Graduation, etc.

It's official ladies and gents, I am a college graduate. My degrees are in Film Studies and Global Communications. I didn't know this before I got to the ceremony, but I got university and departmental honors. For both my degrees! Bragging officially over. 

This is of course the reason for my extended absence. My good friend arrived on Friday to stay with me, and my mother arrived on Saturday to do the same. Since then, there's been the pre-graduation picnic (strawberries and champagne on the Champs de Mars!), the ceremony, the reception (hence the picture and yes, more champagne) and the post-grad gala which was an absolute blast. I wish all my weekends could be as heavenly. 

My friend left on Tuesday but my mother and I are staying until Monday. I am moving back to the States. On Monday. I will no longer live in France...ugh, this is madness! 

I promise my next post will be more coherent. I hope all is well with everyone, I have a lot of catching up to do on your blogs!

Alphabet Photos: Miscellany

Today, while wasting time before my mom arrived in Paris (more on that later), I walked around the Concorde area with a couple of my friends, café hopping, talking up a storm, and taking more alphabet photos. I'm almost embarrassed to say that a lot of conversations were cut short like this: 

Jillian: Yeah, that's really interest---hey that looks like an "O"! 

Followed by me whipping out the camera. To my surprise (and happiness) they told me this wasn't in the least bit annoying, and even helped me find some really good subjects for shots. I'm now attempting to get the whole alphabet before I leave. Here are U, V, and W, respectively. "V" was taken in the Carrousel du Louvre.  

Photo Fun: The Results!

I started my morning off by listening to "Lucky" by Jason Mraz, and moseyed on over to the Eiffel Tower to take the "A" letter shot. I found some other cool "letters" around the way, including "P" and "Y" but those weren't helpful for this project. (Remember, I'm trying to spell out my boyfriend's name, James -- see last post). In any case, I then took a bus up to the 18th arrondissement and spent about three hours walking around taking photos. Here are the ones I have so far with his name, I'm not too crazy about my "M," and the "S" was a total cop-out. I've got about a week left to finish up! I love my "J" though -- if you look closely you can see my reflection. I was walking down some random street thinking to myself, "Ugh, where am I going to find a 'J'?" I turned around and there it was! 

Admittedly, I am not a very good photographer, more of a point and click kind of girl. But I think they turned out alright -- and they look a lot more impressive side by side, trust me! 

Plan for the Day: Photo Fun

Last semester, my friend Melissa was taking a photography class. For that class, she completed a final project of her choosing. She chose to go around the city, taking pictures of "letters" she found around Paris. I've decided to brazenly copy that idea and make a gift for James. Despite the fact that he's aware I have a blog, I'm pretty sure he doesn't read it. If he does, HI JAMES -- close this window now!

You didn't close it, did you. Ah well. It doesn't have to be a surprise. I just hope it works out!

Now that that's out of the way, here's my idea -- I'm going to spend the day looking for objects that spell out his name, like the pictures above. (The "A" is going to be the Eiffel Tower...obviously!) I love being in Paris when I'm not in school -- I have so much time to do fun things!

Pet Names (Part Deux): Hi, My Name is Poodle Pants

A couple days ago I discussed pet names that couples have for one another. Well, my mother just sent James a message on Facebook (tangent: isn't it kind of scary to have tech savvy parents?) that read: 

"You probably know that I'm leaving Friday for Paris. Can't wait to see my Precious Poodle Pants! Just wanted to say hi and it will be nice to see you around again. Hope all is well with you." [Emphasis added].

Yes, I am Poodle Pants. Clearly, this was done in a bid to embarrass me, but I'm beyond that. I think it's hilarious. But it brings up an interesting question. 

Your parents probably spent hours agonizing over the perfect name for you. But, if they're anything like mine, they rarely call you by it (save times when they're angry. Then it's Jillian Marie...!). Why is that? The world may never know. 

My dad is actually the one who usually calls me Poodle. My dear mother's nickname for me? Mildred, sometimes shortened to Millie. Why? No one knows, not even her. It's been going on so long that I respond to that just as quickly as I respond to Jillian. Kinda funny, huh. 

Alright, moment of truth. What nicknames do your parents have for you? (Come on, even the embarrassing ones). Any interesting stories there?