30. Paul: What is it you really like to do? Julia: EAT.

(i think this may be my most significant post to date...)

France is calling my name.

BUT, before I begin typing ferociously about my most recent thoughts, I'd like to welcome any new readers, as there just might be a few. :P (if you could hear me, i'd be singing that welcome song from "She's The Man")

So what happened last night? A GREAT thing happened last night: I went to see Julie&Julia all on my own with my favourite sweater, these incredible "dream sole" socks & an entire snuck-into-the-theatre bakery bag of scones. shhhhhhhhhhhhhh...And I don't even like scones. In fact, I could almost say that I dislike scones (saying that i hate scones is a no-no, out of respect for food) but I just couldn't fathom having no food in my possession, as is usually the case with me.

Food gets me into a lot of trouble.

If I'm tardy, you can bet I was grabbing a bite to eat. If the kitchen's a mess, you can bet I was making a bite to eat. And then there's the The House Rule...

The house rule I've the most frequently broken (i'd say an average of 8 times a day, if my mom's not home...sry mom, if you're reading this...ugh...i'm in trouble now, aren't i?) is called "Eating Outside of the Kitchen". It's one of the biggest faults one can make in our household. I confess that I don't exactly put my best effort into breaking the "bad" habit but everything about the Rule disappears the second my mom walks out the door, even though I acknowledge the $5 penalty, which is assigned for every time I'm caught. My mom is kind so a lot of the times, I don't have to pay but technically, I owe her about $200, & that's not counting all the times I'm not caught. (i break the rule so frequently that the fine was raised from $2 to $5 last year. but i don't care. food is worth the fine.)

Here's my weird association: if I'm doing something that involves thinking, I need food. Homework? I need food. Computer? Let's bring some food! Reading? Where's the food? Cooking? Yum. (an empty plate sits in front of me right now with the crumbs of what used to be whole wheat toast w/ butter. & after watching Julia, you can imagine just how much butter i slathered on there)

Call it a big appetite, call it an obsession or call it a passion. Call it what you like. The point is that I know what I really like to do.

EAT.

So this morning I woke up because the very loud AFS in my head woke me up. I couldn't get France out of my head nor could I stop thinking about Julie&Julia. In all honesty, it's not a film I recommend to anyone unless they have the interest. The movie's exactly what they say it is. I swear, you could watch the trailer & you'd have watched the movie. It's basically two stories: how Julia Child became what she became & how Julia Powell turned her life around by blogging about cooking all of Julia's 524 recipes in 365 days. Some of my favourite actors too but that's besides the point.

Remember a few posts back I complained about how I needed time to think & be alone? Haaaaaaaallelujah! That happened last night. I was alone (all the ppl that filled up my entire aisle & the rest of the theatre don't count cause I don't know them :P) & I got to watch 100min. of film that very likely encompassed the year I'm heading into in...22 days!

Obviously, I'm not going to the Cordon Bleu but, believe it or not, there WILL be ACTUAL French food waiting for me! OMG isn't that exciting?! (i stayed up 'til 4:30 last night packing after getting back from the movie at midnight, if that says anything...) I want to sit in a French restaurant, order off a French menu, be served by a French waiter & eat French food. Now that would be my ultimate French experience. & I expect there to be lots of butter. Oh la la...

Other elements I took from the movie: Julia's true passion for food. Julia in France. Julia eating & eating & eating. (i've never seen so much food in one movie!) Julia's personality. Julia's incredible attitude. Julie's drive. Julie's obstacles. Julie's goal. Julie's one year. Julie's blog.

Similarities, non?

THAT'S why I watched the movie.

& I'm not kidding. Opening scene, when they're presenting the setting of France w/ all the old buildings, I cried. I sat there like a dufus (with my hood on) & shed tears at the BEGINNING of a movie. Before the dialogue even started. Yeesh. But it's cause I couldn't believe I'm actually going. Physically. I'm going to be physically there. In France. I couldn't believe it.

& I still can't.

time to take pics of furniture for sale on the net,

<3

[bt]

p.s. Disappointment: Julie Powell's one-year blog has been removed from the public...copyright issues?

p.p.s. Here's a shout out to Hotel Combined, a price comparison system for travel accommodation. Check them out if you're looking to travel! Don't laugh. This is not random. Hotel Combined is helping me out in my fund raising!!! Go Hotel Combined!!! www.hotelscombined.com

p.p.p.s. by now, i'm eating prunes. :)