Finally

Well, last night I finally got enough sleep, and today I felt much less fatalistic and weird. I spent the morning answering emails and reading, and I went out and wandered around town in the afternoon with Emma when she came back from a day with her new friend. Apparently the childcare system here is pretty outrageous. There is a program in town here, called Cumulus, which looks like a designer version of daycare in the states, where kids just show up throughout the day and participate in whatever programs are offered. Today, Emma and Simone were part of some water themed thing, which somehow involved a boat tour around the town and popsicles. She and her friend were out until about 3 p.m., and came rushing in talking of many cats I had to see.

We wandered around town late in the afternoon and looked in shops, where I found some amazing Turkish boots, which cost 160 euros but are pretty fabulous, and had a lovely conversation with the 17 year old girl running the shop who also works next door at her family's Greek restaurant. She and I bonded over Lily Allen songs and talking about Hollywood's wayward stars. She wanted to know where I was from and I told her deliberately (it's a trick my love and I share) that I was from California, which I had to explain was different from the United States as a whole. It was great because she was super friendly even though I explained that I probably wasn't going to buy the boots at all (cause what is that, like 250 usd? I don't know) just thought they were cool, yet she chatted with me anyway. After that, we got gelato from a little van thing in the square, and listened to a guy play accordion. It really started to feel like Europe today, and I think it was because I finally got out of the house for real and was lucid enough to appreciate it.

When we were done wandering around town, Emma and I went to the store and got the makings for Dutch macaroni and cheese. I studied up on different cheeses this morning to find the best type to use, so then we got that and some penne. I made a salad of cucumbers, peppers and cherry tomatoes with a balsamic vinegar dressing, and I have to say it was an epic mac and cheese, one for the greatest hits food album of my chefness, even though it is such a white trash food. I made it gourmet though, I really did!

Back at home, things seem like they are okay, but tenuous. Andy called to say that he had spent the morning with the family after they arrived at 10 last night. I guess that Daisy the kitten is already in the cabin because Anne Pauline was sneezing, and Tuvik already made the boy cry because she's such a skittish and weird dog and also because the boy was attacked when he was young. I knew the animals would be trouble. We haven't actually heard from the family ourselves so that we could apologize profusely for how lame it is that we have a zoo at our house, which sort of makes me nervous but there is nothing I can do from here.

Tomorrow we go in the Peugeot to the beach to check it out. We have to get up early, so I must try to go to bed. I wonder what tomorrow will bring?