Coraggio

Teammates, I was super coraggiosa last night. I went to an Italian language conversation group for the first time. It was scary and fantastico! It's led by an old Neapolitan broad named Lucia who has the big hair, flowy dark clothes, and kick ass jewelry that many Italian women of 50+ years rock like its their uniform.

There were mostly olds in attendance; a 50-ish woman who bitched about health care in English (but who did speak good Italian), and a similarly aged man who knew like, 10 words and 2 verbs, and literally got up to leave the group because he was getting a phone call from his mamma. BUT there was also a 70-ish year old man and his wifey who were bona fide Italiani. They were super duper. Amazing clothes, funny, lots of attitude, gave me life advice, encouraged me to try a very detailed recipe for some sort of pesto, told me I was young and adorable...Does it get much better than that? I want to adopt them!

Speaking of people I want to join my family...

My favorite group member: 30-ish hottie who is a farmer (Christmas trees). He told me in Italian how he helps build sets for his little town's high school theater program and that he is good with his hands. MARRY ME. We talked in Italian for like, 30 minutes, which is longer than I can usually hold a conversation with a male in English. We totally bonded. I will be attending this gruppo again, if you had any doubt.

But srsly, I'm pretty proud of myself for going, because it's scary to A) go into a totally unknown situation by yourself, and B) speak a foreign language with strangers. I'm a much more adventurous and brave person when I travel, and I felt like last night was something I'd be bold enough to do as a traveler, but not in my regular life; it felt good to push myself toward the fearlessness that I know I'm capable of having. I like my TravelLara persona. And within 2 minutes of joining the group I realized that I've missed speaking Italian and using the part of my brain that retains fabulous words such as calcolatrice (calculator), amaca (hammock), and pouf imbottito (bean bag chair).

Lucia told me to come back again, and she also encouraged me to come to a different Italian language group that meets at some lady's house. They serve food in that group, so I'm already warming to the idea of attending.

Ciao, Portland

my gift to you

Hey amici. So you know how I took Ital for like, ever, but have nothing to use it for other than pretentiously ordering dishes at restaurants?

NO LONGER!

I've found a place to chat with real live Italians (no, not LiveChat):

Costello's Travel Cafe

It's a cutesy little Euro-inspired cafe that hosts all sorts of language events, including Italiano. They have an Italian chat night when actual Italians, and not guidettes, come and chat with learners of la lingua, so I think I'm going to do it. I'm kinda scurrd, because il mio italiano is un po' limited, but my major motivation is...the hope that someone can recommend a new Europop CD to me, because LunaPop's Squerez...? has been on heavy rotation lately...and, I guess, that I might like, improve my language skillz. And perhaps that someone will teach me how to get my hair did a la Snooki. I'll let you know if I meet my goals.

Ripete, per favore?

Here is an amazing video that I watched a lot like, a year ago, and then forgot about, and re-discovered today as I was weeding out my "Favorites" list on youtube. This Italian viral video, originally from the 1970s, is of Adriano Celentano, a Giovanni-of-All-Trades who gained fame in the 1950s and is still owning the Italian spotlight, creating a jibberish rap for a group of studentesse italiane. According to my internet research, it is considered a legit proto-rap; it wasn't just a gimmicky song, apparently. Hmm. Anyway, I only recently (aka 20 minutes ago) learned that its point was not just to create jibberish, but to actually mimic what American English sounds like to non-speakers. So not only is this an amusing video, it's cultural and educational and shit. So watch it.

It brings to mind that game on "Whose Line is it Anyway" when the tall geeky guy Ryan and the little bald Canadian dad-type guy had to do a scene in different "languages", and really they were just saying gibberish with a Polish, Brazilian, French, Icelandic accent and inflection. Right???

Things I Like #9

La musica italiana.

I am mildly obsessed with Italian music. I stream Italian radio stations in the morning during my daily website checks. I watch Italian music videos on youtube. I memorize lyrics and hum them to myself. I work out to Italian electro-pop on my iPod. In short, it's love. Here are some of my favorite songs via youtube.


Jovanotti & Ben Harper, "Fango" (live at San Remo)



Antonello Venditti, "Indimenticabile" (super popular last year/summer)



Venditti, again, "Grazie Roma" (CLASSIC 80s cheese)



Luca Leoni, "Amore in Chat" (epico).



Gianni Togni "Giulia" (original version, not the remix)



Lunapop "50 Special" (Italy's 1990s boyband)



Simone Cristicchi, "Studentessa universitaria" (precioso)



Adriano Celentano "Ragazzo della via Gluck" (so damn catchy)

kwit txtn 4 lnt

I just read that Bishops in Italy asked young people to give up texting for Lent. They want i giovani to "return to communicating, not kommunikating" (young Italians like to use "K" to replace "C"; "C" is so last season). Breaking away from technology is something I want to do, but in practicality, how would you go about this sudden break? Would you accept texts from people and just not send them? Would you neither accept nor send? So much of my planning is done through texts that I don't know if I could stop texting. It would be a pretty big hinderance on my hot Friday night plans for ice cream and movie night--uh, I mean crazy Cap Hill dance party with six DJs and an open bar...Anway, it's not like I'm one of those addicted-to-texts young'uns who click-clacks on her blackberry during lectures because she can't stay out of touch with that special someone for more than 30 minutes, but still, I can't imagine not texting for 40 days. Good Lord (literally)! Shockingly, I am in agreement with the Vatican: "[text messages] by their nature a neutral tool, neither good nor bad in themselves. It depends how they are used. If text messages are a proper way of communicating I don't see why we should deprive ourselves of them on Good Friday or any other day". Maybe the Vatican is hipper than I thought. Maybe.

4 More Months...

Which means that great nights like tonight will start to be more frequent!

Skipping my 3:45 to nap and dress up for happy hour.

Happy hour with due carissime donne italiane.

Pre-view of Romeo and Juliet.

Eating left-overs from my fridge while trying to re-hydrate.

Getting tomorrow's 10am cancelled.

Not reading for tomorrow's 1:30-3:30, but still sure that I can bullshiz something to boost my participation grade.

Planning a happy hour for tomorrow.


In short, I am so over school. Let the great no-school experiment BEGIN!

Nice Stuff from Late January-Early February

I've been busy the last few weeks, and here are the activities I want to give a shout-out to:

The Siena study abroad photography show
Getting funding for Italian Club
Italian conversation group
Housewarming parties
Meeting with Signore Giuseppe
Shopping
MLK weekend
Meeting Rick Steves for the 2nd time
Happy hours (and hours, and hours)
Hanging out in Chardin and making a dinosaur-land scene
Watching one of my best friends kick ass in a rowing competition
Learning to make Panini on my Foreman Grill
Cleaning my room
Making Elephant Ears using tortillas
Going to the Frye
THE INAGURATION/drinking champagne at 9am on a Tuesday and then giving a presentation on Indian politics at 10am
Celebrating Kelsey's 22nd birthday by dressing up as a jungle creature
Brunches
Dinners
Reuninting with Kat
Getting 8 hours of sleep
A couple of great new YouTube videos
Drinking an entire bottle of red wine while watching "The Dutchess"
Doing Crossword puzzles
Compleating my "25 things" survey on Facebook

Yes, all in all, it's been a good few weeks! Jan and Feb are so gray and gloomy that it's easy to forget all the fun things that happen at the start of the quarter. Yay for the start of the quarter, boo for the middle of the quarter, and I hope the end comes soon!

Things I Like #3

Riccardo Marzi collections

Riccardo Marzi is this sort of expensive/kitschy, faux-high art decorative dinner-ware from Tuscany. When I get married, this is going to be at the top of my gift-list. I saw his stuff in Italy (they have a baller outpost in Florence that lets you see how they--along with other local artisans--make all the stuff: http://www.maestridifabbrica.it/), but they also sell it at Mamma Ro/La Vita Vera, a FABULOUS Italian ceramics importer on Portland's NW 23rd: http://www.mammaro.us/store_locations.htm. Back to Riccardo Marzi. The charming English translation of the Italian website says that Signore Marzi was "grown among craftsmen" in the artistically fertile hillsides outside Florence, but basically he just tweaked the centuries long Tuscan ceramics tradition by "floating" natural objects in high-quality resin platters, bowls, picture frames, lamps, vases, napkin rings--you name it, Riccardo makes plastic molds of it.

Anyway, judging by the Italian website's layout and flowery language, it seems like Marzi might be the Thomas "painting with light" Kincaid of Italy, but whatevs, I loves me some resin platters! And so does the Museum of Modern Art: http://www.momastore.org/museum/moma/ProductDisplay_River%20Stones%20Bowl_10451_10001_24373_-1_11515_11518_null__6H101

If anyone is curious, here are my favorite pieces:

Summertime

Wild Flowers

My all-time favorite is the Wheat and Oranges. Please, someone who loves me, buy me this collection!

OMFGGGGGG, I want it!! Can't you just imagine hosting amazing dinner parties with all this stuff casually displayed on the table or hung on one of the dining room walls? Someday my dream will come true! Even better, perhaps I will marry into the family (he has a son named Andrea) and I will kill two of my dreams with one stone: marring an Italian man and owning a full set of Marzi decorative wear.

Hello, World!

I've decided to jump on the blog-wagon! I'm exposing the world to Lara's brain...even for the internet, it's pretty shocking.

If you're reading this, I assume you're a member of Team Lara. But here are some fun facts even my most vocal fans may not know about me...

Age: 21

Hometown: Portland, OR and Seaview, WA

Number of first cousins: eleven.

First crush: Leonardo DiCaprio

Strangest crush: Tom Selleck. But only a fully mustachioed Tom Selleck.

Best Halloween costume: big bird, when I was 4.

I hope I am reincarnated as: Heidi Klum.

Secret obsession: people watching.

Guilty pleasure: abbreviating/using text-language. Watching “Gossip Girl”.

My irrational fears are: birds and getting appendicitis.

Essential wardrobe item: pearls and headbands.

Favorite fruit: raspberries

Favorite vegetable: cucumbers

Favorite concert experience: Spice Girls, fifth grade. No contest.

Favorite muppet: it’s a toss up between Count Von Count and Grover.

Favorite drink: Pimms Cup.

Favorite childhood toy: my American Girl Doll, Samantha Parkington.

Favorite expression: cool beans or bomb dot com. I can’t choose.

Favorite holiday: non-religious: the Fourth of July, because it’s the only warm weather holiday. Religious: Easter, because we have two garbage cans full of champagne bottles after Mass.

Least favorite song: “Cotton Eye Joe”:

I’m currently reading: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone in Italian.

Thanks for spending your procrastination time reading my blog

Later gators!