visa woes, friends and home improvement

This week hasn't been as fruitful as I had hoped. My first full week home in a while, and my to-do list was long. Appointments every day - both for fun & for business - provide some structure, yet I still find myself just wanting to sit in my comfy blue chair and read another good book (last weekend, I finished "A Thousand Splendid Suns," and "The Memory Keeper's Daughter" is next in line).

Monday, I had lunch with Michael P. I can't believe a month of summer has already gone by, and we hadn't seen each other! Wednesday was the Fourth of July. Ami & Kyle kept with tradition & hosted a cookout before we took the kids to see the fireworks. I've been going to their party on the 4th for years, and will be sad to miss it in 2008. My friend Alison went with me this year, and we both had a great time. Kyle's seventh-grade nephew Matthew is my buddy, and he kept us entertained all evening. The best comment of the evening has to go little Eric. After the fireworks, the kids were eating Fudgesicles (or as Eric calls them, "chopsticks") in the kitchen, and the grown-ups were engaged in conversation. Suddenly, 3-year old Eric attempts small talk and asks, "So, has anybody ever been on a combine?" We laughed & laughed! Apparently, he'd recently visited the area where his grandparents grew up, and his daddy took him on a combine. Pretty exciting stuff for a city kid!

On Thursday, I received another e-mail from Fulbright - problems with our visas, still. Having solved the mystery of the newly-required work permit, they needed me to get three more passport photos and send a copy of my passport. Since my actual passport is still in Houston where it has been since the beginning of June, I was relieved to find a copy of it in my safe. Whew. When I spoke to Christa at Fulbright this afternoon, I learned matters were complicated by a postal strike in France. Ah, I'd forgotten about the frequent strikes and how one must learn to adjust around them. Photos & passport copy are in the mail, and hopefully this will be the last bump in the road for the visa.

Chicago friends Jamie & Irving and their beautiful baby Sam are in town this week, visiting Jamie's family. Michael K. & I were invited for a delicious roast beef & mashed potato dinner last night - one of my favorite meals. Dessert was something I'd never had in all of the 20 years that Jamie & I have been friends ... "Lake Cake." Probably one of the best chocolate cakes I've ever had. In this heat, I'm so thankful I didn't have to go all the way to their old lake cabin for a taste of this new favorite dessert. And I'm not even a great fan of the chocolate cake. Well done, Franci!

Today was a combination of home improvements and pampering. When I got up, I finished installing shelves in the antique armoire I bought a few months ago. This is the new kitchen pantry - I'm in the process of relocating the canned goods from the coat closet in the living room, where I've been keeping my groceries for the past 10 years. I also got to redeem the gift certificate for a facial & massage that the Class of 2011 gave me at the end of the year. I might be hooked, especially on the facial. What a treat! Tomorrow is more home improvements - Kyle is coming over to help me replace the crown molding I took down...oh my...three years ago. He commented on my whirlwind of home improvement projects lately... I explained that I want the house to look good for Nathalie, but also that I want things to be finished so that when I come home at the end of next summer, I won't have to do much. Ten years I've been in this house, and the projects are ongoing! I can hear my father's voice echoing in the back of my mind..."Welcome to the wonderful world of home ownership!"