November 7, 2008

Every week has a theme or subtheme rather, because the overall theme was coincidence.

Last week the theme was "What's the luck you'll run into that one person you know in a crowded city?" because I literally walked past (of all the streets, of all the days, of all the hours, of all the places) a friend from London but just happened to have stopped into town on the one day I'm free and happened to be in the same street at the same time in the same place as me.

Then the following day I somehow sat down next to the best-friend-of-our-Boston-family-friends-who-lives-in-Toscana-and-whom-I've-never-met-but-heard-about at this big house party in the middle of nowhere out in the Tuscan hills. Yup. In a party full of three dozen kiddies in Halloween costumes with twice as many parents, I sat down. Within minutes we exchanged the typical-introduction-full-of-short-useless-vague-details-just-to-be-polite and I dared to ask if she was perhaps THE Tuscan-interior-designer-originally-from-Boston-and-friends-with-our-friends. Too bad it wasn't the winning lottery number that I guessed...but I know that a wealth of friends is what makes a person rich.

This week's theme: "What's the luck you'll be a celebrity for a day?" Well both my sister and I were spotted on the local TV channels cheering or volunteering for the 2008 US election night. She was in France, I was in Italy.What's the luck of that especially considering there are 5,000 other Americans in town!

Now to top it off, I told our mom the story and the real coincidence is that she was interviewed for German tv on a visit! History repeats itself I guess.**



disclaimer: *Let's hope history repeats itself in only the good ways from now on...like electing more black Presidents!

Being ordinary is extraordinary!

"I believe we have the power to create our own happiness. I believe the real magic in the world is done by humans. I believe normal life is extraordinary." -Wayne Coyne

As of November 4th, 2008, it IS cool to an American abroad!!!!

"Is it cool to be an American abroad?", asks William Kole.

YES!!!
...but click on the link then make your own opinion!

Distance makes the heart grow fonder...

I'm elated. Actually, the whole world is. We can now say President-elect Barack Obama.

It was astounding and emotional to see the whole world erupt into festivities on the day of his election (ok, the whole world except for some teary eyed Republican diehards...but I can't feel too sad since they got 8 years of Bush and they are already cheering "2012! 2012!" to Sarah Palin). They weren't the only teary eyed onlookers...I couldn't keep help but sniffle every time I saw him standing proudly on the stage speaking to the Chicago crowd about how nothing is impossible in America. Now every country is talking about how we've turned the page, changed our skin, and regained our popularity.

Even in Italy the media is talking nonstop about the event. The program AnnoZero featured Marco Trovaglio to analyze the differences between American and Italian politics. There was of course the immediate outcry over Berlusconi's first comment about the new American Commander in Chief: "Obama ha tutto bello, giovane e abbronzato." Ok. Hold on. Should I laugh or cringe over this comment? Is it an insult or a joke? I mean there should be a LOT more to say than that about Obama...therefore I say "Vergognati Silvio!"

I can't go into the analysis because that's the journalists job but I can remember the day as a historic and emotional day in my life! I feel like it is the first historic turning point in the 21st century. When I walked past my bicycle-man yesterday and said hello, an old woman shuffled by slowly and said to him, "Venerdì piglio novanta-nove." Wow. If there was one century I wish I could live in from start to finish it was the 20th century! I'm so jealous! Imagine how many historic events she witnessed in a century....two world wars and several others, inventions of modern household things like television and the technology boom in the seventies, the civil rights era, the womens' rights, the invention of the internet and more specifically to Florence was the devasting flood of 1966 that haunts and fascinates me.

Now I can say that I grew up with cellphones and internet AND more importantly I witnessed the first Black president to be elected in the United States of America.


And I believe that soon I will witness the election of the first female President***!!


***Exceptions: Sarah Palin...


Passing the torch...

"Rosa sat so Martin could march. Martin marched so Obama could run."

-anonymous (as found on John Ridley's NPR blog Visible Man)

Okay okay fine if you say so.

Your Horoscope - Today, November 7, 2008
Not much will happen for you until you consciously decide to give up a few vices in your life that are having a serious effect on your personal well-being, Lilly. Realize that you don't have complete control over your life if there are certain things that control you. Try not to fight this truth. Simply accept that these things exist in your world, and understand that you can co-exist without having to surrender to their power.





MSN.com...

A letter from France

If this email had been a handwritten letter, I would have put it in a box and share it with my grandchildren in the future. But in this day and age of technology...all I have to do is cut and paste it somewhere on the internet and it is immortalized. Thank you for remembering this day in history! My grandchildren will have to thank you later too.

Salut Famille!

We had a lot of fun over here for the elections- we started watching at 11pm here in a local pub, but it was too early for much election coverage, the first polls were just starting to close. So we returned home to get some sleep...going to bed felt like the night before Christmas! Only because you know you'll wake up early for a very nice, inevitable surprise...
We woke up at 5 am and had a little party with fresh croissants et espresso at our director's office au centre ville. Some journalists from the local France-3 channel came by to film us all huddled around a computer feeding us live info off the internet on CNN.com - at 5am here they announced that Obama won and we all went wild! A few of us got a little teary eyed at his acceptance speech. Very inspiring and very exciting. It's a much different experience for me here in France with the election results than in the States- I'm finally proud to say I'm American again. The French have gained a little more respect for me, and each time I say I'm American, they reply with "You voted Obama! Good job!" . The French are extremely informed over here, at least in Grenoble, about the elections. I had a conversation with a guy the other day who knew so many details about each candidate, I was very impressed. Even before the election, Obama was on the cover of many newspapers and magazines, one saying "Would they dare elect him?". I guess I'm seeing how much the results of our decisions as a nation affect our neighbors, allies and the whole world. Do you think its the other way around though ? For example, when France was choosing their next Pres, I'll admit I had no idea who the candidates were ! Maybe that's the difference between our country and others..
Anyway, we each were interviewed Wed morning about our thoughts on the election results, here it is! Its all in French, but bon courage! Its the video all the way at the end of the page, labeled "Grenoble Etudiants Americains Emus (Elated)"...Im all the way at the end of the video.
http://rhone-alpes-auvergne.france3.fr/info/48272388-fr.php#para48286006

Much love to all and Gobama!

J xoxo

the day chris martin read my mind

Are you lost or incomplete?
Do you feel like a puzzle, you can't find your missing piece?
Tell me how do you feel?
Well I feel like they're talking in a language I don't speak
And they're talking it to me

So you take a picture of something you see
In the future where will I be?
You can climb a ladder up to the sun
Or write a song nobody has sung
Or do something that's never been done
Or do something that's never been done

So you don't know where you're going and you wanna talk
And you feel like you're going where you've been before
You tell anyone who'll listen but you feel ignored
Nothing's really making any sense at all, let's talk
Let's talk, let's talk, let's talk.

-Coldplay Talk