As I sat on my couch eating my 5th cookie of the afternoon while reading scripts this weekend, I realized how much I will miss these cookies when I move to Italy. Today I said to one of my co-workers, "I wonder if there are Girl Scout cookies in Italy". His response? "They are called the Girl Scouts of AMERICA." ha. I know but I think there are scouts in Italy. I remember seeing some film where the teenage protangonist was one and reading an article mentioning the Scouts.
I loved being a Brownie then a Girl Scout. I still have the "Fun in the Kitchen!" cookbook I received in 4th grade. It's a little battered but I kept it for the helpful place setting guide...very important. I quit the Girl Scouts in 7th grade. I believed being in band and chorus was enough geekiness, being a Cadet would put me over the top. I wonder what happened to my sash with all my badges?
Another thing I will miss about L.A. is the hotel Chateau Marmont. It is one of my favorite places to "do drinks". There is always a celeb sighting. I mean real A-list ones. Not the random reality show contestants who are running around L.A. saying "don't you know who I am?". Of course we pretend we don't notice/care about said celebrity but it is a fun place to take out-of-town guests. I was there yesterday after work for a mixer a friend of mine organized for female producers. There were about fifteen of us. It was fun to catch with some friends and meet a few new people. I am crazed with work, writing and moving so I had to leave early. Most celebs don't show until later. It's not like they have to be in an office in the morning or anything.At night you might need reservations even for drinks. I'm not sure about during the day. When it is a nice night, sitting outside in the garden, (especially this time of year when the night jasmine is blooming) is fantastic. It doesn't feel like Sunset Blvd. is just a few yards away. Instead it feels as if you are visiting your friend's villa in the South of France.
Last night my smoke alarm went off for no reason at 3:00 a.m. I still woke up at 5:15 to go to the gym. I cannot stay up all night looking at the election results. I always say I will watch for only an hour and next thing I know it's midnight. I'm tired. I must go to bed soon.
18 comments:
When is the big move?
I'm staying away from the TV, but it's hard. It's neck and neck in TX, Clinton's probably taken Ohio, and Obama has VT and Clinton has RI. I was really, really hoping for resolution today, but I don't think that's going to happen.
Now in terms of what you'll be missing... would you trade the girl scout cookies for Roman gelaterias? I sure wouldn't, lol. And the Chateau Marmont sounds heavenly, but maybe you can find it's equivalent in Roma. And I agree - samoas are THE best. Fortunately, I never get them, though, because neither D nor C likes coconut. Good thing, that, because I could easily inhale them.
Ms. Ragazza. Yes, they have Girl Scouts in Italy. Girl Scouts is an international organization. I know this because I was actively involved with the Girl Scouts as a volunteer and later as a Community Board Member in Los Angeles when I lived there. The Girl Scouts of America/USA is a member of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS).
I never mentioned this before, but I used to live in Los Angeles County. Playa Del Rey, CA, to be exact. I really couldn't tell you if they sell cookies, though. I would be surprised if they did. Hope this helps.
Also, if you’re ever on the television show Jeopardy and you answer the trivia question right about the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts, make sure that you give me a shout out on national television. LOL
I am also planning on moving to Italy for a one year hiatus, or until my money runs out, in 2009 so I am looking forward to reading about your adventures.
Ms. ATL
i've been trying to go to chateau marmont forever. i need get over my 4th grade insecurity that creeps up every now and then, where i debate before going into a place, "will i belong?" you've inspired me. i'm going. i hear the hotel is haunted. do you think it's true?
Don't worry Italy is absolutely crawling with Scouts, in spring you see great hordes of the pesky creatures out on hikes, I'm sure they bake great biscotti too because their Nonnas will have taught them.
I was a brownie too and still remember frying some eggs and doing the dusting at a neighbours house to get my 'home makers' badge, if only I'd known then what I know now I'd have told her to do her own dusting.
I can promise you there are plenty of fabulous places to 'do drinks' in Rome, who needs celebs clogging up the bar anyway.
There are Scouts in Italy but no cookies.
Someone who loves will have to ship them to you! Do they sell them on the Internet? oooh now I'm going to go check!
Samosas are my favorite.... BakingBites.com did a bunch of the GS cookies at home and has good recipes if you want to re-create them! :)
The Scouts are here - they are the only ones wearing shorts in January. :)
Too bad there isn't a Girl Scouts of Italy :) But I'm sure you'll find lots of great pastry substitutes in Rome!
tracey k/ohio: Geeks unite! (LOL!) Former girlscout here - so dedicated that I sold the most boxes one year & won a trip to summer camp. Was I the shit or what? (LOL!) Sash with badges - I was all over it. Was so proud, I almost tried to wear it as part of my daily wardrobe! Also had band until my senior year playing clarinet. I dripped geekiness. Hmmm.... no wonder I never had a date. Oh well - the Peanut butter Savannah's made up for it! :-D
glamah - The end of the month.
jen - No. We are in for a looooong battle. I would not trade the cookies for good gelato!
Ms. ATL - of course if I'm on Jeopardy you are getting a shout out. Thanks for the info. Do you know which part of Italy you will be moving to? Good luck with your planning.
bigcnyc - I don't know about it being haunted. I have never stayed overnight. I think if I saw a ghost I would freak the heck out. Please, C the Chateau should be glad you would honor her with your presence.
a tuscan view - ha! Are you sure that homemakers badge isn't coming in handy now?
I don't think I will be "doing drinks" as often since I will no longer be a film exec. Now I will be "having drinks" :) You are right there are some great places in Rome to meet friends for aperitivos.
joanna - I thought about having someone ship them to me but I worry someone at Poste Italia will help themselves. You know I will never see those cookies or they will arrive four months later. ha. I am going to check the internet. Samoas are like Christmas...extra special since they only happen once a year.
sara - shorts in January? I am going to check out that website. thanks.
erin - There is this one amazing, very old bakery in Trastevere near Santa Cecilia that has the best biscotti. The whole neighborhood smells good.
tracey k - Geeks unite indeed. I need to write a post about embracing our inner geekiness. My mom used to take my cookie order forms to work, she was a nurse at Columbia-Presbyterian in NYC, and sell a ton of cookies. I think it's hilarious you tried to wear your sash outside of scout events That my friend, is hard core. :)
SIS! I will send you Somoas! I'll double my order and try not to eat yours :)
my favorites are tagalongs but I like samosas too! those are the two I get and love to put them in the freezer.
My Italian never had heard of Girl Scout Cookies so I would be surprised if they sold them there. sorry! things could've changed in the last 6 yrs but...
When is the big moving day?
When I'm getting ready to leave a place I always start focusing on what I'll miss.
They have scouts here, though I don't know much about them. You'll have to get a few recipes from some American girl scouts and try making them yourself. And just think, you won't have to go sell them :) yum!
Michelle and I saw a big group of scouty looking kids in Palermo! They were selling biscotti ;) (Just kidding!)
There will be a lot of things you miss. There will even be things you miss that you didn't think you'd miss...but once you get here and get in a routine it is good. You will have many opps in Rome, too, I imagine - for a good drink!
gibber - thanks pumpkin!
texas espresso - March 31st.
delina - the stuff I used to sell in Jr. and High school. Cookies, citrus (for choir/band trips), ornaments etc. My poor parents. :)
cherrye - ha.
Some of the food (semi-food) items I will miss are bad for me anyway, like Swedish Fish candy. :)
“Do you know which part of Italy you will be moving to?”
Ragazza, I really haven’t made a definite decision as of yet because I’m torn. I want to live someplace that is somewhat remote or quiet but not too far away to get to a major city via train. So far, the only place that may be a possibility -- that I’ve actually visited and liked -- is Sorrento. There are a few other places that I absolutely loved but they were too remote for me to image living there for more than 3 months. Especially if I intend on continuing to put a relaxer in my hair. I don’t think they have hair salons that do relaxers in Orvieto. LOL
I am actually interviewing as many people as possible to get referrals of other places that may fit those parameters before I go on my next trip to Italy in Sept. of 2008 so that I can visit them and make a final decision before I apply for my VISA. I'll keep you posted when I make my decision.
Ms. ATL
Ms. Atl - Maybe a smaller coastal town, near Sorrento would be perfect. I hear Sorrento in the high season gets very touristy.
I hear you on the hair front. I went natural a few years ago. I'm going to big city and still worry about finding a hairdresser. I go between wearing double strand twists and a short natural.
I think there is a American base near Naples. There has to be some black women on the base who need to get their hair done. If you are on the Amalfi coast you could go to Naples to get your hair done.
Ragazza, yes, ideally I would want to reside in a smaller coastal town near Sorrento, but Sorrento is the only place that I know of that might meet my need. I was thinking the same thing as you regarding the location. The train ride from Sorrento to Naples, if my memory is correct, is a little over an hour and a half. I would really be shocked if Naples didn’t have a few hair salons that do relaxers due to it being 1) close to an America military base and 2) the city has a fairly large African population. Many of the ladies that I saw in Naples had relaxers so they are going to a salon somewhere, I would think, nearby.
I am still asking around to see if I can find a place that's less touristy but still less than a 2 hour train ride one way to a larger city. I'm sure that there are some places that I'm just not aware of as of yet.
If push comes to shove, I may take a chance and have someone mail me a bunch a box relaxers from the States to do my own hair and just go to a regular salon to get it cut/trimmed. Sometimes you have to improvise. LOL
Ms. ATL
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