From Roma

Si, Pronto. Quick updates on the fly-

- ?^òàùèé°ç§ I like all these new buttons available to me on Italian keyboards. And unlike French keyboards, they didnt switch around a handful of keys from the normal qwerty system, with the only goal being to confuse all foreigners. The french...

- I think I have to be part Italian. Not North American Italian (echh, who wants to be that Chachie?) but proper Italian-Italian. I was just doing some arthmetic in my head and it sums up properly... I like to look good, I like nice clothes, I like nice shoes, I like nice sunglasses.. and I like Italian girls... therefore... I must be part Italian. (And again, as always, the only ones walking around the streets of Italy that is not lookin all so fine all the time... the tourists)

- Last trip to Roma was all about sight seeing. Its been done. This time I get a whole day just to shop.. to SHOP. I told you, I must be part Italian somewhere... Im only missing the "overt confidence" gene. But maybe thats a good thing...

- Tomorrow off to Amalfi Coast.

Ciao Bella..

A fake letter just to remember

Hi, taking off now on this trip to Italy and Greece (yay)... before I go though, I need to pay you back for the pomegranate white tea ( I liked it alot ) never tried it before and it was splendid. Its climbed the rankings, now within punching distance of my fav. blueberry jasmine green tea made from loose leaf. Anyways, thank you so very much... it was nice.

Couldnt pay you back with more tea, cuz thats completely unoriginal.. so instead I decided Id just burn you the music I was listening to when I drank your tea; one of my favorite albums of the last 5 years, Broken Social Scene -"You Forgot it in People". If you find the time, I recommend you listen to it full-on through, from beginning to end. Its always the best way that way, I think, especially for a moody and original album like this; now you have a project. #7 & #11 are my favorite, delightfully sullen. And if you have it and know it already, then you are even cooler than I thought, and conversely, soy tonto, moi un idiot.

Well thats it, tit for tat.. take care of yourself... be good. if you spy me after I get back on an aimless wander, dont forget to smile and wave..

Teeths

Not too long ago, I discovered that I had a pain in my tooth everytime I bit down on the left side. This is my dominant chewing side, no-less. This started about two - three months ago, ahhh.. well... thats when it became a real noticable issue, anyways. Normally a logically sane person would go to the proper professional practioner to remedy the situation. Sore back? Go to chiro. Bad shoulder? Go to physio. Depressed? Go to a therapist, or cheaper yet, a licenced bartender. Need a Paul Simon fix? Go to Julio down by the school yard. I am, however, an anti-dentite... or more like it, suffer from acute dentistophobia. So my plan was, obviously, to chew on the other side of my mouth from now on, and pray to the mystic teeth leprachauns to heal the condition with fairy magic while I sleep.

Suffice to say, the plan hasnt worked out so far yet... but I was reasoning that I probably havent given it enough time; fairy magic dust is a rare commodity on low global supply. You need to give these things time.

I didnt think it was a big deal anyways, until last weekend when I realized I needed to act fast, which is any time when you end up picking chunks of last weeks chicken from the crevices within your back molar. It turns out I have lost a filling. So I came to the realization that I had to do something which I never intended to do ever... go to an Irish Dentist. (You know its bad when you're canvassing Irish mates for dentist commendations and they then recommend me to go up North to a UK Dentist instead of doing work here... like wha? A UK dentist being a better more professional option? Are you serious? Those kinda statements now put me in the frame of mind that I might as well be going to a dentist in the Congo).

I had to go. Even convinced myself that it wouldnt be that bad; Ireland is a modern country with smart, intelligent people, Dentists here cant be THAT terrible. Simple operation really, refill a filling. Clean it out the old one, fill in the new one. In the world of dentistry, even I know that its fairly straightforward easy, peasy, japanese-y. Well, I should take a picture and show you then the hack job they did on my tooth. My new back lower molar looks NOTHING like how it use to. First of all, the esthetics of it looks like a job done with a soldering gun and the contours and shape is all off now; it feels like its modelled after a valley / reverse dome with serrated edges around the perimeter. Who did they think I was , a Great White Shark? Piranha? Insult to injury, the tooth is more sensitive now than it was before. Ugly and non-functional, which is the worst combination of any personal medical service rendered. Stupid Irish dentists... and top things off, this hack job cost me €110. Thats half a nice pair of jeans. Once again, magic fairy dust is the proven better option.

ah ya Legend

And now before the recessional hymn, here is Sister Margret with a few Parish announcements:

- I find myself swearing more than I ever have. Irish. Bad Influence. Dominantly catholics, but they curse like a barefoot marathoner after stepping in shit. I dont know where drunken sailers and truckers get the worst reputation, when in actuality the Irish, in general, feckin swear shite loads more than any other *unts. Thats probably my best example, the use of "starts with a C and rhymes with Bunt" is unbelivably profilic. Everyone uses it like nothin, the same word which for most people, can be the most blasphemous four letters anyone can ever utter. But here, its like saying prick. People say it so much now that it dulls itself and therefore doesnt bite as it normally would anymore, in an Irish accent anyways. I can barely go an hour without someone mixing in "starts with a C and rhymes with Bunt". Maybe its the accent, maybe the carefree use, or maybe its the way they use it while quipping in a not so derogatory but matter-of-factly humourous way, (even though that doesnt make much of any sense). "Ya *unt ya, get the feck over here" I havent gone that far now, Ill need a proper Irish accent to pull it off... but if you catch me sprinkling a bit more fecks more often.. its the Irish in me. (feck - not as bad as fuck, just so we are clear).

- I have gone plentiful on John Legend, thanks to Jill. Been listening to John Legend as I try to sleep, for the 3rd night in a row. And I just bought it 3 nights ago. Hes a Legend. My favorite song is Where did my Baby Go?. This is THE song. Wow.. I love this song. LOVE THIS SONG. If I was a girl (which Im not) and John Legend sang it to me while looking at me (which he wouldnt), Id fall in love immediately and unconditionally (only if I was a girl, which Im not). But it is that irresistable and mesmerizing... but Im not a girl, and Im not gay, so Im lucky Im not in that kind of a position. This guy has powers. I wanna be John Legend... I swear a dude could look like Bigfoot, a midget Bigfoot even (to completely eliminate the tallness advantage, because chicks frown even more upon shorter guys), but if you could sing this song the same way he does while playing piano and the girl sitting and listening on the end of the piano bench, side by side, a piano singing midget bigfoot could STILL win over the likes of a Jessica Biel.. no contest.

- Finally, Huge huge huge huge Congratulations to my good, close friends Marty and Lorrie. She said yes... (although I think he neglected to go the avenue we previously planned, the engagement 50" LCD Flat screen. It seemed evident, anyways, in his latest email..)

- The second collection was for the parish "fix the leaky roof" fund. Please collect your personalized donation envelopes in the back foyer, next the candle donation box. God Bless... { cue ave maria }

The Youtube PierreElliottTrudeau

Its often said the power of the internet as new media is continually increasing in influence over the actual world, more so and more significantly than any other quantum step change that preceded. Or in simple terms, this time right now is the first time ever where the freedom to share and express ideas to large masses is not only actually remotely possible but realistically effective in its depth and breadth of penetration without the prerequisite of excessive power or money. Now the previous sentences may sound a little ambitious and declaratory, a total switch from my normal light-hearted pop culture drivel but its fact (also I cant believe I started a post with something as trite as the "Its often said" opening.. which is almost as uncomfortable, unoriginal and overused as the " In the Webster dictionary, the definition of the word [insert topic word here] is" opening ). This blog is a good example. It directly replaces and vastly improves upon the means of communication we used to use, like for example the multple addressed broadcast emails of the last 10 years, and the ability to converse over the telephone that preceded that, and furthermore the handwritten letters / telegrams of old school communication that came before that. Also we all know the internet completely runs amock in the territory previously held by TV, Radio, and Book / Newspaper / Magazine written publications, and is now trampling into the territory of social networking with the likes of MySpace, Bebo, Friendster and the Book of Face. Not only do we have access to all this information, but we also get all these tools to contribute as well, which is now wonderfully effective in shrinking the world, almost to the same proportions as aircrafts (although in a totally different dimension entirely, duh).

I bring this up now because like the hundreds of miliions of other chicos and chicas out there, Im a big fan of youtube. It has everything. Its a orgy of information. Also though, when you have everything ( or orgys), you also have alot of slop and mess (ie. search Michelle Malkin, the sorrest excuse for a filipina in the history of ever). Mixed in with the sports highlights, and the bloopers, and the chinese dudes singing backstreet songs, theres also hatred, theres stupidity, and theres slanderous and smearing commentary. Following upon the Fox News mold (spelling mistake? no I dont think so), theres plenty amount of punditry there to be seen, if you are for some reason too happy and feel the need to get pissed off.

THANKFULLY though, Ive comeon upon the whole "respond to videos" community with Youtube. And within it, I have found one guy that is intelligent, well spoken, well read, and even Canadian. Its the Youtube PierreElliottTrudeau, he is a video poster that has his own youtube channel, and what he does, for fun apparently, is video respond to the some of the misinformational commentary on Youtube. Loads of people go on Youtube and post stupid diatribes on social views, political views, economic views, or what they think of Ron Paul. He then goes in, and flat out sets them straight and absolutely makes shit of them, with pure fact, common sense and logic. You should check him out, He just flat out Pwns people. For example here is a video and his video response. (by the way I use to be in love with Elisabeth. Now.. uh.. I dream of pissing in her kool aid). Another example is this video and his video response.

So this is just something to do when youre unbelievably bored and youve already gone through all the latest Perez Hilton stuff.