Livin', Runnin', and Chattin'

Pics: 1: Le'Euro bar 2: Paul, Stephanie, and Seb 3: Chris

Hey guys. Thanks again for the comments guys. I love looking forward to your thoughts, words, and arguements. Tiffany, way to take the reins, Karly, still a good comment, Ev, thanks for all the insights and advice in your emails, Ian and Emily, tell Joey that I am not in 'water' everytime my video comes up on your computer, Joey, I will get some choo choo pics for ya, Mom and Dad, I will have to agree with Alex and Ian on the "accident" theory, kinda like the destruction of the "Fragile" in A Christmas Story. Love you guys and keep 'em comin.

As you might or might not know, my Mondays and Tuesdays are my off days. So I have the time to do really whatever I want. These past two days have been mainly spent catching up on some much needed rest. But when I am not laying in bed or playing the ol' guit I am out and about. On Monday, I walked over to Chris's house to help him with some yard work. Really it was just me standing there watching Chris trim his landscape with clippers. One thing that I have noticed in France is the artistic ability people have put into trimming their bushes, trees, etc. Edward Scissorhands ain't got nothin' on the average French gardner. I was laughing to myself when Ann, Chris's wife, was directing him on how to trim this pretty tall bush. Poor Chris was wobbling on this ladder trying to reach these impossible angles and clipping the best he could. I could tell he was kinda getting discouraged but he doesn't have the heart to tell Ann,

"There is no way in hell I can shape this tree into a perfect square."

So after we gathering all the trimmings we put them in bags and took them to the yardwaste dump. I mean it was nothing special, just a yard waste dump. So pretty much the trash dumps are like the states, so that's pretty cool I guess....
Anywho, last night I went downtown and had dinner with Romain and Jag. Jag is Romain's girlfriends brother who is 24 and just a great guy. Before we went to the restaurant we had a drink at this pretty posh bar. I told him that I wanted to drink a far share of booze. Jag then asked me,

"How much money you got?"
"40 euro."
"HAHAHAHHAHAHA, you are in France my friend. Not some shit bars like in the states!" in a heavy French accent.

Hey buddy. 40 euro in the states can buy everyone and their mother a drink at any pub in good ol Springfield. So I just got my $12 beer and was happy.
After our drink, they said they had the perfect restaurant for me. I was expecting some authentic French cuisine but I did not get it. We ate at a restaurant called, 'Restaurock'. The Rolling Stones was blaring in the place when we opened the door. This was a mock Hard Rock Cafe. What the fuck. I can get this shit anywhere back in the states. I didn't argue and got a 15 euro burger. That's right. Equivalent to about $22 dollars American. Thanks Bush, you fuck. I ate with gusto because it was pretty good but hell Ebbet's Field serves up the same for about 8 bucks. After a couple pitchers of beer, they dropped me off at home and I retired for the evening.

This morning, I slept till about 1:00pm. I know, I got a late start on today. But after a bowl of "Fruit Rings", sponsored by Tucan Pierre, I got ready for another run into the forest. It was another great run. Their are small purple flowers starting to bloom all over the forest floor. It is so pretty. I have seen nothing like it. There is just a sea of purple throughout the entire forest. You have to see it.
Later tonight, I went to Chris's for dinner. They are just being absolutely so nice to me. I told them that next week that I would make a dinner and bring it over to the fam. We didn't go to the D-Day beaches yet because we are going in the first week in May when it marks the end of WWII. Ann said that at time, there would be some really cool WWII commemorations in the area. Restored vehicles, guns, and other war relics. So tonight, we had a great dinner followed by a bottle of wine and an assortment of cheese. I have to say that after a couple glasses of wine, I start to talk politics. Chris laughs because he loves to see me all rev'd up about politics. It feels like home to these talks with him and his wife. I will never forget our talks.
Well, that's about it for now. I will give you news over the next couple of days. Miss and love you all. Au revior.

Bois Guillaume Stomps GIF.

Hey guys. It is Sunday night and I have just been relaxing for the past 4 hours. Why am I so tired? Well, it might be due to the fact that we won both games today to stay #1 in the North Division. But I will get to that in a bit. Love the comments. Karly takes the cake for best comment. Tiffany, I laughed out loud when I read yours...BAM!, Ian and Alex, I think the real reason for me not doing any yard work was because you can't have your talent get hurt...Thats me baby. Emily, love ya, Phyll, about damn time, Mom and Dad, love you guys and get a working webcam. Oh yeah, Alex...get Skype...I know you have the time because you are usually the first one on here.

OKAY....Let's just start with this morning. The rendevous for the Woodchucks was at 9:30 this morning. What time do you think I got up? Yeah...bout 8:55. So I pretty much just let the luke warm water of the shower to just say "Hello" to my skin and I scrambled to get all my gear together. Chris showed up and I could read what his thoughts were without him saying anything...

"Did you just wake up?"
Yes. Yes I did Chris.

But surprisingly we had time to make a stop at a bakery to grab some food before we went to the field. I got an apple bread thing that was just phenomenal. Chris and I also got these amazing sandwiches but I will get to that later as well. Chris also treated me to the meal. Thanks C.
So we got to the field with about 45 seconds to spare. Not the best thing to have two starters, one being an assistant coach, showing up with minutes to spare. But what the hell...this is France right? So I warmed up the team and we started taking Bp. I will just go ahead and say that the field looked great. I say 'great' because you should have seen this sandlot about 2 weeks ago. The only thing on my mind about 30 minutes before the game was,

"Please God, give us sunshine today. These guys, (and me), have worked our asses off. Please God."

I will take this next line to thank the big man above. In the Jim Gaffigan voice, "Grazi Padre." It was pretty chilly and dew glistened on the grass at first, but by gametime, there was not a cloud in the sky and the sun put a warm blanket on our skin.
It's gametime baby. I gotta tell you this. I get crazy just before a game. Drury's players can tell you the same. I am yelling, cursing the other team for having the audacity to stand IN MY PRESENCE, and just trying to get everyones mind to wanting to put their cleat on the other teams' throat and twisting. This is why I love this game. It brings out the absolute competitor in me.

Game 1: Bois-Guillaume vs GIF
Temp.: 18 C
Time: 11:30
Attendance: 3

I will tell you one thing. We had the best damn 3 spectators this side of the Seine. Starting pitching for BG was Bernie. This guy is an absolute machine. He is 42, Canadian, and has the nickname as, "The Warrior." I will tell you that that is exactly what Bern is. An absolute machine. He dropped the first three batters in order in the top of the 1st frame. Now our turn.
Eric, CF, lead off the game with a double to right field. Arther, 1B, advanced him to third on a groundball to the right side. I was next and drew a walk. Pussies. Bernie then collected an Sac RBI with a groundball to 2B. I later scored on a walk and an error. We went up 2-0 in the first inning.
The following innings went by pretty fast. 3 up and 3 down for them and us scoring a couple runs in between.

Now, my next at bat I will never forget it.

I just want to start by telling you how sweet the feeling is whenever you absolutely crush a baseball. The feeling is that you don't feel the ball hit the bat at all. The feeling is a smoothness that makes your heart flutter. So on my first pitch, I hit my first French bomb. It left the park in about three seconds. Left-Center. I play this game for that feeling. It was great.
The next innings Bernie absolutely just mowed them down and we scored on a couple other hits by the guys and my double in my next at bat.

Final Score
BG 6
GIF 0

The guys were all smiles after their last out. This was a proud moment for me. Our first home game, on the field built by our hands, and our first home win. So now we would take a 30 break before our next game. Now to the sandwich. I think I'm going to name my first born after that sandwich. It has fresh turkey, tomatoes, with hard boiled eggs slices lining the entire french bread. Damn...that was a good sandwich. Alright, forget the sandwich. Kill the other team, kill their mothers, No mercy, No mercy, Kill em'. Gotta get back in the mindset. It is the hardest thing to get focused again after a blowout like our first one. And our next game was too close for comfort.

Game 2: BG vs GIF
Temp: 20 C
Time: 14:00
Attendence: 10

A couple of kids were playing on a jungle gym behind the backstop so I am counting them as spectators. Eric Coutu, our CF, was going to start the second game and go for as long as he could. I was going to close out the game if I needed to. So I will tell you this about the first 4 innings. The score was 0-0 and their was no life in anyone's body. This is when weaker teams beat better teams. I could just sense it. So in the top of the 5th inning, GIF squeezed out a run on a couple hits and an error. We were behind to a weaker team and everyone knew it. The sense of urgency was kicking in everyone's mind. We had 2,3,4 hitters coming up.

Arther struck out on three pitches. So my turn. I had been walked twice before this at bat and hadn't seen much since my double in the first game. Then the pitcher made a mistake. I was thinking this guy is going to have to give me something sometime and he did. I lined a base rip down the right field line and was standing at first.
So am standing at first, with our team down one run. I was thinking was going to be the time to tie this game up. So I took a huge lead to draw three consecutive pick off attempts. All failed. I shortened my lead just a hair after the last attempt knowing that I was stealing now. I was off..............SAFE. Ok Bernie, now it is time for you to do your job. But Bernie struck out swinging putting two outs on the board. Shit...we need a big hit.
Vincent, LF, stepped up to the plate with a look of pure relaxation. I couldn't tell if he was just looking lazy or extremely composed. Either or...it worked. He lined an opposite field line drive down the left field line and I was hurling around third base. I knew the throw was coming and this was going to be close. I slid across the plate. SAFE! I jumped up with adrenaline pumping through my veins. Okay, all tied up. They got the third out and we went back onto the field. Only one change was made to our line up.

Jean-Luc, "Eric, CF. Tony you got the mound."
I had warmed up on the side with Chris after I scored knowing that I was going to go in. So I got warmed up and slowly walked up to the mound. In my mind I was thinking,
"There is no fucking way these chumps are going to hit any of my shit."

But I will tell now you that they did.

I got the first batter out no problem. I mixed in a knuckle ball to get him out. The next batter almost made my good day into a bad one. I started him off with gas and he didn't even touch it. I was getting a little too overconfident and wanted to try out my curve ball. As soon as I threw it, I knew I made a mistake. The ball went sailing into left field. My heart sank. I thought it was going out. But it hit off the wall and the guy got a long single out of it. I think he was jogging out of the box thinking it was a homerun and that's why he didn't make it to second. Wheww. Alright....Focus, deep breath, relax baby, you got this. Next batter. Line drive single through the left side. Shit. Runners on the corners with one out. I got the next guy to duckfart out to Bernie at SS. Two out...okay no damage done.......

So far.

After the next batter had hit a two run single he had the widest grin on his face with his team going absolutely nuts in the opposing dugout. I was not sharing in this guy's shiny moment. I struck out the next guy in complete disgust and jogged back to the dugout. Okay...gotta get to work WoodChucks. I needed these guys to pick me up. And I will tell you that we exploded for a 7 run 6th inning to regain the lead 8-3. The first three batters drew walks, me included, and Bernie had a 2 RBI single to tie it up. After that, the next three batters placed perfect bunts all over the field completely driving the other pitcher insane.

It was like a gay porno. Balls flying everywhere. Hahahahaha. Had to do it.

So I went back to the mound with a 5 run cushion to close out the game. I forgot to tell you that every one of our games are two 7 inning games on Sundays. So there I was back on the bump. First batter, Charles had played wonderful defense all day but he committed a throwing error and the first guy got on base. I struck out the next guy. One out. I walked the next two batters, loading the bases. I know what you are thinking...Fuck Tony, just what are you doin? But I will tell you my arm was red lining. I got the next batter to ground out, thank god. Alright one more out baby.
First pitch to the next batter was hit in the air. It found Bernie's mit at SS and we got a double header sweep from GIF.

We all ran out on the field and gave each other high fives and shook the other teams hands. I will tell you that during the games I made friends with a couple of the other guys on the other team. They couldn't really understand me and visa-versa but we would bullshit none the less. We celebrated with Heinekins on the field and the it felt like home.

A Boy of Summer.

Pics provided by Chris and you should check out his blog. ChristopherHarrisonMarchand.blogspot.com.

I love you guys and I will tell you that this Apple Whiskey that I am drinking is absolutely relaxing. I will talk to you soon. Au revior.

Blood, Sweat, and Tears

Hey guys! Alright, sorry for the delay my posting. I enjoy the fact that I am putting a little more intrigue into some of your lives. To the comments! Lendsey, thanks brother for the comment and I will never forget I always hit so well when you were on the mound, Oh I'm reppin' youngin', Karly, thanks for reading qt, and you have to comment! Kim!!!, thanks for the comment and I hope you will join the small band of people who comment! Hope the Bell family is doing well. Critter, you take the cake of best comments, doesn't matter if you are first or not, I look forward to hearing what you say, Ian, WHY COULDN'T READ THE CORRECT RELEASE DATE!?, well, love you anyway, Emily and JoJo, I love hearing you guys on the computer, Alex, I love you and I am glad that we have this together, haha Grant always makes fun of me when I talk to you on the phone because he always makes fun of me because of how many "Love you Al's" I can fit in our conversations, Phyll, I love that Tai Fu cream and just where the hell are you? Mom and Dad, Love you guys and thank you for the support you are giving me.

Alrighty then. It is Friday morning here and the sun is finally shining. This post is dedicated to the past few day's events of pouring my heart onto our field. I am going to post pics of our field for the most part. If you could see the change in our field you would be amazed what this prima donna is capable of. My goal this entire week has been to get our field playable for our home game this weekend against GIF. Not only would I need the help of extra hands but mother nature has to do her part as well. And so far, everybody has cooperated.
Let's start with Monday, I got up and put that "Last of the Mohican" jig on my Ipod, and was getting mentally prepared to get my hands dirty. At this point, we had covered the whole field in new dirt except for the first base line, home plate, and a little bit of the third baseline. I know what you are thinking, sounds like you haven't done shit, but, I tell you that there is a lot of ground to cover on the diamond. So it was just me at the field from 12-4. Those were some grueling hours, lemme tell you. I had to fill wheelbarrels with dirt, lug it into the marsh land, and dump it. And continue this procedure for about 2 hours. After that, I have to spread it out and rake. I just kinda got into a madman's zone. I just wouldn't stop. I got as far as the third baseline on Monday.
Tuesday. When Jean-Luc said he bought a new mower for the field I was absolutely ecstatic. But what I failed to interpret was that it was a push mower, not a tractor. The first thought into my mind was like,

"Thanks Jean-Luc, I will see you in about week when I get done with the infield grass."

So we put the push mower together. And the Bois-Guillaume field heard a sound that hasn't been heard in a long time. The buzz of mower blades.
So I was dragging the whole field with my rake and Jean-Luc started mowing.
I will tell you that it was a sad moment when our only big rake broke in my hands. I had pushed that little guy to the limit and it seemed like the tool just said to me,

"Tony, I'm sorry. I have no more life left."

You might think it is weird but I wanted to bury that rake.


A moment of blood, sweat, and tears.


So I grabbed his replacement with dried blood in my hands.

Wednesday. It was N1 practice that day but I doubt there would be any 'practice.' So about 7 of us went to work. Dumping dirt, spreading dirt, dumping dirt, raking the mound, dumping dirt, filling in divots, and hmm....DUMPING FUCKING DIRT. Just as the sun was about to give up on us, I yelled from home plate.

"Grab your bats boys, let's take some Bp."

Everyone with pure excitement threw their tools on the ground and scrambled to put on their baseball gear. So on early evening, Wednesday April 9th, at approximately 6:00pm, the Bois-Guillaume Woodchucks took Bp on their field for the first time for the 2008 season. We had worked our asses off and were ready to play ball.

I will tell you this. I have never seen such pure joy and love for the game until that day. I am not lieing either. There was diving catches, roars of laughter, and smiles on everyone's faces. This is baseball to the grit. This is why I love this game. This is why baseball has been in my life since I picked up a bat at age 3.

Thursday. Jean-Luc and I went out to the field to do some minor improvements. Mainly just adding more dirt to home, fixing the mound and giving the infield a fresh trim. Wouldn't you know it, the city tractor workers mowed our outfield. We have a field ladies and gentleman. That night Jean-Luc and I talked about the field, the team, and other things. He told me that I was the first foreign player to do any work like this and that he is blessed to have me a part of this club. That meant a lot to me.
This post is dedicated to the hard work of Jean Luc and the Bois Guillaume baseball team.
That night, it was Laura's birthday and he invited me to join his family at an oriental restaurant to celebrate it. My meal was really good but it is no Hong Kong Inn I sadly say. I love you guys and I miss you very much. Talk to you soon. Au revoir.

Horse please, well done.

Pics: Horse meal, Me, My Room, Bois-Guillaume Field, Sam and Max, My Grounds Crew, and the Forest outside my apt.

Bonjour guys! Ca va? Welp, that is about the extent of my French. It is about 11:00pm on Monday. Thanks for all the comments to the blogs and if you are reading and not commenting, you stink. I have to start by saying thanks to my family and a couple of my closest friends for talking to me on Skype. It has really been nice to still have contact with you guys. That thanks goes out to Tiffany, Lizette, Carl and Dane, Sparks and Ying, and of course my family.

OK....Well let's just start with this whole horse delicacy. I really don't know what the whole hubbub is about really. I already offended the hell out of my roomate, Bibette 2, because she said she used to ride horses and she refuses to eat it. She even kind of gave me the look like,

"What the hell is wrong with you?"

Well, I guess it really doesn't matter because she has moved out because her school is done in the area so she moved back to Paris. Anyway, back to the horse. The raw meat looks really dark and bloody. I was going to make sure and cook the hell out of it because I really don't need any disease right now. Unless it's from a lady....HEY YOOOHHH...jk. So I just covered the meat in garlic powder and put it on the pan. After awhile of cooking, I decided it was about done. So I got some salad, fresh bread, my horse fillet and put it on the table. The picture you see is the actual first bite. And the verdict......

Kinda like a simple round steak. Nothing special. So I later got the ketchup and Americanized the hell outa it. Is it bad that I watched "Hidalgo" after I ate? That is one good mustang. Hmm...So that is that.

I dedicated the next few days for field work. I really have never seen any field in the condition ours is in. It never stops raining here if you didn't know, so there is standing water in the infield and the grass in the outfield is pretty much a wet marsh. BUT on Saturday's Cadet practice, I made a proposal to the kids. I told them that I was going to be on the field tomorrow, Sunday, from 10-12 working on the field. I told them that is was completely voluntary and that I would try and get a lunch for those who came.
So the next morning, I got on the 8 and 40 bus and made my way to the field. Out of the 10 or so kids that I told, only two was standing at the field gates. Samuel and Maxim. Both 15 years of age. I was so proud of them. So we waited for about 30 minutes for possible other grounds crew candidates.
"Hmm....welp, it's just us boys."
Our task for today was to completely put new turface on the infield. For those of you who don't know what turface is, it is a grainy, rocky dirt that is used on infields that, hopefully, soaks up water well. I gave them two wheel barrels and two shovels. I had a rake and I was going to spread the turface out when they dumped it. We were going to start at 3rd and make our way all around the infield hopefully meeting where we started.
It was cold, drizzling, and windy. But I tell you one thing....these kids worked their asses off. Another Cadet showed up about 40 minutes later and he did his part as well. Dimitri, 16 years and a very athletic 3rd baseman. I will tell you that Sam, Maxim, and D have earned a special place in my heart for the work they did.
Jean-Luc showed up around 12 saying his sorry's for being late. I asked him for a favor when he showed up.

"I need you to get 4 sandwiches, 4 bags of chips, and a 2 liter of Fanta."
He quickly agreed and sped off.

The N1 guys starting showing up for our practice but I could see the immediate, 'Oh Shit' looks on their faces. I was going to put them to work and they knew it. All of them accept for a select few starting working. I quickly chewed out the ones who were sitting on their asses and all of us were working on Our Field.
It was about 2:00pm. Still working and you will have never guessed what mother nature gave us. Snow. Yes, it is "April in Paris" and it is snowing out. We quickly doubled timed it. I was noticing snot noses and shivering bodies of the guys and called it a day. We got to home plate. Almost completely all the way around.
We went back to our club house and warmed up. Jean-Luc came back with the food. He got three sandwiches, a mixed salad, and a two liter of juice. He said there were no more sandwiches at the store and that was why he had to get the salad. I quickly gave all the boys the sandwiches and I took the salad. I was going to reward my grounds crew the best I could by taking the salad.
So we practiced after that in the gym. Mostly just ground balls and a long session of Bp. I was dog tired and not in the mood for conditioning so it was a relaxed day.

I went to the field today after the blizzard last night and looked at what the damage was. Well...there was standing water at certain spots of the turface but all in all, our work was still valid. Chris, who had family things to do on Sunday, helped me out today with raking and brooming the dirt. He put in a good hour.

Gee, thanks Chris.

I AM ONLY KIDDING IF YOU READ THIS CHRIS. HAHA, love you brother. Hopefully the field will be playable for next Sunday's home game against GIF. I love you guys and miss you a lot. Sacre Bleu out.

"Un ticket, si vous plait."

Pic: Bus ride.

Hey guys! Yes, I know I have internet now, but that doesn't mean I am going to blog three pages about my trip to the bathroom the other day. I want to be able to sit down and write about some beefy stuff. Thanks for the comments and I want to tell you guys that I miss and love you guys very much.

So on Thursday the only thing that I had to do was conduct practice for the Mixed Softball team. I have keys to the whole complex now and it is pretty much understood that I will be the one running the whole sha-bang from now on. But before I would go to practice, I was going to get in a really good run.
The forrest park next to my place starts on a pretty steep hill. I stupidly didn't pace myself to well and starting sprinting up it like a maniac. I was like, "Shit...I'm already tired." HAHA, that reminds me of the Gaffigan routine with the "Getting up Early."
"Jim, you gotta get up on 530Am on Tuesday."
"AWWW FUCK."
"You wanna go see a movie?"
"No, I gotta get up on Tuesday. I should go to bed now."
But I would not let my mistake keep me from having a long run. So I had an adrenaline push with a good song and darted through the forest. I took a different path with intentions of not running into Harry the Homeless Guy. So I was running down a path and just turned off my music...
I just listened to how silent and peacefull everything was. It is hard to get completely out of life and just be surrounded by the fresh sound of nature. But there I was, no music, no noise, and the sound that was heard was the light sound of my feet joggin on the path. It was extremely therapeutic. I noticed that there were little obstacles on the different cross roads. They are exactly the same kind of obstacle exercises that used to be on the Phelps Grove park. The pullups made of just wood, walking along a skinny wooden plank, crunches on an oddly shape tree stump, as well as other interesting exercises. I did everyone of them. I gotta admit...I felt like a hard ass. So I came to the end of the path into the forest and started manuevering back. I was taking different paths back to change scenery then I noticed that Harry's house was on my close right. I quickly backtraced to another path and continued home. It was a great run. I will take the 8 bus to one of France's national forest's for my upcoming runs and can't wait.

I know Mom is freaking out right now about bears or ManBearPig's but I assure you that I am really carefull.

I was drained when I got back to my house and made my signature Egg Baskets and took a nap before I would tackle the bus for the first time.
So I mapped it out. I was going to take the 8 bus to La Verene and get off and wait for the 40 to take me into Bois-Guillaume. And if the 40 didn't show I was going to hop back onto the 8 to hit the 7 further down if the 40 was taking too much time. Some buses run more frequently than others and I understood that the 40 isn't a major route. So I was well prepared. Now, the biggest obstacle was facing me.

Asking for a damn ticket.

So I stood at the bus stop with other kids that were just let out of school next to my apt. I waited...waited...and waited. The 8. There she is. Alright. Here we go.
The bus stopped and the kids quickly piled on but as I was about 2 feet from the door step the door closed the bus was taking off! WHAT THE FUCK!? So like a freaking idiot I was running alongside of the bus with my American arms flailing in the air. The kids noticed that I needed to get on the bus so they pushed the button to open the door for me.
Well dammit.
I just sat down, completely dejected, and didn't purchase a ticket from the asshole behind the wheel. Charles told me that he used to never buy a ticket but he does now because at random times a ticket checker comes onto the bus at random stops and checks people's tickets and if they don't have a ticket, it is an automatic 50 Euro fine. I didn't want to draw anymore attention to myself by getting up and walking to the front of the bus so I just cursed to myself in my seat hoping that a uniformed Ticket Checker wasn't going to hope on the next stops.

But what do you think happened on the third stop?

You betcha. A fucking uniformed Ticket Checker stepped onto the bus. I was nervous. My stop to connect to the 40 was coming up on the next stop and I hope that that would be short enough time to quickly make my exit off the bus. The Checker was making his way towards the middle of the bus, me at the back. The bus finally stopped as sweat was forming on my forehead. I quickly got off and released a big breath of air.

So I was thinking that I would wait awhile for the 40 but it was right on the tail of the 8 I was on and I quickly got on the bus avoiding the mistake that I commited earlier. I bought my ticket.

"Un ticket, si vous plait."

So I made it to practice with time to spare and we had a great workout. I am learning so much about coaching and just being around a different culture. I can not tell you the thrill of seeing improvement in swings. I actually am starting to come through to these guys. Paul is just drastically improved and he notices it. I make it a point not to give praise until it is due. I learned that you do not constantly give positive comments constantly because after a while it just falls on deaf ears. So when I actually give these kids a positive praise, a grin spreads from ear to ear. The feeling is amazing.

I love you guys and I will post again soon. I had horse for dinner tonight. A story in of itself. Au revior.

You guys gotta check this out.

http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2006/05/07/a_fling_with_french_baseball/

Getting New Bearings.

Pics: 1st - Art School, next pics, Scenery from today's post, 4th - Joan of Arc Cathedral, Last Pic - Badass.

Hey guys! I just got done having two egg in the breads, four sausages and had a strawberry mousse ice cream for dessert. I am so beat from running everyone to death at practice but I will get to that later. First though, EMILY, thank you for being the only one who appreciate the pics, Ian, just get used to Alex posting first...cause he really loves me more actually, Mom and Dad, take that thing that resembles a computer in your house and throw it in the Ankarlo's ditch...jk, I'm just glad that we can atleast talk, Critter, just starting Acacia...that's right baby...I have it.

I ran through the forrest to begin the day. There is a little dew on the ground, cool breeze, and fresh air going through my hair. I gotta tell you that I am always on the defense for anything. So I started taking different trails, still haveing a general sense where home is. Haha, lemme tell you this. You remember the key to the Lost Woods in the first Zelda game? Down, down, right, left, down. That's is what is going on through my head. The woods are very pretty but I then I was encountered by something going in pretty deep...
I hit a clearing through the wood. I saw in the distance a little shack. Hmm...kinda weird. This might be the Lady of Wood or Harry of the Wood. It was Harry. I heard from a distance some fumbling in the shack and I darted back like a doe in head lights. I was running so fast, kinda out of frightness but more out of adrenaline and kinda a fun feeling of fleeing from a foe. But I took a wrong turn. DAMN YOU LINK! But all is good and I found the main drag of Mt. St. Agnion and walked back home.

K...be weary of Harry. Got it. The rest of today, I made breakfast and learn some songs on the guitar. Olivear always laughs at me because I told him that I used to mostly play sad songs when I was at my first apt. Like "Last Kiss," and other gloomy country songs...but now its my genre is more happy and hoppy! Chris picked before he had to drop of Gabby, his son, at baseball practice. Listen to this, the entire French Elementary System doesn't have school on Wednesday's but do on Saturday's! So Emmanuel, Chris and I went around the town. We saw an old Art School where back in the day, the people of Rouen buried victims of the Black Plague. Chris laughed when I said it was like a morbid "Hogwarts."
After that, Chris felt adventurous. So we just started driving into the hilly mountainside. We pretty much just got ourselves lost in woods. It was awesome. We saw so many neat houses and terrain. I kept on telling him, I would love to retire in an area like this. No noise, nice company, and good tilled earth. Chris said that there are signs everywhere so there was no problem finding our way back. Wheww. Jk, I wasn't worried for a second.

Tonight was N1 practice. So we got to the gym and we met with the team members that are able to come. I have to tell you that at every practice you will not have your whole team. The two Canadians, Marc and Bernie, Romain, Pierre usually do not come because they live far away and can only come during the weekends. So I dealt with what we had and we got to work. This was mainly a fundamental practice. I have found out with experience even teams at the NCAA level need to incorporate fundamentals in every practice. I am trying to express to the guys that everyone does the things we do. Well good teams atleast. I don't want them to feel like we are doing elementary work. So we had our practice. It was full of ground balls, flips, and hitting. I then turned to Chris,

"You got a stopwatch?"

He quickly replied, "Yes....oh shit, I probably should have said, 'No' huh?"

Haha....eggselent.

I set up the cones like I did with the other conditioning workout we did the other day and I was IMMEDIATLY hearing groans. I gotta truthfully say I got kinda of a sick pleasure out of hearing the groans. I explained every drill. Crunches, Spider-Man Pushups, Wall-Sits, and Cone-Jumps were to be had by all! So we started.
It was a 15 minute hell. It felt great. Then just like last time, they all looked bushed. I was tired to be honest. Then they got out a soccer ball and we played a full out game. I could barely move. I'm running them through the workout twice next week.

Welp, that is all for now. I will post about the next days soon. Love you guys and talk to you soon. Au revoir.