La Vie en...en....en...

As many of you know, I was supposed to have spent my 40th birthday (in April) in Paris, sipping cafe creme in an outdoor bistro, wandering aimlessly along the quays, getting hopelessly lost on the Metro, maybe cooking a chicken or two in the apartment I rented.

Alas, this was not to be. For reasons I won't describe here.

Instead, my dear friends threw me a fete to end all fetes, even though this fete ended at 11 and not even really that drunk. The theme was Paris, of course, and below is the speech my lovely friend Mark made. Read it in the very worst French accent you can possibly muster. I love you too, Mark.

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Tu Speak le Franglaise?
Je Speake le Franglaise.
What est Franglaise, tu demander?
Il est le lingua of l'amour et le lingua of le brain simultaneoslement. Englaise et Francaise! Oui?

So...because our dear Hollie representment le perfect combinacion of amour et wit, il est seems tres fitting ce soir to honneur our tres beautifulment ami, Hollie, in le lingua Franglais.

Let je starte avec le storie about how je have knowledge about dear Hollie. Je met Hollie en le summer of two thousand quatre. Hollie requirement assistance avec le move. Alas, je could not assist, mais we met por le drink l'alcholique (Some vin, perhapsment some bourbon ou gin) et Le Bar du Corner. After zat drink l'alcholique, we shared beacoup more drinks and beacoup bien times.
Since then, Je have had beaucoup opportunitie to witness Hollie en elle vie and avec elle amis. Je think le monde of Hollie and J'aim sure zat each of tu, do alsoment. Naturellement, beaucoup things have changed in Hollie's life en le past quatre anyos, as most of you know. Quatre Anyos ago, Hollie was a writer du freelance. And today, onlement quatre years later, Hollie il est....oh...Je suppose that not everything has changed.

Just kidding...Je kid! Je kid!

Mais seriouslement, beaucoup things have changed and beaucoup things have stayed ze same. Ze good things, le passion por la dancer, por Nia et Soul Motion, por amis et bon vin, por elle famille, elle mob mol grand-mère espcialiment, have stayed ze same. Le Travallier-le work- has changed, from freelancer, to titan of l'agency, back to freelancer. Quatre anyos ago, Hollie had no dog with no legs. Now Hollie has un dog avec troi legs. Le home, at least after ze move in 2000 and quatre, has stayed ze same. Mais les roomates have changed. Primere, l est David. Now il est Jeff. Les sleeping arrangements have changed, presumableax. Plus, Je ne think pas David ever painted les walls naked, wearing perhaps onlimentun cravatte. Hollie's love for Esalan on les cliffs, its clothing optional chaud springs, and its les grand plus salad de Kale ne change pas. Nor has Hollie's amour pour elle amis, those plus fortunate of which are here avec Hollie to célébrer quarante anyos.

Je must say un thing about un plus thing, and this is a thing which ne changer pas and which has changed. And zis thing et amour. Il ne changer pas, because, when true il cannot changer. Il has changer, in Hollie's case, because les truest, most plus unchangerment amour has developed a neaveau object since Je met her. Zees object et Jeff. Before Jeff, there il ne Prince Albert pas, il ne painting nudes pas, il ne union pas, ne commitment to a life spent loving a partner pas. Zis change. Zees changes are tres bien. No? Tres Tres bien.

And so, as a witness to zere ceremony le matrimonial, as a witness to quatre anyos of friendship, joi, plus hard work, and hard dancer, as a witness to le celebration du Quarante anyos on le monde, je propose le toast to Hollie- a Franglais Toast, ne French Toast pas. Please raise your glass de la vin. To Hollie. A beacoup friend. A tres beatifulment presence in me life, in all of our lives. Happy Birsday and Many Happy Returns. Voila.