Where does time go? I seem to have no time to do anything, these days! Well, okay, I do spend a lot of time with Peekaboo, our new kitten (but also with my older cats, otherwise they’d turn green with jealousy). By the way, the word “peekaboo” means nothing in Italian. The Italian equivalent would be something like “bubusette!”

Kitten health update: yesterday my Mom and I took her to the vet who said that she no longer has ear mites or fleas (yeah!), so the only thing that keeps her from being introduced to our older cats are the crummy intestinal parasites. So little Peekaboo will remain in quarantine for another couple of weeks. A very happy, bouncy and friendly kitten, she is currently trying to learn how to fly. We have tried to arrange the furniture so that she won’t hurt herself by missing one of her audacious jumps (on at least two occasions I have seen her sail through the air toward her goal–the desk–and crash to the ground; she is completely fearless!). Of all of her wonderful cat toys (passed down by the older ones, unbeknownst to them!), the one she likes the most is a stupid old champagne cork attached to a piece of string. Typical. 🙂

I promised to blog some personal news, so here goes. I already wrote that I am a U.S. citizen, a permanent resident of Italy, married to a tall dark handsome wonderful Italian. But I don’t think I mentioned that I grew up here, yes, right here in Firenze. My parents moved here when I was barely out of kindergarten. I attended the American School of Florence for a couple of years, but my parents transferred me to an Italian public school when I was eight years old. I am completely bilingual: I speak, read and write in both languages fluently. No accent in either, even when I switch back and forth quickly.

I don’t remember much about learning Italian. My elementary school teacher used to assign work to the other children in order to have the time and concentration to teach me this new language. My schoolmates, as I recall, never made fun of me or considered me to be an odd creature speaking an odd-sounding language. They didn’t shun me at all, as you might expect from kids that age. On the contrary, they were very friendly and helpful, and thanks to them I learned Italian more quickly. After three months, my mother reports, I was writing compositions in Italian on the Punic Wars. I went through the entire Italian school system, but when I was in my second year at the university of Florence my parents decided to move back to the States. I decided to go with them. I worked and studied in the U.S. and Canada for several years, but, to be honest, I was miserable. Don’t get me wrong, I love the States and of course I love and miss my family. But home is where your heart is, right? Well, my home has always been Florence. I always felt that I would end up here, somehow. And in fact, while I was in Florence doing research for my Ph.D. thesis, a few conniving 😉 mutual friends introduced me to my husband. We moved in together less than a year later, just a few months after I was awarded my Ph.D. We have been together for more than 11 years, and counting!

Ok, enough for today. It is time for me to join Stefano and our new kitten (I took this photo yesterday, by the way) downstairs. Oh dear, I hope I haven’t bored y’all to tears! 😉