After today I am at a loss for words with many things. I frankly just don’t know what to think or feel about hobos anymore. I’ve had good experiences, I’ve had bad experiences, but all in all the experiences have been more eye-opening than anything. Hobos are in every major city, and even in smaller towns. A hobo, by unofficial definition (at least for me) is someone who wanders or lives on the street and dresses (generally) poorly, and begs for money or food. There is a fine line between a beggar and a hobo, but I don’t really want to get into a debate about it all at this point in my life.
Anyways, the day started at 06.00 becasue I had to get an early start on doing the laundry. I was surprised to find out that people were doing laundry before me. What are they crazy? I thought I was crazy waking up at that hour when the garbage men aren’t even out, but especially on a Friday when all French students go home to their parent’s house, and I would assume could take their laundry home with them. Apparently I’m wrong, but no matter, I was able to purchase a ticket for 4 bloody much money! The woman was in a bitchy mood as always, but I think I made he smile when I couldn’t figure out how to start the machine. I had to ask her to help and after a huge sigh like it was the end of the world to get off her fat ass, she said “Ugh, Je viens” and then came and showed me. So I went back to bed and set the timer on my mobile so that I could wake up, and then Í ran down to put into the dryer which was a bit more straight forward. but by this time we were getting close to my 10.30 class, so I was panicing. Eventually I took it out at about 20 past 10.00 and threw it in my room and ran to class (and was still late).
Class was interesting as we had oral presentations, and I was clearly the best as most people can’t even pronouce the words. I wish I could be moved up in a group or something, but at the same time I like the people in my group as they are really funny, and generally really nice. I got to pretend that I was some Swiss Francophone guy named Nils who is torn between being French speaking, living in Alcase where they only speak German. It was interesting, but my masculine / feminine forms was the only problem, Alain (my teacher) told me. I don’t understand why he insists we call him Alain, but still insists on vous-voyezing each other for ‘practice.’ I don’t need practice for that as I’m always vous-voyezing everyone anyways, so it’s just the rest of the world that’s screwed up. Anyways, he’s really just like a student who speaks French really well, but he’s been wearing the same outfit all week, which is a bit weird, but who notices besides me?!
After that, Ginette and I went to the bank to hand in some papers, and we were supersurprised when we found that Jeremy had left us some messages to come in at a specific time. So we went, and then eventually after some time I had to go back becasue Delores forgot to photocopy my passport, or there was something missing on the passport or something. I just let her do her stuff and then left, after saying hello to the others. I’m becoming a regular, but all this is going on while I am struggling with French in the bank, and I am sick of walking so damned far to the bloody bank.
All the while Ginette was nagging me about whether or not I was coming to Switzerland with her and the UK students. I was very reluctant becasue I would have to purchased the following:
50 – Carte 12/25
60 – Return ticket to Lauserne
60 – Hostels for the weekend
(–) – Food and else
Total: Too many , so not worth it.
So I didn’t go, and she seemed pissed, and in a way I was too, but we will work on that, and see who I can hang out with this weekend. After I got home and took a little break from walking around, I ate a bit, and then sent an SMS to Nic to see if he wanted to go for a run. After I layed down and cuddled with the oversized whale for awhile, I got a call back and he said he was coming outside my door and that I should get my running gear on. this 5 mins from walking across the street turned into 20mins becasue he couldn’t find my room (just like everyone else damnit). He just came back from swimming, so we walked over to his host family’s apartment and we ran into his host mother and her ‘boyfriend’ Wolfgang. She’s really supernice and was happy to meet me, and to hear that he was going for a run with someone as opposed to alone as he seems to always be (according to her). Her apartment is freaking huge and it’s really nice, including Nic’s room, which has about 1000 DVDs, which made me drool a bit. And that wasn’t the only thing that made me drool, but we won’t get into that!
So he decided to go running without a shirt since he couldn’t find it, but frankly I think he was just full of shit and is truley a nudist, or is just trying to seduce me, either way it isn’t taking much! So we went running and halfway through our 6km we stopped at a stop light and a guy in a car kept yelling at us, and I couldn’t understand what he said until he said “Ta chemise, il est interdit” and I finally clued in that he wasn’t yelling at me, but Nic. Apparently in France it’s illegial by law to not wear a shirt in public. No when he found that it’s also illegial to not wear a Speedo in public pools, he freaked out. I would too, first they are upset about overexposure, but then they demand it? What’s the deal with that? Anyways, we ran through the park in fear that we would get arrested, but the whole time I was just trying to focus on where I was putting my feet, for obvious reasons which I’m not going to describe right now :).
Here comes the part about hobos; as we were running under a bridge, we saw a little camp of hobos who seemed to be having a good time. We slowed down to make sure we didn’t get in the way, and then they made a little path for us, and we pardoned ourself and appologized a million times, but then they got up and tried to chase us. I was scared shitless, casue like what if they had weapons or something and they caught me and like raped me or something. Anwyays we ran away and from that point forward I was scared shitless. Eventually after a killer run, I got home and had a shower and decided to go to dinner with Crystal. The shower was amazing (and cold!) and I was just in a confused mood, so I went out to dinner with her, and then there was the normal hobo there eating food off people’s used plates. He was walking around talking to students which sketched me out, and I was afraid he would attack us. I was actually getting paranoid because I’m a a very paranoid person, so I hurried out of the diner and ran back to my residence after passing what looked to be a 13 year old hooker. I could be wrong, and she was just a really slutty girl, but we will never know!
As for the weekend, I’m alone most likely and I’m going to try to either borrow some DVDs from Nic or go and watch a film with him becasue he feels sorry for me being ditched for Switzerland (how nice of him). So from now to about 00.00 I will do homework and sleep and hopefully have enough energy to go to Kehl tomorrow to do some grocery shopping which is much needed. Go team everything!
PS: Dammmmmmmmmn, if you know what I mean.. *blush*