Today she walked through Nantes and sprinkled around the seashells she had collected from her visit to the shore. Just to mix the world up a little bit.

Jumping walls to escape zombies?

Yesterday she was walking home from work through a beautiful dusk and got locked in a cemetery. She had to climb over a ten foot wall to escape - she completely startled an old man walking down the road and a young girl on a bicycle. And today she aches all over.

Cappucinos and Christmas Trees and Cowboy Robots

She was sitting in a crowded café, sipping a cappuccino full of sugar and cream, and experiencing the winter scene out the window. It was cold and blue, the sun had just set, and it was all crisp streetlights and pink streaked clouds. People outside rushed to the beat of the clinking spoons and friend’s conversations inside. Enjoying a coffee, discussing the news, politics, Christmas shopping, their meetings were wonderful, and not insignificant or trivial, but colorful and smart and warm. The Christmas market was set up in the open square in town – filled with huge chunks of chocolate bark, art, break dancing teenagers, scarves and hats and Santa paraphernalia for sale, a carousel, hot steaming and spiced wine with steam that filled the place with a swirling thin cloud of cinnamon, colorful bursts of flowers the magically managed to survive the winter wind, a gold spray painted man dressed up as a cowboy? Or robot? Or intergalactic sheriff? who would move for your change, kids playing in an empty fountain, toys, games, crowds, lights hanging from the trees, two stars, no snow, and a half-crescent moon.

She walked further down the tram line until she came to the place where the river started. By now it was dark, a more dense cold, and she stood on a bridge for awhile starring at a stork who was sitting on the banks of the Loire – head curled close to his chest for warmth. And they rested their together for awhile peacefully, silently laughing at the unaware people who walked across the bridges, listening to the gaps of silence between traffic and tipsy giggling. It was quite lovely. She said to goodbye to the stork, wished him well and warmth, climbed a wall, and left.

The apartment glowed from the bulbs hanging from paperclips and the calm lights of the tiny Christmas tree they bought at ikea. Not quite like home, but smelled of pine and was real and she loved the way the rest of the room looked when the lights were on. It still needed a star.