la colazione italiana

Two days ago I moved into my own apartment! It's been a little lonely now that I'm staying all by myself, but I am very much enjoying how close I am to the city center, and taking daily walks through the streets of Varese. Each day I try to stop into a new little cafe, or pasticceria, different from the day before, so I'm developing a nice taste for the local pastries and cappuccinos. Above you can see what I typically make for myself when I eat alla mia casa every now and then.

The weather remains gray and a little dreary most days, with clouds that hang low in the sky and a misty rain that never seems to stop completely, but, having grown up in Michigan, the dark days don't bother me as much as they might otherwise--although I do look forward to returning to Southern California for the summer (and possibly remainder) of 2009. And, despite the cold and wetness, I still venture out on my daily walks throughout the city.

I'm continuing to practice my Italian, and have set up a regime for myself that requires me to (attempt to) master one verb per day. I begin by conjugating the various tenses, and then I learn the idioms and uses in which is appears most. Today's verb was reflexive, but regular so it posed a new challenge--svegliarsi--meaning, "to wake up". Oggi, mi sono svegliata e ho fatto la colazione--"this morning I woke up and made breakfast"--of course then I had round two a few hours later at a cafe up the road....


As for the water polo, yesterday we lost our game against Padova. We played at home--here you can see a picture of our pool--it's a little blurry since inside the air is very humid and almost immediately my camera fogged up. Each game presents a new challenge, I'm sorry for the loss but am now looking forward to one last game before I return home for the holidays. Overall I think it's incredibly helpful to play here and I am very happy for the opportunity, I think it can only make me a better athlete through the challenges it presents. We will play again next Saturday, the 20th, against Ortigia.

As for now, I'm going to look up a recipe for gingerbread and perhaps do a little baking and turn on a Christmas movie or some carols....ciao for now!!

la nevica!

Yesterday I arrived to Milano safe and sound! My flight from Chicago was very empty, I think each person had an entire row to her/himself, so I was able to stretch out across four seats and sleep as much as the turbulence would allow. One of the officials from the Federation (the organization of the team for which I am playing, also often referred to in Italy as "the society") was there to great me and we loaded my bags into his little fiat and drove to Varese. We are actually very close and accessible to Milan, once I get a little more settled I'm looking forward to taking a few day trips into the city and seeing all that it has to offer, but for now I will focus on adjusting to life here in Varese.

Right now I'm staying with a few of the players on the team as they get my apartment settled and ready for me to move. I think this allows for an easier transition for me, the girls are incredibly friendly and energetic and together we practice speaking in English and Italian--I can already feel my language skills improving, and have been doing some exercises from my workbook to supplement my speaking practice.

We had practice last night and did some shooting and scrimmaging against the boys club. The scrimmaging felt pretty good (a little sluggish as I was working all of the travel out of my muscles) but the shooting was what really got my heart-rate up. I've been doing a decent amount of playing, both with the Top 40 Festival and then Men's Collegiate Club Nationals, but I haven't just taken rapid fire in a while. I suspect it will take at least a week or so before I feel a whole lot better, it just takes more and more shooting to make that out-of-shape feeling go away. Physically I've been keeping in shape between the playing and working out in the weight-room, but it just goes to show you that you can't replace old-fashioned practice! But, I'm looking forward to getting back into this kind of shape, but perhaps at a slightly lower level of intensity than what we see at home when we are in full-time training.

Most excitingly this morning I woke up and looked out the window to see that it was snowing! The snow (la nevica in italiano) put a huge smile on my face, it reminds me of home (Michigan), especially since I haven't been able to spend much time there since returning from Beijing.


I'm hoping to explore Varese a bit more next week--we have a game tomorrow (Saturday) so I figured I would wait until afterwards, and for now focus on adjusting and preparing for my first game with team Varese.

Ciao!

arrivederci tutti!

In a very quick series of events I am finding myself off to Italy to live for the next six months! It all happened very sudden--just about two weeks ago now, but it was an opportunity which I could never refuse even with such a quick turnaround that uprooted me from what was supposed to be the new, "grown-up" chapter in my life, but who is really a grown up anyway?

So here I sit, the day before Thanksgiving in the Chicago airport, ready to embark on this next grand adventure. Tomorrow there will be no turkey, stuffing and pie for me, no football and no evening Christmas specials. Instead, I will arrive to Milan as the day begins, it will be cold, probably rainy, and unfamiliar. But this is what I asked for, right? A chance to process and decompress, play the sport that I love, see the world and immerse myself in a culture that is not my own. I hope to grow during this period, learn about myself--what I've done and what I want to do. I'm planning to put my two years of studying Italian to good use and become fluent in this beautiful language. Most of all I'll soak in the arts, take pictures, write, create, and let myself feel inspired by everything around me and channel it into my own ambitions.

For the duration of my stay I hope to use this blog as a method of reflection for all that I see and do, and also for communication with family and friends. So come back here, sign into your instant messenger, open up a skype account and let me know how you are and if you have time for a visit :)

Ciao, baci!

the year of the rat!

Traditionally, Chinese astrology consists of a twelve year cycle where each year is represented by a different animal. This year, 2008, happens to be the rat--this is relevant because this afternoon our practice was canceled because there was a dead rat in the pool and the health department told us we couldn't get in the water (yikes! and the Olympics for which we happen to be training are in China). Just another day facing the elements at Los Al--if it isn't the 95 degree pool deck, gale force winds, or Southern California fires, then it is the wildlife. This necessary break allowed me to breathe a bit, I got my oil changed in my car, watch the Pistons dominate against Philadelphia, and most importantly....blog!

So here's what is new:
I'm submersing myself in a "Chinese Cultural Tutorial". This is so that long after this experience has passed, I will not only have the memories of a lifetime from participating in the Olympics, but I will also have a cultural understanding of Chinese society, history, art, films, music, literature, etc.
I just finished the book "Becoming Madame Mao" by Anchee Min. Additionally, I rented "Farewell My Concubine" and have a long list of movies and books to follow.

return of the mac

Here I am! So, I wasn't quite as productive as I would have liked to be at the library which in turn left me with little blogging time, but I did get some research done and am proud of the simple fact that I even made it there!!

Yes, after so much talk of going, and all of the praise I like to bestow upon city-run institutions, I indeed made it to the Long Beach Public Library. I only stayed for a few short hours in the early afternoon because I spent the entire morning relaxing next to a cup of coffee reading my non-library book ("Becoming Madame Mao"--very fascinating). But, with my computer in tow I spent my time researching various post-baccalaureate nursing programs and other potential career paths. I will dedicate a future entry to more detail about my motivation behind wishing to enter a health-dedicated field.

Joining the library allowed me to knock off one of the items on my list of earth-friendly checklist--which has been getting lengthy now that it is April and our society seems to be bustling with ideas on how one can become environmentally conscious. In addition I've switched to cloth napkins (inspiration a'la sister Kate) and returned to making a regular appearance at my local farmer's market.

We've just started up practice again which means my at home routines have also resumed. This weekend Brad and I watched two movies I've been meaning to see for a little while now: Atonement and The Lives of Others. I enjoyed Atonement very much however I will attribute much of that to the fact that I read the book. Brad liked it as well but not really until it was about halfway through--the beginning was choppy since the first six chapters of the book are all written from various characters' internal perspectives. The Lives of Others was completely fascinating and I fell in love with this film on the spot. The film takes place in Berlin in the 1980s and follows an agent of the GDR who is assigned to monitor a famous playwright and his actress-girlfriend. The agent, Wiesler, becomes fascinated by the lives of these artists and soon his life is greatly impacted by a certain chain of events.

Well, that's pretty much it for now. More to come in the next few days as we tackle our first full week back in our conversion phase of Olympic preparation! Cheers!

I'm alive, I swear!

Sorry to be so neglectful friends, I've been busy! Update to come this weekend as I pay my first visit to the Long Beach Public Library!

Until then, cheers!

the rev. dr. martin luther king jr

Dr. King is easily one of my absolute favorite figures in American History. I'd like to share a quote that is applicable to the world in which we live today, as well as that of Dr. King.

"Here is the true meaning and value of compassion and nonviolence, when it helps us to see the enemy's point of view, to hear his questions, to know his assessment of ourselves. For from his view we may indeed see the basic weaknesses of our own condition, and if we are mature, we may learn and grow and profit from the wisdom of the brothers who are called the opposition."

--Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., April 4, 1967