Dressup Statues

Manneken-Pis

Brussels, Belgium

vs.

Waiting For The Interurban
Seattle, Washington USA

I was hoping to do a little sight-seeing in Brussels as I waiting to catch my plane to Munich, but since I don't know how the public transportation system works (nor do I speak enough French to feel comfortable navigating on my own), I've decided to head straight to the airport. What I will have missed in Brussels is the Manneken-Pis statue and fountain. Seattle has the Waiting For The Interurban dress up statue, Brussels has the Manneken-Pis (ok, not really in the same league). I'll be sad to miss the little man, but I'll have to come back to see him another time.

"Brussels has its silliness, too. Its mascot is the Manneken-Pis, a statue/fountain of a little boy who lives up to his name. You'll find him three blocks off the Grand Place, possibly wearing some clever outfit. By tradition, costumes are sent to Brussels from around the world. Cases full of these are on display in the City Museum on the Grand Place. For the story behind this little squirt, check a postcard stand."

Pre-trip Trials

It is now 2009, and one week from today I will be arriving in Paris.

When the idea of going to paris first was mentioned to me in early October I thought it would be a nice thing to do for myself since I knew that the holidays and my birthday, in November, would likely be awful, especially with the impending move out of the ex-boyfriend and, sadly, his daughter Jane (whom I adore). Kelly said, "come visit us for a month or two... stay for Martin's birthday in January, and mine in March, or come for your birthday". To this I said, "Yes! I'll stay for ALL the birthdays: mine, Jesus', Martin's AND yours. :^) I'm not crazy for the holidays, and I wholeheartedly wish I could have.

The last few weeks have been ghastly....Craig (the ex-bf) and I had planned on having a small Christmas with Jane on the 23rd, the day before they both left town for the holidays, about which I was very excited! I bought presents for him and Jane and was looking forward to making a turkey and playing games and whatnot. Mother Nature had other ideas. A week before Christmas a snow storm hit Seattle and basically shut the town down. No one was driving anywhere, and I'd heard that of 4,000 taxi requests, only about 800 people actually got rides. Craig and Jane ended up spending the snowy days just before the 23rd at her mom's having fun sledding and making a snowman, while I drove through the snow to get to work every day and coming home to an empty house. So our little Christmas with Jane ended up being a whole 7 hrs and then she went back home to her mom's. What a let down.

Also during this month, Craig found an apartment but then found out he didn't get it after all; I had a roommate set up to move in after Christmas but she lost her job and now isn't moving in. The new roommate was going to watch my dog during my trip, so then I was also out a dog sitter. THIS is not what I needed just weeks before leaving the country.

A last minute scramble has had me repost my roommate ad, negotiate with Craig to stay one more month until I get back, and finding (thankfully!) a friend willing to stay at my house and watch my beloved dog. I will be so happy to be on with my adventure and will be sure to enjoy myself - while also trying not to think too much about what I'll be coming back to.