c'est vrai.

Yep, it's true. I am flying home tomorrow only to get back on a plane next Wednesday and fly back. Why? Well, I bought my ticket not knowing whether or not I would be accepted into Florent. And then when I was accepted, I found out it would cost me over $1500 to change my ticket. So, I am coming home. And this way, my visa restarts and I can stay until Christmas. And don't worry, I am making the best of it--on Friday morning I am flying to Houston to visit eight of my most favorite people in the world (6+2). I haven't seen them for a LONG time and one of them I have yet to meet. Can't wait. I am coming back to Utah on Monday night. And Tuesday night Matt is graciously throwing me a little birthday gathering at his house. Come. Last chance to see me until Christmas. Unless of course you are going to be in Paris in the next three months, in which case, you might get tired of seeing me. Or at least tired of seeing me sleep on your couch.

Class has been great. I love it. Je le kiffe GRAV. There is so much to learn and so much to work on and I love it. Right now we are working on our tout-seul assignment--each student selects five monologues, one from each of the five centuries since the 17th, and performs them in five minutes. It's great. My professor is brilliant and my class is filled with many extremely talented, bright people. The day after I get back is when we have to pass them off to a panel of judges. Wish me luck, or as I was culturally informed of today, merde.

je me suis inscrit.

It's done. I am now an enrolled student of Le Cours Florent. I went in this morning and filled out the paper work and paid my dues. I was introduced to everyone in the office as "le jeune homme americain" (the young American man) and later "notre americain" (our American). Everyone would start off talking to me really slowly and clearly, not knowing if I spoke French very well, and probably because I had that nervous, puppy dog, am-I-really-going-through-with-this? look on my face. They made sure to show me around and answer all possible questions. All the while I couldn't believe I was actually doing it and left in somewhat of a state of shock.

Walking to the metro, it hit me that I had actually gone through with it and I started laughing.

I start class tomorrow morning at nine. Still don't know where I am going to live--but with the way everything else has fallen so miraculously into place, I am not complaining.

now what?

When I get nervous, my heart rate skyrockets until I can feel it pounding out of my chest and I usually end up talking so fast that you can't tell what I am saying, and, this might sound weird but my hamstrings get shaky--just ask Ben about when I sang at his farewell. All of this used to happen every time I had to audition for something. It's a miracle (literally) that I was ever cast in anything, but the more I auditioned, the more I got used to the whole experience and eventually I was able to keep myself relatively calm and focused. Well, in case you're wondering, all that goes out the window when you have to audition in another language. Along with your ability to speak that language. Oi. I basically had to READ my first monologue. Luckily, they asked me some questions before moving on to the second monologue. This helped me catch my breath and calm down a bit, but I still lost track of what I was saying. Twice. Nevertheless, for some reason that escapes me, they accepted me into the school. I was even more shocked when they told me that I would be admitted into the SECOND year of the program. Excuse me? I'm sorry, did you...wow. Uh, MERCI.

So now that I am in, What do I do? Do I stay? Do I move forward trying to find an apartment and continue to drain my savings account? Before I left, I didn't realize how low the dollar-euro exchange is right now. That turn things upside down a bit, but it would still be possible...

Oh, and they want me to start on Monday.

?

More importantly, the meeting with Elder and Sister Bednar last night was absolutely inspired. After Sister Bednar shared some thoughts, Elder Bednar changed the format of the meeting to a question and answer session. It was incredible.

A few thoughts from the meeting:

Seeing is not believing. We can receive a special witness of Christ by the power of the Holy Ghost in a way that transcends the five senses. Each member has the responsibility to stand as a witness of Christ.

The number of conversions will not increase until we, as members, stop relying on the missionaries to find people to teach. "You are full-time finders; the missionaries are full-time teachers." Pray for the discernment to recognize missionary opportunities, then be prepared to act when your prayer is answered.

A young boy asked, straight up, "How do you know God exists?" Seeing Elder Bednar testify to him, and share ways in which he has seen the arm of the Lord revealed in his life, was a beautiful experience.

To sacrifice is to be willing to give all--to be willing to die for the gospel. To consecrate is to be willing to develop and dedicate your life in such a way that you will live for the gospel.

When we come unto Christ, He shows unto us our weakness, not our weaknesses or shortcomings but our mortal, fallen state, and the necessity to depend on Him. When we know we must rely on Him, and have the faith to know we can, He will grant us strength in Him.


The Church is TRUE.

lemme esplain...

Some of you seem shocked to learn that I picked up and moved to Paris. Don't worry, no one was more tripped out over the whole experience than I was (that's two bad pun-entries in a row).

What was I thinking? Let me explain. Well, let me sum up:

Not going to law school. What am I doing with my life? Who's going to want to date some guy with no career prospects? Being a professor would be cool, but as Dr. Sprenger told me, that means I need to find something I want to study for the next 27 years... wow, that's a long time. Could anything keep my attention that long? What have I been really into lately? . . . buh, acting? Film is especially interesting to me. Maybe I could get an MFA (Master of Fine Arts, which is a terminal degree) in acting or film... but I don't have any technical training and it might be hard to convince a good university to take a chance on me based solely on my audition. So, I need to take some acting classes. Don't want to stay at BYU. Don't want to get ripped off by some lame classes in LA. I am curious to see what would happen if I just starting auditioning more. Maybe get some more experience. ...Hey, Laetitia (a French friend of mine)'s brother is at that acting school in Paris. It's supposed to be good and is cheaper than BYU... I wonder... no, that would never happen... hmmm. My French could use some work and I do love Paris. Maybe I should call them just to find out some more information...

The next day I bought a ticket. Five days later I sold my car. A week and a half later I got on the plane. And here I am today:
views from Mont Parnasse
love street musicians

the infinite staircase at Porte des Lilas--and one more reason why I wish I had one of those big red foursquare balls with me at all times. Anyone? At least a bouncy ball...
leaving church with Irene

Clement, Gab's wickedly talented graphic designer brother who lives in Paris, and Irene walking in one of the many Parisian parks.

My Nikon D90 was the best impulse purchase I have ever made.

from Paris, safe and sound

First of all, if anyone decides to come visit me, the direct flight (SLC->CDG) is the new best thing that ever happened to trans-Atlantic flying. Adam West, the ORIGINAL television series BATMAN, was on the flight and Gareth, one of the flight attendants who is Welsh and a stud and is going to start his doctorate in poli sci at the U next year, brought me an extra fruit and cheese plate from first class. I guess Mr. West wasn't up for a midnight snack. I also had the biggest carry-on bag in the history of flying--the guy at Skycap told me to try and take it on the plane, saving me fifty bones. So I only checked one bag and then somehow got on board the plane with my laptop bag, camera bag, and a fatty duffel bag.

I couldn't have made it very well from the airport with all my bags if Irene Kim, my friend that I taught French with at BYU (and who is now a nanny for some wealthy French family that takes her on vacations to Italy and the Riviera), hadn't come to pick me up. Thanks IRENE.

The idyllic glamour of living in Paris faded a bit when I had to make my first big purchases, buying a metro pass and a cell phone (if you feel inclined to call, send me an email and I will send you my number). Big cities are really only luxurous for those who have lots of money. With that being said, Paris has a lot to offer even those who don't have loads of cash and I am LOVING it. It helps that I am staying with three Romanians. Everyone knows how much I love those people and these ones are especially cool. Despite not having much room for themselves, they have taken me in, fed me (Romanian style), and given me a place to sleep by pushing their kitchen table aside to squeeze in a mattress on the floor.

This morning I caught up on some much needed sleep then headed out into the city to visit Le Cours Florent for the first time. It took me a while to find it because I didn't have the address and only vaguely remembered where it is from having seen it on Google Earth. When I saw it, I got really nervous and almost kept walking. There are things about French culture that can be intimidating (i.e. the language) and piling that on top of a sticking-your-neck-out situation made me want to tuck my tail between my legs and whimper away. But I didn't. I threw up a very humble little prayer, crossed the street and went inside. I looked around the entry for a bit, gathering up a bit of courage while trying to look nonchalant. The three women working just inside the office seemed nice enough, so I went in. I was invited to take a seat at a desk where I explained myself and learned that in order to get into Florent, you have to do a three week workshop (that costs 365 euros) before being able to audition, unless you have already had a full year at another acting conservatory. I told her about my acting experience, explained more about my situation, my experience, and the fact that I had hoped to avoid the cost of the workshop, and she waived the requirement. Bless you, Ode!--that's her name, though I might have spelled it incorrectly. Either way, I went from Ode, to JOY (pun intended).

With the workshop waived, I suddenly began to worry that maybe I won't do so well in my audition and that maybe I needed the exposure of a three week workshop in order to get in. I expressed my concern to Ode and she told me not to worry about it. So she signed me up for an audition on Friday, September 11 at 2pm. When the office realized that "l'Americain" had been signed up for an audition on 9/11, they were worried, but I assured them that I would be fine.

So, at the end of my audition next Friday, I will be told whether or not I have been accepted, and if I am, into which year of the program. In the meantime, I might travel around a bit, but Elder Bednar is giving a fireside for the Paris area next Thursday and I want to be there for that.

Well, I have been sitting in this McDonald's leeching off their free internet for a while and this post is far too long, but just so everyone knows, I did check in with both of my grandmothers before I left, and, despite everything, they STILL believe in me.

Most importantly, I am the proud, new uncle of this little guy:

(Thanks for the picture Steph!) From what I understand, he hasn't been named yet, but I think he should be named Anthony, maybe Anthony Jeffrey Dickamore (you could call him AJ!), because I think he looks EXACTLY like Tony. Before I left, Tami reminded me that this is the third baby she would have while I am out of the country. Depending on what time exactly he was born, I may have still been within the US air territories...

I love you all!