It's A Small World After All

Pascal had an appointment in Toulouse at 4 today. I wasn't going to go with him (1 1/2 hours each way, plus meeting time) but he enticed me with a stop at OFFICE DEPOT. How could a girl refuse a trip down all those aisles of office supplies?!?

We found OD and the shopping began. I did notice my favorite pens (Uniball Vision Elite) so it's good to know that I don't need to lug those back from the States every time. We picked up a two drawer filing cabinet, some hanging file folders, some address labels and some envelopes. Oh-so-exciting, n'est-ce pas? Our office is going to be SO organized.

The meeting last from 4 until almost 6. As we got back on the freeway, we slowed to a crawl. No, slower than a crawl. Rush hour in Toulouse? It makes Seattle's rush hour look like a walk in the park. After a lot of sitting, I begged Pascal to exit the freeway so we could eat and let traffic die down.

With the help of our trusty GPS, Tom Tom, we found the nearest Golden Arches (yes, I saw Super Size Me but it's cheaper and easier since restaurants don't start serving until 8). The only vegetarian choice was a salad with cheese, walnuts, corn and raisins and I supplemented it with a side of fries :)

McDo (Mac-Doh, as the natives call it) is playing Uno right now and patrons collect those pull off pieces to win prizes (one of Pascal's pieces was for a cheeseburger).

A diner near our table noticed that I was throwing my pieces away and asked if she could have them (Pascal was getting said cheeseburger and dessert). I said yes and she asked about my accent. I said I was American and she said from where. Her eyes lit up when I said Seattle and she said really (in English). It turned out she had just gotten back from a lovely visit to Bellevue, where her brother lives. She affirmed what we all know, that Western Washington is beautiful!

After she left, Pascal and I re-hashed last summer's visit to Pau for the Tour de France and how we ended up standing next to two men from PIERCE COUNTY.