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Published: November 16th 2009
I feel I should warn anyone reading this that the first little part of this particular blog has nothing to do with Italy. It's just an odd thought that came into my head: you know how when you take off dirty socks in the middle of the day, its really gross if you have to put them back on again because they're "dirty". The odd thing about this is that it never would have crossed you mind that it was gross to wear them if you had never taken them off. When I first thought of it, it seemed like such a revelation that I figured it must be related to either psychology or philosophy, which led me to two ideas. 1) It could be a sort of metaphor; the sock is like an ongoing situation, a job for example, you may only notice when you step out of it that the situation you were in was unsavory. This isn't a perfect metaphor, and maybe not even a good one, but it sounded okay when I first thought of it. 2) I completely forgot what number two was going to be, dang.
The second thought I had was brought about by one thing in particular about the change in my surroundings: The change from a small town to a city. It got me to wondering; does city life somehow induce more attention to ones dress? After a little thought a came to the conclusion that you can argue the matter either way. You could say that in a city there are more people to see you and you meet new people all the time (first impressions last a lifetime). The people in a small town know you and who you are, so what does it matter what you wear. On the other hand you could say, if you are never going to see the people you meet daily again, then it really doesn't matter what you are wearing, but if you will see the same person again and again, you would want them to think well of you. After considering these two sides I decided the most important factors are not city or country, but rather a persons personal reasons and the general mode of the area. If you are in a place the people pay attention, you tend to follow suit (literally) and visa-versa. Hope that wasn't completely boring and impossible to follow!!
Now, more about life in Italy. Patti, you asked me to talk a little bit about the stores here, so for this entry I will talk of... NESSI. Nessi is, in two words, deliciously Italian. It is a sort of bakery/candy shop in the center of Città bassa. Its a bustling little shop with a sort of Harry Potter-ish feel(only admittedly less friendly) in its bright yellowy lighting and the lack of empty space. One case holds focaccia-like pizza with fresh mozzarella, calzones with tomatoes and prosciutto, and many other similarly aromatic creations. Another case, with whom I have become fairly well acquainted holds a daunting plethora of sweets. From soft glazed chestnuts to marzipan pigs to little "polentines", there are such delights as could previously only be imagined. A sunnily clad Italian comes to help you by carefully arranging your choices on a little golden dish of hard paper and then wrapping it up with NESSI paper and a gold ribbon. Then shoo you away to the register so they can help the next eager customer who hopefully has a better accent.
I also had a VERY sweet dream. Why so sweet? It was partially... in ITALIAN! not the whole thing mind, but still. I was at school, in the US oddly enough, and someone spoke to me in Italian, and I replied in Italian! I know that this does not mean I am good at Italian yet, but i hope it means that I am progressing.
In the sports section of my life I report that my team here had another game, we lost, but it was very close and the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th sets showed a very high level of play from everyone. I was admittedly happy with how I played, and am even happier that the coaches decided before hand to not bother with a Libero. This means that from now on, I get to play back row as well as front!! I am thrilled, and thankfully I rose to the occasion and didn't screw up majorly with my new responsibilities.
Thank you everyone for all your wonderful comments and I hope this continues to be entertaining! I am wishing you all the best!
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Oleg Harencar
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That was fun to read Julia! Keep it coming. And I really, really hope that more photographs are coming soon.