La Vie Enchantée

So I know my last entry was mostly about knitting, but that's what I do with my life these days, so bear with me.

Last night I went to a "soirée de tricot" or, a knitting party, at a cooperative that I found called La Vie Enchantée.

Let me back up a little. My friend Haley and I have been talking about how we feel sort of lost in France because there aren't places where you can really just sit and have a coffee and read or use your laptop or, you know, knit. We are both used to having our cavernous revolutionary coffee shops that we go to on a daily basis and sit for hours doing whatever. I have realized that when you are a college student, it is places like this that really become your living room. Except better because there is coffee and interesting people and open mic nights and so on and so forth.

Now. When she and I walked into La Vie Enchantée, we knew that we had found a home. First of all, it's a co-op. One of the things I miss greatly about my school in the states is the co-op where I volunteer. Walking in, we were surrounded by familiar things that one often finds in "revolutionary spaces"...flyers, event calenders, collaged table tops, a menu of local foods, people huddling around knitting and talking. But really the best thing about my evening at La Vie Enchantée was the people there. The thing about French people is that they are extremely unapproachable...they are certainly not the most welcoming people in the world. It is therefore nearly impossible to make friends with them. This has been one of my great frustrations since I've been living in France. However, the people who were hanging out at this place were not going to let us sit in a corner unnoticed. The woman who was organizing the event (and who also spent part of the evening reading feminist poetry...yes) was very curious about what I was knitting and the kind of needles I was using and wanted everyone in the room to see. Talking to her, I discovered that she is a storyteller, that is what she does, and she lives on a commune a little ways outside of Rennes. She told me about this festival that they're having called La Festival de la Lenteur (Festival of slowness) with workshops and things about living slowly. Also this man came up to us and told us that he is a sculptor and painter and he told me that there are life drawing sessions at les Beaux-Arts on Wednesday and Thursday evenings, and I am SO excited to go to one.

Anyway, the point is, Haley and I are meeting up after we are done with classes this afternoon so that we can make our way to our newfound home. Happiness.