...play a song for me

He did! Well, for me and the hundreds of other people who were there, but still - I was one of them! Oh, the 'he' refers to none other than Bob Dylan - I still can't quite believe I managed to finally see him play, especially after my abysmal track record with other Great Gigs I missed at the last minute, viz. Rolling Stones (stupid man falling off trees) and John Cale. Now if I could only see Lou Reed, my life would be complete....but I digress.

The gig was so much fun! Actually I'm not sure it can be described as a gig - more like a concert - the atmosphere was slightly surreal, in that the average age of the attendees was rather higher than usual, and their degree of movement and vocal participation rather lower than usual. I'm not claiming that I usually go to particularly raucous or destructive gigs - that's best left to other people :-) - but seriously, here there was coffee on sale, and at times the arena was completely hushed, in a sort of reverential silence, and people gently rocking from side to side - though clearly enjoying the music. So that was rather entertaining in itself.

The man himself was predictably hard to understand and as mumblesome as I'd been led to expect, and he had a nice balance of 'classics' and newer songs (from the last 10 years or so) which was pleasing. I do wonder how he feels though, having to constantly go back to his old successes, while being clearly proud of his more current work. Anyway, the band was also great, and we got a few harmonica solos from him, which was very exciting. And despite my limited height, I'd managed to find a spot where I had uninterrupted views through various people's heads and necks, so I didn't even have to stand on my toes too much.

This all took place in Cardiff, we ventured in a few hours earlier to give it a look, and concluded that it is a very bizarre place indeed. Part slightly rundown, unattractive, part like-any-other-UK-town, part amazingly pretty late 19th/early 20th century buildings and arcades popping up unexpectedly, just as you were ready to give up on the place. Sadly it was raining most of the time so I never really took my camera out and have no photographic evidence of said pretty buildings. Also on the topic of architectural prettiness, we drove over the (second) Severn Bridge to get there, and I was very taken with it, and the views therefrom: you can see several pictures of this bridgey goodness here (lazy, I know).


What else? Oh, I also managed to fit in a couple of days in London, which included a looong visit to Borough Market (which is still one of my most favourite places in the whole world ever), prime viewing spots of the elite runners at the Marathon, an exhibition on hats at the V&A, and a very nice stroll through Kew Gardens, a peaceful haven away from the Marathon chaos.

So, back here again, a place which I am increasingly more comfortable to call home. I'm going to stay put now for, oh, more than two months (apart from a quick conference in June), amazingly. I think that part of my problem so far is that I have been living in a suspended status, feeling like this is a temporary parenthesis between England and whatever comes next, and refusing to really get stuck in - cf. for example my reluctance to make progress with acquiring a car, not putting things up on the walls, generally not decorating the house in a particularly permanent way. But I realise now that this is ridiculous - I am here, for another 18 months (just signed my renewal contract!), and the best way to enjoy it is to stop living with my head half in England, trying to keep up with the everyday doings there, and focus on having a life here - whether it's with friends, the gym, volunteering or whatnot (oh yeah, I had another Girl Scout meeting where I was in charge the other day, and I think it went a little better, so that is pleasing). After all, this was my idea, not a forced exile! And I have to say, I'm really looking forward to the next several months - even if they do include a 3-week visit from my parents...

April is the loveliest month of the year (so far!)

Here she is again, after the 2-week hiatus...which has a very good reason, namely that I actually Got A Life and had people visiting on two consecutive weekends and went out and drank cocktails and gossiped and was girly for days on end. It was great - first Naomi was here, then my cousin (who is doing a PhD elsewhere in the US). Both visits (which were very welcome) involved lots of roaming about Princeton/Philly and eating out and having a drink or two (among others - lychee martini, some nice concotion of vanilla vodka and orangey thing that tasted like an ice cream lolly, various things involving fizz....). Much as I enjoy living on my own in my multi-room flat, it was also nice to have someone around for a few days, have meals with, chat before bed, and all that. Especially someone who knows me well so that I don't have to constantly worry about making a bad impression!

In between, there has been a fair bit of work, and planning for conferences in the summer. Also, crucially, increasingly nice weather - and suddenly Princeton seems to have sprung to life, cafes and restaurants have tables on the pavement, the queue outside the ice cream place snakes round the corner, everyone is out and about and it all feels rather Mediterranean, it's so nice to see. I am really looking forward to the months to come, I think I could quite love this town in the right season....

More importantly, I finally got round to having my first driving lesson!! I was so so so terrified beforehand given my well-known ineptitude with most things practical, but I quickly realised that actually driving an automatic car is very, very, easy: you step on a pedal, and the car goes faster. You step on the other one, and it stops. AND THAT'S IT. Well, and turning at corners and all that. But really. I drove for two hours straight, including on some rather main bits of road, and was incredibly pleased and proud of myself (though I was by no means perfect). What I do seem to have retained from my driving lessons in Naples is a deep mistrust of everyone else on the road - my instructor was half-amused, half-frustrated by my refusal to believe that people would really stop at a red light, or yield when it my right of way, and generally avoid doing anything unpredictable. I think one should always be deeply suspicious of every other driver out there. You never know.

The other day I was also given a more central leadership role at the Girl Scout meeting, while my co-leader discussed practicalities with some of the mothers. I think I failed - the five 8-year olds didn't really seem interested in doing the activity that I was supposed to lead them in, and you can't really tell them off like you would unruly undergrads - though the process of extracting answers and ideas from them was very very similar to that undergone in tutorials with said undergrads. I think they are just a bit confused by my role in life - I am a grownup and a teacher, apparently, because I am a co-leader - also apparently I could be 36 - but no, I am not a grownup because I don't own a car (insert desired scathing remark about cars and America here if desired) - also I am not a mom - but I do have a job - in short, I can kind of tell they are still trying to figure me out, and test their limits with me, which is ok, but I did feel a bit embarassed (towards my co-leader) that I couldn't keep them on task for more than 90 seconds at a time.

Finally, yesterday the NY cousin had her bridal shower, which was my first such event and saw me get rather dolled up and have lunch at a fancy restaurant mid-town. It was actually rather sweet, the whole thing, and very touching in parts, so it was nice to be there. But I do find New York weddings far too complicated...

An Easter treat

I'm a bit behind with my blogging schedule as Naomi was over for the weekend and we were out and about. I just need to brag about the fantastic show we treated ourselves to on Saturday: we went to a matinee of this.

It was most excellent. No, it was absolutely fantastic. And Rupert Everett in the flesh...mmm.

Proper blogging to resume soon. Happy Easter!

Embrace the Princetonness

Italiano dopo il testo inglese

It's amazing what mildly warm weather will do to one's spirits - the past few days (before the pouring rain and crazy winds arrived) have been relatively mild and very sunny, and I found myself going home in a mood very close to perfect happiness (sadly 100% is unachievable as long as I'm missing one or two key elements). Of course everyone who spent the winter telling me that the first few months in a new place are always hard, and it takes a while to get settled in, and it was going to be ok soon, etc etc etc was absolutely right, and it's not that I didn't believe them, just...well, you have to experience it yourself, I guess.

Anyway, the end of winter means that I can do a lot more things that do not involve being cooped up inside. Periodically S&Y and I will go for a mini-walk around the campus at lunchtime - we are basically surrounded by forestry and it's very pretty. I have the added bonus of having an office window facing some of aforesaid forest, and I've become a keen observer of the life cycle of leaves on tree branches. It's one of my favourite things about working here. (I also happen to face the car park, giving me unfettered access to the comings and goings of every person in the building, but that's a different story). Even more excitingly, the other day I finally tried cycling to work. It was mostly a success - the weather was lovely, the setting is fairly rural so it's pretty, and for almost all of the way I can cycle on a dedicated path which is raised away from the road, so I feel very safe. Until I have to take the same path on the way back, which involves crossing the main road which is distinctly lacking in helpful crossing points - the bike path is only on one side. The only thing marring the general pleasantness is that towards the end there is a nice bit of uphill, which left me rather breathless - and there is uphill on the way back, too, I'm still a bit confused as regards the topography of this place. It takes about half an hour each way, and hopefully if I do it often enough eventually the hilliness will stop hurting so much. As well as enjoying a nice bike ride, this means of course that I get to sleep a bit more, and get to decide at what time I come and go from the office - a pleasure not to be underestimated.

Also, the nicer weather makes one more inclined to go out and partake of all that Princeton, and the university in particular, have to offer. I've been to two really interesting talks this week, which I'll blog about separately because they gave me a lot to think about (topics - the concept of race in the Renaissance, and the issues faced by women in science - as you can see, some obsessions never fade), and the other evening there was a jazz Evensong at the University Chapel, which as you can see is a fairly spectacular place. It was a lovely, lovely thing - we were only in a corner of the chapel, which was mostly barely lit, there was a jazz quartet, some vaguely non-denominational (but still generically Christian) prayers, a poem by e.e. cummings (incidentally, the second line reminds me of colorless green ideas...) and one by Gerard Manley Hopkins. Jazz + chapels: definitely a great partnership. To be encouraged.

In other news, last Saturday I met with a brilliant tax accountant, who tried to make the crazy tax system in this country make sense to me. She succeeded only in part. The gist seems to be that a whole load of things that would have never occurred to me are tax deductible, which is nice. I just have to remember to hoard all sorts of receipts during this tax year. Also I finally had my first meeting with the Girl Scouts - a small group of 8/9 year olds, which I confess I found somewhat overwhelming at first. They have so much energy! And are so high-pitched! But they are also incredibly smart and quick, and fun to be around and talk to. So I think I'll enjoy it after all. And there's camping at the end of September!

Finally, let me end on a food note - last weekend I did a massive shop and spent several hours preparing food for the week (before the stove finally gave up the ghost - but luckily as of yesterday I have a lovely new stove made in the 2000s not the 1970s that I trust wholeheartedly, hurrah!). One of the things I made was a rather haphazard, middle-eastern-inspired stew, composed of the following:
some garlic, browned in oil/chili/cumin
a red pepper
an aubergine
some diced lamb
a tin of chickpeas

I browned the meat and vegetables, added the chickpeas and a bit of stock, and let it cook for about an hour and a quarter. It tasted really good, and even better the next day. And you can take the meat out to make it veggie/wallet-friendly. Try it!
For the second part of the week, I made a rather large batch of polenta, and I understand now why it was so popular in days gone by - it goes a looong way and is cheap and if you're lucky you can make it interesting with a few toppings. My choice was portobello mushrooms sauteed with a couple of tomatoes, but at a pinch, even butter with pepper or anchovies will do.

I've gone on for far too long...


In Italiano

E' incredibile l'effetto che fa il tempo sull'umore - gli ultimi giorni (prima delle piogge torrenziali e i venti assurdi) sono stati relativamente caldi e molto soleggiati, e al pomeriggio mi sono ritrovata di un umore molto vicino alla completa felicita (purtroppo il 100% e' irraggiungibile causa mancanza di uno o due element chiave). Ovviamente tutti quelli che hanno passato l'inverno a dirmi che i primi mesi in un posto nuovo sono sempre difficili, e ci vuole un po di tempo per ambientarsi, e presto sarebbe stato tutto ok, ecc ecc ecc, avevano perfettamente ragione, e non e' che non ci credevo, ma...beh, credo che sono cose che si devono vivere in prima persona.

Comunque, la fine dell'inverno significa che posso fare un sacco di cose che non richiedono l'essere rintanati in casa. Ogni tanto S&Y e io facciamo una piccola passeggiata intorno al campus durante la pausa pranzo - siamo circondati da forestame ed e' molto bello. In piu io ho il vantaggio di avere la finestra dell'ufficio con vista sul suddetto forestame, e sono diventata un'acuta osservatrice del ciclo vitale delle foglie sugli alberi. E' una delle cose che mi piace di piu del mio posto di lavoro. (A dire il vero affaccio anche sul parcheggio, il che vuol dire che posso controllare minuziosamente arrivi e partenze di ogni persona nell'edificio, ma questa e' un'altra storia) Ancora piu exicting e' il fatto che l'altro giorno sono finalmente andata al lavoro in bicicletta. Nel complesso e' stato un successo - il tempo era bello, il paesaggio e' abbstanza rurale quindi e' carino, e per quasi tutto il tragitto ho una pista ciclabile rialzata rispetto alla strada, quindi mi sento molto al sicuro. A parte il ritorno - per riprendere la pista devo attraversare la strada principale che manca alquanto di posti utili per attraversare. L'unica cosa che rovina questa piacevolezza e' che verso la fine c'e' un bel pezzetto di salita, che mi ha lasciata piuttosto senza fiato - e c'e' una salita anche al ritorno, non mi e' ancora molto chiara la topografia del luogo! Ci vuole circa mezz'ora ad andare e mezza a tornare, e spero che se lo faccio abbastanza spesso la salita mi fara' meno male. Oltre a godermi la bella biciclettata, questo significa che posso dormire un po di piu, e decidere autonomamente a che ora andare e tornare dall'ufficio, che e' una gioia non indifferente.

Il bel tempo ispira anche a uscire e approfittare di quello che Princeton, e l'universita' in particolare, hanno da offrire. Questa settimana sono andata a due talk molto interessanti, di cui scrivero' a parte perche' mi hanno dato molto a pensare (argomenti - il concetto di razza nel Rinascimento, e i problemi delle donne nelle scienze - come vedete alcune fisse non scompaiono mai), e l'altra sera c'erano i vespri jazz alla cappella dell'universita, che come vedete e' piuttosto spettacolare. E' stato veramente bello - eravamo in un angolo della cappella, che era poco illuminata, c'era un quartetto jazz, delle preghiere di natura genericamente cristiana, una poesia di e.e. cummings e una di Gerard Manley Hopkins. Jazz + cappelle: decisamente una grande accoppiata. Da incoraggiare.

In altre notizie, sabato scorso mi sono vista con una grande commercialista, che ha cercato di spiegarmi l'assurdo sistema fiscale di questo paese. Ci e' riuscita solo in parte. Il succo sembra essere che un sacco di cose a cui non avrei mai pensato sono deducibili dalle tasse, che e' bene. Mi devo solo ricordare di conservare ogni sorta di ricevute durante quest'anno fiscale. E sono finalmente andata alla prima riunione delle Girl Scout - un gruppetto di ragazzine di 8/9 anni, che devo confessare mi hanno alquanto spaventato all'inizio. Hanno cosi tanta energia! E le voci sono cosi acute! Ma sono anche molto sveglie e intelligenti, ed e' divertente interagire con loro, quindi credo che nel complesso mi divertiro. E a fine settembre si va in campeggio!

Per finire, parliamo di cibo - il weekend scorso ho fatto una mega spesa e ho passato varie ore a preparare pasti per la settimana (prima che la cucina morisse definitivamente - ma per fortuna da ieri ho una cucina nuova bellissima fatta negli anni 2000 non 70 e mi fido di essa ciecamente, evviva!). Una delle cose che ho fatto e' stato uno stufato un po a casaccio, ispirato a ricette mediorientali, con i seguenti ingredienti:
un po di aglio, in una pentola con olio/peperoncino/cumino
un peperone rosso
una melenzana
un po di agnello a pezzetti
dei ceci in scatola

Ho passato la carne e le verdure in pentola per farli abbrunire (si dira' cosi?), aggiunto i ceci e un po di brodo, e fatto cuocere per circa un'ora e un quarto. Era buonissimo, e ancora di piu il giorno dopo. E si puo eliminare la carne per i vegetariani o i tempi duri. Provatelo!
Per la seconda parte della settimana, ho fatto una grande pentola di polenta, e capisco perche' era tanto apprezzata - costa poco e dura molto e se ti va bene si puo rendere piu interessante con qualche contorno. Io ho optato per funghi passati in padella con un paio di pomodori, ma si puo fare anche solo un po di burro e pepe o qualche alice sott'olio.

Ok, adesso mi stuto, ho parlato abbastanza...

Spring has sprung

Niente traduzione in italiano, sorry - mi sento pigra...

And surprises never cease! Did you know that the robin in the US is a rather different bird from the one in Europe? I had been observing some rather nice birds outside my house which looked like this -



and I couldn't figure out what they were. S & Y at work suggested they might be robins, given the red breast, which confused me somewhat since my stereotypical image of robins is more like this -



But having consulted the Wisdom Of Teh Internets, I find that they are indeed both robins, just, like, completely different and not even related. You learn something new every day.

ANYway, enough with the David Attenborough posturing. It's been ages since I blogged, but then I've seen most of you in that time, so I guess it's not so remiss of me. I'm so exhausted and I can't quite believe that just last week I was in Naples caught up in the celebrations for my aunt's 90th, it feels like a century ago already, and the Oxford visit even more so. It was a little odd going back to work after such a longish break, but luckily there was much to keep me busy and engaged straight away - elation at being accepted for another conference (Corpus Linguistics in July, in Liverpool!), work on an abstract for a proposed journal paper, and actually starting to program and process the parser output. Some of the initial issues I had already encountered in my DPhil work, and I'd written some code to deal with them: I was very pleased to find yesterday that said code was reusable to a certain extent, and was to the best of my ability the most rational way of addressing the problem. Given how inelegant and slow a programmer I am, this was incredibly exciting for me.

But my aunt's party was a great chance for a big family reunion, and getting a few generations of people together, especially those who'd more or less never seen each other before. A lot of hard work, but worth it as everyone seemed to have fun, and it was very touching to see people's eyes light up as they saw this cousin or that and had the opportunity to sit and chat in a relaxed, just-like-old-times manner. So I'm glad we did it!

On the flight back I watched two films I'd been wanting to see for a while, Rachel Getting Married and Burn After Reading. I really liked the first one, despite its rather relentless misery. For reasons unclear to me, I have a soft spot for Anne Hathaway, so I was pleased to see her do a good job in something not twee. It's grim, and doesn't try to whitewash over problems, and family disfunction, and that is good. Though it left me feel quite depressed, so I thought I'd watch Burn After Reading for comic relief. I had such high expectations, I mean, how could you go wrong with that cast? But I have to conclude that I just don't get the Coen brothers. Apart from O Brother Where Art Thou, I just...don't get it. Don't like it (No Country for Old Men being a particularly obvious example, but by no means the only one). Maybe I'm not sophisticated enough or something.

Oh, and I am officially Dr. De Felice now, having deposited a copy of my DPhil thesis in the Bod (but sadly, it's not on OLIS yet!).

Um, so, the eagle-eyed among you might have noticed that I'm neatly avoiding discussing how I felt about being back in Oxford and all that. I had fun - it was tiring as I tried to pack a lot in, and there were a lot of fun&games organised over the weekend - and, well, that's all I'm going to say. I'm here now, and that's that. And, as soon as I've figured out how to acquire a car, and taken a couple of (already booked!) lessons, I'll be driving myself wherever I please!

Interlude

The leaves on the trees are starting to bud again (if that's the right word). It's very pretty, even when it's cloudy outside. And, just like the trees, I will soon sprout a new blog post - it's been a hectic few weeks, and I'm still catching up!

So many achievements!

Versione italiana segue il testo inglese

Some of you may have seen it on my Facebook status: I now have a New Jersey driver's license! Beware! Hehe :-) I was actually slightly surprised I got the actual license already, as it wasn't clear what the rules about converting a foreign license are. So yesterday I went to the place in the middle of nowhere to take the required knowledge/theory test, which I managed not to fail despite my scant knowledge of all the weird laws and fines regulating driving offences in the state. Then they saw my Italian license, saw that it had been issued in 2004, concluded that I was therefore "an experienced driver", and waived the requirement for a road test - so I got my full license straight away!!! How exciting! Of course, I am not a reckless fool and I will take some driving lessons so that I can actually drive - but it's nice to have all the paperwork out of the way, and not having to worry about passing the road test too. And maybe soon I can get my own car and take more control of my life...

Generally it's been a good past few days, after the horrors of the illness the previous week. And there is much excitement and good things in the weeks to come, so I definitely feel that the long harsh winter is over, and I'm actually looking forward to the next few months, and hoping that - assuming I stay illness-free - you will only hear of happy and good things from me.

I've tried to keep my word and work on my baking. First I tried making chocolate cupcakes. The batter was utterly delicious, so I was very excited about them, but somehow the sweetness and deliciousness got lost in the baking and they were fairly uninteresting when they came out, though my friends kindly ate them anyway and said they weren't so bad. But I persisted, because that's the kind of tough girl I am! And I found a recipe for a simple cake suggested by my beloved Nigel Slater. And it worked, and is rather nice! You can find the recipe here, it's the third one down - as you can see it's just a basic cake with nuts and raisins, but I think next time I will put chocolate chips in instead to be more decadent. So there is definitely hope for me and baking, though as I've discussed with some of my friends lately, I think the problem is that temperamentally I am not well-suited to it since I don't like following recipes to the letter, and that doesn't always work so well with baking...

In other news, my involvement with the Girl Scouts is now official and underway! On Friday I met Karen, the leader I am going to be working with, and the troop of 6-year olds I will be in charge of (yeah, right) - I have to say they all look rather sweet and adorable and I am really excited about this! It was a county-wide event for various troops (Thinking Day, for those of you who know what I'm talking about), and it was something I loved participating in when I was a Scout, so it was really nice that this was my first event back in Scouting. I don't think it's going to be easy all the time, but I am really excited about this, and I think it will be good for me - plus I've missed doing volunteering-y things...stay tuned for more episodes of me vs. the 6-year-olds...

I'd also been whingeing a bit about work recently, and feeling I wasn't doing anything worthwhile, but that seems to be changing, too. Last week I was told I'd been accepted at one of the conferences I'd sent an abstract off to, which is great news, and towards the end of the week work did suddenly seem like it was coming together - I've actually started looking at how to turn sentences into bundles of features, what tools I will need, what sort of programming...nice, concrete things - surely it will require a bit of head-banging, but eventually once it all comes together it will be very satisfying. Like the prepositions, but maybe even better. :-)

And to top it all off, I gave myself a weekend in New York, having realised I hadn't left Princeton since early January! It was a lot of fun - on Saturday evening I had dinner at Ranj's friend (well, now my friend too!) Pablo who is an amazing cook and really good fun; highlights of our conversation included the problems of having English partners who don't understand the intricacies of Mediterranean family structures :-) I was also personally rather amused to find one of the wines I really enjoy (made by these people - Oddbins often stock it) in a rather dodgy liquor store on Columbus Avenue, into which I had wandered more out of desperation than any real hope of finding anything potable. Proof that NYC never fails to surprise. On Sunday I went to see my cousin & her fiance's new flat. It is beautiful, and in an unbelievable location in Long Island City, which is basically just across the water from downtown Manhattan, meaning you get amazing views of the skyline. You can actually sort of see the flat in this photo - it's the tall building just on the left edge of the picture, the flat is on one of the lower floors, but you still get a view...sooo beautiful. I love NYC more and more every time I go. I love big cities, I can't help it...I even slept with the window open last night and listened to the noise of the traffic. We also went to Ikea today - there is one in Brooklyn, which struck me as a bit odd, but I guess not any more odd than having one in the centre of Coventry, and mercifully it wasn't run over by hipsters, so it wasn't too bad.

So now I am ready to start the week - a little knackered, but also fairly happy about life, and glad the worst seems to be over - both in terms of physical and mental wellbeing. So many fun things are going to happen in the next few weeks and months, AND the weather is going to improve - I should really have no cause for complaint, so feel free to slap my wrists if I do!

In Italiano

Alcuni di voi forse l'avranno visto sulla mia pagina di Facebook: ho la patente del New Jersey! Chiudetevi in casa! Hehe :-) Veramente non credevo che mi avrebbero dato la patente vera e propria da subito, perche' il regolamento riguardante la conversione delle patenti straniere non era molto chiaro. Comunque ieri sono andata alla motorizzazione, che era in c*** al mondo, per fare il quiz di teoria come richiesto dalla legge, e fortunatamente sono riuscita a passarlo nonostante le mie scarse conoscenze di tutte le strani leggi e multe in vigore in questo stato. Poi hanno visto la mia patente italiana, hanno visto che e' stata rilasciata nel 2004, e hanno concluso che quindi sono una "guidatrice esperta", e che non c'e' bisogno di fare il test di pratica - e cosi' mi hanno dato la patente completa li' per li'!!! Che emozione! Ovviamente non sono completamente sprovveduta e voglio fare un po di lezioni in modo da riuscire a guidare - ma sono contenta di aver risolto tutta la burocrazia annessa, e di non dovermi preoccupare di passare il test di pratica. E forse a breve posso comprare una macchina e recuperare un po il controllo della mia vita...

In generale gli ultimi giorni sono stati buoni, dopo gli orrori della malattia della settimana precedente. E ci sono molte gioie e cose buone nelle settimane a venire, quindi sento che il lungo e duro inverno e' finito, e i prossimi mesi dovrebbero essere belli, e si spera che - a patto che rimanga priva di malattie - avrete solo belle notizie da me.

Ho cercato di essere di parola e impegnarmi con la cucina dei dolci. Prima ho tentato dei cupcake al cioccolato. L'impasto era delizioso, e aspettavo i risultati con ansia, ma non so come la dolcezza e deliziosita si sono persi nella cottura e quando sono usciti non erano molto interessanti, anche se le mie amiche gentilmente li hanno mangiati comunque e hanno detto che non erano male. Ma io non mi sono persa d'animo! E ho trovato una ricetta per una torta semplice, che ha funzionato a meraviglia! La ricetta e' qui, la terza - come potete vedere e' una torta base con noci e uvetta, ma la prossima volta credo che ci mettero' delle gocce di cioccolato per essere piu decadente. Quindi c'e' speranza per me e i dolci, anche se, come si e' concluso con alcuni amici recentemente, il problema e' che caratterialmente non sono molto portata per queste cose perche' non mi piace seguire le ricette alla lettera, e cio non funziona sempre con i dolci...

In altre notizie, il mio coinvolgimento con le Girl Scout e' adesso ufficialmente cominciato! Venerdi ho conosciuto Karen, la leader con cui lavorero, e il gruppo di bambine di 6 anni di cui mi dovro' occupare - devo dire che sono tutte tanto belline e carine e non vedo l'ora! C'era un evento per vari gruppi della zona (Thinking Day, per chi sa di cosa sto parlando), ed era una cosa che mi piaceva un sacco quando ero una scout, quindi sono stata contenta che e' questo e' stata la prima cosa che ho fatto al ritorno negli Scout. Certo non sara' sempre facile, ma per ora sono molto contenta, e credo che mi fara' bene - e sentivo la mancanza di un po di volontariato...prossimamente seguiranno altre puntate di me vs. le bambine di 6 anni...

Recentemente mi sono anche lamentata un po del lavoro, perche sentivo che non stavo facendo niente di valore, ma anche questo sembra che stia cambiando. La settimana scorsa ho saputo di essere stata accettata a una delle conferenze a cui avevo mandato un abstract, il che e' molto bello, e verso la fine della settimana all'improvviso le cose sul lavoro hanno cominciato ad avere piu senso - al momento sto vedendo come trasformare frasi in features, quali strumenti usare, come programmare il tutto...cose belle, concrete - certo richiedera' un po di sbattimento-di-testa-nel-muro, ma alla fine dara' molta soddsifazione. Come le preposizioni, ma forse ancora meglio. :-)

E per concludere, mi sono concessa un weekend a New York, essendomi resa conto che non avevo lasciato Princeton dall'inizio di gennaio. E' stato molto divertente - sabato sera sono andata a cena dal mio amico Pablo che e' un cuoco fantastico e molto simpatico; tra le altre cose si e' discusso del problema di avere un partner inglese che non capisce le complessita' delle strutture familiari mediterranee :-) Sono anche rimasta molto sopresa e divertita dal fatto che ho trovato uno dei vini che mi piacciono molto (fatto da queste persone) in un negozio di vini piuttosto dubbio su Columbus Avenue, nel quale ero entrata piu per disperazione che nella speranza di trovare qualcosa di potabile. A riprova che New York non smette mai di soprendere. Domenica sono andata a vedere il nuovo appartamento di cugina&fidanzato. E' bellissimo, in luogo stupendo a Long Island City, che e' praticamente di fronte a downtown Manhanttan, il che significa viste perfette della skyline. Si puo' quasi vedere l'appartamento in questa foto - e' l'edificio al margine sinistro della foto, l'appartamento e' a uno dei piani piu bassi, ma si vede comunque un po di panorama...trooooppo bello. Ogni volta che vado NYC mi piace sempre di piu. Mi piacciono le grandi citta, non ci posso fare niente...ho perfino dormito con la finestra aperta e ascoltato il rumore del traffico. Oggi siamo anche andati da Ikea, ce n'e' una a Brooklyn, molto comodo!

E cosi sono pronta per cominciare la settimana - un po stanca, ma anche piuttosto felice, felice soprattutto che il peggio sembra essere passato - per quel che riguarda il benessere sia fisico che mentale. Ci sono un sacco di cose divertenti in programma per le prossime settimane e i prossimi mesi, e in piu il clima migliorera - davvero non dovrei avere motivo di lamentarmi, quindi sentitevi liberi di darmi un buffo se lo faccio!