N is for north carolina! (and for missing summer)

N was originally meant to be for nutella... but i'm trying to quit. instead, i offer a couple of photos from our weekend in north carolina this summer. we had a wonderful time - ate barbecue, went hiking, watched some old friends get married. we even had a back-waters "we look like city folk, we'll never make it out of here" moment driving through south carolina on our way back to atlanta (so embarrassing - there was a local parked on a motorbike in front of a closed gas station... we asked directions... he spooked us... i'm pretty sure i heard our tires squeal as we burned out of there. so embarrassing, yes, but have you seen deliverance??)

the one patch of blue sky i think we got all weekend

knox takes the camera, undoubtedly inspired by caspar david friedrich

pre-wedding hike

the beginnings of a blue ridge fall?

i want that truck. more importantly, i want the barbecued pork sandwich i was eating when i saw that truck.

bienvenue bob!

well, after two years of hemming and hawing, knox and i finally bit the bullet and packed bob up to bring him to france. got his shots and kitty valium, had a chip installed in his neck, filled out all the necessary american and french paperwork... knox said no one even glanced his direction as he carried bob through french customs. just goes to show you...

anyway, bob is here... and we no longer sleep through the night. he still likes banging on our doors at 4am and is still smitten by the sound of "twinkle twinkle little star" - these are constants. he has also - unexpectedly - taken to hanging out on the modem and has discovered a real taste for rabbit... i wish we had leash trained him so that i could take him for walks... but that's not going to happen. i've got a new camera these days, and so far, he tolerates it. so, instead of playing outside, we sit for lots of photo shoots. i imagine this won't last.

we don't normally let him on the table during meal time... the rest of the day is free game. it's a cat - what can you do?

his favorite spot - the lap.

who am i?

where am i?

transatlantic travel is exhausting.

M is for maxi, mitterand, and mariage frères

knox and i have been back in paris now for about a month. in that time, i've spent countless hours in front of my computer, tweaking job applications and hoping that the job fairies grant my employment wishes (otherwise i'm moving in with the sans papiers commune living up in the 18th, and you may never hear from me again). i just recently finished and headed back to the library, where now i sit... yes, in front of my computer... trying desperately to get going on chapter 3 of the dissertation (this thing isn't going to write itself, people, and since i've now told everyone in academia that i plan to file by the end of june, i seriously need to get cracking. ugh.)

anyway, i was pretty excited about getting out of the house and my pajamas, and since friday was supposed to a nice day, i decided to wear my favorite summer dress one last time (it was POURING rain by the time i left the library, much to my dismay). and though this M is really for moi, for finally getting back to it, i dedicate it to three essential components of my first day back on the job: my maxi dress, Mitterand's national library, and mariage frères green tea.

voici le maxi - a pretty little number i picked up during the sales this year. and look, i'm wearing sandals too! silly girl...

voici mitterand - the tolbiac site of the national library was president françois mitterand's contribution to the french patrimony.

it's a must for fans of modernist architecture

voici my mariage frères tea break. japonese green tea flavored with red fruits. it's my new favorite thing about life.