These are the Days of Our Lives

Today was my first lesson with Anna, Alberto’s niece. We took a bus to the center of town at around 9:00. For the first hour we decided to talk in English only. I’m glad I put on my walking shoes because we did some hard core walking, and I might add she walks so fast I thought I was jogging at times. She took me to Palazzo Madame, the queen’s palace during Savoy rule. The are 200 plaster flowers on the ceiling and everyone is different. Under the palace there is a Roman theatre mostly still intact. From there we walked the entire downtown waiting for a certain store to open. At ten we started speaking in Italian. I listened mostly, which is good; because she is little miss chatty Cathy. She is 14 and loves to talk about boys and clothes. I really enjoyed hanging out with her though and found myself thinking I was probably just like this when I was her age. We came back to the house at 12…so a recap that is three hours of non-stop walking, I really thought I might die, but luckily was just overreacting.

Pat’s mom came over to fix lunch and Anna stayed so we had a good meal and I had a translator, which was very nice. After lunch I took a nap, which I desperately needed because I didn’t go to bed until three because it was so hot in my room….plus my pillow is a brick. After the nap Filippo went with his grandma and I went to pick up Ruggie. We stopped at a Galateria (ice cream shop) and both got a cone. When we got back to the house I let him watch cartoons for a while until we left for dinner. Louisa, Pat’s sister, invited us to her house for dinner at 8. She came and picked us up and her mother was there preparing the meal. We had fried chicken and fried potatoes but it wasn’t like good ‘ol Southern cooking. Their meat, regardless of the type, is as thick as a paper towel. Even though it wasn’t as good as what we have in the states I still enjoyed it. After dinner we watched Nonna Deana’s favorite soap opera, Al parta di sole (a place or section close to the sun). I couldn’t help but laugh at the situation because it reminded me of all the time I have watched “The Young and the Restless” with Grandma Ruby. Nonna Deana would say, “Oh here’s that horrible woman, or that man is married to the woman with the deformed face.” So far that is the best television program I have seen while here (that’s not saying very much). At 10 we came home to an empty house so it was up to me to get the boys ready for bed. I hate this part of my job. It is very hard and usually results in hitting, crying, throwing objects, and screaming (and no I’m just talking about what I do). But I have observed that it is very hard for the parents when they do it together, so I have just stepped up to the plate and have tried my best not getting upset when they throw a fit. Tonight actually went half way smooth. Yes there were problems but I didn’t get upset or flustered, I kept my cool. I’m not sure what tomorrow holds as far as events but I am looking forward to watching them fall into place like sands through an hour glass, these are the days of my life….sorry couldn’t resist being sappy.