Gunz Blazing

About to start my first essay in a while. It's 8:30 PM and it's due at 9 AM on the topic of consent from Locke and Rainborough's points of view for my Democratic Theory class. I went to the supermarket to get energy drinks but they didn't have any so I splurged on a 5 euro bottle of wine instead. It will get me through the night.

This isn't a "defeat" post.

It's just an "I need to get my shit together" post. My good luck is starting to run out. On top of that slight scare I had this weekend, the past week or two I have literally missed every metro by a few seconds, and work is really starting to pile up and I'm falling behind. It's that time of year again. So apologies if I don't post often/well, it's probably because I have nothing to post about. Unless you're interested in a log of how many total pages/hours of work I am behind...

My Faith in Humanity

Just took a tumble. I split up from my friends tonight to go home, but realized I didn't know where any of the bus stops were so I ended up walking 45 minutes to an hour in the rain to somewhere I knew. Right before I got there, a 6' 3" guy grabbed my arm and started roughing me up, asking what I was hiding in my jacket and that he'd seen me steal something. What he'd seen me "steal" were my headphones that I was just hiding in my coat because it was raining. But he wouldn't understand it and kept pulling me by the arm until I showed him. So he grabbed the headphones, said he was police, and that he had to take them from me. Then he followed the cord, reached into my pocket and pulled out my iPod. Said he had to take that too. I told him he wasn't a cop and to show me his badge, he told me he would take me to the other cops. I didn't follow him and he kept trying to pull me around. This whole process was about 5 minutes of him pulling me back and forth and me trying to tell him to let me go. But what really pissed me off was that there were about 15 people not even 20 feet away who just stood there and did nothing. I don't understand how that is possible. Tonight I promised if I ever saw anyone doing anything to someone else, I wouldn't just stand there, and I hope no one else does either. It's pathetic if 15 people can't stand up to 1. Eventually, I pushed him back, grabbed my headphones and iPod, told him I was a student without money and he should steal from someone else, that he should go fuck himself(quietly), and walked off. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to take a picture. Made it back safe and sound.

Sorry this post wasn't that funny or entertaining but I'm just too goddamn pissed off right now.

On a lighter note, The Social Network is a de-lightful film. Check it out.

Heightsmen Hotel

Wow. A lot has happened since I posted two weeks ago. So I'm going to skip all of that up until this weekend. To be honest, aside from one night where I flooded my apartment, got pranked on by a French kid, saw 2 people doing something inappropriate in a car, and had an epic bike race against time that went down to the wire, it was pretty boring.

So I am going to skip ahead to this weekend, when I was personally invited to go down and stay in the famous Heightsmen Hotel by its owners/managers Nils and Sophie, free of charge. Situated on the outskirts of Aix-en-Provence, the location boasts a luxurious suite, unparalleled generosity, beautiful views, a range of activities and entertainment, free guided tours, and delightful cuisine, all situated against the backdrop of an artistic and hip city-town. Aix has been described in the following ways:

-artsy fartsy
-posh
-former home of Cezanne, Picasso, Ernest Hemingway, etc.
-the sexiest city in France

It lived up to all of these.

My trip began on Friday, when I was transported first-class direct from Paris to Aix. I was greeted personally by none other than the hotel mogul, Nils. We went to lunch where I had stuffed calamari followed by Cezanne's favorite dessert (still awaiting verification on this).

After this, I was afforded a few hours to discover Aix on my own. I walked down the Cours Mirabeau and I needed a watch so I bought one (yes, that's a price not a phone number):

Other highlights included:

-seeing the cathedral
-buying my cheapest crepe so far at 2 euros
-stopping by a video game store to try out FIFA 11, it sucks, don't buy it, I lost to Paris St. Germain with Barcelona
-teaching a bartender what a white russian is
-comic book store:

The city had tons of fountains too:

Afterwards, we went back to the hotel, where I settled in and met the staff. Dinner was amazing, here are the hosts:

Afterwards we had some storytime. I recommend this book to everybody:

http://www.amazon.com/Story-Little-Mole-Search-Whodunit/dp/1556703481

We ended the night rocking to 80's music and doing what Heightsmen do best. Well, 2 things Heightsmen know best.

Saturday was a great day. After waking up and eating breakfast, I had a jam session with one of the hotel personnel. Look out for this up and coming star:

Then, Nils and I headed deep into the heart of the mountains for a manly mountain biking ride. Well, it was more like one mountain and we kind of just went up to it taking the easiest path, but still. I think it would be fair to say I spent more time on the ground than on the bike. Here is an action video, accompanied with a picture of my battle wounds (not for the faint of heart):

After a quick dip in the pool, we headed into Marseille, land of Chateau d'If and Zidane. I got a glimpse of the first one and didn't see the second at all. We got lunch at a place in Le Panier (more calamari, yeah!) and then drove up to the Notre Dame de Marseille which has a pretty good view of the whole city:

After that we went on an oceanside drive across the city, and then headed to my first authentic French soiree. I ate delicious hors d'oeuvres, drank good wine, and heard a lot of French. We went back and crashed.

Sunday it rained, which afforded me a much needed day of rest (the view was still great). We had smoked lamb for dinner and then watched Be Cool, which I surprisingly enjoyed a lot. That Vince Vaughn is something. After that it was bedtime again. The next morning we got stuck in rare traffic and I missed my train, but the hotel sorted it out with the train station, and after dealing with a couple other demoralizing individuals, I was back en route to Paris. All in all, it was a perfect weekend excursion. Five stars.

Thanks Nils and Sophie!