Last Minute Rush
This week has been busier than usual. Last minute preparations abound as I get ready to head home to the states in just a couple of days, and, as usual, I procrastinate. I'm amazed that six months in Italy has passed by so quickly, and now I'm coming home to go to my brother's wedding. What a year of changes.
Other than preparing to go back to the states, the week has been rather full on its own. I went Thursday to retrieve my permit to stay, and I was so glad to find out that it was done, to stare down at a piece of paper that granted me legality. It's been a wait, but it was worth waiting.
But the bigger news of the week is probably this:
we bought a house. After so much time searching, feeling like we'd failed on previous houses we'd wanted, and just being disappointed with what was available, we found this house on Monday, took a tour of it, and pretty much decided, right there. We called up to meet with the owners, offered a price that we thought was more than good, and they accepted. It's a three bedroom place (enough room for guests!) that has views of the Macerata city center out of its little balconies. We're both happy. It's not a house in the country (I'm not living the Under The Tuscan Sun dream here, guys), but it's ours. Our house.
I will be home in what seems like hours. I can't wait to see everyone. And I feel so good knowing that Antonello will be coming as well (although his flight doesn't leave until a couple of days after mine). What a week. What a year. I miss you all. I'll be home soon.
-Jackie
Shaking Up The Formula
After too much time out of the basketball spotlight, the party moved over to the Eastern Conference, specifically Detroit, on Tuesday night, with a convincing series win against the
Los Angeles Lakers, ending the Finals and giving the Pistons that coveted title: NBA Champs of 2004.
When I found out the news
online yesterday, I moaned slightly about having not seen the game (we don't get basketball satellite where I am!), but I happily cheered anyway: while
the Pistons may not be my
Pacers (in fact, they beat us in the last series!), I am happy to cheer for an East team. And frankly, it's about time!
PLUS, just to add the icing on the cake, one of my favorite coaches, Larry Brown, took Detroit to the finals,
finally! He hadn't
won an NBA championship yet! Congrats to him (and good luck to him as he goes on to coach the Olympic team this summer).
And congratulations to the Pistons!
To my friend Jeff, who is a Michigander himself: You won this one!
-Jackie
What's an Indianian?
Thanks to Fodor's new travel blog, Right This Way, which posted
this entry, I found the following:
an article from The Morning News which points out what YOU are, in terms of your state status. I especially love Connecticuters and Mainers, and I wonder if you pronounce the "s" in Illinoisan (I think not). The Morning News also stuck those of us from Indiana in there--we are apparently Indianians. I never knew.
But, nothing escapes us Indianians, some of whom wrote in to The Morning News to point out our true status, not as Indianians at all, but as Hoosiers. Good for them.
Check out their detailed maps (in the same article) for an explanation of the suffixes.
And the "ese" suffix (as in Maceratese or, in terms of our friend Eric, Luccese)? Guess they don't do that in the states.
-Jackie
