HICCUPS 3 AND 4

(news from earlier this week)


Trip Hiccup 3:
The dogs next door started barking like crazy! They sounded ferocious, and I wondered if we were being robbed? I wasn't about to go downstairs and see. I reached out from my bed and felt my computer nearby...they could have anything else, but I would fight them for my computer. Later I learned that at about the same time that the dogs were barking, Italy was rumbling with its second earthquake in less than two weeks. At least 16 people died; the epicenter was located about as far from Arezzo as Little Rock is to Memphis. I didn't feel anything, but I am convinced the dogs did.
Accademia dell' Arte, the school where I am working this summer, had all the students email their parents and post something on Facebook so family and friends back home wouldn't worry.
The good news? We are safe here.

Trip Hiccup 4:
I sprained my ankle. Bad. This is not cool--really cramping my style! My colleagues have been terrific about picking me up in the mornings and taking me home at night after dinner but I'm hoping it heals soon so I don't have to inconvenience them much longer.
The good news? I didn't break it!

MY ITALIAN SUMMER Post 2

YIPPEE! SKIPPY!

A taste of home! Skippy peanut butter is made in Little Rock, Arkansas!! I squealed with delight when I saw this on the grocery shelf. I had asked my Italian colleagues who took me grocery shopping where I might find some peanut butter but they were not sure. The "ipercoop" ( a large Wal-Mart type store) didn't have any. An American on staff said he had bought some once at a smaller grocery store...sure enough, there was ONE jar. I paid 4 Euros for this (more than $5) but it is worth it. Not to worry...I've already enjoyed some delicious Italian food...pasta pesto, pizza and a divine sandwich with salami, peccorino cheese drizzled with olive oil and salt on fresh bread for starters...but who knows? By the time I leave, Italians may be eating Skippy on their melas (apples) like I do. If Patrick Mathieu, who runs the Skippy plant in Little Rock, tells me their exports to Italy increase in the near future, I am taking full credit :)

MY ITALIAN SUMMER, Post 1 !!!!

Ciao!
I arrived in Arezzo, Italy (Tuscany) on Tuesday and was warmly welcomed by my summer project partner, Accademia Dell' Arte (ADA). This little adventure is actually in fulfillment of a Clinton School requirement to spend the summer in international field service. My classmates are scattered across the globe, and upon my arrival here, I couldn't help but think I drew the long straw! Actually, we each made our location and partner choice (approved by the school), and I know my friends will have terrific experiences, regardless of which continent they are on.

I am staying in a charming farmhouse the ADA rents to house faculty and guests. It is currently for sale, so I keep it clean and ready to show at all times! It is a bit chilly--I'm told heat is VERY expensive and that Italians are required to turn off their heat at the end of March to limit their dependence on foreign energy??--but I packed a few warm things and the days are getting warmer, too. I didn't have hot water at first, but was able to take my first hot shower this morning. Glorious!! There is no internet at the farmhouse, so I will do all my researching and corresponding during the day while at the school.

Here's why I think I'm going to love this place. On my first morning here, I was walking to the school and this sweet older Italian man in a soft yellow Fiat stopped for me.

Me: Parle Inglese?

Him: No

Me: Accademia dell'Arte?

Him. No

Me: (show him my computer and act like I am writing and thinking)

Him: Escola?

Me: Si!

So I got in and he drove me about 3/10 mile

Me: Grazie mille!

Him: Prego!

Me and him: (waving goodbye) Ciao!

Good way to start an Italian summer. 

My house as seen from the school, across some olive trees and small vineyards.

Today's the day!
After months of planning, I'm off to the airport to begin this journey. When I applied to the Clinton School I thought the idea of three months out of the country was exciting; now I'm here to tell you how hard it is to leave your life for three months....loved ones, dogs, a house with a mortgage and a yard that needs mowing, rental properties with water heaters that break, garbage disposals that quit working, and a/c's that konk out in the dead of summer...

Friday I attended an event in Little Rock where the managing director of the school in Italy where I will be working this summer was in attendance. I reminded her I would arrive this week.
"Oh, so soon?" she said. "Where will you be staying?"
Yikes! I had been told I was staying at the school, at least for part of the summer. That information obviously hadn't made its way to her. First hiccup. Surely it will all work out...

(Oh, second hiccup....major earthquake in Italy yesterday morning, but north some distance from where I'll be.)

Sometimes you have to quit planning and just DO.
Let's DO this thing!

I'll be back in touch from the other side of the pond.

P.S. Thank you to Clinton School faculty and staff for helping prepare my classmates and me for the adventure!

Mae and June: "Take us with you!"
Wish I could, girls.