The New Me

Something my friend Delphine said regarding my brand new French citizenship (see yesterday’s Comments) got me thinking…

Mmm… What if, to celebrate my new Frenchness, I decided to really BE French for a day, i.e. act totally like a French person. Inspired partly by some of the quirks and observations noted on this blog, my day-long project could include some (or all) of the following:

- Hearty kisses for everyone I meet, even people I am briefly introduced to and will probably never see again

- Initiating the bise with hand-shaking colleagues, and revelling in their awkwardness

- Deliberately jumping queues and acting surprised if challenged

- Driving aggressively, failing to respect right of way and beeping angrily at the car in front if it is not moving at (at least) 10 km more than the speed limit (this may be a Toulouse-specific, rather than a French thing…)

- Eating any animal (or animal part) whose poor carcass happens to end up on my plate: horse, snails, frogs, pigeons… (No! No, I just can’t do this one! Would it be alright to just eat cheese instead?)

- Never ever saying sorry, or excuse-me (unless I do something really wrong, of course).

Is this a good idea?
Well, I’ll let you know how it goes…
PS Please don’t be upset, dear French readers. You know that I ADORE this country, which is why I am allowed to indulge in some gentle mocking from time to time. Sorry. Er – no, not sorry. (sorry).