A cheeseburger, fries and a fork s'il vous plait

I know you're thinking that I shouldn't be eating a cheeseburger in Paris, but the name of the place was Charley Buns and it advertised "French Burgers".  There was no English on the menu and not a tourist in sight.  I think it's safe to say that I was surrounded by Parisians eating burgers.  The only difference was that they didn't eat them with their hands.  EVERYONE (including me and Lance) ate them with a knife and fork.  So, the only real way to tell that we didn't belong was that we still don't have the hang of the ol' eating with the fork in your left hand and never setting your silverware down thing.  I have a bit more time to accomplish that but it feels so unnatural that I'm sure everyone can tell I'm a novice.

The only problem with noticing tonight that no one ate with their hands is that two weeks ago when I took a student out for dinner I was so happy to be out with him that I didn't notice until about my last three bites with ketchup dripping down my fingers that he was using his silverware.  Maybe I should send him a quick note to apologize.  There I sat asking how the line in the grocery store worked because it seemed like everyone waited in one zone until they were called up and I think I'd been cutting in line. Then I asked if it was okay to jaywalk at 2 a.m. because it seemed like everyone patiently waited for every light when there were no cars in sight.  And then I asked if anyone in Paris ever left a voicemail because it seemed like they all either text or call and hang up.  And after a question like, "Do I have to wait to be seated in all restaurants?" it seems like he wouldn't have been too shy to tell me that I really shouldn't eat a burger with my hands.

And there's one more thing about the bizarre Parisian burger.  We all know that bread is a big part of the daily life here.  I can't imagine that one diet book on the South Beach Diet ever left a bookshelf.  In fact, I would find it hard to believe that a bookseller would ever even stock the book.  "Give us this day our daily bread" is a famous French quote, isn't it? And I think the phrase used to conclude with "...and then some."  It's everywhere.  They're all making it.  They're all carrying it down the street.  They're all eating it.  I can see three boulangerie  (I don't know how to make that plural in French) from my window and all of my neighbors have a different vote for the best one.  Anyway, the point is, they love their bread.  So, a couple of the other times that I've ordered a burger (it's true, tonight wasn't the first time) the waiter was polite enough to remind me that normally a burger in France is served without a bun!  Maybe that explains the name of tonight's restaurant.  Charley Buns.  This keeps the waiters from having to remind all of the customers that their burger will actually come with a bun.