Not Even Italian!

Illustration of Virginia Raffaele imitating Belen Rodriguez in a skit on how to properly sit on seats.

So, given that I have all the time in the world (NOT!) I decided to run a little (and I do mean tiny) blog in italian and mainly focusing on the marvelousness of Virginia Raffaele (at the moment, but more will eventually come along). I had pointed her out in my 2011 post for her amazing character of Paula Gilberto Do Mar but fallen head over heels for all of her impersonations ever since. 

So, long story short, "Ma Io Non Sono Nemmeno Italiano" (But I'm not even italian) is a mini collection of all the Italophone sources of fascination, or in this case, humor. So far, I've managed to render -mainly via typography- some of the thigh-slapping situations and skits Virginia Raffaele delivers live every Sunday on Rai 2's "Quelli che il calcio…" which (gasp!) is a live show about soccer!

Oh, and tomorrow I fly to Milan. Really.

My "Best" of 2011. Now Give Us 2012

This past year was an intensely awkward one, for all of us. It was a challenging, troubling year from whichever point of view one chooses to examine it. 2011 was, confessedly, an intensely awkward year. However, I -being the eternally "half-full glasses" I am- believe that it was not an absolute and total loss, (ironically though, "loss" was -for many- a defining word for this year). Some aspects of it seemed to gleam "through the ashes"; some events of significant, life-altering gravity, in a positive light this time,  did occur as well. So, what we should do is focus on some of the good things 2011 left us with. 

On a personal/professional level, 2011 was life-changing for me. This past, turbulent, year set the foundations -in a challenging way- for things which felt that they were meant to happen. I was urged to make choices and take actions for which I am the only person to be held responsible for the outcome, whatever that may be. 

I am not going to get all profound and mushy in this post, though I am prone to doing that lately; I will just focus on the "lighter" things which stood as some sort of "psychological support" -if you like- this past year. Below you will find a humbly assembled list of my personal "bests" and "favorites" of 2011. 

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