Friday's Photo: PEACE

PAX

I saw this panel of the word "Peace" written in several languages alla entrata de una chiesa famosa in una cittá famosa... - forse, some of you may even recognize it and know che ogni cinque secondi, c'e una dull voce from above saying nothing but "SSshhhh. Silencio." I wonder if it's a recording or an actual man sitting in una stanza con un microfono. Just the thought of it makes me laugh....

I'd go back to this city in a heartbeat. Good times.

Eli + technology = disaster

Sorry folks! Mio computer e un pezzo di merda e sta faccendo un schiopero. E se como sto lavorando tante ore durante la settimana, non ce l'ho tanto tempo per andare alla biblioteca per leggere emails e fare altre cose. You may not hear from me for a while. Everything having to do with technology has got it in for me... I don't know what I'm going to do without being able to read all your blogs for the next few days.. .. All you guys' blogs got me so bad, I don't even watch General Hospital anymore.

And no more talking on msn o skype with my famiglia mondiale... ERGH!! ok ok... Eli, stay calm. ...

Anyways, try not to miss me so much ok? Hopefully me and my computer will be able to reach some sort of contract agreement over the weekend, but you all know how strikes go...!!

The girl's toy...?

In recent attempts for one toy company to break out of double standards, they've created a track for little toy cars... for girls. Notice the pretty purple and fuscia-ish tints? It's called, "Polly Wheels Race to the Mall Playset"

Have you rolled your eyes yet? So not only does the track have to be set in "girly" colors (which are all socially constructed because really, what IS a girly color anyways??) but the real kicker is that now it's completely acceptable to have little girls believe they should be "racing" to the mall?

I may be over-reacting. I just remember walking into a gym notoriously known for women, and thinking, "What's with all the pink and purple machines?" For crying out loud, even the towels were pink. I think it's overkill. But that's just me.

Friday's Photo: Troppo carino

TOO CUTE !

While in Rome, there was a local "movie shoot" of some sorts going on and the director was in need of extras for this one particular scene. He started selecting people from the crowd - not me since I apparently don't have "the look" - Comunque, I totally felt for this kid over on the left side of this picture. You can see all of his friends were pulled for this scene (that's them, sitting on the first step) and he was left out. He didn't even whine, kick or scream. He simply looked on sadly trying to accept that God had other plans for him, I guess. Then eventually, he smiled since he was able to run around and play while his friends had to sit still - in the hot Roman summer sun - waiting until the director finished the scene.

*I just wanted to pick him up, walk him up to the piazza and buy him a gelato!

My Purgatory

This morning I spent $2.65 on an ice coffee for breakfast on my way to the court house only to be yelled at by the security guard that no food and beverages are permitted beyond the front door. I gulped down as much as I could and cringed as I was throwing away the rest...
After waiting a few hours in a small room with a bunch of other "offenders" I was ready to keel over since I was so famished. Maybe it was all the guilt I had been feeling that was making me sick. I felt like I was in Purgatory or something...well, I was in fact, waiting to be judged now wasn't I? Before you think I've been arrested, I can honestly say I was NOT. ... I talked my way out of it. And "it" isn't something y'all need to know about right now.
But I have one quick question for you folks -
It's not really perjury if I lie in traffic court is it? I mean, it's traffic court. I somehow managed to finagle my way out of a $285 ticket for something that happened in April of 04...that's right, this offense took place 3 stinking years ago- see? I told you people I was a good procrastinator!
After all was said and done, I ended up only paying $35 to lift the suspension on my license and now I can call it a day. So, um...does this mean I'm goin to hell or what?

Friday's Photo: Leaving the nest

3's a crowd...

A few weeks ago in the spring, my papá had noticed a small nest outside our kitchen window. I'm oblivious to these things and forgot all about the eggs. A while later, he notices how big they are and that today is the day they will fly away. And so I took that as my cue to get out my camera and go all 'national geographic' in my backyard and bird watch about 10 minutes until the mama bird came home. Well, as you can see, it's kind of crammed in the nest and getting these two out was going to take some work. They wouldn't budge. They seemed perfectly content staying home under the protection of mom's wing. Afterall, the world can certainly be a big, scary place.

They finally made it to leave the nest but not without difficulty. One of them crashed right into our window!! Then perched himself on the ledge to most likely get over his splitting headache as well as muster up the courage to give it another go, and then made it off to fly. The second one took a straight nose dive into the grass. The poor thing wobbled around a bit, got a running start and also made it off to fly. It was one of the coolest things I had ever seen. To this day I think of them sometimes when I'm scared of doing something new.

It would be nice to stay all comfy, cozy, in a safe place but at the same time, there's a whole world out there and I want to get to know it. There's always a new adventure on the horizon and we're never quite sure if we should take it, or if our wings would make it that far. I say, go for it. And if you're headed for a nose dive...shit happens. Wobble around a bit, get a running start, and then try again!

DAY into NIGHT

See that girl in the green leafy dress? She's getting married in just under 50 days. That's right. A mere 7 weeks to go and I'll be standing beside her as her maid of honor watching this girl marry the love of her life on some romantic beach in Costa Rica.

She's my cousin, my "sista", BFF, fellow gen and dog lover - my everything! We've been friends since we were born. Our mom's were best friends and God willing, so will our unborn children and their children. There's one teensy-weensy problemo: I still have yet to buy my plane ticket down there. You would think as the maid of honor I'd be the first one and then call the other bridesmaids to get the ball rolling. But then my reputation for world's biggest procrastinator would be tanked... but all joking aside, I need to get that ticket as of like, 5 weeks ago. I also need to get my dress altered. I can't find a decent pair of shoes to go with the dress and my Zia can't do the alterations without the shoes... so it looks like I better get shopping.



Last weekend was her Bridal Shower - a tradition where all the women who know the bride get to "shower" her with gifts. It wasn't much of a surprise since someone slipped but she pretty much knew she was having one eventually. I then slipped even further and told her the date and everything! She's my best friend!! I tell her EVERYTHING!!! Gosh, I was so annoyed with myself!
Since her other bridesmaid flew out from L.A. and wasn't going to see the bride until Costa Rica, we decided to have an impromptu bachelorette party that same evening as the bridal shower. We called some of our closest friends and went out for a night on the town.

It had been a loooooooong time since I've gone out. I've gone out, but not "Out-out" if you get what I'm saying. My tolerance level is so not what it used to be but I could honestly drink capirinhas all night long if it means getting to see our cute waitor...


I didn't have a pair of clean jeans, and cargo pants just wasn't going to cut it. So I was left with this skirt. The skirt that I wear to the beach and the beach only...Hummmm, so much for that rule! And that pair of black strappy heels somehow managed to make their way to the front of my closet, over all the flip-flops and sneakers. I used to dress like this when I thought I was the coolest 19 year old on the planet but that bitch retired years ago. I haven't dressed like this in years.

I have the greatest city at my fingertips and don't even get out much - I figured, my best friend's bachelorette party would be a good excuse!

We didn't do anything too crazy (we kept it classy...) and could still count to ten by the end of the night, which is always a good sign.

In 20 years I wonder what I'd say while looking back at this photo.

Most likely, "Who in the hell did I think I was walking around like that - on the eve of the Puerto Rican day parade no less!"

All in all, it was a fun night and I was able to spend it with a fantastic group of girls!

We're obsessed with SUSHI

Friday's Photo: Blessed little fingers

Blessed little fingers

This photo was taken a while back but it still is worthy of being one of my favorites.


I had gone to my cousin's baptism and the baby was being tossed around like a hot potato because everyone wanted to get their share of holding him. It bothered me a bit but well, he is cute and there are a whole lot of people who love him. The baby was sleeping like a little angelito and had just let out a big yawn and grabbed a hold of his chain with the crucifix.... while everyone was snapping away at the yawn- i went for his tiny fingers... Just knowing that this baby was reaching for the cross when he was all vulnerable and tired put a great smile on my face and joy in my heart. I hope as he grows, he'll continue to reach out for that cross...

If you want to read something that will really move you

Go here:

www.asianbagunceira.blogspot.com

I'm so lucky to have had this girl by my side in Italy... She now has started a blog herself and is a much better writer than I'll ever be. Her words will move you and inspire you. ... so check it out already! GO!

Argentina!

Is it Thursday already? See, this is what happens to me in the summer whenever I'm not in classes. I forget what day is what and don't even think about asking me what the date is! But I have some great news...

ARGENTINA, HERE I COME! I need to get ready for work and so I can't write too long, but yeah, I spoke with my boss yesterday and managed to tell her about this once in a lifetime opportunity to go down to Buenos Aires for a Pan-American congress of young adults involved in "Youth for a United World" project. I've been to only two in Rome but this is the first of it's kind, where it's specifically for the continent of America... And so I've been chosen to be sponsered and go down and represent the North-East Zone of the States. People will be coming from all over central and south americas and I'm thinking I'll need to seriously brush up on my spanish since it hasn't been used in SO long. I'll get by with the Italian though, I'm sure. AH! I'm so excited! I thought I'd never get a chance to go and was so scared to tell my parents (although I don't need their permission, it's certainly nice to have their blessing though) ... and I thought they'd flip out on me leaving the country AGAIN... but they seemed real cool with it all. I figured, if it really is God's will for me to go, than nothing can stand in the way of that. And so now we're pulling together the money from the sponsers and let's see if it all works out in time! It's still up in the air right now but at least it's within reach!! I'll keep you informed later but now I'm off to work! Ciao!

Check it out: www.mondounito.net/ENG/iniziative_progetti.htm

*Hope the link works but if it doesn't you can just google "Youth for a United World" (... is google even a verb?) whatever, it is now!

**and don't forget to stop by tomorrow for Friday's Photo!

Fabulous friends

On days like this I realize how small this world really is. This morning began with reading an email from Elena in Holland, helping me out with a recipe that I am translating for Sheila in Brasil. Followed by a two hour conversation about love, life and lots of laughs with another Eli in Sydney, Australia. After feeling bad about an argument with my mom, a close friend called at the perfect time and listened patiently to me blabbing about what more can I do to be a better person/daughter.... blah blah blah... I then signed onto msn messenger and up popped a box from Carlos in Sao Paolo. He offered some comforting words and made me feel a whole lot better. As I was finishing up my conversation with Carlos, Titsiana in Italy gave me a quick shout out, which made me smile. Then Saxa in Chicago and I talked more about the pressures of entering the real world after college and how our parents aren't exactly the listening type when it comes to our NonProfit endeavors and how we'll change the world someday.... I have high hopes we'll be meeting up in Buenos Aires this summer...

These are all friends I picked up in Italy to add to my collection of fabulous people I know. I was neighbors and room-mates with these people.

...I saw them passing by in the street

...I saw them sitting in the pews at the church

...I saw them playing calcio

...I saw them at the market

...I saw them at work in the factory

...I saw them at dinner time

.

Each day I pray for them and realize that they're not so far away - they've been with me all along...and on days like this, I feel loved.

Eli saves the day...

After coming home from my first errand this morning (at 7:30am), I came home to find an enormous puddle of water spreading throughout my kitchen. We've been having disgusting weather lately and there's been nothing but rain in our forecast, unfortunately. I assumed it was due to all the rain... I mopped up the mess, put a load of laundry in the washer and went back to bed. After waking up for the second time, I returned downstairs to see cleaning products that were once under the sink, spread out all over the kitchen floor and my brother eating my left over General Tso's chicken for breakfast at the table looking annoyed and frustrated.

"What's up?" I asked.
He replied, "There was water EVERYWHERE and it's because the pipe is leaking under the sink."
"hmm... " , I said as I knelt down to inspect the leaky pipe.

...indeed, we had a steady stream of water coming out from the pipes. So what does my genius of a baby brother do? He mopped up the mess with a gabillion paper towels -because at 21 years old, he still needs instructions on how to use a freegin mop- and instead of taking an actual bucket and placing it under the sink, he decided to use several tupperware containers to catch the water.

He then proceeds to ask me, "You have the day off today right? Because at this rate, you'll need to empty out these containers at least every 10 minutes."

... like it's my God-given duty as the only girl in the house to save the kitchen from the big bad plumber ghost?
...like he thinks I should sit here and wait for these tiny little things to fill up so I could empty them out again?
... like he couldn't just stop and think for a second and get a bigger bucket instead of 8 little plastic containers?

I was getting more and more annoyed but remained calm and tried to look him in the eye and be patient with him instead of being a jerk of an older sister.
I was still kneeling under the sink and had an "A-Ha!" moment. I reached over and placed my hand on something called a knob. "Righty tighty, lefty lucy" and I turned the knobs to the right. And so, with that, the water was shut off and the leaking stopped.

**
Now all I have to do is clean up this mess in the kitchen, finish the second load of laundry, and charge my phone to full battery power so I'll have enough power on my cell phone to listen to one of my best friends call me to stress about hypothetical major plans to spend a week in Buenos Aires this July...

Friday's Photo: Liquid Sunshine

LIQUID

SUN

SHINE

I love taking photos. My digital camera is an extention of my right arm. I am not a photographer per se but I like to capture interesting things and show people my perspective. So I'm designating each Friday to a favorite photo of mine.
Here's the first of the series of favorite photos.

While walking home from work on a sunny day, the sky opened up and started to rain a bit. This is Elena from Holland and Sarah from the States reaching out for some unexpected liquid sunshine.


In the distant background, you can see the vineyards we walked through to get to the road leading to our casetta.

This picture makes me smile!

Date night

I have a date tonight with a blond haired, blue eyed ticklish toddler. My cousin's kid was over a few days ago and asked when I'd be watching "the movie" with him. A while back, I discovered that he must be the only 4 year old I know who has never seen the Pixar movie CARS. So I promised a million years ago that I'd watch it with him... the poor kid has been waiting forever for me to come over. So tonight's the night!!! I'll make a whole theme night out of it... I'll let him drive my car to his nonna's house after the movie. I'm sure his mom will just love me for suggesting it to him. Just kidding. There will be no 3 foot boy driving my car tonight. (His aunt reads this blog so I have to say that!) It's going to be a blast though!

Alphabet Soup

I'm a new fan of Louise and saw that she did this. I had some time to kill before getting ready for work... so here it goes!

A - Age: 20-something. Old enough to be married with a kid according to several of my zias.
B - Band listening to right now: EVA - some Brasilian band I got hooked on in Italy.
C - Career future: Free lance photographer, blogger, whatever. I like to focus on the present moment and leave it in His hands. (Sociology is a pretty broad major though so who knows.)
D - Dad's name: Giuseppe - I've heard every variation on the pronounciation of this name by so many telemarketers it's not even funny. My poor papá...
E - Easiest person to talk to: Oh, tough one. I have a great group of friends - all of them.
F - Favorite song: I Hope you Dance - LeAnn Womack
G - Gummy Bears or Gummy Worms: I'm all about the Haribold Gummy bears.
H - Hometown: Wherever my heart is...
I - Instruments: piano - 7 years of classical training over a decade ago and I can't even read music anymore (my ma is heartbroken over this) I played the Xylophone for a blink of an eye. I also played the flute for a few months.
J - Job: citizen of the world, daughter, friend, revolutionary thinker. *Free Spirit
K - Kids: someday, God willing.
L - Longest car ride ever: Kentucky Road Trip with Gen, 6 months after getting my license! My mom hid my passport to prevent me from going and although Kentucky may have seemed very much like a different country than New York, I just don't see how NOT having my passport would make a difference. I don't know what in the heck she was thinking..
M - Mom's name: Maria (Yes, my parents' names are Giuseppe e Maria...and NO my brothers' name is NOT Gesú.)
N - Number of people you slept with: I'm not married yet am I?? ... still going strong.
O - Optimum time of day to work: anytime in the a.m.
P - Phobia[s]: falling out of a moving vehicle [did I mention I totally LOVE roller coasters?] and flying over the deep blue sea. [Yet I still manage to travel to Italy several times]
Q - Quote: "You are the salt of the Earth... you are the light of the world." These are the words Pope John Paul II told us at World Youth Day, Toronto. His voice still rings in my ears and resonates in my heart, saying this phrase from the gospel of Matthew [5:13-14]
R - Reason to smile: forgiveness! Don't know where I'd be without it!
S - Song you sang last: White Wedding by Billy Idol. It was just on TV for a wedding dress segment on the morning show.
T - Time you wake up: 7:15am(Monday-Friday) 9:00am Saturday, 8:30am Sunday. There's no such thing as "sleeping in" in a house full of Italians (who swear they don't yell...they're just talking), marble tiles and high ceilings which make it ideal for sound to carry all throughout this fortress of a house.
U - Unknown facts about me: I have a tattoo that my parents don't know about. I'll tell them eventually, someday around NEVER.
I worked at the Container Store for about a year and I am the biggest bagunceira(SLOB) on the planet. I felt like such a fraud.
I am conversational in Italian, French, Spanish, Portuguese and ASL. Whatever random words you find in my blogs they're usually one of these languages. [except the Sign Language of course]
**I'm an international Christian recording star and singer/songwriter. :P
V - Vegetable you hate: funghi - I say I'm allergic to them but I really don't want to be rude to the host / cook.
W - Worst habit: brushing my teeth after everything I eat or drink besides water. My dental hygenist wants to smack me...too much of a good thing is not a good thing people.
X - X-rays you've had: too many to count. If I really have to think about it, more than 5...I'm so accident prone.
Y - Yummy food: stuffed peppers
Z - Zodiac sign: I think I'm the one with the goat.

Ora toca a te!

nostalgia's a killer...

Aiiii! QUE SAUDADES!!

Remind me why I'm back in the States again?

I took this back in September, I think. I was walking through the hills with friends and this image took my breath away. I had to stop for a photo.

Remember that scene in Mary Poppins when they all step into a chalk-drawn portrait on the sidewalk?

This is how that walk felt like to me. It couldn't have been real. I mean, my gosh, would you LOOK at this?

The prodigal son

It's been a busy Memorial Day Holiday weekend around here. I've been working at my new job and loving it. My brother came up from Florida (the one who bought the TV on mother's day) to spend time with the family. Oh joy. I can't tell you how excited I was. I was SO . HAPPY.... simply DELIGHTED...ECSTATIC. Am I over doing it just a little??

This man makes a hobby out of making me miserable. I was on my best behavior, was sweet and offered him many things and he was STILL disrespectful to me. I swear, after this weekend I'll be getting a non-stop ticket to heaven!

It's just hilarious when he comes up. You should see my parents. My mom and dad go nuts organizing a party with all these people and the house is all a bagunca each time he's here.

When I came back from Italy, my mom didn't even pull out the good china.

But when HE comes up... it's time to break out the silver!! She even made the man tiramisú for crying out loud.

.

I need to read up on that Bible story- You all know the one...

and start over BIG TIME because a girl like me can't afford to be grumpy...

What I need...

I read a few blogs a day here and there...Bleeding espresso's blog - I swear, her blog is just as addictive as espresso itself. I saw this "game" she did and thought, "Eh, what the heck- I'll do it too." It's a fun little way to pass the time.

It's real easy. Just type your first name followed by the word "needs" to see what comes up. I wasn't too satisfied with "Eli needs" results and "Elisa needs" was a bit complicated because ELISA is the name of an HIV test. So here are ten of my favorite results for my full name. (Which only my mother calls me)

.

[1] Elisabeth needs to be thanked profusely. Starting now.

[2] Elisabeth needs my help on a raid this evening. It‘s just a side thing I do on weekends for a little extra cash.

[3] Elisabeth needs to step away from the tanning bed. ME? I’ve been scared of those things ever since that scene in SCREAM where Jennifer Love Hewitt got trapped inside! I bake the natural way.

[4] Elisabeth needs to not go off on her tangents. I'm sorry, but isn't that what a blog is for?

[5] Elisabeth needs to be serious about her schoolwork. Ok, fine. No more stopping and running off to foreign countries until I graduate!

[6] Elisabeth needs to shop more and talk less. Only if you’re willing to give me your credit card.

[7] Elisabeth needs more life experience and some energy. Oui, c'est vrai. I think a trip to South America would do the trick.

[8] Elisabeth needs to balance her dreamy idealism with temperance and practicality in order to succeed in life. Why do people pay psychiatrists when all their important life questions can be answered right from the web GRATIS?

[9] Elisabeth needs her whiny ass kicked into shape. Ok, you've been talking to my mother haven't you?

[10] Elisabeth needs monetary help to feed her 50 previously homeless dogs having picked them up over the last couple of years. Poppy-cock! She really just needs money to go to Argentina…

.

Feel free to do this game yourself and then post it back up in my comments because I'd be curious to see it too!

Poor, Little Elisabeth

73% of Americans disapprove of the Bush administration. Why do we have Bush for president ... STILL? It's a question many americans are continually asking themselves. It's the great American mystery. I found myself in the middle of a few hostile introductions over in Europe when people discovered I was an American. It was automatically assumed that I was a Bush lover and fully supportive for the invasion of Iraq. Little did they know that New Yorkers are the most liberal people in this country.

There are a few Bush lovers around these parts (like my family for instance, but I still manage to love them) but honestly, they're few and far in between. And even those who at first liked Bush, are turning on him. If you do like Bush around here, it's not such a good idea to go around saying it.

Anyhow -

I don't watch The View that often because most of the time it's just a group of women screaming about some nonsense... but I happen to love the drastic difference of perspectives of Rosie and Elisabeth.... especially when it comes to the war on terrorism... I adore Elisabeth because she's a young chica with some traditional values (and she's also got a beautiful name too)...but politcally, I'm not always with her. I'm not such a fan of Rosie but I admit, she entertains me a little. I like to listen to Elisabeth for what she says because she's smart and strong and sticks to her guns...

Here's a prerequisite clip for watching the big blow up argument on the second clip between Elisabeth and Rosie.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I5fRiVTQSaU

I couldn't watch the show yesterday because I was off to work but thank goodness for Youtube!
Enjoy -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7iEXvOMJL6g