Things we learned in French class last week.

+LOL = MDR (mort de rire, dead of laughing)
+not to be confused with MDF (mort de froid, dead of cold)
+which might be more likely to occur if you are SDF (sans domicile fixe, homeless)

How any of this is relevant to my ability to get by in Brussels is unknown. If I could just learn the phrase "We are collectively paying you over €70 per hour for the privilege of being here so could you please stay on topic" I'd probably be all set. But until that day comes, I'll be learning things such as that a one-legged person is known as a "unijambiste".

On Saturday we went to a party where a cute 5 year old boy was doing the hair of all the women. By "doing the hair" I mean he would drag a comb through it regardless of obstacles, not very enjoyable when one has not really done a thorough job of brushing one's hair that day. At any rate, he came around to me and started combing, and was making some hairstylist's banter, consisting of "do you speak French?" I replied "a little", but it was startling that he addressed me in the familiar form, even though we had never met or spoken before. I was under the impression that that just wasn't done! Maybe for children the rules are different. How bewildering. The exchange was soon over, and after I swept the large mass of hair on the cushion behind the couch, I spent the some time with his 1.5 year old brother, who was terrified of the small dog belonging to the owners. He and I could communicate more equally, and essentially our dialogue consisted of me saying "c'est bon" everytime he started freaking out about the dog. It was very effective.