the winding, 'always-rolling' roads of Tuscany

these hills bring out the true nature of people, fo sho. some additional things learned as the experience goes on (compiled during the uphill climb from Badia a Coltibuono "Abbey of the Good Harvest" [good honey, btw] to Radda in Chianti):

-GOOD LUCK finding any store that sells FOOD open on any given Sunday in August in Italy. tutti al mare!
-cypress trees flanking a driveway make ANY house look better
-hand-i-wipes serve many, many purposes. Keep a pack in your pack and you'll find tons of uses for them, from hand-washing to dashboard-cleaning to wound-treatment. It's this kinda stuff they don't teach at Harvard.
-small towns in Tuscany all have brass taps which dispense cold potable water. Finding them is kinda like finding Waldo; when you find it, your day takes a noticable step upward.
-at some point in the late afternoon, Tuscany sun turns a unique shade of bright orange which reflects off houses fundamentally different than any other time during the day; this magical effect is fleeting. Houses seem to be taking a bow to end their day under the spotlight. Kinda like when Indiana Jones waits for the sun to pass through the eye on the end of his staff to reveal the location fo the Lost Ark. Kinda.
-(this one I wish I had known when I arrived in Tuscany): do NOT look at the number of the road you are on EVER, simply find the town you want to go TOWARDS and follow THAT. You can thank me later. Oh, and the highway will rarely get you where you want to go.
-as a biker going downhill, when you pass riders who are coming UP a hill, receive gracefully the all-knowing nod of approval, passed to you who already climbed that hill and are reaping the downhill-rewards. They are acknowledging your fortitude, even if they don't know you went half as fast as they are currently traveling. BTW, this nod is not distributed vice-versa.
-tip-of-the-day: if you ride a bike with your feet pointed outward, not in the direction of where you want to go, raise your bike seat.
-Italian drivers use their horn not as a mean to express molten-anger, as in the States, but as a "here I come, get yer butt over to the extreme side of the road...........please."
-Cinnamon gelato settles most arguments.

post-first-experience

what ive learned from the first week of the new intense work environment:

-there is innate goodness in EVERYONE, especially parents.
-people who show genuione curiosity in others not only get more out of life but get more for other people out of life
-biking tuscan hills is an excellent path to soul-searching, or it is lung-searing-searching?
-hills are, in general, mostly UP
-down most dirt roads somewhere is a really nice hotel
-the number of stars a hotel has does not always correlate with how nice their guests are treated
-besides very cold water, a chilled piece of fruit gives you a little glimpse into heaven on a hot day
-M+Ms can soothe almost anyone
-i highly recommend the following things as key 'hard skills' of life: fixing a bike flat tire, adjusting a bike seat properly, driving a manual transmission vehicle, basic first aid, proper lubing of a bike chain (Easy there with the jokes....)
-people are generally interested in those who came before us in the very spot they are standing
-there are cool stories woven into history EVERYWHERE, you just have to look.
-a shammy snapped to your beltloops can add a substantial quality of life factor under the tuscan sun
-there is a ton of dirt everywhere in this world, get used to it
-non c'e fretta
-Pavarotti is still frickin cool

time to revisit

Pacino in Any Given Sunday. just a bit. But put aside the baggage you bring to the table when organized sports (especially violent ones) are mentioned. change your perspective; what about that saying "5 billion people can't be wrong?" Yeah, I know, that was probably said about Communism (replace Communism with whatever you want), too. don't listen to the sounds of everyone else in the video, listen to Pacino. Remember now, it is Pacino, but they are Oliver Stone's words. ok, ready? Now revisit the 2nd video above. The six inches, in front of your face. For one, I know I haven't been clawing with my fingernails.

some bouncin thoughts from bouncin souls

ok, this is where my head is at:

sometimes in life, we make good decisions. sometimes, we make bad ones. the decision-making process is another fascinating topic of discussion for me. kinda like the to-do lists, I wonder how peeps make their decisions. I mean, how EXACTLY do you go about it? Some techniques: lists; crafting pluses and minuses for each side of the decision. A bit scientific, but often illuminating. Often you come up with pluses and minuses you never before imagined. Also it's a bit of crafting a forest-for-the-trees perspective. I am in favor of anything that allows you to step back and view a situation form afar, because when emotion gets in the way, ye ol decision-making process is clouded. Basic, straight-forward stuff.

If I could point out one of my WORST traits, it is paralyzing decision-making at inopportune times. Now, Im not talkin about life-and-death situations here, those I surprisingly feel I can make quickly. You know, like "here comes at car right at me, what should I do?" Ok, funky example, but I can make a quick decision there. It is in the more subtle area of decision-making, those subtle decisions which, although they have no immediate impact, reverberate for a good time after in one's life. For instance, choosing a career path. Subtle, and while no immediate impact, long-term repercussions are inevitable. HUGE in terms of circle of friends, lifestyle, major life choices, oh yeah good stuff.

alright, what about some other techniques:

trust yer gut: alright, this one is often spot-on. but you could be really OFF. per esempio: I could think a situation is one way. I could totally think it is one way. But I came to realize that maybe, just maybe, I am TOTALLY wrong! crazy! but that's why it's fun, right?....um, right? well, like I was told a while ago, either it works out well, or it's a good story for the grandkids.

alright, movin on:

"carpe diem" -- well, that one certainly has its advantages, especially being that you will usually get a tangible, quick-response answer. and if it's a good decision, bravo. You just bought yourself some more of the good stuff you garnished by making a quick decision. If it's a bad one, well, rip the band-aid off and get busy gettin over the bad decision. hmm, stock stuff, yeah, but it's cliche for a reason. of course, delaying the decision could cause some of those clouds which are hovering over the situation to dissipate, leaving a clearer, (more emotion-free?) decision. Of course, those clouds might never dissipate. boh!

You startin to get how spesso decisions tend prendere un'po paralysis per me?

But this time, I really might be wrong with regards to what I originally, positively, thought. how bout them apples. double boh!

of course, looking back on it all, was any bad decision in my memory really that bad? nope. I am damn lucky to be able to say that. I feel like some Allman Bros should be playin out of the speakers right now. dunno why.

knowing many loving none, bearing sorrow having fun, but back home you'll always run...

nessun dorma

The Long and Winding Road, that leads to Vergil's door

In our class' recent daily explorations of Vergil's Aeneid, the kiddies (read: me) are very interested in the role of the Roman gods in their quest to hinder/postpone/play with 'fate'. This topic has led us to ask what role fate and free will (or maybe....theology?) have in our own lives.
Or maybe it isn't Vergil at all who is sparking this debate, but rather the man behind the curtain:
http://www.lostpedia.com/wiki/Fate_versus_free_will

hmm. Of course, Aeneas' ultimate fate was never ultimately changed, but he did need a swift kick in the pants every now and then (now and again?) to get him goin towards that fate. Don't we all?

Check that one off

Do you know what fascinates me? To-do lists. Because everybody has to make one at some point (some make them constantly). After discovering this bizarre fascination, I have made it a point to ask peeps how they 'structure' their to-do lists. You know, do ya just make one long list? Do you prioritize the tasks? Index cards? Post-it notes? A desk calendar? Fancy shmansy planning software?
Now, I've asked some supposedly 'big-time' peeps these very questions, and from all of this 'research', I have discovered one incontrovertible truth: everyone does it differently, and no one is satisfied with their method. That reminds me of a movie quote:

"Son, in 35 years of religious study, I have only come up with two hard incontrovertible facts: there is a God, and I'm not Him."

rebirth of a blog

did I say in six days the blog would be reborn? Try 10 months. But we're back, baby! Plenty of the most random, unexpected stories from the latest adventure to be unveiled. Just you wait. ...A little longer, that is.