"Are you married?"

The following conversation took place this morning at my local supermeracto. Translated as best I can from Italian:

Cold cuts counter man after he gave me my salami di Napoli order: "Are you married?"

Me: "No."

CCM: "No?! How is that possible?"

Me: "We talked about this last year."

CCM: "Well, I thought maybe things had changed. We should go out."

Me: "I have a boyfriend." (I don't)

CCM: Looks confused as if my reply is completely irrelevant to our conversation. After a beat he says, "Oh, okay, well then you let me know when you want to go out. Understand?"

Me: "Uhmmm" (He spoke so quickly. I wasn't sure what he said.)

CCM: "Yes, you say, 'Francesco (not his name) let's go out.' Okay? Understand?"

Me: "Oooh Okay, have a nice day."

CCM: "You too, beautiful."


Trust me, this NEVER happened to me at Gelsons, or Bristol Farms supermarkets in L.A. Last year Francesco gave his number, after I told him I had a boyfriend. He said we could still practice Italian. Bwahahah

I thought it would be awkward to go back to my favorite supermarket when I didn't call him. But, he was perfectly professional.

I was caught off guard this morning. A year later and Francesco is still trying to get his mack on? Living here cracks me up.

Il futuro anteriore indicativo/future perfect - non mi piace

Okay. What the heck is this verb tense about?

My Italian class is truly kicking my butt. Our professor was telling us which verb tense is best to convey irony. What?! Irony? I can't worry about being ironic in Italian when I'm still trying to lock down the congiuntivo (subjunctive) tense. The subjunctive is rarely used in English but it's an important tense for correct Italian.

That said, I really like her method of teaching. She told us a story about her parents in Sicily getting ready to go to a baptism. Her father wasn't crazy about her mother's dress. We had to construct a likely conversation using the correct tenses and idioms.

One day in class we were listening to some audio and then had fill in the correct tense of the verbs. In one sentence we thought it was the imperfect. No. The present perfect? No.

Finally, I guessed it was passato remoto (preterit). I was offended, yes offended, to see this tense in a basic conversation. The professor laughed and told me to get over it.

All jokes aside, I'm glad she is pushing us. It's very frustrating not being able to communicate fully in Italian. I can keep up with simple conversations but I'm not close to being fluent. Also, given what I do for a living, I'm bummed that it takes me forever to write even an email in Italian.

Our class is small, only four of us, and our professor zeros in on things that would be missed in a larger class, like pronunciation.

One exercise that is brilliant (and sometimes painful), is when she has us "interview" each other with a microphone. In the next class there's a printout of the conversation and we listen to the tape. You can clearly hear your mistakes when you listen to a recording of yourself. I was putting the accent in the wrong place for the word "abito" (I live) for the longest time. I won't make that mistake again.

Another day she gave us a print out of a Carmen Consoli song with certain words missing. We had to listen to the song and fill in the blanks. She then gave us the complete lyrics.

Here's the song. Mi piace.

(Italian) School's Out For Summer.

Anyone remember that song?

Last night was the final class of the semester. My professor said my Italian has definitely improved since the class began. (Uhmm too bad I had to ask the British guy next to me to translate her comment. heh)

Two other students brought gelato and pastries. I think all the sugar made us a little crazy. Our poor professor's lesson plan went out the window. Instead of reviewing grammar, for two hours we argued about Italian politics, American politics, bad urban planning, food, why is Italian grammar so freaking difficult, the best places to live, the difference between Tuscan, Roman and Sicilian accents, etc.

One of the other British students and I got into it because he said he preferred to watch American films dubbed in Italian. He said he couldn't stand American accents. Everyone in class started laughing. I told him not to get it twisted...not every British accent sounds like Laurence Oliver's.

Then he preceded to talk smack about Naples. One of our TAs (teaching assistant) said she was from Naples. Boh. Another student said to him, "What's wrong with you today?" ha.

It was fun to argue in Italian. My verb tenses weren't too bad but my vocabulary was a sad situation. I ended up speaking some ungodly combination of Italian and English.

My professor asked if I plan to continue on to Level 3 this fall. Level 2, which was supposed to be intermediate Italian, kicked my butt. I'm not sure if I can handle Advanced Italian but I have to try. I refuse to be that expat who can't speak the language.

Over the summer I'm going to do my best not to forget everything I've learned. One of the TAs and I plan to meet. I will help her with her English (she speaks Spanish fluently but has trouble with English) and she will help me with my Italian.

I'm finally at the point where I can read Italian magazines without looking up every other word. It used to take me forever to get though Vanity Fair or Italian Vogue which was very frustrating. I bought a book of poetry "Ballate Non Pagate" by Alda Merini which is challenging but rewarding.

I also have several childrens' books and a few novels to read. The May issue of Italian Conde Nast Traveller has several fantastic articles on the Italian coasts. I'm ready to go to the beach.

Learning Italian, a breakthrough

Finally.

Before I was so worried about getting the grammar correct, I would be afraid to speak.

Somehow after my trip to St. Martin, where I kept responding to French speaking people in Italian, I returned to Italy speaking faster and with more confidence.

My Italian friends are being helpful by speaking more Italian around me. Since all of them are multi-lingual we would always speak English. Not anymore. Sometimes I do get lazy and fall back to English. Before they would switch but now they say they don't understand me. Ha.

I am determined not to be that American Expat who has lived aboard for years and still can't speak the local language. I don't want to just get by. What happens if I find myself in a situation where no can translate for me?

Plus I need to prove to myself that I can become fluent in another language. It kills me that I studied French for 7 years, have a French speaking mom, multi-lingual dad, was a foreign affairs major and yet didn't learn any languages.

All my expat friends are stronger speakers than me. Several have lived here longer and/or are married to/dating Italians. We now split our conversations between Italian and English.

While there are many practical reasons why I need to become fluent, there's also the poetic reason. Italian is such a beautiful language. I love how expressive, lyrical and dramatic it is.

Some day I will open my mouth and find Italian words spilling out of it effortlessly. Until that time, I will keep trying to remember which one of the twenty-one Italian verb tenses is correct, articles, that nouns have a gender, and ease up on the curse words. While they are fun to say, perhaps they are not always appropriate.

Adult Education in Rome

Why did I just hear about this place recently? I was telling an Italian friend I wanted to take an Italian class as I work in English all day, know a bunch of American, Canadian and British expats and all my Italian friends speak perfect English. Therefore I live in Italy but rarely speak Italian. This is a problem. I don't want to be one of those expats who lives here for years and can't communicate.

First, the Italian friends said my statue of limitations is up. They're going to speak Italian to me for now on. Okay. I'm ready. Kind of.

Second, expat friends, who are all stronger speakers than me (several are married/dating Italians or they have been in the country longer than me) will split our conversations, half English/half- Italian. Certain things like the trials and tribulations of Kate Plus 8 and American health care reform legislation are easier to discuss in English.

Third, I started classes at Upter. This school has every class under sun. There's even a Shakespeare class that goes to England at the end of the course. My friend said since classes are all about the professor, why pay double or triple for a private language school? I think Upter receives some funding from the State and the EU.

I'm the only American in my class. I sat next to a British man and was told by the professor to stop speaking English. Busted! Two classmates are from Germany. Not sure where the other three are from. One woman from Romania was speaking Italian so fast, no one in the class other than the professor understood her. She also spoke forever. I completely zoned out as she went on and on and started thinking about how fine Tom Selleck was in Magnum P.I. and why did mustaches go out of style?

I wondered if I was in the wrong level as I couldn't not complete this adjective/pronouns worksheet she gave us. Then again no else, including a student who's lived here for 10 years, could finish it either.

At the end of the class I was saying how I wish I could speak faster. My professor said just because someone speaks quickly doesn't mean they speak correctly. There's some exam at the end of the course. Sigh. I pray it's easier than the darn Italian driver's license test.

Now I have homework to do. A presentation a page long for next week's class. Great. What the heck am I going to talk about?

"Let me tell you about a couple of three things." Phil Leotardo

A favorite quote from the SOPRANOS.



Today my parents have been married for 46 years. That's a long time.

German blogger Andre Wegner asked me some questions. The answers (in English) are HERE. Grazie Andre.

It's still hot.

I need to wear wrap dresses more often. Went a small party Saturday night. Didn't get home till late. It was a GREAT party. I tried to speak Italian but everyone knew English. They were being polite by speaking in English but I asked them to switch to Italian. I will never become fluent if all the Italians in my life speak to me in English. I met some amazing new people. Too bad everyone is leaving for the summer. First time I wore the dress since buying it at a boutique on Larchmont (L.A.) two years ago. I think the dress might be magical. I will wear it again.

Yesterday I had breakfast with one of my closest L.A. friends. She 's traveling in Italy with friends who are celebrating a big birthday. She said she can't believe I actually live here. Sometimes I don't believe it either. She brought presents: ESSENCE magazine with fine ass Idris Elba on the cover, the latest issue of American ELLE DECOR magazine, enough Crest toothpaste to last until 2011, manila file folders and Sudifed among other things.

I strongly dislike Glenn Beck.

I might have to hijack this truck. I cannot find the Rustica chips anywhere. That's a problem.

Just because I live in Italy doesn't mean I'm on "vacation."

WTF? Really.

I have to say I'm getting annoyed with this idea many folks have back in the States that I sit around all day chilling.

I would like to see them deal with Municipio #1 (Centro Storico) Comune when getting their residency, try to get a driver's license, learn a new language after the age of 30, live in an apartment the size of most of their kitchens, deal with smelly BO on the bus (I know when you're a tourist or a selling roses you have been out all day walking but man please have some compassion for your fellow human beings), random strikes, etc.

I'm not on vacation. I do work. Hard. Writing might not seem like a "job" but it is. I do it 24/7. And so far this year I've earned exactly $0 from it. So yes I get a little defensive about people thinking writing is not work. I mean just because I can write an e-mail and half the movies released by hollywood suck doesn't mean anyone can be a screenwriter. It is a skill, a craft and it helps to have to some talent. There are some hacks out there but even they have to know structure.

People don't sit around and say, "yeah I can direct", but I can't tell you how many people have said/say to me "I would write movies if I had the time." Thats like me saying I could be Miuccia Prada or Karl Lagerfled because I can reattach a button to a blouse.

Has this happened to other expats? Do acquaintances back home think your life is one big Hollywood movie filled with days of doing nothing other than drinking wine/eating cheese/sitting on the beach etc.?

I can't believe this "advice book" has been translated into Italian.

There is a lot of buzz about the author of the book "How To Talk To Girls." He's only 9 years old. The 46 paged "book" has become a hit and a Hollywood studio has already bought the rights. Alec Greven has been on Leno and many other shows. Some think it's cute, others wonder if his parents actually wrote the book.

I do think it's possible that a young child wrote this book. However, I find it creepy that adults would want to take romance advice from a 9 year old CHILD. What is wrong with the world?

I was walking down a major street in Rome and saw this in a bookstore around Valentine's Day.

Italian Driving School For Beginners.

I have started classes at the l’autoscuola (driving school). There are three other women around my age but the majority of students are in high school. Two of the guys have braces. They look so young to me.

One of my classmates is American. Her mother is American, father Italian and she went to high school in Italy, which is why she didn’t get her license before. She is studying aboard for a year. She sits next to me in class and translates things I don’t understand.

Apparently our professor is funny. The class is constantly cracking up. I finally got some of the jokes this week. When I first started the class they were covering the final chapter in the book, all about the components of the car. God help me.

Now we are at the beginning of the book. I’m able to follow better since we are covering chapters I have already studied. I’m answering more of the quiz questions correctly. The classes are in Italian but our professor pulled up the test quiz questions in both English and Italian for me.

I have received my foglio rossa (learners permit). I can practice driving with a driver who has at least 10 years of experience. I think I will wait until after I take at least one driving class at the school.

To be honest, now I’m more stressed out about the written test than learning how to drive stick/manual. I miss driving and look forward to getting back out on the road again (as long as it’s deserted…I won’t be driving in the center of Rome anytime soon!)

Our professor told us to really focus on learning signage since 60% of the questions on the test are about signs.

He then said there are over 400 of them! What the heck? Am I wrong to believe that is a pretty big number? Oh well…I have lots of studying to do.

Bringing sexy back (trying anyway)

Good morning Bloggisti,

Well this was a better weekend then expected given my single butt had no plans for Valentine's Day. I did get a lot of writing done. I'm really into this rewrite, more on that later in the week.

Saturday afternoon I went to work out in Doria Pamphilli. It was little chilly but a bright sunny day. The park was packed. I was grooving to Kanye's "Love Lockdown" on my iPod when an OUTRAGEOUSLY handsome jogger asked me for directions.

I have no idea what the hell he was saying. It sounded like, "rrrrrr, uscire, rrrrrr, giro." I think he was asking if there was a nearby exit. I said something in butchered Italian. He smiled, said thank you and kept running. I noticed he didn't ask anyone else for directions. Maybe he was too traumatized by my babbling.

Last night went to a dinner party. I knew I was getting a ride via motorino (scooter) but decided to wear a dress. I'm really trying to work on my stank attitude and not stress out about my writing career and money. You know what they say, if you look good, you'll feel good.

I have blogged in the past about how my sister was trying to get me to dress less preppy. I was going to wear this oxford-type shirt with a sweater vest and jeans. Instead for the first time in a long time I busted out a wrap dress. I've lost enough weight here that dress doesn't highlight my gut. (Ha) But as you know, wrap dresses highlight every freaking curve. I decided not to worry about something I have no control over and didn't change to the more masculine outfit. I wore heels which I rarely do as it's hard to walk on cobblestone streets. I don't know how Italian women do it.

My friend who gave me the ride asked me where I got the dress. He also asked to me to stop freaking out during the ride. I swear we almost got clipped by a bus. My friend has been in Rome for eight years and is a very good driver. Still hitting a curve and see a huge bus merging on my right, almost made me pass out.

Last night was great. Dinner was good and the guests were interesting. My Italian was alright. I was one of two expats but my friend is fluent so the conversation was mostly in Italian.

I remember back in L.A I said I was going to try to bring sexy back into my life. I was unsuccessful. It's not about what you wear but your attitude. To be honest I felt so blah in L.A. I just gave up.

Regarding men, it was a sad situation. There was no witty banter with the opposite sex, no flirting, no nothing.

I'm still the same person here minus a few pounds but those blah feelings were gone last night. I don't know if it's because I'm trying to communicate in a different language which forces me to get out of my shell a little. I know this might shock some people esp. since I do have a blog, but I can be very shy in new social situations.

It could because the conversation flowed easily despite the language barrier. It was a dinner PARTY not an excuse to network. It's nice to relax and have fun, not feel like you have to be on all the time. Plus we had two bottles of wine and a bottle of champagne (for five people).

Spring will be here soon. I will keep the following song in mind. ha

Something I have not heard since I’ve moved to Italy….

“You are so melodramatic!”

One of my closest friends in the States used to say this to me all the time. Funny in Italy on a scale of 1 to 10, I’m a 2 at the most.

Perhaps growing up in a Caribbean household is the reason I can be overly expressive at times. I never even thought I was melodramatic until it was brought to my attention.

Then I moved to a country where a company describes its potato chips like this:

Double thickness,
twice as much flavour. 

The flavour of the countryside, vital and sumptuous.
The pleasure takes you away 
in waves of flavour.
 A truly traditional sensation that nibbles away without letting go. 


Folks, they are talking about chips! Vital and sumptuous? Pleasure taking me away in waves? Ha. This sounds like it should be about my future boyfriend.

Maybe Italian Spiderman can help the team tonight.

Italy plays France tonight. They must win or they are eliminated from Euro Cup 2008.

My former coworker sent me this video. He said it could help me with my Italian. This is either the funniest thing I have seen in a while or the stupidest or perhaps both. For those who know Italian you will notice words are spelled wrong and I think they are speaking more Spanish than Italian.

I don't much more about the creators of this "movie" other than they are from Australia. They are presenting a long lost movie from 1968 "shot" at a Milan studio.

First here is the trailer:




Here is episode three. When Italian Spiderman says Jesus Christo un coccodrillo, I lost it. haha

Cake, Champagne and cookies are a nice way to start a class.

Next week will be my last at work. Weird.

One of my classmates made oatmeal cookies. A couple weeks ago we had wine. I find it easier to speak in class after a glass of wine. ha.

The head of our Italian school had a big surprise for us. They offer an Italian cooking class at the school and she asked us to go to the kitchen. There was a gorgeous cake that said "Buona Fortuna/in Bocca al Lupo" and bottles of Champagne. She had the students who are moving to Italy come up front. There are six of us moving out of 14 students. All women.

One woman from the other class is moving to Rome and the others are split between Florence and Milan. The director said they have never had that many students moving to Italy at the same time. It's kind of ironic given the all the problems in Italy and the low dollar we are going now. At least I'm not alone in the madness.

The cake was Sicilian with a ricotta filling. As we stood there toasting and singing (one of the professors, a professional singer busted out with Volare) I was damn near giddy.

This is a clip of something I will not be doing when I move. First, the Trevi Fountain area is always crowded. How would I actually get close to the water? Second, I don't want to get arrested.

Me + Advanced Italian = molto confusione, Rossellini's Stromboli

This semester is almost over. The classes kicked my butt. Earlier in the semester when our professor was speaking, half the time I had no idea what she was saying. Things got better as the class went on. While advanced grammar is still very confusing I do feel more comfortable speaking in class. I usually bust out with some crazy Italian/English hybrid but at least I am trying.

I borrowed Rossellini's "Stromboli" from the school's library. I knew I would have to play it on my Macbook not my DVD player since it came from Italy and was a region 2 DVD. I forgot the film would not have subtitles. doh!

I watched it anyway. I was able to follow most of it. I had to rewind a couple scenes because I missed the quickly spoken dialogue. This move came out in the middle of the Bergman/Rossellini scandal. They were even denouced on the floor of the U.S. Senate. Times have changed. If this happened today, nobody other than the jilted spouses would care.

The film is great. Ingrid Bergman plays a war refugee from the Balkans. She marries a local Italian soldier so she can get out of the camp. He takes her to his small village on the island of Stromboli. The war is over and his fisherman work keeps him away from home. To say she doesn't fit in is an understatement. She finds the village oppressive and lonely. You do feel her for her husband as well. He loves her but doesn't understand her. She complains about his home (too small, broken down), the island, his family, his neighbors. It's as if she traded one prison for another.

The ending is vague. You don't really know what became of her.

Advanced Italian...ready or not here I come.

I haven't taken classes since Spring. My Italian feels very rusty to me. I was going to repeat Intermediate Level 2. While I was not looking forward to dealing with Passato Remoto or the dreaded Congiuntivo, my professor and friends from class strongly recommended I take the next level.

Now that Advance is broken up into Levels 1 or 2 I will try. When I read out loud at home I feel fine but in front of people I clam up. I know the only way to learn is to get in there and keep talking. It's okay if I make mistakes.

I was reading a great article in Vogue (seriously) about how our brain ages and learning a new language or playing an instrument is one of the best ways to keep your mind sharp, esp. after 40.

Speaking of over 40, I went to the eye doctor the other day and he said in couple of years I will start to have problems reading materials that are close up. Yes! Another thing along with peri-menopause to look forward to. Now I only need my glasses to read things far away/driving and my prescription is still pretty low. I went to the eyeglasses store and broke down and got a pair of very nice frames. I wear glasses part of every day, I might as well make an investment.

My boss was with me. Later she said she doesn't know why I complain about money. I went to Italy twice this year and just bought the glasses. First, I used miles for my first trip and I went to Venice during off season so my hotel was very reasonable. I was under budget on both trips.

True this year for the first time in my professional life I have some extra money because of the bonus from the movie. BUT I am moving overseas and that money with the exchange rate will not go very far. I worry about money because I am not 22. At this age I should own property, have savings/retirement funds. etc. I work in an unstable, creative field. Two years ago I decided since I have no job security what so ever I would rather use my money to travel than on eating out here all the time or clothes, etc. My apartment's rent at just over $1000 is low. My landlord can't wait for me to leave so she can jack it up to $1600 (which I think is crazy for a place with no character). My car is a used (oh my God! that is a mortal sin in Hollywood) Saab so I don't have a $500 lease payment on a Mercedes or Jag.

While the exchange rate is bad, there will be certain costs that will be lower in Rome. I won't have a car so no more car insurance, gas, repairs and valets. That will save me close to $250 a month. My gym is $120 a month, of course I will cancel that once I leave. That is almost $400 savings from those two items alone.

I am really watching my spending on non-essential items. Yesterday I went to get Chrismas/birthday presents. I didn't go off and buy things not on my list despite the tempations. ha.

Mi dispiace, non ho capito (I'm sorry, I didn't understand)

This is a sentence I said often today. I met with G an actor friend who lives in Rome. He is from Milan via Sicily and is out here for meetings.

G is the first person I met in Rome. We went to lunch at 'Gusto Osteria. He asked how I knew his friend and I said I didn't. We met through a friend of his who is a friend of one of my friends (the one who moved back to NYC and has the Swedish fiancee). We had a three hour lunch that day and then I must have spent another hour talking on the street with him and half of Rome. Every block we bumped into someone he knew. My last day in Rome we went to see a Peggy Guggenheim exhibit and walked all over the Monti area. He is a great guy.

Today he was speaking Italian so quickly, I had no idea what he was saying. He told me I could call him when anything in my apartment-to-be in Rome breaks. G has been so encouraging about the move. He is going to ask friends about apartments since word of mouth is the best way to find a deal. I would like to stay in the 800-1000 Euro a month range because with the low dollar I will be actually paying much more. ugh!!! He said 800 would be tough, even 1000 is pushing it. I said I would love a place with a little terrace. He busted out laughing. Hey, it doesn't hurt to ask.

I told my parents today. My mom was super quiet. My dad said he had to process the info and would call me back. They knew I wanted to move but were surprised by the earlier date. I still have to see what the post-production schedule is on the movie before I can nail down a date. I'm thinking March or April, which will be here before I know it.

Speaking of Italia, I ordered some books on Venice from Amazon. I just realized I will be there in four weeks!

Yorkville, Faux Hawks, Codice Rosso, and props on my Italian speaking skills

My boss's assistant has proclaimed Toronto to be one of his favorite cities. He was born and raised in Venice, California and his hometown, Amsterdam, and now Toronto are the cities he enjoys the most.

One thing he brought to my attention last night was people here do not all look or dress the same. Not all the men are wearing faux hawks, in fact I haven't seen any yet.

Unless your name is Maddox Jolie-Pitt or you are this guy,


please, I beg all wanna be actors, reality stars and 85 percent of the male population of Los Angeles, to try something new.

J and I went to meet our boss at his place then we walked over to Yorkville. This area reminded me Montana Avenue in L.A., cool shops and restaurants but pricey. The Four Seasons is in this neighborhood and it's where most of the film industry people are staying during the Toronto Film Festival.

All of us went to Cafe Nervosa. Our food was very good but spicy (I am a wimp when it comes to spicy food so it could be just me.) Our waiter was Italian and complimented me as we were leaving on my "excellent" italian. Let's see, I only said vongole (clams), buona sera, grazie, and prego but I appreciated the props. LOL

Speaking of Italian, I caught Codice Rosso (Code Red) the Italian version of Emergency! (does anyone remember this show from the late 70s with Randolph Mantooth...I just liked saying his name) the other night. There was a lot of yelling, fighting, and reflection going on during the finale. I understood maybe 1/4 of the words. The next morning when I clicked on the TV that channel was on and I starting to get aggravated that my Italian had declined so much already from not being in classes or speaking it regularly during the last 6 months. That it was a kid's show with some kind of muppets made me more irritated.

Hello, the show was in Spanish. Doh! The channel I was watching, TLN, has half of its progamming in Spanish and half in Italian. The Sopranos, uncut, also comes on at 10. It's in English. This is not a premium cable channel and yet every F-bomb and Bada Bing breast was shown. They do say a very clear and specific parental advisory though before the show starts and at the end of every commerical break. I remember when I was in London, my friend said Sex and The City came on regular TV at 10. Again uncut. That would never fly in the States, we clearly can't figure out by ourselves what our kids should or shouldn't be watching.

Today is the last day of pre-production. We start shooting on Monday. The suits (the studio execs, including the head of the studio) are coming in for the Festival but will also be stopping by the set. No pressure. Ha.

Una cena troppo tardi (A very late dinner)

It was very difficult to not read scripts this weekend. I kept looking at the pile and feeling guilty. On the other hand I'm almost done with one of the four books I'm reading. When I was at my friend's house on Thursday, she lent me two books I have to read. I had a great time on Thursday sitting out in their backyard, talking and drinking wine until almost midnight.

I am on pins and needles waiting to hear back from my editor. Trying to be patient, which is not one of my strong suits. In the meantime I am going to start going throught the ms again, to look for the dreaded typos.

Last night my former Italian professor had us over for dinner. The invitation was for 8:00 p.m. we left at almost 1:00 a.m. I go to bed at 10:00 maybe 11:00 p.m. if I'm living on the edge. Dinner was amazing! Anti-pasti, salad, pasta (rigatoni with eggplant and tomatoes), wine, bread, etc.

The night started out a little rusty for me since one of my classmates just spent two weeks in Italy and was speaking so fast. The other two are at a level higher but I was able to at least understand the conversation. I would freeze when it was mine time to speak. I just need to practice more. I read Italian much better since I'm constantly getting emails from one of my friends (we met in another class two years ago) who refuses to send me emails in English, I read Italian newspapers and magazines when I can, and I'm reviewing my text book.

Our professor's husband came home from work and joined us. He's an American, a musician and very, very funny. We could have stayed and talked for another hour or so.

Now it's back to work. As of 8:00 a.m. today, the movie is still on track. Hopefully there will be no major hiccups this week.

A little italian, lime granita, Charm School, a 124 mph serve and some Ramazotti

I sent my ms to my editor over the weekend. I have my mornings back for the next few weeks. Time to get back on track with my workouts and Italian.

I couldn't sign up for Italian this summer because of the movie schedule. I was supposed to be in Advanced Italian, (hahaha), instead I started to review from the very beginning. I'm in the middle of Pimsleur Level One. So far no c'è male (not too bad). I started Chapter One of my Prego textbook. My goal is to finish a chapter a week (well until I get to the dreaded Passato Remoto and the other more difficult verb tenses).

On Saturday I met a friend from class to practice. I stopped by Bay Cities Italian deli in Santa Monica which was packed at 4:00 in the afternoon. I couldn't believe how much traffic there was at the beach. Crazy. The bread there is so good I was tempted to start eating it while I sat in traffic on Lincoln Blvd. I had a good time on Saturday, a nice bottle of wine, salad from her garden and great if (somewhat butchered) converstion. I bought two books to help me get up to speed: "Better Reading Italian" and "Mastering Italian Vocabulary".

I made a fantastic and super easy Lime Granita...perfect for another hot weekend. I have been looking throught "The Perfect Scoop" cookbook and there are so many recipes I want to try.

The Flavor of Love, Charm School Reunion. Larissa might want to sign up for anger management. One day she is going to say something to the wrong person and get a serious beat down.

Venus Williams entered Wimbledon ranked number 31. She won helped by a serve clocking in at 124 miles per hour! Jesus. How does someone even return a serve like that? I miss playing tennis.

While at my friend's house she was playing Eros's CD "Eros". I know, I know. One of my friends cannot stand his voice...too nasally and yes some of the songs are cheesy. Well, since I usually have no idea what he is saying, the lyrics don't bother me.
There is one song on this CD I love "Memorie". It has a great melody. The last verse is:

e riscoprire come un dolore
senza capire perché
ricostruire un’emozione
fino a morire per te...

fino a morire per te...

Sounds molto bello in Italian. I looked up the translation on the web. I think the person did a literal one. Hmm seems a little intense in English.

and I rediscover
an unexplainable pain
I reconstruct an emotion
until I die for you...

until I die for you...

Favorite men continued, I Azzurri

I hope all the fathers out there had a great Father's Day. I spoke to two of the greatest fathers I know yesterday, my dad and my brother. I miss them.

You can tell this video is a few years old. Totti's hair is long and the fantastic Luca Toni is not in it. However, Gennaro and Fabio are. I assume this song was for a charity.

I decided to go back and listen to the Pimsleur Level One Italian CDs. Saturday night "la contessa" hosted a dinner and we tried to speak Italian. La contessa speaks Italian very well. Every time she left the dining room, I would start speaking English again. haha. It would be good to review some basics.

I had such a great time Saturday with my three friends. We all met in Italian class a couple years ago. Ci sono belle donne.