Hey, It's Okay

I got this idea from Glamour magazine. You can link up any day of the week. All you have to do is make a list of what you're okay about. Simple! Please do not link up a post that has nothing to do with Hey, It's Okay. It's rude and I'll delete the link.

HEY, IT'S OKAY....

.....to hope Natalie has the best prom this weekend. She's wearing the dress I wore to prom in high school.

....to think whoever runs The White House Twitter/X account must be a teenager. They post the most cringeworthy and ridiculous things over there. 

.....to have enjoyed watching Revenge of the Sith in theaters with Natalie over the weekend. It was a full theater too so lots of people were thrilled that it returned to the big screen. I heard some audiences were clapping and saying the lines--I'm glad ours did not. Though I wouldn't have minded if people started a lightsaber battle. 

......to be amused by this shirt and wear it proudly. There's a literal felon as president and yet people like to say drag queens and books are the issue. You can get it here!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Notre Dame & Shakespeare And Company

So people are aware that Notre Dame caught on fire a while back. It happened back in 2019 and I remember watching the videos with a heavy heart. I mean, Notre Dame has been around for over 800 years. It was actual history going up in flames.

What caused it? Well, either a cigarette or a short circuit. No one is for certain. 

What is for certain is Notre Dame has reopened. It's still being worked on, but we were lucky enough to be able to visit when we were in Paris.

Anyone can visit. There are tickets but there is also a line if you do not have one. This is what we did. The line moved quickly and yes, it was beautiful inside. The only issue is the store is hard to navigate. There are souvenirs set up on the side but it's not an actual store so it was difficult to figure out lines and such. So we didn't bother. 

We are not religious, but we can appreciate the beauty and the history. 

Around Notre Dame is called the Latin Quarter. It is one of the oldest neighborhoods and there are so many wonderful places to dine.

We ended up popping into a nearby sandwich shop, and holy crap, it was amazing. 

Fresh bread. Fresh cheese. Fresh meat. The US needs to get help from Paris. 

There's also a fabulous bookstore nearby called Shakespeare And Company. It was founded by an American named George Whitman in 1951. The building was around since the 17th century. I believe it was a monastery. 

If you love the smell of books, or books in general, visit the bookstore. There is usually a line to get in but it moves quickly. There are no pictures of videos allowed inside. You'll find classic books, as well as current ones. I picked up Madeline, a book I enjoyed as a little girl.

Be sure to get books purchased stamped. The employees will usually ask if you want it.

Oh, it says Kilometer Zero Paris because it is located at the point where all French roads begin.

I also picked up this bag:

History lovers will be a fan of the area for sure. We certainly did! 

Natalie's Short Ballet Stint (Watch Etoile!)

So, okay, when Natalie was like 5 I put her in ballet. 

Beginning Ballet.

I think it might have been inspired by all the episodes of Dance Moms I watched. I thought, you know, she could be Maddie. She could do the Maddie face. 

Plus she liked to do ballet moves around the house. Probably because she also watched Dance Moms. 

"She's LOUD," Natalie once observed, pointing at Abby Lee Miller. 

Anyhow, when I asked if she wanted to try ballet she said yes and then did random somersaults around the room.

She was a hyper kid. But she did seem to like ballet.

So how did she do in class? 

Well. 

She did act silly in class a lot. But, I mean, it was beginning ballet. And there was a point where she put a cone on her head when she was meant to jump over it. She was pleased with herself for that one.

I do not think she had the personality for ballet. You need to be somewhat serious, and well, Natalie was not. We laugh at farts and she gets distracted easily. (It's why she only did softball for a season. She'd get distracted by bugs in the outfield. The ball would go rolling past and she'd be like, wow, cool, ANTS!)

Oh, and there was one time where I had to put her in the recital costume and take her for class pictures and she was PISSED with a P. 

(She loved the costume though. She was just not in the mood to go down for pictures.)

She eventually did. Maybe I bribed her with chocolate or an extra episode of Yo Gabba Gabba? I don't know. I think I paid $25 for this. 

Natalie was the only one in the class who got a trophy for top student, but when I asked if she wanted to do ballet again, she told me, "No." Well, first she said yes, because she did love the costume as we tend to be attracted to sparkly and glittery things (she still owns it), but when I reminded her she had to take the class seriously and not do random hand stands when the teacher wanted to go over dance positions, she was like, oh, well crap, pass. 

There's no video or photos from her recital, because you weren't allowed to film. If you wanted the privilege of owning the 2 minute dance, you had to pay like $100 for the DVD which would include all the other numbers in the recital and, well, no. I found out quickly how expensive dance was. From the costume fees, to the recital fees (I have to PAY to watch my kid perform??), to the monthly tuition, if my kid didn't love it, then no, I was not going to force her to do it.

Anyhow, the reason I'm talking about her short lived dance era is because there's a new show called Etoile. That means star in French. (Sorry I can't add the symbol over Etoile properly.)

Photo by Philippe Antonello for Prime Video

It's from Amy Sherman-Palladino and if that name sounds familiar, it should. She's the creator of Gilmore Girls, Bunheads (I'm still pissed it was canceled after one season),  and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. Apparently Amy could have become a professional dancer but choose network television instead (great choice!) so she understands the world of ballet. 

Etoile is about two ballet companies: one is in NYC and the other is in Paris. Both are struggling. So the heads of each decide to exchange top dancers to see if it'll help. Gilmore Girls fans will spot familiar faces: Kelly Bishop (Mrs. Gilmore) is set to guest start and Yanic Truesdale (Michel from Gilmore Girls) is a French ballet administrator. Luke Kirby, a favorite in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, plays Jack. 

With Amy's writing, I know I will laugh and cry. 

Vanity Fair wrote up a wonderful piece about Etoile if you need more details.

It premieres April 24th on Prime Video and I cannot wait to watch. Check out the preview:

 

I'll watch and marvel at the dedication of the ballet dancers. And I'll look back with fondness on Natalie's brief stint as a dancer.