jour no. 24 - workin' it

OK, last day. Lots of chores and errands (I used to feel the title of my memoirs would be "Chores and Errands") - clean my darling apartment, try to cram all my new stuff into my luggage, pick up a few things at the store (including some lovely-looking gouda-and-sea-salt crackers for my plane ride), etc.

Early on in my sojourn, I posted about the adorable appliances in my kitchen. Well, my love affair with French efficiency doesn't end there. Just take a look at this baby.

Let me just say I loathe vacuuming. We all have that one task that sets our teeth on edge; my Mom hates dusting, others hate doing dishes or laundry. For me, it's the drudgery and back-ache of vacuuming.

So imagine my delight at meeting this absolutely doll: the Samsung euro vacuum (not its actual technical name, FYI). First off, it's a Samsung, so I feel as if I'm talking on a mobile instead of doing housework. Second, it's got incredible power for such a little guy: I had to turn it off at one point, it was so eager to suck up an entire throw rug. Third, it's just so well-designed: easy to use, easy to carry, easy to pull around, easy to zip into corners.

For some of you, this might seem like the most unromantic Paris post in the history of blogging. But for those of you who curse the pathetic and enraging design flaws of everyday gadgets like vacuum cleaners, this innocuous-looking gadget will be, as it was for me, a testimony to the potential of humankind to evolve to new levels of dignity and grace.

And it's so damn cute, too: the Wall-E of the vacuum world.



Speaking of cute: I bought this hairdryer just as something to use this month; I was planning to leave it behind. But at this point, after its three weeks of selfless service, and its absolutely adorable looks, I'm just too attached. It will be crammed in somewhere, bejaysus.