After 5 and a half months of Herculean efforts, all the documents came together just in time for the oldest to not be quite "expired" in the eyes of the French government, for whom no birth certificate is valid beyond 6 months from its date of issue. Several hundred pages (and dollars) (and maybe hours?) later, I've entrusted this baby to the post office and it's literally out of my hands. I've officially (finally!) submitted my request to become a French citizen!
Our forever roommate has finally moved out. After a liberating four weeks of the roommate-free lifestyle, we're just over 24 hours away from the arrival of our next roommate, who's scheduled to live with us for the next twelve or so months. This time around, we're renting it furnished, which gave me a taste of life on the other side: I can now officially say that I've purchased a work of art as a tax write-off. Look at Nico and me living large!
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| The finalists from my Etsy prowl for guest room décor, now all framed and hung with care chez moi. Theme: gently surreal (non-nightmarish). From top left, clockwise: Catfish by Elizabeth Clark (US), The Magic Door by Felix Zilinskas (Spain), Rainy Day Friend by Jamie Shelman (US), and Henry the Horse also by Felix Zilinskas (Spain). Center: Blue Tiger by Gosia Herba (Poland). And get this: Elizabeth Clark's studio is just a ten-minute walk down the street from me! With that pleasant surprise, how could I turn down purchasing the original? |
The weeks of scouring Etsy, Craigslist, and Facebook Marketplace paid off, if I don't say so myself. Ta da!
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| Freshly furnished, our lovely guest bedroom is now slightly more ours! Just one more year until we can really do with it as we please. |
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| Another bathroom, another set of Fragonard Parfumeur wall decorations. 🤩 |
