Marco!

Polo! I think "Polo" every time I hear someone call Marco's name. It's so tempting to say it, but no one here would know what I'm talking about...not that that's stopped me before.

Today was a day of great success. Here's why:

• Something clicked between yesterday and today, and I had much better luck making subtitles. Yay! Or as Jules writes in French, Yé!
• Marco's a guy I met my first week here. At that point, I could not understand him at all. Seriously. I saw him again for the first time today, and without missing a beat, we had an entire conversation in his funky dialect of French. We talked for an hour about traveling, politics, and all sorts of things. I am so proud of myself. Again, yé! (Can you tell I like "yé?" It amuses me.)
• Anne-Jo, Francois' blonde, really liked the chocolate chip cookies I baked for her last week. So, she sent Francois to work today with an apple "something" for me. I don't have any idea what else was in it, but it was sooooooooooooo good.
  
• My friend Mat (short for Mathieu, of course, but here they drop the extra "t" we use in the States) -- anyway, Mat said I could borrow his book on screenwriting. Why not? It could be a fun hobby. (Funny typo - I just re-read this, and I originally typed "could be a fun jobby." That too.) Borrowing the book came at a high price, however...he said I had to peel potatoes.
  

If you've been following my blog for any period of time, you can understand the decision I made a few weeks ago to never look another potato in the eye. So, he was really asking a lot. I hesitantly agreed, provided that I could eat, and not just peel. We had a really fun evening making and eating a traditional French dinner together (gratin dauphinois). He also taught me more than I ever knew about wine, so that was interesting! Plus, he lives in another area of the city I've been meaning to explore, called Mile End, so now I know how to get there!

It was a thoroughly good day filled with success with my projects, delicious food, and entertaining conversation with good company.

I took tomorrow off work (although I'll miss being not paid...oh, never mind)...and am headed to Quebec city to stay with Fred and Barbie. I'm not taking my laptop, so depending when I decide to come back to Montreal, you have either a one- or two-day reprieve from reading my silly little blog.

A bientôt !