese students, the bad ones that aren't afraid either unlike their smart counterparts who are afraid, afraid of failure because they don't know it.  The bad students are the ones who know failure so they don't fear it.

Turns out he's a bad student as well and is on a path to learn a professional skill (and not say, higher education).  Sucks when this is determined at the age of 14 and you can tell the "bad" label sticks with him as he brought it up often. Which is a shame as people can change, especially young ones.

Thank you for your time he said at the end in English.  Fearlessness and polite.  He'll be alright.

iwd

So I didn't know that today is International Women's Day and it got me wondering, how many other important awareness days am I unaware of?  223 according to Wikipedia, I was surprised to learn.  Which means that in a 365 days year when I woke in the morning I should be aware of something 61% of the time, or rather more than once every other day.

But International Women's Day is recognized by the UN one might say.  Ok so if consider awareness days that are recognized by some legitimate governing body (say UN, WHO, UNESCO, etc.) the number is more like 127 or 34% of the year (sorry unrecognized International Men's Day - November 19). 

I say more like 127 because April 20th is listed as recognized by the 'Global cannabis culture' so one could argue which days are legitimate or not.

And one could even argue days recognized by legitimate governing parties.  Example the UN recognizes 'World Television Day' on November 21st commemorating the date on which the first World Television Forum was held in 1996 (Germany opposed it citing that there were already three United Nations days encompassing similar subjects: World Press Freedom Day; World Telecommunication Day; and World Development Information Day).  But nobody recognizes days like 'World Stroke Day' (October 29th) or 'World Obesity Day' (October 11th). 

Side note: The UN seems to be behind the most awareness days and there are 4 awareness days with the word 'UN' in it. 

United Nations Day (of course) - October 24th
International Day of UN Peacekeepers - May 29th
United Nations international day in support of Victims of Torture - June 26th
And my personal favorite: United Nations International Asteroid Day raises public awareness of the asteroid impact hazard - June 30th

They also recognize 'International Day of Nowruz' on March 21st.  Do you know what Nowruz is?  It's the name of the Iranian New Year.  I'm not so sure why the UN thinks I should be aware of that other than for my general cultural knowledge but why isn't there a day for Lunar New Year or regular New Year (or is it Gregorian New Year?  See? Perhaps I do need more awareness of this day!). 

Maybe the UN is aware that perhaps on March 21st people want choice so there are 4 other UN recognized awareness days to choose from:

International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
World Poetry Day
World Down Syndrome Day
International Day of Forests

And if you're not interested in any of the above days recognized by the UN know that the UN doesn't have an awareness day monopoly on March 21st as there is 'World Puppetry Day' which is recognized by the International Puppetry Association.

So yeah when my coworker asked me how I felt on International Women's Day I think it's great.  On the other hand when you look at all the awareness days out there it starts to look like a politically touchy subject that nobody can solve so they give it a day to say 'We haven't forgotten this is a problem and we're on it, but not right now' (kind of like a 'VP' slapped on your job title because your boss doesn't want to give you a raise - because you're a woman, haha). 

But in all seriousness really what has been done?  It's great to have a day but we need more.  

exceptional

So the morning after it snowed between 15cms in Paris, I, along with most people who had to go outside that day, dug in the back of our closets for something to afront the "exceptional" (the ministor of interior's words, not mine) weather conditions.

Luckily I had somehow with me old hiking boots from when I lived in Sapporo, Japan where the first snowfall can be as early as October and not exceptional for the average annual snow accumulation to be 600cms. Indeed, 15cms of snow in Sapporo in February would also be considered exceptional.

As exceptional weather conditions calls from exceptional weather attire, I strapped on my boots, put on my giant black downfeather coat that my husband says makes me look like a homeless person, and finished off by wrapping a giant scarf made of Icelandic wool around my neck.  I was ready. 

It was eerily quite outside except for the "crunch crunch" sound of people who are not used to walking in snow, walking in snow.  Nobody made eye contact since their head were down and although this is not exceptional what was that they were concentrated on their feet and not their smartphones.

That evening I wrapped up my kids as warm as I could tucked them into the double stroller and slowly made it to the bus stop in the hopes that there would be a bus.  There was exceptionally, no bus, so I would have to push them back to the apartment through unpaved sidewalks. 

It exceptionally took me took me 40 minutes instead of the usual 20 minutes to get back.  I could have done it in 30 minutes had my daughter not exceptionally drop Kiki her adorable bottle sucking monkey. Devestated she tried to leave the stroller screaming "Kiki!  We have to go back for Kiki! She'll be cold, Mom, we have to go back! Kiki!!!!!".

Undeterred I plowed the rest of the way home by reassuring my daughter that Kiki was fine and that we'll find her, only later. 

So I lied (sorry Kiki), but it was under exceptional circumstances.