Benefits of being motherless

  Well, first of all, Happy Thanksgiving to everyone.  Since my hubby is working in Italy, and it's just me and the kids, we aren't really doing T-day here - too much food, for just me and 3 small kids.  And people here don't really do cornbread dressing, so, oh well.


So the temperature is starting to drop, it's 8 Celsius today, and my friends over in Prauge got the first snow yesterday.  Not to mention that they were predicting this winter to be the coldest Europe has seen in about 100 years.  So I needed to put anti-freeze in our Volvo station wagon - yeah, I drive a station wagon!


Marius was like just go get some anti-freeze and put it in the car, you're supposed to flush the system, but just put some in the resevoir, but don't start the car, I'll deal with all that when I come home at Christmas.  And so I went this morning, after bringing the kids to school, and bought some anti-freeze and water.  I then walked back my bloc where my car was parked, and proceeded to flush the system myself.

I got strange looks from passer's by, I mean most men here don't know what they are doing when it comes to cars, much less, (God forbid) a Woman!!!!

  But there it is, my car is now safe for winter, with fresh anti-freeze & water sitting peacefully in the radiator and it's resevoir.

This is where I'm grateful to my mom for not being around while I was growing up.  I love my mom and all, but it actually worked out better for me that she wasn't there.  If she had been, then I don't think I'd have the awesome relationship with my dad, that I do have.....

....and he wouldn't have taught me to change tires, brake pads, oil, and flush a cooling system.  I wouldn't know where spark plugs where, what they do or hot to change those either.  I wouldn't know where to find the steering & brake fluid, or bleed the brake lines; making sure to pump all the air out of the lines to avoid catastrophe!

If mom had been there, I would have learned about make-up, hair, and how to dress myself.  But then I wouldn't be able to take of myself in regards to car mechanics (making sure I don't get ripped off by a mechanic), or stranded on the side of the road and at the mercy of whatever freak happens to stop to "help" me!

I guess the draw back to that I always related better to guys than to girls.  I could talk "shop" about cars, hunting, guns, politics, history, etc.  Where all the girls ever wanted to talk about was clothes, shopping, boys, make-up, clothes, shopping, boys.....

...you get my point.  The draw back to that was that guys always viewed me as one of them; "one of the guys".  Which was cool, because that usually meant I had a shield from the weirdos and creeps, on the other hand, it kinda cramped my style while on the 'dating scene'.  Even if my guys didn't scare a potential suitor off, then I did, because they realized they couldn't pull the proverbial wool over my eyes! 

But then, I met a few guys like my husband, who were awed that I could cook well, wash clothes, be girly, but wasn't completely reliant on them to do all the "guy" jobs.  That I could hold my own with them, even if that lug nut was screwed on just a bit too tight, and I needed their muscle to loosen it for me.  They were just genuinely impressed that I knew which tool to give them when they asked for a crescent wrench!

So thanks mom, for leaving me in dad's hands!  Without his teaching, I'd be up a smelly creek without a paddle!

Politics Run Amok....

  So between the nudie scanners and sexual assault now being hung around the people's necks like the heavy yoke that it is, we now have the Senate Bill 510.....

....evidentally Big Brother doesn't trust The People to grow tomatoes in their backyards.  ALL agriculture will have to be approved and supervised by the Feds.

..My theory on this - they want us to eat only the chemically 'enhanced' food grown by them.  Chemicals that probably include the swine or bird flu (probably both), not to mention sterilization.  Hello, Obama's science Czar is all for copying China's 1 child law, as well as contaminating municipal water supplies that will render the drinkers of such sterile.

  I just read where both of my state senator's Mary Landrieu & David Vitter (Louisiana) recieved HUGE amounts of money to vote FOR SB 510.  Both of them voted to push the bill through the first stages last week, gee, I wonder how they will vote when it comes down to the wire?!?

What I wanna know is How much CRACK are you guys in D.C. smokin' these days?  I mean which version  of "Waiting For The Man" do you have on repeat 24/7???? The original by Lou Reed & The Velvet Underground, or Bowie's cover of it??

...I'm beginning to think George Orwell was a bit of a psychic.....

 Question: would a U.S. Citizen living overseas still be labeled a 'Domestic Terrorist' by the N.S.A. for speaking out against unconstitutional acts???

Loss for Words??

  So in my last post I mentioned Americans abroad and their behavior.  One that struck me as quite profound, is the 'like' lack of education among the younger generation.

  As my husband and I were walking back to the bus station in Portovenere, we past a group of men, one of the men who was speaking was  twenty-something man from the northern parts of the U.S. - he had the accent, ya know?

  Anyway, he was talking rather loudly (as Americans tend to do), and I swear to you every other second or third word was the word 'like'!

  I was suddenly aware of my generations lack of the vernacular when verbally communicating.  I know that I have been guilty of that in the past, back when I was in my early twenties.  Maybe it's an age thing?!?

  I wanted to turn around and tell him "DUDE!  Use your words!!"  I mean if you are comparing something you could say "The taste was similar to that of a ...."  instead of saying " It was like the taste of like a...."

....do you see what I mean.  My auditory and mental sense felt like they had just been brutally assaulted!  And I felt embarrassed for not just him, but myself and other people my age and especially younger.  It's like we all watched "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" or "Valley Girls" and the movie never stopped playing in our subconscious mind.

Americans Abroad

  Yes, I've been living overseas in Europe's old Eastern Bloc for going on 2 years now, however, where I am in this little Romanian city, I don't really happen upon American tourists much, NEVER really.  There are a lot of German and occassionaly some Asian toursits here in our quiet little city.

  Italy though, is a whole different ballgame.  I was there last week visiting my husband.  We took a train to Monterossa al Mare - about a 10 min. ride from where he lives and works in La Spezia.  There was a LARGE group of American tourists - all around retirement age, while they were nice and respectful in most aspects - they were also rather loud and somewhat obnoxious.  I suddenly realized that I don't like Americans!!!  While most are kind and well behaved, there are those that spoil it for the rest of us.  Those that think that because they ARE Americans, everyone should make way for them.  Those are the ones who make my life hell - because then all the locals in these European places, think that all Americans are like that first one they encountered!  Grrrrrr......

  Life in Europe, especially in Italy definitely moves at a somewhat slower pace.  For example - don't even attempt to get any type of shopping done between the hours of 1-3:30 p.m. Everything is closed for lunch!  The whole month of August - the country shuts down for vacation!  It's insane, cool but insane.  I did notice that bars and pubs don't stay open past like 10 p.m.  There are a few here and there that do, but for the most part, nope, if you want to party - do it at home!  I like that.  It's like that here too, at least in Tulcea.  Maybe in the bigger cities like Rome, Milan, Bucharest, etc.  Maybe there are places that do stay open till the wee hours of the morning, but they are few and far between.

  I understand why Europeans generally don't like Americans, and why they overcharge them for items (that is not right in my book), but at the same time, it's more of a jealousy issue.  Even as badly as the American immigration & judical system treated my husband, he still LOVES America and everything about it.  Sometimes I wish I could be so forgiving.....

....to put it bluntly I'm pissed at my own country.  My husband made mistakes, yes, he paid the price for those mistakes, but yet, they still denied him legal entrance into the U.S. Forget the taxes he paid!

Latest Trip to Italia

So this is my latest trip to Italy. The kids were out of school for 1 week, so I used that time to go visit hubby again, even though he will be home December 20th for Christmas straight through till just after New Year. Anyway these were taken yesterday (11/6/2010) in Monterossa, Itally. The first (or last - depending on your view) of the Cinque Terre - that means Five Lands - absolutely breath taking. The pictures aren't that fabulous, as I was coming down with what I thought was just a cold, but now appears to be the flu! uggghhh! Anyway hope you enjoy!

Monterossa, Italia