Saint-Gervais

Tomorrow is our second day of skiing. We're going to Saint-Gervais-les-bains, France, which is very close to Chamonix and therefore Mont Blanc, the highest peak in the Alps! It looks like it's going to be a nice day there if you can trust the weather reports. I bet it'll be beautiful. I'm debating whether or not it would be worth it to take my camera or not? I'm leaning towards not because last week I had no time at all to stop and take pictures of the view. I don't think I want to be the cause of my fellow students ire for holding things up to take pictures. Maybe once I've gotten to know them a bit better...or not taking the camera could be a GREAT excuse for DH and I to go back at a later date, just the two of us. Yeah, that sounds like a plan.
I'm hopeful that my legs will hold up better this week but I doubt it. I haven't done anything special to work on strengthening my muscles. I really thought I would be motivated this week, but it turned out I wasn't. Better luck next week.
Let's see...our Tango classes are winding down. We have 4 more classes left. Our teachers have invited us to join the intermediate class for the next session. They invited us and about 5 or 6 other people. I thought that was really a nice compliment. They also asked us to participate in a public performance they are giving on Saturday night in Geneva. They have asked quite a few of their students to participate as...well...representative of the students they teach. Unfortunately, we won't be able to do it. We would hate to agree and then not make it because our bus from skiing arrived back late. Plus, I don't know if my legs could take the Tango after a full day of skiing. I think I'll just want to come home and collapse, not drive into Geneva and Tango in front of people!
so, that's the brief update on what's going on here. Not a whole heck of a lot. Ally and I have had a rather melancholy week, but I think this weekend we'll shake it off and have much better, more productive week next week....here's hoping!

Shall we dance?

Saturday Josh and I took our second Milonga Lisa workshop. It's a great deal of fun. Our Argentine Tango teachers, Domenico and Paula, teach it. They're are great. For those who don't know the Milonga is similar to the Argentine Tango, but faster. From what I understand it is more basic and came before the Argentine Tango. I believe that the Argentine Tango has it's roots in the Milonga, but I could be wrong about that. I tried to insert some videos from YouTube of our dance instructors doing the Milonga in the upper right side bar. Hopefully, it worked. You should be able to click on it and the youtube video will pop up. This will give you an idea of what the Milonga is like.
Josh and I attended both the beginner and intermediate classes. So, our schedule was: 3:30-5:00 beginner class, 5:15-6;15 Milonga/Argentine Tango guided practice, 6:30 - 8:00 intermediate class and then 8:30 celebrating Paola's birthday (food and drinks provided to all who wished to attend). We stayed for it ALL! My legs and feet were so sore, even Josh complained about his leg being sore and that's saying something for him. We learned a lot and we had fun though we were exhausted by the end of the night. There is a tradition among Tango dancers that the birthday girl/boy has to dance with everyone in the room. So, they got out a mop and you would pass the mop to the next person to dance with Paola, the birthday girl. When you had the mop you could cut-in on the dance and then the next person would cut-in on you after a few minutes. Josh didn't want to participate - he hates dancing in front of people, but he was a good sport and did it and he did a great job. I, on the other hand, did a lousy job! When her new partner cuts-in Paola has no choice whether she leads or follows (does the man's or woman's part). Of course, i made her lead because I don't know how to lead to save my life. After our 3 minute dance I realized I also had no idea how to follow either, but oh well! As the
party was progressing we both were so tired we didn't really feel like Tangoing and it was nice talking with people and getting to know them a little better, but you know that point when you're tired and all you want to do is go home, but you can't find a way to leave without seeming rude? that was where Josh and I were for most of the night. It wasn't that we didn't like the people at the party and it was enjoyable, we just wanted to go home, see our puppy, and relax. We didn't want to have to think about making polite conversation or what the next dance step was. Thankfully, after we had Tangoed with Paola we thought we could make out escape without being rude....but, no they then brought out a birthday cake. So, of course we stayed a bit longer. Can I just ask, what is the deal with cakes with no frosting here? There were 2 different cakes and neither one of them had frosting, they were just the plain old cake? what's that about? In my humble opinion, the frosting is the best part of the cake! but maybe I'm just spoiled because my mom made the world's best frosting. Yet, I digress. After the singing, everyone sang in English, then individual people sang in: Italian, Spanish, Bulgarian, Polish, Swedish, and Russian. I think I got 'em all! It was very nice. Luckily, after the cake was finished we chatted for a few minutes then made our escape. Whew! It was 10:30 p.m. by that time. 7 hours of dancing is enough for anyone. But, I think that we are better Milonga dancers now. We just have to try and force ourselves to practice at home. Does anyone else do that? They take a class or participate in an event and have tons of fun, yet you never practice it at home. It's not as though you actively try to avoid doing it you just don't think about it until the next class, or next event and then you think, "Gosh, I really should have practiced that. I barely remember what I'm supposed to do!" Hopefully, we're not the only ones out there who do this.....

Not much to say

Sorry, but there's not a whole lot going on around here. Yesterday I spent most of my day busily working on some homemade Christmas gifts. I would post pictures but you never know who might look at my blog and who the gifts might be for! hee, hee. Today I've been puttering around the house trying to pick up, AGAIN, and baking cookies. Our upstairs neighbor is sick so I thought I'd take her some cookies, probably chicken soup would be more helpful but cookies just taste SO much better! Also, the CERN dancing club has a little monthly party after our class tonight and it's "Canadian" style - which means bring some food to share. They have one every month and we have yet to attend so we thought we'd hang out for a bit tonight and see what it's like. Maybe we'll get to know some people in our class a little bit better, that'd be nice.
Isn't it funny that a bring a dish to pass type event is called a Canadian - I love it. It makes me laugh every time I see it or hear it. I think we should start instituting that phrase in the States. I wonder how the Canadians would feel about that? I mean why Canadians? are they the cheapskates of the world who ask their guests to bring food for their parties? I have no idea why they call them Canadian parties, and neither does our Canadian neighbor.
So, sorry I'm not more full of rollicking good stories or witty criticisms about life, but things are bit dull at the moment as I busily work away at completing my Christmas projects in the hopes of getting them sent off in time to make it to their destinations by Christmas - fat chance o this happening so sorry to anyone who might receive a gift - but I'll try my darnedest. Darnedest, what a great word.
OK, so I'm going to get back to my projects if anything exciting happens this weekend you'll be the first to know.

Ciao!

A few small accomplishments

So, this weekend turned out to be a quiet weekend at, again, despite the fact that we had planned a busy weekend. We were going to go to a Milonga dance workshop on Saturday. The Milonga is, apparently, the simpler, faster dance that spawned the Argentine Tango. Our Tango teachers run these workshops every few months or so. I will digress here for a moment to gush over our Tango teachers, Paola and Domenico. I love them. They are just too cute and they think we're a step ahead of the rest of the class - at least my cutie Domenico does. I told Josh at our Friday night class that I wanted to give Domenico kisses. You might think this sounds like a strange comment to make to your husband about another man, but what I meant was those three little air kisses that Europeans always give each other in greeting and farewell. I always feel excepted when Europeans give me these little air kisses. Even though I know that they don't really mean anything here because people do it all the time, it's like a handshake, but I feel very European when I get a chance to give kisses! I know, I'm a dork, what can I say?
So, it turns out Paola's mother's sick so the workshop was canceled - postponed till next Sunday. I'll let you know how it goes (if I remember to post, that is). So that left Saturday open. So, we did a bunch of cleaning and rearranging and I knit a Christmas stocking for Josh! Isn't it soooo cute? I think it's adorable. I had to make it out of random yarn I had left or, thus the sort of random stripeyness - but I like it. When I added the lighter blue color I had a few misgivings because it suddenly became highly reminiscent of Hiram College's colors of red and Columbia blue (read powder blue) all that this little baby needs now to become an official Hiram stocking is to attach a little Terrier in a "Columbia" blue sweater vest!
Doesn't it look so perfect hanging by the fire? Now I just need to make one for myself.
So, that pretty much covers Saturday. Sunday we had planned to splurge by attending a Wine and Food fair in Villeneuve, Switzerland. It's about an hours drive on the opposite side of lake Geneva (or Lac Leman as it is known to the Swiss -which begs the question why do the English change the names of everything? Like English people can't say Leman? It's absurd...). Unfortunately, when I called half way through the week to reserve our tickets for this glutton fest I was informed it was full. Boohoo, I was so looking forward to strolling through the old city of Villeneuve where we would stop at 10 different locations and sample a variety of foods and wines at each place. Next year we are signing up well in advance. So, instead of a fun "European" wine and food orgy we hung out at home with a roaring fire all day. It was fairly cold, so maybe we were better off missing the festival - yeah, keep telling yourself that maybe some day you'll believe it! Instead I spent most of my day like this. Isn't Ally just the
cutest thing ever? Don't be jealous. I know she's the most adorable dog alive, but that doesn't mean your dog isn't cute too...just not as adorably cute as mine.
And this is the, "OK, stop taking pictures of me while I'm lying around like a sloth looking scuzzy and unkempt." You know you have given that look to your spouse before - or maybe you were the one receiving it! I did do a bit more than snuggle on the couch with Ally and a book. I made my first attempt at making Ratatouille - sort of vegetable soup popular in Provence. I figured while in France we should make some sort of effort to eat like the French. It turned out pretty well, although it's less like soup and more like large chunks of vegetables in very little liquid. Nonetheless is was eatable and I think we'll make it again.
Well, I know this has been incredibly exciting for you so I will leave you with a few pictures of my other great accomplishment of last week - pictures of my finished shawl! Yay! It only took me 7 months to make - oi vay.

Here's an extreme close-up so you can see the lace pattern. Here I am displaying my shawl.

Yes, that is Mickey mouse on my butt, and yes, I am still wearing my pajamas at 1:30pm on a Monday. Hey, don't get upset with me just because I have no social life. Not everyone is cut out for a life of slothfulness, a life devoid of human contact but full of doggy breathe. I'm sorry, I'm just lucky that way - truly, it's not my fault. Well, have a good day and I'll try to be better about posting for those desperate to read about my amazing life- ha, ha, ha