Saturday, February 13, 2010

A hard-earned win

It was a tough competition, but I finally prevailed. This test of wills was legendary; two committed foes convincing themselves that a tiny chip of soap no bigger than a finger nail was sufficient for cleaning. At times the drama was tense. Who would blink? Would the soap chip dissolve at last? Would it go down the drain if dropped? The stakes were substantial; the loser, broken of spirit and faced with the prospect of a rinse instead of a proper shower, would be forced to take a new bar of soap from under the sink, remove it from its box and place it in the soap dish.

Like anything in life, the worthwhile things are not easy. While proud of my accomplishment, I am humbled too by the tenacity of my foe. She didn't back down. She just could no longer see the soap, it was so small and thin.

And now, I am off to take my own shower, blessed with an almost impossibly large brick of soap with which to clean. And the next Battle of the Soap Bar begins.

Friday, January 1, 2010

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year from the Monkeys in Paris!  Unfortunately we have no pictures to share of the Continent ringing it in;  it was foggy and damp here in Paris and there weren't any fireworks to dazzle us.  

In 2009 we took a few minor scrapes (broken collarbone, pneumonia), lost some family and friends (June, Terri, Dylan), and missed the rest of our family and friends because of the distance.  But on the whole, living in our little bubble in the City of Light, it was a good year. We are lucky. The economy has not been friendly to many of our relatives and friends back home and the world continues to prove it is a dangerous place. The Monkeys can only hope that we've turned the corner and 2010 is a great year for everyone.  We will certainly do all we can to make it a fantastic year!