the unreal life

we've been very nice last night.
We've spent the evening with our neighbours, and we've been really really nice.
We've actually listened to all the stupid things they said, and kept smiling the whole time.
We actually convinced our neighbour that we believed him when he was boasting about his professionnal achievement (yes, sure) and let nothing out but admirative comments when he started explaining that is son, who sells cars but is bored with his job, would become a forensics investigator in a few months, because he has recently discovered that he would like it.
Gosh, why are some people unable to make the difference between their own life and TV series?
Anyway, we spent the whole evening nodding patiently, and smiling, and we didn't make fun of them. Not until they went home, at least.
Well, I feel guilty now, we shouldn't laugh at them too much. I mean, they're very nice, even if they lack education and, let's be honest, brains. After all, it's not really their fault, is it?
And it was kind of moving to watch them unwrap the presents we had bought them (they took care of our cat and goldfish for 3 weeks, it was rather ungrateful to make fun of them after they left). The poor man had tears in his eyes when he saw the little american flag we had bought him, and he wouldn't stop hugging us. And neither would his wife, who was extatic when she discovered her present : an alarm clock shaped like a juke box, with a choice of four country songs to use as an alarm. She wouldn't stop thanking us. We just knew they would love it!
But I'm already worrying about their next vacation.
They'll be gone in 2 days, and I'll be taking care of their dog, so they'll probably have a present for us when they come back.
Let's hope it won't be as ugly as last time. If only they could think about a bottle of wine, it would be so great. And I wouldn't have to take it out of the drawer when we invite them for a drink, unlike their last present : an ugly, brightly colored bust of nefertiti or cleopatra, which is extremely solid : I tried dropping it on the ground a couple times, but it won't break, even the painting doesn't chip.
And we can't throw it away until at least 6 months, it would be rude, they have to see it in our living room a couple times before we put it in the trash
Oh please, let the next present be a bottle of wine, pleeeeeeeeeeaaaaaase!

back home

Ok, so I'm back home, vacation is over, and it feels as if it was far away already...
Well, it figures, it took us long enough to come back to france. 2 days, as a matter of fact.
as if the flight wasn't long enough already, we had to stay in Detroit for 24 hours, because there was something wrong with the plane. Jeez, it's an airport, couldn't they find us another plane?
If we had to stay in the US 24 hours more, why couldn't it have been in Portland instead? We wouldn't have minded an extra day of vacation there! But what's the fun in spending 24 hours at the Detroit airport? Well, we did spend most of that time at Hilton Gardens, and everything was paid for, but still, it was no fun. I have to admit that NWA took care of everything for us, but well, I can't believe they spent $215 for each room ; we must have been at least 400 people on that flight! What a waste of money! Well, if they had so much money to waste, they could have given us the money , or even a bit less, I'm sure we would have found something, and we wouldn't have minded paying for a cab if it meant that we could keep what we didn't spend...
I mean, who needs a pool, a spa and a fitness center in one's hotel, when you're only going to spend one night there ( and the pool and spa are closed at night, anyway)? Especially when your swimming suit is in you suitcase, and the suitcase in a warehouse somewhere at the airport!
We didn't even have a toothbrush, toothpaste, or clean underwear!
So anyway, after 40 hours or so, we finally got to paris 24 hours ago (and late, again, my cousin had been waiting for us for 3 hours by the time we finally got our suitcases and went through the customs) and we've pretty much been sleeping ever since...
I guess we'll need a little time to adjust, but right now being here in France doesn't feel completely right : cars are too small, houses don't have front porches, we can't go for pancakes at midnight, and worst of all, people understand what we say, there's no way we can comment on them!
How terrible!