Losing something two days in a row? Now that's a different story.

It's true.  Not only did I lose another earring, but I lost my cool.  Where did it go?  I really meant what I wrote last night.  What happened?

It was a beautiful, sunny morning.  Well, not morning really, because the morning here is actually totally dark. It's bizarre.  Maybe I don't remember life in Chicago, but is it still dark at 8:15 a.m?  I don't think so.  So, it was a beautiful, sunny LATE morning.   I'd been enjoying myself in the cafe next door to my apartment.  (I mentioned the place once.  It's where I cheated on Quirky Girl.)  The owner's name is Olivier.  Shouldn't every cafe owner in Paris be named Olivier?  He's incredibly patient with my French and even though he speaks some English, he's very passionate about me learning to speak French.  The two others in the cafe this morning?  Not quite as patient or passionate.  But that's okay!  I spoke French with Olivier, Spanish with Angelito and Italian with ????  I don't think I know his name.  He's there almost every morning and we speak Italian when we want to tease Olivier.  I'd remember his name if it was some great Italian name, but he's Moroccan.  (I think.)  Here's the deal.  Lots of Italian restaurants in Paris hire Moroccans.  They look Italian, they learn to speak a little Italian, and voila, you've got the ambiance of an Italian restaurant in Paris and no one has any idea.  (Except me, now.  And you.)

So, I finished my language lessons at the cafe (let's face it....my Italian and Spanish aren't that great either) and headed off on my bike to school.  I saw an interesting shop and decided to check it out.  It's a studio that this girl opened  five months ago.  She has lots of random supplies and people come use her space and her supplies to CREATE.  Brilliant idea!  She also sells stuff.  Stuff like earrings.  And I decided I needed stuff.  Stuff like earrings.  So, at 11:54 a.m. I bought two pairs of earrings.  (Made out of recycled materials.  Hmmm...)  I love them.

I'm a girl, so as soon as I got to school I put a pair on.  And, I'm not a girl, because I don't hesitate to ride my bike when it's freezing.  So, at 6:45 p.m. I bundled up with extra sweaters and scarves, and headed home.  Don't ask me why I decided to check my ears when I got a block away from school, but I did.  And, what do you know?  I'd lost an earring.  Panic.  Searching.  Frustration.  More panic.  More searching.  I stripped down on the street to see if it got stuck in something when I'd bundled up.  Nope.  I went back to school to see if it fell off there as I was bundling.  Not there either.  So, I started searching for the calm, cool girl that sent the blog about freedom last night.  If I couldn't find the earring, I'd hoped I could find her.  I bundled back up, headed back out and tried to think about freedom (with a constant eye on the pavement as I pedaled).  And what do you know?  Just as I was chilling out, laughing a little and tyring to decide if I could somehow add the pendant of this new misfit to the hoop of the other one, I saw it in the street!

I'm still trying to figure out what kind of lesson I've learned from this one.  Don't buy anymore earrings?!  I don't think that's it.  (But, who really needs more earrings?)  And now I'm thinking of some quote that I have no idea where it came from.....maybe one of those Flavia cards from the 80's?  Anyway, it's something like, "If you lose something, let it go.  If it comes back, it yours to keep.  If it doesn't, it never was."  Well, at least that's what I thought it said.  Until I googled it a second ago.  It really says "If you LOVE something...."   Grazie, Flavia (or whoever said it), but I kind of like my version.