Today would have been a good day to be in Ireland. Dang. Ah well. Happy St. Patty's Day to all my Irish.
I have been cooped up in my house studying to my mid-term exam in my Abnormal & Clinical Psych course. I'm a bit overwhelmed by all the material. But mostly, it's just made me wish I was a full time student, and that I had the funds to go sit at a cafe, at a table in the sun, rather than in my apt. But I have faith that that day will come... I just hope it comes soon.
Tonight I will recount for you the very not-so-brief Tale of Two Arches, having nothing to do with my studies except in that you should understand that I am home A LOT reading reading reading, and that I was thrilled for the excuse to do myself up and go out.
At some point in the course of my apartment hunting I contacted an Italian man named Antonio. Antonio was, like me, searching for a place to live. I believe that at that point I had made the suggestion that we might fare better if we looked together for a two bedroom rather than each just looking for an open room, as the options for the latter were looking grave from my perspective. Clearly that didn't happen.
Time passed and at some point I got a message from Antonio, who was still searching, inquiring to my status on the housing front. I had found a place, but offered to meet for coffee and impart upon this random man all the knowledge I had gained in my apartment hunting experiences here in Paris.
Somehow we failed to follow through on that as well.
Then one day a few weeks ago, actually, just before I left for Italy, I got another message from him announcing that he had finally found a place to live. Hooray! We decided that after all this, and as we are both strangers in a strange land (ok, France is not so strange, but still...), we should still meet up. I learned that he is from outside of Rome and we decided that after I returned from my trip to Rome we would get together.
Well, this week we finally managed to make a plan. We set the date: Tuesday (tonight). 9:30pm. We would meet near the architecture firm he works at, a few stops on the metro from where I live. He would bring the wine. I would bring the glasses. It was a perfectly hatched totally French (in my mind) utterly random rendezvous. We planned to meet "at the arche in the square". (The Parisians must love their Arches. These things are everywhere.)
I was, true to form, running late. I arrived at the station, exited by the first exit I saw (the stations typically have several), and found myself standing on the street looking for "the Arche".
Aha! There it is!
I very nearly RAN to it, scanning every person in a black jacket that I see in its vacinity. Are any of them carrying a bottle of wine? any of them checking their watches? phones? I have no idea what the man I am looking for looks like. It could be anybody.
It's 9:50. I stand at the arche and wait. I walk around it a few times, just in case he's on the other side. No luck. it's 10pm. It's looking a bit sketchy around the arche. I have no credit on my phone and can't call him. According to the email I received in the afternoon, he is in the same situation. I see pay phones across the street. I run over to try to use one. But they accept only calling cards. I have only cash.
It's 10:15 and I am looking down the street. I suddenly notice that there is what appears to be either a fountain or another arche a few blocks away! Oh crap! It's another arche! I quickly walked the few blocks to the other arche, nearly tripping over some guy who jumps in my path and tries to get me to stop and chat. I arrive at the other arche and there is simply nobody there. I walk around it a few times. I look and look, and wait. That guy I tripped over earlier walks up to me and tries to pick me up. Sorry kid. Not a chance.
At 10:30 I decide that Antonio and I have fully missed each other, or I've been stood up. I head home.
I arrive home feeling frustrated, a bit annoyed, and disappointed. I check my email to find a message from him telling me that he waited until 9:50 and then went home, frustrated and disappointed.
He had been standing all that time at the "other" arche.
It was a perfectly hatched, totally French, completely random rendezvous utterly foiled by "the other arche".
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