I live in Frenchville, Maine USA and wouldn't trade your Paris to this place. My relatives were from the Normandy area in France - sad to say it's too close to Paris.

Yes, we speak French - maybe not one of your 200 or so dialects - but - we can communicate very well - even with people from Quebec, PQ - Canada.

PS: You need a lesson in humility.

A "cushy job" is a job, employment, work, that is laid back, easygoing, low-stress, low-key, a "cakewalk," a walk in the park, where there is a lot of sitting on your bum, a lot of getting up to raid the vending machine, a lot of checking the score, a lot of surfing the internet (like now?), a lot of more or less surreptitious video-game playing while looking like you're working really intensely on that latest project, a lot of leaning back, a lot of putting your feet up, a lot of calling your roommate to see if they've got the cable turned on yet, a lot of breaks, a lot of stepping out, a lot of coasting, a lot of inventing new versions of office basketball with the guys down the hall,

but not a lot of actual work getting done.

Sort of like if you work for the government, from what I've seen in the US, Canada, and Belgium, and from what reponsible people report from just about every other country, except maybe Finland.

In the State of Maine - up until 1968, we were reprimanded if we used our French in school. So, we speak it fine but have a hard time writing it. If you want to type in French (without using a special keyboard or changing your settings) - just use the alternate keyboard that you already have. For example, you do not see the cents sign anywhere - right ¢ - except here. People are incredulous when I show them - it's right there. à å çêëèïîìÄÅÉæÆôöòû

Anyway, back to the new member info column that this posting is in:

P.S. Polyhymnia is one of the muses . . . the muse of sacred music, I think . . . but you can just call me Nia for short

Edit: Actually, it's six posts . . . I can't count!!

George

I started reading Scott's books because my parents had them laying about the house, and as a precocious pre-teen, I had to read everything within my reach.

I'm 24, grew up in hawaii, went to high school in norway, ran off to france at 19, and have had ENOUGH of this country, so I am moving back to hawaii for x-mas - dragging my french hubby with me.

I am a true book-bulimic. It started when I was 3 1/2 years old, and hasn't stopped yet, I'm afraid. I've gotten alot more picky about what I read...

I'm good at a couple things;
1) learning languages, and
2) holding big fat books in one hand while balancing a bowl or plate between my chest and my knees and eating (usually with chopsticks) with the other hand. The only reason my mom put up with this when I was a kid, was that if she hadn't, I would have missed too many meals.

Great meeting you all

I will be sticking my nose in many, many threads around here. Can't help it. I always seem to have an opinion

The most well-known game I've done was called "Meridian 59." It was the first 3D massively multiplayer game (like Ultima Online, Everquest, etc.). Since then I've done a couple of startups (doing another now!), and I worked on The Sims Online, The Sims2, and a few other games.

One of the reasons I signed up here is because I'm extremely interested in applying strong fiction to online games. This is much more difficult than it looks, and no one's really done it yet. I'm hoping to find places to discuss this sort of thing here.

So I've discorvered OSC with "treasure box", it's not he's best novel as i see later at the reading of "Columbus's redemption" (is it this title in american?) which is my favourite , and Ender's game.

Well , I'm a 30 yo "girl", I'm working in a fund of retirement, it's not really interesting but I've plenty of time for my hobbies.

I hope that everybody can understand what I'm trying to say with my poor english

Blattos, you might be pleased to know that there are a number of other Frenchmen -- and women -- on this site. Most of them post on the other forum, though, about Books and American Culture (which, while I'm at it, is MUCH more active than this one).