short and running

Today is the first day of the rest of my life. I wonder how many times I have said that? But today is day one of my self-imposed business plan. Wish me luck, I will have a very tough boss. Hopefully Zacchi will encourage me to take time off every day. On top of that, I have made myself promises that will be difficult to keep. One is that every day I will do something that challenges me. This morning it was my visit to the local Comune about documents...

Language, communication. Is it important to speak a language well? Every day I correct a translation to post on the Bippiblog. Sometimes I can't find the exact words, and sometimes I leave things a little unpolished when the meaning is clear. It doesn't hurt to remember that they are in translation. Communication is what it is all about.

I try to speak Italian well, and that means I don't speak a lot. But when I need to I communicate with my hands and my face, I throw decorum to the winds and make myself understood. It is a while since I have had to draw stick figures on a napkin to explain something, but if I need to again, I will.

I found this email again recently. A friend wrote it to me when I had become stuck, needed to deal with some difficult things. I would hate to see it written in perfect English. Written as it is, when I read it I feel again all the care and support that the hand of friendship was offering.

The life is short and running...and it's your life.
Drive you your car...don't leave another people drive your car.

This has another, more literal significance today. I am still waiting for the house inspection that says yes, I really do live here and I can have the correct documents to stay. Until that happens, I am just visiting. And without those documents I can't get my Italian drivers licence. My international one expires in two weeks time. So I guess my morning visit to the Comune, although challenging, was unsuccessful.

I really hope I can continue to drive me my car.

PS the gremlins are on my side. I was delaying lunch as I worked, a bad habit I have, and most unexpectedly my computer crashed. Food time... but all seems well again now. Strange...