Been enjoying the brief respite after redesigning the price lists at work

I have been attempting to satisfy my inner geek by trying to rent FFVII: Advent Children from the local video rental place for the past few days. (No, I'm not going to provide them with advertising, if they don't have any films I want to watch available for three days in a row.) One copy was due back today, another is a over a week overdue, so I'll try again tomorrow.

I've having more success playing Puzzle Pirates (http://www.puzzlepirates.com/), it's mostly Tetris-y games, with a piratey theme, surprisingly fun.
It's free to play, but you have to pay to unlock a lot of games, although a few are unlocked depending on the day of the week.

Decided to carefully re-introduce real cheese to my diet, the dairy-free version is vile. Fed up of gluten-free museli, trying corn flakes.

My sister Vanessa and her husband Lorenzo are coming to visit me for a week!!!!!!!!!!
I'm really happy! It's their first time in England. I hope it won't be too hot as we are going to sleep all in my bedroom!

Thre is something wrong about me! I know this for sure. My family keep on telling me and so my friends. This morning one of the Libyans teachers came at the reception. She stood there with her friendly smile pointing at me and saying: " You!"
Me: "Yes? How can I help?"Her: " You!"
Me: :) at this point I could only smile.
Her: " You've got an arabic face!"
Me: still smiling
Her: " You 've got an arabic face!"
Me: I'm afraid I'm italian.
Her: "You 've got an arabic face!"
Me: "I'm Italian."
Her: " Are you from Bretagna?"
Me: "No, from Italy"
Her: "But your parents. Are they italian?"
Me: "Yes"
Her: "Mmmh You 've got an arabic face!"
Now, I had this sort of conversation before. I was in Tunisi, sitting at the table of the restaurant waiting for the waiter to come. He came and he started speaking to me in Arabic. I said in english that I wasn't Arabic, I was Italian. He said: "You've got arabic eyes, arabic eyes!"and he started speaking arabic again. For the second time I had to explain I was Italian. He wasn't convinced at all, he shook his head, he kept on saying "arabic eyes, arabic eyes" and he was waiting for me to speak arabic. I can speak english, badly but I can, I can speak french badly badly badly and spanish badly badly but I have to confess I'd rather speak Italian. It took him a while to understand but at the end he managed to take our order, still convinced I'm sure I was Arabic.
I lost track of all the times I've been told to be Arabic, Spanish, Morroccon, Greek and Columbian! My friends told me I have an international face?!?! You can't tell where I am from. Well, I tell you where I am from, I'm Italian, I come from a small pretty village, Offagna, on the east-coast and spaghetti runs into my veins !!!!!!

I'm ok really with this business of being mistaken for other nationalities, I really don't mind. I ve just had a boring day and that was the only thing worth mentionig. But still, it makes me think.
Why nobody ever pointed at me saying "You, you've got an italian face!" My parents are Italian as my grand-parents and my grand-grand parents. The only thing is that one of my gran-dad brothers decided to leave the family to go to Argentina. So I 've got relatives there, but it's different. Anyway I'm sure my dad is blaming his uncle for transmitting to me this gene called "desire to go abroad meeting different people and learning different things". I love differences. But still, I'm in England and I just had a bowl of pasta with grated parmesan( the real one!) I should dare more on the cooking front.

I think I'm lowering down a bit the level of this blog, at least the grammatical level. Apologies. Especially to you Mark. But you know, I'm Italian with possible Arabic, Spanish Greek and Moroccon ancestors in my family. My small brain is all confused and you know I've got a small brain.

A-Z Health Guide from WebMD

[...]

You can make an inexpensive homemade rehydration drink. Measure all ingredients precisely. Small variations can make the drink less effective or even harmful. Mix:

• 1 quart (950 ml) water


• ½ teaspoon (2.5 g) baking soda


• ½ teaspoon (2.5 g) table salt


• 3 to 4 tablespoons (45 to 60 g) sugar


• If available, add ¼ teaspoon (1.25 g) salt substitute, such as "Lite Salt".

I think I might give it a go tomorrow - The Hottest Day in the World, Ever!

This is almost public service. I feel like Reith.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY DAD!!!!!!!

BUON COMPLEANNO BABBINO BABBONE!!!

Speaking of which Neil...

See Ben graduate.
Graduate Ben, graduate.

Head for the 38th minute. Stick around to see Tessa and then Rachel as well, shortly after.

Note that Exeter's Chancellor is only Floella bloody Benjamin!

James wants some help, he says.

Supposing you're not Catholic, you could replace the word with Christian and try to answer his question.

Fratelli d'Italia,
l'Italia s'è desta,
dell'elmo di Scipio
s'è cinta la testa.
Dov'è la Vittoria?
Le porga la chioma,
che schiava di Roma
Iddio la creò.

CORO:
Stringiamoci a coorte,
siam pronti alla morte.
Siam pronti alla morte,
l'Italia chiamò.
Stringiamoci a coorte,
siam pronti alla morte.
Siam pronti alla morte,
l'Italia chiamò!

Noi fummo da secoli
calpesti, derisi,
perché non siam popolo,
perché siam divisi.
Raccolgaci un'unica
bandiera, una speme:
di fonderci insieme
già l'ora suonò.

CORO

Uniamoci, amiamoci,
l'unione e l'amore
rivelano ai popoli
le vie del Signore.
Giuriamo far libero
il suolo natio:
uniti, per Dio,
chi vincer ci può?

CORO

Dall'Alpi a Sicilia
Dovunque è Legnano,
Ogn'uom di Ferruccio
Ha il core, ha la mano,
I bimbi d'Italia
Si chiaman Balilla,
Il suon d'ogni squilla
I Vespri suonò.

CORO

Son giunchi che piegano
Le spade vendute:
Già l'Aquila d'Austria
Le penne ha perdute.
Il sangue d'Italia,
Il sangue Polacco,
Bevé, col cosacco,
Ma il cor le bruciò.

CORO

Something I've been meaning to do for a while - more Italy photos, as it's a bit quicker with broadband. For the record, the only reason there are no photos of Monica is because she doesn't want them to be on the web.

[P]articipation in the Liturgy of the Word (reading, singing) is to be distinguished from the sacramental celebration proper. We should be clearly aware that external actions are quite secondary here. Doing really must stop when we come to the heart of the matter: the oratio. It must be plainly evident that the oratio is the heart of the matter, but that it is important precisely because it provides a space for the actio of God. Anyone who grasps this will easily see that it is not now a matter of looking at or toward the priest, but of looking together toward the Lord and going out to meet him.
[...]
Wherever applause breaks out in the liturgy because of some human achievement, it is a sure sign that the essence of liturgy has totally disappeared and been replaced by a kind of religious entertainment. Such attractiveness fades quickly — it cannot compete in the market of leisure pursuits, incorporating as it increasingly does various forms of religious titillation. [...] Liturgy can only attract people when it looks, not at itself, but at God, when it allows him to enter and act. Then something truly unique happens, beyond competition, and people have a sense that more has taken place than a recreational activity.

Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger

Slightly disappointed to discover that my housegroup won't really get going again until September, but there a couple of housegroup-related things in the meantime. I've offered to work out some visual-aid based talks for the housegroup. I think I'd enjoy preparing a few with examples borrowed from Dad's Southwood "children's" talks. At present I have a few ideas involving my rock collection, but I'll need to work on them.

It's been very busy in the shop for me, more noticeably so due to the hot, humid weather, I can't complain about not having enough to do any more, not that anyone with sense complains about being underworked to ones employer. We now have the air-conditioner up and running in the shop, which makes things much more pleasant, so it's a good time to visit the shop for new watch batteries and general clock or jewelry repair.

I finally got a good view of a thunderstorm from my room, however the reality of rain, lightning and thunder, doesn't agree with the weather forecast of "7am to 10am sunny"I just checked. Still, there's nothing better to watch than a thunderstorm that you don't have to go out in.