Bachelorette of Arts

In seven days I will be a 2007 UCLA graduate.

Possible summer activities:

• learn how to translate (waiting to hear if I got in the class)
• travel to Italy to look at manuscripts in Roman archives (waiting to hear if I got the fellowship)
• learn ancient Greek (if the other two don't work out)

Definite summer activities:

• show Lauren, Katherine, and Jim around LA because they are all coming to visit at the same time!
• get back into playing tennis
• learn how to write a book review
• get my CA real estate license

Long term goals (within the next ten years):

• win the New Yorker caption test
• make lots of money and become really famous

La Lupa in Bucharest

A very pleasant event happened today, and it has restored some of my magical perception of life.

I took my Wheelock's Latin textbook into Easy Nails in Torrance to go over some sentences while I was waiting for Dawn, the nail lady, to finish giving some woman a manicure. When she was done, she sat the woman (Anka) across from me at the UV light stand. I smiled at her. She looked at me and did not smile back. Her lack of enthusiasm reminded me of myself lately. Ever since the Tech massacre, I have had to put real effort into looking happy to see people.

I got up with my Wheelock and went to sit at the nail desk. Soon after, the woman tapped me on the shoulder and asked, "Ekscuze me, may I eksamine yourr Latin tekstbook?" Once I got over the automatic "must be a crazy person" thought that every Los Angeleno has when a stranger addresses him, I pushed the book over to her.

She was really happy to see someone studying Latin because it had helped her to learn English, French, Spanish, German, and Italian. She already knew Russian and Romanian from growing up in Bucharest. She disagrees with a few aspects of the university system, especially since we aren't required to take any geography or history classes. We talked about Rome and ancient cultures and traveling and learning and the Getty Villa and Roman mosaics in Tunis, all while Dawn was polishing away with her head down over my fingers. Anka said that once upon a time, Italy gave Romania a replica of the famous Lupa statue that is on permanent display in the Capitoline Museum, and now the replica is in the middle of a square in Bucharest. When she saw the real one in Rome, it brought back beautiful memories of her homeland.

Here's a picture of it from my 2005 archives:

I wish waving at people on the street were a common practice here. You can get so much out of human interaction.

Elise McNamara - Roman Roommate

Rare Sighting at the Pantheon

About two weeks before I left Italy, I took a day trip to Rome to see Sant'Ivo alla Sapienza and an exhibit on Antonello da Messina. The church is famous for its architecture and the exhibit was special because it was the largest collection that had ever been amassed at one time. I used the two as my excuses for the trip, but really I wanted some time alone with Rome. In the afternoon, after eating at my favorite panino place, I went to the Pantheon and took this picture.

They are a priest, a cardinal, and a carabiniere. I like the diversity of all the faces behind them.

Ode to An Old Piece of Leather

What is that? Cracked earth you say? Terra cotta?

No, it is one of the shoes that I just replaced. I know it may seem trite, but I'm a sentimental girl. These shoes have been with me for five years, and they have walked all over the world. They've been to Hawaii, Louisiana, Kentucky, New York, Oregon, Nevada, Florida, Michigan, Illinois, Switzerland, Italy, Mexico, Austria, Germany, France, Greece...

They've been stuck in luggage in airports, they've been soaked through with Mississippi overflow, they've walked the ancient ground in the forum, they've been drenched in the Aegean for good luck, they've kicked up their fair amount of dust on the Appian Way, they've been forgotten at Pompeii, they've been threatened by stingrays and snakes, they've trampled on Vesuvius, they've been in a gondola, they've walked in the footsteps of Julie Andrews, they've walked the Hollywood walk of fame...

They've said goodbye to boyfriends, they've said goodbye to best friends, they've said goodbye to moms, dads, and nonnas. . . they've nursed my feet back to health, they've been replaced by Birkenstocks and then preferred once again, they've scoffed at heels. . .

They've lost all their sequins. Their only remaining twinkle is from the gold thread which is now silver - I had to wash real terra cotta and the gypsies of Rome off of them with bleach and a toothbrush.

They've basically been dipped in the river Styx by the heel, but even those magical waters couldn't protect them from the trash can.

And after all this, I went to Target and found a cuter pair for $12.99.