A bottle of wine is a lifestyle

I've been working on an assignment for the last week and I can't bring myself to do it. I don't even know why. I have basically most of the research done, and all I need to do is really start thinking and put it together. I also have a midterm this coming Saturday. The problem is that I work too much. I am getting burnt out. No one wants to work for 8 hours and then go to the library and work some more. I feel like I've been doing the bare minimum this semester to get by. I devoted so much time to assignments last semester, because I still didn't know how things had to be done and because to be honest, I had a lot of free time. I didn't want to spend money, and I didn't have internet at home, so I would spend the whole day at the library. Granted, I would procrastinate for at least 40% of the time, but the other 60% would be spent getting some kind of work done.

This isn't happening this semester.

I got through one of my first assignments of the semester without making much of an effort. I still did well. I also got through some other assignments with minimal effort, but didn't study for a french quiz recently, and I basically failed it. Even by Penn standards - extremely generous for study abroad students - I didn't do well. I don't know how much of my grade is determined by this, but it upset me. I just completely forgot I had that quiz. Anyway, so, I'm really not so good at verb tenses in french and you know why? Because I speak spanish. I translate and when I translate, I get the wrong verb. SPANISH, YOU ARE BOTH A BLESSING N A CURSE!

Anyway, now for fun times.

Friday was for drinks at Nastasja's and L'Urgence, a hospital-themed bar around St Michel where you get drinks in baby bottles. Unsanitary? Yes. Fun? A little.

I also recently went on a date to Canal Saint-Martin. The date wasn't the greatest, but the places we went to were amazing! I vowed to return with da gurlz and recreate the date, but without my date. To be honest, can company get any better than KMH and Nasty? Not really. By the way, I spotted my actual date from last week as we strolled around this area. I hid in a store. He probably saw me anyway, but hahah it was childish but I don't really care.

First up, Strasbourg St-Denis and around that random gate that pidgeons hang out at. So many stalls sell fresh fruit around there at really good prices, but I'm not going to lie, it's a bit hood and is probably really dangerous at night. We went to a moderately-priced vintage store around that area, and then went off to Canal Saint-Martin for a nice afternoon stroll with some water bottles and madeleines in hand.

We walked around a really cool, hipster art book store, Artazart.
We browsed fashion and photography books, until we got tired and headed towards Chez Prune for some drinks. They have good sangria pitchers for about 10 euros, and you can get one glass for three people. So, it's really 3.3 euros per person for a glass of sangria, which isn't bad at all at least for Paris. They have really cute lamps and a nice, laid-back crowd, cute service.

(Chez Prune on the side there, with N and KMH. Thank you, Davey for the picture!)

When we left the bar, IT STARTED POURING SO MUCH. I am not talking about a light shower, I'm talking about hardcore rain. I wasn't carrying an umbrella, as always, and I got extremely wet.

Then, indian food at Passage Brady. On that note, Indian food is the biggest rip off in Paris. The smallest portion of palak paneer you've ever seen in your life will cost 8 euros, and you pay for rice separately, which is 3 euros for the smallest portion ever. If you want to get a nan, that is 3-4 euros for a small piece of nan, and your grand total is 15 euros and you are not even that full. Never doing that again. Then it was off to a party we weren't really invited to, but great times ensued. I got home at 5 am. Are you serious?

I went grocery shopping today and made myself a tuna melt. This is my biggest accomplishment thus far. It will probably be the only thing I accomplish today.