I will start today’s entry with a note to myself: Never again drink an espresso at eleven o’clock at night. It is about as bright an idea as using cocaine before noon, or, anytime of the day, really. Cocaine just seems an annoying habit. Who wants a dried out bloody nose? Amy Winehouse, maybe, but she’s getting better all the time. [Update from 2013: *sobbing*] Anyway, don’t drink liquid caffeine before bed…

Because of the espresso I drank at the restaurant, I could not sleep to save my life, the last time I looked at my watch it was four o’clock in the morning. I had to wake up less than three hours later, so, that was just peachy. Bizarrely, though, when I fell out of my weak doze this morning, I was rather refreshed. I didn’t and don’t understand that.

I wasn’t very hungry, so I just left for school. I ran my fingers through my hair to give it some kind of shape, and out I went. I know that I looked a right mess, but that is a look here. It’s junkie chic, or something like that.

It was only a demonstration today, which was nice because I could come back soon and try to fall asleep. I made it to the school in just enough time to switch into my attractive and figure accentuating uniform and sit down in the classroom.

We didn’t have our usual chef today, to the delight of some. We were learning how to make dry biscuits today, and oh my God, they are the dullest and most uninteresting things–ever–in the history of man. I was amused though, because everything looked like Mexican food. The almond tile cookies look just like miniature taco shells, or Pringles, depends on what you’re hungry for, I suppose. The cigarettes, which are rolled up flat cookies, looked just like taquitos. Maybe I just wanted some Mexican food.

We were all bored out of our minds. Even the translator was bored, and didn’t bother keeping quiet about the complete lack of enthusiasm he/we had for the subject. The classmates I sat with couldn’t be bothered with the demonstration, so we just chatted through it. It was the kind of thing you could do, even if you were retarded and had never seen flour before in your life. Maybe, in tomorrow’s practical class, it will be harder, but I doubt that with almost every fiber of my being. In the end, when tasting finally came around (the class went on forever and ever) we were all underwhelmed by the boring taste. I just wasn’t amused today.

After class, I was invited out to coffee with some classmates, but I turned them down, I’ll go next time when I don’t have a sleep debt that is threatening to kill me. By then, I finally felt sleep overtaking my body, and I needed to go to bed.

Back home, I crashed onto my bed and entered a world of half dozes and light napping. For some reason, I could not fall asleep, my mind was buzzing at an insane speed thinking random thoughts about nothing. I was conscious of my unconscious thoughts, which was weird, pretty amusing, though.

When I couldn’t stand the world of half sleep, I drug myself out of bed only to realize that I hadn’t yet eaten today. So, I poured myself some Cheerios and watched Craig Ferguson. Is there anything better than watching unicorn puppets lip synch to The Sound of Music? No, there isn’t.

I had intended to go to a store a classmate had told me about called Thanksgiving. It’s an American grocery store with a Creole restaurant attached to it. But, I never got around to it today, I think that I will go tomorrow.

I realized that I had no cash, so I went down to the Champs-Elysées to withdraw some money from the ATM. I know that there is a bank around here somewhere, but I couldn’t be bothered to go traipsing around looking for it. Besides, I wanted to walk around the fancy stores.

The Metro broke down for some reason–they said that the doors wouldn’t close properly, so we had to evacuate. It struck me much later, with surprise, that I understood the announcement without thinking. I can never understand them when they speak through an intercom.

Pleased with myself, I waited for the next train, but when it was obvious that it wasn’t coming, I headed for the RER. I don’t know why I didn’t do this sooner, it is so fast! Instead of fourteen minutes by Metro, it was only five minutes by RER. I was impressed.

So, I got my cash and went off to find Dita von Teese, the famed burlesque actress who is performing in town. The cabaret was close to the bank so I walked by it with the tiniest hope I would see her. I wasn’t surprised to not see her, [Update from 2013: IRONY!] so I kept walking and before long, I was at the banks of the river.

I checked my watch, five minutes to seven, perfect, just in time to watch the Eiffel Tower’s light show. In the freezing cold, standing on the middle of a bridge, I patiently waited for the flickering strobe lights to cast their magic spell over Paris. I wasn’t disappointed.

I was about to die of the cold, so I stuffed myself onto the super crowded Metro and made my way home.

For dinner I had some pasta and steak. It was a very tender tasty steak. That’s all that happened today.