Greetings from the American Girl
 
Dear Santa,

I know you are super busy with five days left until your big night, but my Christmas wish list shouldn't be too hard to fill. I'm sure you and the elves can work some holiday magic! I bet you could even get the Mairie de Paris or maybe the Paris transportation folks to help you make my Christmas dreams come true. They're all about the warm and fuzzy spirit of the season!

So get to it Santa, I've been nice this year!
* Courtesy on the métro, specifically teaching subway riders how to get on and off the métro cars. I'm just so confused why  my fellow commuters think I can magically pass through them when it's time to disembark. Maybe you can just go ahead and give me special powers so I can fly to work.

* Clean sidewalks, walkways, basically anywhere I plant my feet. Not going to lie Santa...the dog and human caca smushed into what seems like every Parisian surface I traverse is really starting to get to me. I know there are fines for such littering, but no one seems to give a sh*t. Surely, you could create an elf task force to deal with this sort of thing. You must have high tech pooper scoopers on the production line.

* Scooter-less streets. I think you'd be doing anyone who rides one of these small engine jokes a service by popping their tires. Think of it as helping them graduate to the big leagues and encouraging them to get a real motorcycle. Those little scooters just make such much noise with their huffing and puffing up Paris's grand boulevards. 

* Marked walking paths. Santa, did you know that "up on the right, down on the right" doesn't exist in France?! All those years of being taught to walk on the right side of the sidewalk are worthless in this city. My elementary teachers would be so disappointed. It's chaos on the Parisian streets, people going willy nilly any direction they choose and as a runner I've bumped into one too many poles and been forced into car traffic enough times to not let this craziness continue. Time to get everyone on the straight and narrow Santa and paint some arrows. You might even need to bump it up to dividers with flashing lights.

* Vacation. Hmmm...I think a vacation from Paris takes precedence over wishes one through four. You might want to go with this one first, just a hunch. Destination U.S.A. would suite me quite well, but no matter where you send me there must be a hot, hot shower (Do you do repairs? I'll send you my address.), a free washing machine, and double pane windows.

Okay, that about wraps it up Mr. Claus! Please and thank you, and I can't wait to see what wonders you work!

Cheers,
P.S. I saw Rudolph loitering around your sleigh in Copenhagen last weekend and he says he wants more carrots.
 


Comments

12/21/2012 18:53

Love it -- too funny! I second the metro courtesy request, Santa, and give Linds a warm shower!

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12/22/2012 01:08

I know it's asking a lot of Santa, but I think these Christmas wishes could really make a lot of people happy ;-) Have a great holiday Daisy!

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12/22/2012 10:38

Three cheers for no more scooters. They almost kill me every time I ride my bike. And my husband three cheered for the marked walking. I think he's taken out at least five Parisians on the way to work.

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12/23/2012 14:06

wow life sounds VERY interesting :) I could definitely use some common courtesy on the streets of miami. Especially when running, I swear no one shares sidewalks

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12/26/2012 13:54

Amen.... And could Santa give some coal to the men who pee on everything in public? Or puke in doorways?

As for scooters, I don't mind those, much more eco-friendly than cars, and their drivers always seem to be paying more attention than the drivers of cars.... I have one but I don't ride it inside of Paris... too scared. :-P

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01/07/2013 14:41

Bahaha! Santa would run out of coal I think!

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Kristen
01/06/2013 23:11

Scooters. I always feel guilty being annoyed at them because before moving to Europe I always thought they were so glamorous. But they're not glamorous when you have to shut your windows because they're so so loud OR when i'm walking down the sidewalk and i'm being tailed by a scooter... on the sidewalk because he wants to pass me, the pedestrian ... on the sidewalk. i just don't get it.

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Kendal
01/07/2013 10:11

lol. Maybe because I'm a skinny girl with a how-much-does-that-weigh scooter to keep upright, but now that I have one, I have more sympathy for riders. It's a pain in the butt to slow down and try to stay on two wheels, so I always try to step out of the way quickly so they don't have to stop for me. My first experience with a scooter, however, was 10 years ago in Rome when I was crossing a street and I swear he was just aiming straight at me. I got caught between two scooters, one went down, and he was maaaaad. So I ran. I didn't speak Italian and was terrified. Anyway. I think it's usually cars that are causing accidents, I think riders pay much more attention to their surroundings. I still hate loud motorcycles though.

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01/07/2013 14:42

I totally wanted a scooter when we first moved here and thought I'd be so cool zipping around in a fun little Vespa. Now I curse them when they're roaring down my street or like you said, running you over on the sidewalk. Where do people need to be to risk mowing down pedestrians?

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Kendal
01/07/2013 16:38

More eco-friendly and city-friendly than cars! And probably do less damage if they run over you, as compared to a car, too. I haven't really had trouble with them on the sidewalks. Whenever they're there it seems like they're just parking or unparking. My only experience with the scooter on the sidewalk, as the driver, was the first time I tried to make a right turn. And a left turn. And get into a parking lot. That one almost hurt.

01/12/2013 02:02

The observations in this post are so true about Paris. The French capital has many ups and downs, when I have visited I have really noticed the dog mess. In the late 1980's they had men on motorcycles cleaning it up, but they didn't really scratch the surface. It's such a pity, if only the Parisian authorities imposed the same level on control of dogs as they do on bread makers, Paris would be a lot cleaner.

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