Deux-mille dix: la revue

"Joyeuse nouvelle année et bonne santé!" (joy-eus new-vell an-ay eh bone sahn-tay: Happy New Year and good health!)...this seems to be the mantra around France for the entire month of January.  Practically no one in France wished me a merry Christmas, but even strangers have gone out of their way here to wish me good health, even though I'm pretty sure deep-down they couldn't care less if I tripped over and fell right in front of their faces (in fact, I've done that numerous times since the snow started in Grenoble).  The French are simply more excited about new beginnings than they are about waiting for a fat red man to climb in through the window (Santa Claus doesn't come down the chimney in France because, of course, some apartments don't have chimneys and that wouldn't be fair, would it?).

Well, just barely a week into my own deux-mille dix (doo meel dees: 2010) and already I've witnessed beautiful beginnings and heartbreaking ends.    I spent the entire two weeks of les vacances de Noël (lez vay-kans duh no-elle: Christmas vacation) with one of my favorite families in the world, saw my sister for the first time in months, got another surprise visit from my boyfriend, welcomed my beautiful niece, Sedona, into the world on New Year's Day, and said goodbye to two of the most loving (and loved) dogs in the entire world: Oenghus and Mab. 

According to the Chinese, 2010 is the year of the Tiger, which is a year of bravery, courage, and vivacous honesty.  Well, to be honest then, judging by this roller coaster leading into 2010 I'm a little worried about what that might mean for me personally.  But Tigers supposedly always land on their feet. I'm hoping I will too.  In the meantime, I'm anxious to discover all the trouble I might get myself into this year...