Blog Challenge: Day 20

We are back to the regular routine of doing the blog challenge! :) Today I am supposed to post 5 things that I like and 5 things I don't like; however I find that boring. So we are changing the question a bit to best suit the style of my blog.. haha.. abroad-ness. Yes, I just made that word up like I have been making many of them up. My friends and I speak a mixture of franglais [french/english] or franish [french/spanish] I don't believe people will understand much about what Im talking about when I go back to the states. Its ok. 

Well, anyway back to the 'Challenge!!!' 

To change the question up.. I will tell you 5 things I miss about the US of A and 5 things I am not looking forward to going back to. [This post will not include people and such...]

Misses::

[One] - Refills! I miss going to a restaurant and having as many refills as you want. You dont get that here. You get a 6 oz. cup and that's it. Now, you get refills on water, but not on the other goods!

[Two] - I miss my busyness. I have loved relaxing, and it feels amazing after 4 years of breaking my back. But I wish I had a bit more of an 'Agenda' oriented lifestyle. But I know that, that will be happening soon enough so I should just enjoy this 'Agenda-free' lifestyle I have now.  

[Three] - La Perla! The best mexican food that I can find in Oklahoma! I miss those gorditas, tacos, barbacoa, etc. I miss the home-made green salsa with the Mexican coke! [This is the first place I'm going to go eat when I get back to OKC]

[Four] - Reading the Gazette! I loved sitting in a café with Breah and reading the Gazette and doing the New York Times crosswords. I can't wait to read this paper again and do crosswords in a café once more. [Cross words in a mother tongue about a culture I know pretty well, or at least a lot better than this culture.] 

[Five] - The sunsets. I'm not going to lie. Oklahoma has some of the most beautiful sunsets I've ever seen. I love being able to see so many tones of oranges, reds, yellows, blues in the sky all at the same time. It is blinding and enchanting. 

Not looking forward to::

[One] - Having to drive a car everywhere. I love walking around with my groceries [sure, sometimes it is a pain] I love people watching. I like that it gives me time to think and fully give my attention to my thoughts where as driving doesn't really let you loose yourself so completely in your thoughts. 

[Two] - The awful food! I'm definitely going to miss the amazing food that surrounds me everyday. From the simple baguette that everybody carries under their arm to the Veal Kidneys I had the other night [which were AMAZING!]

[Three] - My creative spark dying. Living in Oklahoma withered my creative side. My pictures never really were great there [partly because of lack of interesting subjets from my point of view.] It had been years since I picked up a paint brush.... I woke up this morning to blotches of turquoise and red paint on my arms... I missed that. I love how creative I've been in France and how it has sparked my interest in Art once again. I hope I don't loose that when I go back to Oklahoma.

[Four] - I'm going to miss walking up the steps to my residency and from the window of the stairs I can see the Breath taking Cathedral. I'm going to miss that view. It's like whenever I'm not having a good day, I walk up those few steps and see that and am just in awe... it makes me feel so much better and reminds me to take advantage of my opportunity here.

[Five] - My snail mail. I have loved being pen pals. I know I will have pen pals when I go back with the friends I have met here. But I just know that I am going to miss those afternoons I've spent sitting at my desk, looking out the window writing my letters and decorating them to all my cherished friends. 

[Six] - I'm gonna miss my café. Au Lutetia. 

naoma*