Dimanche, 14 Octobre 2012: Night of the Twister

I slept at the Augustins apartment last night. I woke up this morning to Kami cleaning. They have a home inspection on Tuesday. The first appointment was cancelled because apparently the house was out of order the first time the inspector came. This is trial number 2 so it's gonna be done right. 

Danielle came downstairs around noon. Lauren was still passed out upstairs. I heard a firm discussion going on in the kitchen so I went to see what it was about. It wasn't anything too bad. Kami was just upset that her wine was opened last night and no one asked her if they could drink it. I completely understand. For anyone that's ever lived with me (Especially Caitlin, Vince, and Meagon who were my roommates for 3 years), you know that I will let you use/eat anything of mine as long as you ask first and replace it if you use it all. Simple roommate etiquette. It just shows respect. I kind of felt bad for Kami because she went to the fridge to get a glass of Sauvignon and didn't get to enjoy any. The girls talked to each other though and everything is all good. 

After some much needed showers (due to the smoke from last night's party), Dani and I went to Paul's to get some sandwiches. We ended up eating at the same fountain that Lauren and I were at the previous day. Kari came to meet us and we walked to a "yard sale" that the local Red Cross was holding. I found an absolutely wonderful red leather jacket but decided not to buy it because I wouldn't know what to pair with it. A few minutes into browsing it just starts pouring! The three of us decided we didn't want to wait for the rain to stop so we took off toward the Augustins apartment. We made it back about 15 minutes later and the rain got harder. Normally in Aix, the rain stops after a few minutes. Danielle gave me a change of clothes and we all dried off and just watched the rain together from the living room. The clouds got darker and the rain got even heavier. There's thunder crackling and lightning flashing across the sky. I guess at some point there was hail but I didn't see any. It turns out a tornado touched down right outside of Aix. I don't know why I thought I escaped tornadoes by moving out of the midwest...

http://www.laprovence.com/article/actualites/tornade-a-plan-de-campagne-une-vingtaine-de-blesses-et-de-lourds-degats 

When the rain subsided I ran back to Yann's to get a quick shower and change of clothes. I was supposed to meet my new host family at 17h00 that evening. Around 16h30 I received a call from Celine's husband saying that the birthday festivities went on longer than they thought and they wanted to re-schedule for later that week. I told him that I was confused and was worried because my living situation was temporary. He then sounded confused and asked me what Romy and I had discussed. I told him that I accepted the job from the Faget family and had already turned down all of the other potential families--not knowing that Delphine had put in a request to have her maternity leave extended. He makes a sound as if a light bulb went off in his head and said "Ahh, oui. We didn't know anything about that. We will talk tomorrow and move fast." 

I went back in and told Yann that another appointment had been postponed. He ended up asking me if I could go to Danielle's until I moved in with my family. Dani and I had already spoken over the weekend about me staying at the Augustins apartment for a few days. I had talked to Yann about leaving last week because I felt like he needed his personal space back. I felt bad for his taking advantage of his hospitality and spending less and less time with him. It was more appropriate for me to be with Danielle because I basically spend every waking moment with her. I had already planned on leaving later that night after spending some good quality time with him, but since he asked, I felt uncomfortable staying there any longer than necessary. I couldn't even look at him after that, not because he upset me, but because I was embarrassed that I probably have overstayed my welcome. 3 weeks of letting someone crash at your place is more than kind. I got my stuff together in less than 5 minutes and the girls came over to help me carry my stuff. 

When Dani and Kari got to the apartment, Yann immediately got up and met us all at the door. He asked the girls if they wanted coffee, and they awkwardly looked at each other and said no. The three of us each grabbed a bag and made the short trek down the street. I feel a lot more at home here...There are constantly people coming and going so you never feel obligated to entertain anyone in particular. Besides, everyone here is more extroverted, like me. I will always love Yann for taking care of me. He took in a complete stranger, fed me, and made sure I knew how to get around. He is the epitome of what a perfect CouchSurfing host should be and I imagine we will be friends for the rest of our lives. I am so grateful to him. But alas, it's time to move on...

Dani and I were hanging in the living room late that night when I heard someone screaming at the bottom of the stairwell. The CEA students live at the very top of the building on the 4th floor, if that tells you anything. The voice and manner of yelling sounded familiar to me...I told Dani that it was Armando but she didn't believe me. She thought that Armando would have more tact than that since he had already been called out for causing a commotion before. Over a 15 minute period, the yelling slowly got louder until it was right outside of the apartment door. We heard a key in the lock and listened more intently--not that we needed to. When the door opened, the argument ceased and Armando, his ex-girlfriend from Miami, and John-Michel walk in. The girl has tear tracks down her face, Armando looks livid, and John-Michel looks like he's on some heavy drug because he has no clue what's going on and can't even see straight. I've known enough drug users in my life to know that he was not drunk. Danielle got extremely uncomfortable around them so we went upstairs to her bedroom.

We tried to fall asleep but we heard all sorts of ruckus going on downstairs. It sounded like they were trying to be quiet but obviously, they're the type of people that have a hard time with this. John-Michel is trying to leave the apartment even though he's f***ed out of his mind and Armando's trying to get him to stay. JM somehow convinces Armando that he'll be alright and makes his way out. A few minutes later, Dani and I hear Armando and his ex going at it. They're doing the whole whisper/yelling thing which really doesn't mask what's happening at all. We both hear a slapping sound and just look at each other. Danielle's freakied out because she's thinking that the violence just escalated to another level. I wasn't sure if my thoughts were being true to my ears so I didn't try to go down and stop them. I don't like to get in the middle of anyone elses' business unless it's absolutely necessary and since I didn't hear another slapping sound, I stayed out of it. The fighting eventually subsided and Dani and I finally passed out...