La monnaie

Ahhh it's so COLD outside!! Okay, yes maybe this cold weather does not compare to the very long and cold winters I've survived back in Montreal, but still.. its COLD.  Apparently it's just minus 2 outside but it feels like minus 10!

Okay so this morning I was so pissed, so upset!I just found a new thing that I dislike about Paris... and guess what it's about?? I'm sure you guessed it, what else could it be but CUSTOMER SERVICE. Only that this time it wasn't exactly customer service since I wasn't a customer, but I don't know how to call it... act of kindness? Let's just stick to customer service.

So this morning is of course the 1st day of the month of February (omg, can you believe it?! It's already February!!) and my monthly bus/metro/train pass was finished but since I'm soon getting a new student pass my host mom and I decided that there would be no point in filling up this pass since the other one should arrive soon, and that we would just get tickets for the moment. Apparently getting tickets is harder than I thought it would be.  Today was not a good day to go around buying tickets because apparently it's not so easy to just get tickets, no of course not, they wanted to complicate my life. I went to one booth/machine thing to get the tickets and no, they don't have tickets available. So I went to another one that was right next to the train, and there I was about to pay and guess what? They don't freaking take bills! They only took coins and of course I had no change at all! So I go to the closest open business (it was a mini crepe place) to go ask for change. I didn't really know how to ask for change in french, and perhaps that was my problem but I am sure I said it right. I ask the man if I could have coins, and without letting me explain what for he says "oh no no" all upset and as if I had insulted him...what the hell? So then I turn around and figured that the best place would be to actually go to a restaurant or something, but of course everything is closed because they're french and only open after 10!
I headed to the magazine stand that was just right next to the crepe place because it's the only other thing that is open and nearby (did I mention it was freezing AND I had a 2 year old in a stroller?) Of course the dude in the magazine shop turn me down, and also said "oh I don't believe in that" (what the f? you don't believe in money??!!) " I keep the money for my clients" turned around (to ignore me of course) and just said that it wasn't "nice"... OMG I wanted to scream at him, I was so confused! It is not nice what YOU are doing sir, not letting me get change for a 10 euro bill when it's freezing outside and I have a 2 year old who's freezing. I asked him if I bought a magazine if I could have change, he said of course. I pick whatever magazine and it turned out being a 1 euro magazine (I think I'm going to buy magazines more often, 1 euro?! Awesome, but definitely not from this dude ever again) and he just looked at it and said "oh it's just one euro"... SO WHAT? Seriously dude? I had to buy another magazine for him to give me change... and on top of that you know what?? He gave me two 1 euro coins ONLY and a five euro bill. Did he not hear what I needed?? I needed change, COINS, and he gives me a bill?? AHH. I just left, I couldn't take it. I felt my inner Mexican want to tell him to F off and give him a piece of my mind and tell him what a horrible person he was. I wanted to get all latina on him, and have you heard a latina girl get pissed? We start to speak like a hundred words per minute and raise our voices to a really loud and annoying pitch. You do not want that buddy, no no you don't.
 But it was cold, I was running late to drop of the kid and all I could think to myself as I walked away was "You little f******" and if you know me, you know I only swear when I'm really pissed...That just shows you how upset I was! It wasn't only upset, it was like frustrated and appalled, I couldn't believe it!
Since I only had 2 euros in coins, I was only able to buy one ticket and I then had to go to the metro (after dropping off the kid) to get more tickets. But of course I was only able to buy 3 urgh.
I did not understand why they didn't want to give me change, even my host mom was confused! I could not stop thinking "If I was in America, I would have no problem at all!", sometimes I really do think life is  much easier in America...