Mi manca l'Italia!

Topic: What do you miss? (a person, place, thing, a time in your life)

When I was studying at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, PA I was standing by an elevator after class staring at the plethora of flyers of announcements, campus clubs and upcoming events thumbtacked and stapled to bulletin boards, encouraging you to join. One flyer stood out with the title "Study Aboard". There were multiple foreign cities as options, but only one drew me in...Rome, Italy. I didn't have many friends at Duquesne so I thought this was a great opportunity to explore one of the most romantic countries on Earth, get to know myself better and integrate myself into a beautiful culture. Nervous yet eager, I found myself at an open house with my mom in tow. I discovered I could study abroad in Roma, Italia for the same price of studying in Pittsburgh. Doesn't take a college degree to tell you what the right answer is! 

In February 2001, with a non-refundable deposit, an MCI calling card, 12 credits and textbooks in tow, I was off to Italy for an opportunity of a lifetime. I have numerous memories and experiences that I could bore you with, but these are the ones I miss most...

My "dorm room" was one of two down on the ground level. My roommate and I got along great. The best part about my room was the view from the wooden Italian shutters and the water pressure in my shower. Overlooking the Italian landscape towards Ostia Antica, I could hop out my window and walk three feet to our one-room classroom; built that year for the students. I can still smell the freshly built schoolhouse. The chalkboard came on wheels. My Italian teacher was a beauty. My Arts History teacher commuted from the Vatican. Classes were held Monday-Thursday. Most Thursday nights were spent rushing to the train station to catch the overnight train to a country of our choice, usually one of six on our pre-paid Euro-rail pass. Thursday night in Italy, Friday morning in Switzerland.

We had organized class trips to multiple cities, including Assisi, Venice and Florence, complete with Italian meals at local restaurants. My mom and sister visited me for spring break and we took a mini-cruise to some of the Greek Isles and Kusadasi, Turkey. I did a roundoff back handspring in Piazza Novona for a free beer. One day I spent eight hours walking aimlessly through the Roman Forum reading a guide book from front to back, talking with tourists about the history of the ruins we were admiring. That was a magical day, something I cherish as one of my best days in Rome. I miss that.

Still to this day I become nostalgic by my Italian experiences. The rising sun and dewy mornings remind me of waking up in Italy. The smell of my body spray reminds me of a sweet scent I used on a daily basis. I fell in love with tomatoes and red wine throughout my life in Italy. I kissed an Italian. I spoke the language of love and spoke it well (for a time). I miss that.

I feel incredibly honored that I was able to study abroad, even make Dean's List, and have an experience only some young people dream about. I tell every high schooler or young college student, if within their means, to STUDY ABROAD! It will shape who you become. 

In the meantime, I continue to dream and consider my next visit to Italy, to relive my nostalgic moments and visit new landscapes. I'll continue to enjoy my scrapbook thick with photos. I've even thought of renting a villa for a year. Anyone care to join?! Where would I go? Does it matter? At least I'll visit the Italy I know, love and miss.

What do you miss? 

Back in the U.S.A.

I survived the land of cold and rain (Halifax, Nova Scotia), and am back in Colorado. Now the job is to decide whether to purchase this boat or not. In my case, this involves conversations with lots of people lots smarter than me, which is my usual method of preparation for a large purchase.

I was very surprised how out of my element and unsure of myself I felt when first on the boat. I had forgotten how to be on a boat in the 7 years since I last lived on one. But just a few hours of sailing in a very protected harbor started to fire those synapses and wake up the dormant muscle memory. I spent Sunday night on the boat, with the owner, and by the time I woke up I was starting to feel a little more at home. I could begin to see past the owner's stuff piled everywhere, and the cosmetically unfinished projects, and the nicks in some of the wood, to find the solid, capable boat underneath.

This boat was originally an Allied Princess, built in 1978. The current owner has made a lot of significant changes, primarily changing from a ketch rig to a junk rigged schooner, and replacing the diesel engine with an electric motor. These changes come with costs (everything on a boat is a compromise), but I believe the benefits outweigh them in this case.

The boat will need a significant cleaning effort before we move in, and some trim should be replaced. Almost everything would look better with a good sanding and a nice coat of varnish. I'd like to remove the headliner, insulate as much as possible, and replace. The change to a junk schooner meant there is now a mast in the v-berth (sleeping cabin at the front of the boat), which makes it unusable as a sleeping area. There are plenty of other places to sleep on the boat, but if we want to use that space we'll need to do some carpentry to move the bed back a few feet. That's on our list of things to do as well.

Fortunately, all the changes are minor in nature, as the boat is strong, seaworthy, and ready to sail as is. I have gone through a serious roller coaster of emotions, and with lots of encouragement from family (though less from friends, interestingly) I am feeling pretty good about this boat. Jenn and I will be debating in detail this week, and will make to a decision we feel is best for us.

Perspective

Had a great visit with Jenn’s great-uncle, and his 2 sons in their 50’s. Got to talk about our plans for the future and, most interestingly, the rationale. It was a wonderful experience to be understood by a WWII vet. It gives me great confidence that this is a good thing we’re doing. We discussed how the country is not heading in a good direction (which every old person says). We talked about how life now is too fast, how there isn’t enough personal responsibility for ones actions. How pocket screens and 60” screens have overpowered parenting. How parents spend so much money on screens and big houses and big cars and toys that they don’t have the time to combat those screens. How there used to be a community that we lived in, now it’s just a group of houses very close to each other, with the residents so exhausted from the rat race that everyone hides inside.

I heard stories of how he had just arrived in the south pacific when the second atomic bomb was dropped on Japan. How the World Trade Center attack felt very much like the Pearl Harbor attack. How rare it was that his father had a car in 1929, and that was because he used it for sales from his bedding store. How he started walking to school at age 7, hand in hand with his parents.

It reminded me of my first time in the Caribbean on a sailboat, talking with the older cruisers. Every person, 100%, said they wished they had gotten out of the rat race earlier. There was audible envy that I was living care-free at age 26. It took several years for that to sink in, back in the rat race. Then several more years to wait out the great recession. Then I found Mr. Money Mustache, who was living purposefully, the way I had accidentally fallen into it. His blog clarified a great deal for me, and pointed out details, such as FIREcalc, that convinced me now was the time to live my life. Then I started convincing Jenn. Undoubtedly the hardest thing I’ve ever done. Nearly gave up on several occasions.

The plan is to move to the coast this summer, perhaps Aug 1! Save up a few more shekels before then, take a few trips (Canada! Alaska!) to spend time with family. I might even be able to tolerate this job that long.

Maybe by then I’ll start writing something that’s fun and happy, not this stuck up crap any more.

An Affair with the Sea

An Affair with the Sea

written March 2007

Animated, open, blue, inviting,

champagne bubbles floating gracefully,
without effort, she glides seductively
teasing the waves with her curves.

Mesmerized by her shape and beauty,
the sea opens up to embrace her.
in unison, like a familiar touch,
embodied by pleasure.

The sea swells, surrounding her.
Taking hold, pressing into the sea.
The sea shivers, she comes undone
As nature intended, unconditional love.

At each peak, she enjoys the movement
over and again, the sea knows her pleasure.
together, there is excitement within,
each knowing how the other moves.

As the sea calms, her body breathes,
slowly resting, but never stopping.
The spirit in the breeze, the motion of the sea
united with great energy and passion for one another.