Most people have a bucket list I think, even if it isn’t something they physically write down and check off one by one. Rather, we all have things that we stumble into online or hear about or see in a movie and think “YES! That is something I need to do/see/experience before I die.” Seriously – who has not had that thought before? One of my bucket list items has always been to go to Paris, and IT’S FINALLY COMING TRUE! I just booked our flights to Paris for Christmas and Italy for New Year’s and I’m beyond excited. I’ve had a weird fascination with all things French since I made the incredibly practical decision to take French in high school instead of Spanish. It was more “romantic” (and totally useful for the job market in California). I left those 4 years of French without the ability to actually SPEAK French, but with a great love for a place I’d never even seen.

So we’re going! We’re really going! And there is a laundry list of things Gil and I each want to see. Mine include things like Moulin Rouge and the towns outside Paris that transform into Medieval winter wonderlands and have people dressed as Renaissance characters. Gil is all about the art and the food. The Louvre, Musee d’Orsay and a few good cafes and he’s set. We are currently negotiating on some of these items. I’m all for the art and the food, but I want to see some of these very specific attractions that I’ve been reading about for years, and Gil’s tolerance for touristy shit is WAY lower than mine. That’s a weird thing about becoming a “couple” – you really have to consider someone else’s feelings and you can’t do exactly what you want exactly when you want to all the time anymore. Soooo…. it’s basically like I have a certain supply of “couple credits” and I have to be very strategic about how I use them.

That brings me to my main point. You didn’t even realize there was one, but there is. After watching “Midnight in Paris” a few years back (fabulous movie by the way, if you don’t hate Woody Allen films you should definitely watch it) I added a new item to my bucket list. In the movie, a lot of the fantastical plot-line centers around Le Musée des Arts Forains, which as it turns out is an amazing private museum of old amusement park rides and other carnival-type attractions. It’s GORGEOUS. And romantic. And unique. And maybe just a teeny bit creepy. I made the mistake of letting Gil watch the video that was on the website. I think it’s really the music that makes it feel so dark, but the very lifelike, very creepy dolls that stare at the screen a few times throughout the brief clip aren’t helping my cause. Within 20 seconds he says, “Fuck that, no way. That is the creepiest thing I’ve ever seen.” This from a man who has been to the darkest corners of the internet and seen unspeakable videos. But the creepy French dolls are what are going to give him nightmares.

Considering this is a private museum only open to the public ONE WEEK A YEAR, I think I might have to use most of my credits on this one and just make it happen. And hope I don’t scar this 6’3” lumberjack of a man for life. But seriously, is it really even that creepy??