memoir: solo celebrating in paris

I went to Paris for my birthday with the intention of having my celebration at a particular restaurant. I tried using their online reservation while still in the US...no response. I tried using their online reservation when I got to Paris...no response. I walked to the restaurant to get a dinner reservation. It went like this with the maitre'd:

Bonjour! Je voudrais une réservation pour le dîner ce soir, s'il vous plaît. 
Oui madame. combien pour le dîner?
Une, Monsieur.
NON! ...shaking his head at me. 
I try again:
Je voudrais une réservation pour le dîner ce soir, s'il vous plaît. 
Oui madame. combien pour le dîner?
Une, Monsieur.
NON! ...again shaking his head at me.
Mais c'est mon anniversaire!
Oui madame. combien pour le dîner?
Une, Monsieur.
NON! ...shaking his head at me again.

So then I switched to English which I suspected he knew, and I had no intention of leaving until I got my reservation. 
Okay, it's MY birthday and I came to Paris to celebrate MY birthday HERE...and you know why I am HERE, so don't look at me like some crazy American woman because we all come HERE for the same reason. It's MY birthday!

He walks off and has a conversation with who must be the manager. They both are looking at me while speaking rapidly in French, and then finally he returns and says, Oui madame, par ici...as he starts to guide me to a table. 

I thank him then clarify that I want the table for later that evening. You should have seen his face! Mortified by my request! I explained that I have been on walkabout all day and needed to go back to my chamber de bonne to change. He points to his watch and says, Une heure! I graciously thank him again, promised I would be back in an hour...and told him it better not be a table by the kitchen. He knew what table I really wanted but it was already reserved which did not surprise me.

I returned exactly on time to the minute, and when I walked in the door, the maitre'd threw his hands out, then clasped them, and said, Mon Dieu! It was because he had not expected this crazy American to be properly dressed for dinner, including my pearls! I got the BEST table in the restaurant...better than the one I had initially wanted (where Keaton and Keanu sat)...and had the most impeccable service with each staff wishing me a happy birthday. The dinner was fabulous...the diners nearby joined in my celebration. And just as I was about to ask for l'addition, that challenging maitre'd brought me a glass of champagne for my birthday with a slight smile.

A lovely Parisian explained to me that one just doesn't dine alone in Paris because dining is SOCIAL. It's not their culture to eat out alone. So THAT was why people stopped talking and eating to stare at me when I sat at my table! At first, it was awkward but gradually I felt as if I were their queen at high court! So I learned a cultural difference (which is the sole point of traveling) but I also got my birthday wish and a celebration that I will never forget.

something i wrote...

i was contemplating on what i would write about today but i do not have much time. i have a huge assignment to work on, and then i have to get my yoga practice in. so i decided that i would post something that i wrote previously, as i have a lot of these tidbits stashed on my computer or scribbled in a journal. here it goes:

couples day

no, there is no special sales reward if you show up as a couple at our store...it's just that today, there seemed to be a great wave of couples, more so than usual. generally, they are young ones...just starting out, fresh looks on their faces, armed with their lists to select items for their wedding registry. or the ones that have been in it a few years, still trying to figure one another out and what is marriage really about, he's pushing a stroller, or she's ripe as a summer peach and round as a basketball. that's the general population i deal with in my position as a design studio specialist...the girl who gets to sit on sofas with you, gives you fabric samples, questions your lifestyle, and then tells you exactly what you need so you are no longer confused and terrified about buying your first piece of real adult furniture. that's me.

but today was different. today my couples were my age and older. they were seasoned veterans of love, with years of partnering shoulder to shoulder as they faced life's ups and downs. that's who was out shopping today. and they all wanted to talk to me. not the other younger associates. it was if i were a magnetic force they gravitated to. especially since i was not close to the entrance, they certainly had been asked if they needed help by at least 3 - 4 others before happening upon me.

each couple was unique but the same. i saw in each one of them what happens when you share your life with your best friend. and as we spoke, i was both engaged in conversation with them - graciously included in their humorous comments about each others shopping habits, and how they both don't always like the same thing - as well as a spectator to their intimate banter...their own personal language, their secret code. i often witness this and find it fascinating and delightful...yes, to be able to find that secure niche in your relationship with someone who loves you back just for who you are must be a wonderful thing.

the circumstances of this particular couples day all seemed too coincidental. unusually so. is the universe trying to tell me something? perhaps. undoubtedly, after the fifth couple, i began to believe someone had a message for me. is it because i generally question myself on the practically of believing in the idea of finding love and sharing a life with my best friend?

such foolishness; it's late. i should stop thinking and send my brain to slumber.

*12.17.2006*