The most wasted of all days is one without laughter. - e e cummings

Mmm…I just had a delicious dinner. We had these sautéed mushrooms called “Septs” or something like that for dinner. They were really big and really delicious and apparently they are “le roi de champignons” (the king of mushrooms). We had them with an omelette and then we had grapes and this delicious cheese called Mont d’Or, which was like a combination between brie and butter (that sounds nasty, come to think of it, but it was so good, and not at all smelly.)
Jean-Claude was over for dinner, which means I really got to practice my French because he loves to talk politics with me. We talked about everything from D-Day to Monicagate (“Mo-neeka Lee-ween-skee”) to September 11. Apparently, Jean Claude is enamored with Rudy Giuliani – every time he comes over he somehow manages to work the former mayor into the conversation. Cracks me up.
Anyway, that’s not why I’m writing. I just have a jewel too good to pass up:
I have found the best home-stay story ever. My friend Ronnie, who goes to AU, is staying with a single older woman like me, except Ronnie is a boy, making it slightly more awkward. This lady, Monique, is 68 (she informed him) and her favorite past time is tanning – she is a permanent shade of orange. (Ronnie is allowed one shelf in the medicine cabinet; the rest are filled with every type of bronzer known to man, he informed me.) My favorite FAVORITE part of this story is that Ronnie can not use his house key – he has to knock on the front door, because Monique informed him that she likes to do gymnastics in the living room in her “petites culottes” – underwear. So, if you are ever having a bad day, you can just think of my poor friend Ronnie walking in on 68-year-old Monique turning cartwheels in the living room in her underwear.

There you have it. Compelling and rich.

Next weekend: Roma!