11866 It’s a new day….It’s a new dawn….

[B]And [I]yes[/I] – as the song says ‘I’m feelin’ GOOD!’[/B]

Let’s face it – what’s [I]not[/I] to feel good about? I’m here living in the Italy I love. Here I have found a niche for myself in a community with an outlook on life that went ‘out of fashion’ in much of my homeland a [I]loooong[/I] time ago.

I have also found a niche in several other communities, but these are forums. Here I have met many people that I have learned to admire and respect. There are others that while I respect them, I do find it hard to like them - but that’s my problem to solve. Also, over recent times I have found that people I didn’t [I]think[/I] I liked, and was just a little afraid of, are actually pretty nice. Discoveries of that nature all help to fill my life with satisfaction. Over the years I've learned that it takes time to build up trust between people, but it only takes a hint of suspicion, not proof, to destroy it.

All that is something I’ll have to work on because this great life here in Italy is really worth keeping safe. But there are others too - things like:

Neighbours who share their table and produce with you, others who worry if they don’t see you around. Food - to die for – that is still cooked fresh ‘every time’ (it’s still hard to find pre cooked frozen food here, thank goodness...). A wonderful selection of wines that most in the UK are very envious of – though heaven knows what it would be like if a litre of wine could be bought there for 85p over there!

[U]‘Knowing that’[/U] when you go into a restaurant for a meal – the table is ‘yours’ for the evening – you [I]won’t[/I] be rushed. [U]No[/U] appointments needed for hairdressers or to see your GP. [U]No[/U] Community Tax if you’ve only got one house. A great health service with almost no ‘waiting times’ above a few weeks for treatment.

[U]‘Knowing that’[/U] people here will ‘pass the time of day’ even if they don’t know you. They’ll always offer a polite “Salve” when you cross paths.

So OK, we [I]all [/I]know that our lives have got a few ‘warts’ too – but they’re nothing that can’t be tolerated or overcome with a bit of resolve - are they?.

[U]‘So what’[/U] if O’Weary does want to charge a 'pound for a pee' or for a sheet of loo paper? At the end of the day he’ll get you to Italy (and back), safely, and for less than the return rail fare from Brighton to London – and after all - they’re not exactly ‘long haul’ flights are they?

[U]‘So what’[/U] if we [U][I]do[/I][/U] dare to miss our Marmite or British bangers… don’t Italians miss their pasta and polenta when they’re away?

There have got to be so many [I][B]‘Knowing that’s’ [/B][/I]and[B][I]‘So what’s’[/I][/B], that others know of, that they might just make this into quite an intriguing thread….

You never know!

[IMG]http://www.wackystock.com/images/clipart/thumbnail/5979_grandma_eating_food_in_her_rocking_chair.jpg[/IMG]

Category
General chat about Italy

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 03/10/2009 - 05:37

Feeling good and happiness is mostly a problem of attitude towards life. Nothing is perfect and there are many "warts" that we have to put up with; however, if we try to keep a positive outlook our task will be easier. Granted that sometimes problems and difficulties may look insurmountable, that's where good advice and a shoulder to cry on are helpful and I think that in the forum we sometimes assume that role.
We cannot please everyone, that would be impossible, particularly because most of us do not know any of the other members personally. Also, the fact that we speak a common language does not mean that we are going to think alike. But that is the interesting part of sharing experiences in a virtual forum, different opinions, different voices, sometimes right, sometimes wrong. Variety is important. You learn a lot through it and living is just a permanent learning process, right up to the end. Learning the lessons, is a different matter....
As for the "knowing that" and "so what", here is my contribution:

Knowing that I will see my smiling neighbour's faces when I arrive in Italy, makes me happy.

Knowing that I will be able to hear the murmur of the river going past my windows makes me look forward to any trip.

So what if it takes practically two days to get there by car, with our faithful dog and loaded with stuff. It is a small inconvenience I can put up with.

So what if we find that something that we ordered a long time ago to have ready by the time we arrive has not been done..... We can solve the problem and it is not going to make us unhappy.

Overall, our Italian adventure has been great, warts and all. And the Forum is a great place to meet people, even if it is a virtual meeting.

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 03/10/2009 - 05:58

Hi Carole

Great to see you up and about again:smile:. Can only echo all you have said, but can't linger, the wart we have at the moment is to take down a small tree which became diseased - a small problem in my little bit of heaven.

ps- Survived tree felling although I did start to wobble when OH said 'run if it starts to go'

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 03/10/2009 - 08:04

Knowing that - when I walk the dogs through the most beautiful woodland and down to the river I'll go though glades of wild daffs, primroses and voilets

Knowing that - on said dog walk I may never see another soul and that makes skipping a safe option

Knowing that - if I do meet folk, we'll all part company after however many minutes having traded compliments

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 03/10/2009 - 10:10

Three thoughful replies so far that go a long way to restoring faith that good debate [I]can[/I] be had - and enjoyed. Even if at times things might become a little fraught with personal opinions and an occaisional burst of mad humour...
Like this:
[B]Food for thought [/B]-
What if it ever gets to this?

[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=Red][B]"O'Weary's"
[/B][/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]
[SIZE=3][FONT=Comic Sans MS][COLOR=Red][B] Economy 'No Frills' Flights
No Extra Charges
Generous Luggage Allowances
Air Conditioned Seating
Free Toilet Facilities
[/B][/COLOR]
[IMG]http://www.zanzibarfilms.com/aerial_filming.jpg[/IMG]

[/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=3][FONT=Comic Sans MS][COLOR=Red][B]Come Fly With Us![/B][/COLOR][/FONT][/SIZE]

It's all part and parcel of our make up I guess.