tanti auguri a me!

well it's official. my birthday is international. AND my birthday will go down in philadelphia history. every year just keeps topping the last. i'm scared to see what my birthday will be like when i'm 50. watch out world.
oh, and my 'little monsters' surprised me with a gift and a tart! oh they look harmless in a photo...and it's always the cute ones. i know - i was one of the cute ones. (still am!)
actually the girls were really great last night. ''please behave, it's my birthday!''
but on more serious note - thank you to all who sent me cards, e-cards, facebook messages, and FANTASTIC packages for my birthday. i can't tell you how loved i feel right now. there is no reason why i should be blessed with such loving family and friends, but i am. i will never be able to express in words my gratitude and love for you all. (and the phils...woo!)
love from abroad,
carrie

My new Address!

Ciao Tutti,
After much probing from Rachel Allen, I finally remembered to ask Signora for my new address. So here it is! PLEASE don't send anything to the other address I gave you (gee, i wonder why anyone would want to send me anything TOMORROW? hmm). Send it here!

Carrie Lawless
c/o Signora Magni
Via Giovanni Barracco 11
00162 Roma, Italia

paradise or exile?

rome, italy.  8:59 pm

the marble beneath me is cold, but the fact that i have internet for even a minute is too tempting to move.  i've been sitting on my window-sill for a good two hours with a bottle of wine and my itunes on random watching the passers-by below.  this is my last night in the bed and breakfast, because tomorrow i depart for my new home with my new family.  my new life here in rome for the next eight months.

i make assumptions of the people below my window, some in a hurry for a dinner party, with grocery bags in hand, and others dragging along youngsters trying to get home in one piece.  this city is bustling of life and i find myself longing to partake.  of course, my current situation is complicated and my lack of funds restricts me from having TOO much fun.

really my problem is that italians don't go anywhere alone.  last night i was starving and wanted to relax at a bar drinking a beer and chatting with the people around.  

1. bars don't exist here.  YES, there are BARS but there are no seats to sit at alone, only tables for 3 or 4.  

2. NO ONE goes out alone.  this is not an exaggeration.  every single restaurant i passed had couples or groups of people dining.  this is probably because it's so fucking expensive to dine out here.  but none the less, i would stick out as a sore thumb FOR SURE, and i was not about about to attract unwanted attention.

this city is divine.  as i stare out my window i can't even put into words the appreciation that i have for being able to be here in this beautiful ancient paradise. if only i had someone to experience it with...

calling all moms

are italian children particularly difficult or is it just me? praise the good lord for my mother because i know i was a temper-tantrum nightmare when i was little. now karma has come to bite me in the ass because i am taking care of my equivalent in italy. the worst part is, these kids are so freaking cute it breaks your heart to see them frown (which they do MASTERFULLY). oh but i am NOT going to fall for their tricks. so today i let eva (2 yrs old) sit in the time-out chair for 10 minutes without any pants on because she refused to let me put them on. so she cried and cried and kicked and screamed and tried to hit me, but i ignored her. don't ask me how i got the pants on...pure force really. so question - is this the best policy? i don't want them to hate me, but i dont want them to walk all over me either. where do you the line? they are so small, but OH so cunning. and they aren't allowed any processed sugar, so gelato bribes are out of the question. i'm sure they will get used to me in time, because frankly they dont have a choice. but i would oh so appreciate all of your motherly advice, because i am at a loss...

La Dolce Vita?

Ok friends and family, sorry for the delay - but I assure you there is a good reason for my lack of communication. ONCE AGAIN, my life in Rome has been uprooted and I'm back to square one. BOH. I had to leave the family I was living with because of 'technical difficulties' as we will call them, and I am now living in a Bed and breakfast near the Vatican. without internet. FABULOUS. Anyway, don't fret because I am so used to just rolling along at this point I have no time (or money) to cry over spilled milk. Let's see how many idioms I can fit into this blog entry.
Anyway, I quit my teaching job (because frankly I didn't like it and it wasn't a lot of money) and I'm spending this week with a new family with two little girls. I am basically going to be a mom for the next 8 months. This job requires A LOT more than Marco did, but I think I need this. No more 4-12 serving job. I need to learn how to be an adult, and manage my time. SO, now you're up to date. I'm sorry this is short, but I will upate you more next week when I move in for sure. For now, I'm going to play circus with my new little girls (and have a glass of wine when they go to bed.)

you've got mail

well i certainly hope i get mail after this blog!  in case any of you haven't noticed....it's OCTOBER.  october is international month of carrie's birthday.  just throwing it out there.  but anyway, things are getting oddly comfortable here.  i guess i never thought i would actually adapt to roman life.  but i know the bus schedule, the best gelato in my neighborhood, and which brand of yogurt i like! we're making progress folks!  anyway, IF any of you out there would like to send me something via the pony express, here's what you have to do.

1. you can't send me shoes.  i don't know why, but they aren't allowed to be send to italy.  maybe b/c they want you to pay 100 euro for a pair of shoes.  that's my guess anyway

2. i can't get anything addressed to me, or i won't receive it at my house here.  so make sure you address anything as follows:

Carrie Lawless

Presso Ignazio Pediconi

Via Val d'Ala 20E

Roma, Italia 00141

I'm looking forward to receiving ALL your love. ;)

Amo.

fall for me is warm apple cider.  i love the crisp air that makes your nose all red.  i love walking around the city in a sweater with a mug of tea and sitting in independence park watching the leaves fall.  i love the crunch of the leaves on the cobblestone streets.  i love that the only thing that isn't a red, orange, or yellow is the blue sky peaking through the trees.  i love going for a drive to pick out a 28 pound pumpkin.  i love baking apple pies, apple cobbler, apple turnovers, and anything else with the TONS of apples we pick.  

i remember the train rides on the Steamtown line when we were younger.  i remember our packed lunches of mini crunch bars, peanut butter crackers, and sandwiches. that one time i went with Rich by myself and i got gum all over my face (don't remember how, but i remember it not being fun).  i remember the "haunted" hayrides, that you waited in line for an hour only to close your eyes for the entire ride.  i remember driving my mother crazy with my birthday parties, complete with costumes, candied apples, and plenty of candy to go around.  these are some of the best memories of my life.  it is truly a blessing to have been able to live in such a beautiful picturesque place, if only for those two or three months a year.  this is the first year in my entire life not being able to experience those joys of autumn in PA and i must tell you, it sucks.  i appreciate all our wonderful state has to offer even more now.  so please - if you all take anything from this entry, take this.  ENJOY what god has put before your eyes.  enjoy every cup of tea, every scent of firewood burning in a chimney nearby.  enjoy the stores being strewn with all things halloween.  enjoy life.  because although i tend to think i appreciated this time of year before, it is nothing like the pain of not having it with me.  i'm sure i'm going to experience wonderful fall like wonders here in rome.  marco and i are going to make a pie this weekend!  ahh...pasta and apple pie.  we're an international house. 

take a chill pill.

alas, after a month here in rome i am finally sick.  fear not, i am not on my death bed - but i am snuggled up cozy w/ some tea (finally i get tea!!) and 'you've got mail'.  (p.s. liz - this bed reminds me of the ones we had in puerto rico.  i don't think i'll be getting out anytime soon.)  i suppose it's about time, since i've been running around on tile floors with inappropriate clothing for the past few weeks.  i am fully equipped with all the medicine and TLC i need, but i think this shall really be the first test of how much i miss home.  you know how you get when you're sick...boh.  do they have chicken soup here?

il uomo con i fiori

So last night was my last night in the convent.  I had a great job interview today so I shall be starting soon I suppose…I don’t actually know – they said they would call in a few days to talk specifics.  

I wanted to savor all that this little neighborhood had to offer.  I haven’t actually experienced much of it – but I wanted to go out for a pizza at this famous pizzeria and have a gelato at my favorite gelato place, very close to the Pantheon.  So I sat with my prosciutto, mozzerella, onion, and egg pizza,  and a ½ a liter of wine for a good hour.  I probably looked like an idiot sitting by myself and smiling – but I couldn’t stop smiling!  I don’t know why but I was just so encompassed in the evening that I had to smile.  This cute couple sat next to me – they were probably weirded out.

After dinner I went to the Pantheon to get my favorite gelato (croichele di pistachio e ricotta con ficchi)  and I heard this BEAUTIFUL singing.  There was a tenor singing opera arias in the piazza.  There was a crowd around him and all of the people at the restaurants nearby were watching as well.  So I went and got my gelato and came back to listen for a little while.  After he finished I went up to him and told him he had a beautiful voice and I myself was a classical singer (in Italian – everyone always asks me if I talk in English or Italian here…most often it’s Italian).  He told me to sing an Italian duet with him!  I said, “No, No, I don’t know any Italian duets!”  and he said to wait until he finished.  So I waited and watched a nearby mime (hilarious.) and Antonio (the singer) came over and gave me flowers.  So after he finished he walked me home and we chatted about music, etc… so now I have three roses and a smile that won’t go away – Rome is fab.

pennies from heaven...

i feel like i've been looked after so much since i have been here in rome.  whether it is friends being there for me in times of need, or jobs being presented to me on a daily basis - this is truly amazing how much i am cared for here.  it comforts me so much that i know that you all can be assured i am safe and doing well.  i have my second (and really big!) interview tomorrow with this international school teaching english.  let's hope all goes well! 

but to take you all back to the day at the lake, i had a lot on my mind - about a lot of things.  our pastor gave an especially moving sermon and i wanted to clear my head about some stuff.  so i went the beautiful villa borghese and sat down by the lake laden with little boats of lovers..

this is what it looked like...minus the pegasus

i didn't know how to deal with my feelings at this moment so i wrote them down.  so i will end with this: 

"how do i describe how i am feeling?  my heart is so full it is overflowing into my lungs and i can't breath.  i want to cry, but i don't know if it is from joy or sorrow.  maybe a bit of both.  i am grateful, so secure and yet still insecure. my mind wanders and i find something new and profound to revel about.  i am wearing my heart on my sleeve and for the first time, i'm not scared."