Anybody Want Dibs on Pokey?

I've been so wrapped up in being in Roma that I haven't given any thought to lent at all. Ash Wednesday snuck right up on me. I'm thinking I might fast once a week, Stu did it last year, it would be good for my waistline, budget, and discipline, the food here is beyond tempting. It's a wonder everyone doesn't waddle around from overeating. I woke up this morning at six fifty to write my paper that was due in a few hours, after being up until two, poor decisions, but at the same time, beyond worth it. Sleep and communication with loved ones are definitely not comparable. I finished up my paper in forty minutes, and ate a bowl of store brand cornflakes. Side note, the cornflakes are the cheapest cereal in the store, and taste one hundred times better than the generic cocoa puffs, I'm glad I decided to be cheap :) I had another on site class today at nine in the morning, and this time I was patient and waited for the right bus. Today, my destination wasn't so cut and dry, once I got to the end of the bus line I knew the general direction I needed to go, but no street names. Luckily one of my classmates was on the bus too, lucky for him I mean, because he was going to get off almost ten stops too early, silly boy. Lucky for me he had a map of Rome, and together we lead like seven other people to the meeting point. Me giving anyone directions should scare every one of you after yesterdays post, although it happens all the time. Even Italians ask me for directions, and today I was even able to help someone, usually I just shake my head no. Once on site we were given a tour/lecture of the most culturally diverse neighborhood in Rome, it was really neat. Best of all its known for having the cheapest market in Rome, with foods from all over the world; and we got to look around it for fifteen minutes. I cannot wait to go back when I need groceries. The things I'm most excited for are the spices, rices, and nuts, things you can't find in the grocery store. The fruit is cheaper too. I'm all about a bargain. The bad news is all the sweets are super cheap as well, and look so tasty. I'll either come back from Rome in better shape from walking around the city, (and having to pay for my own food) or 300 pounds from eating all the wonderful food while I'm here. Once we were done with class I came back to my apartment for lunch, and contemplated taking a nap, but I refrained, I'm going to sleep like a rock tonight :) Then it was time for Art Gallery Management, such a sweet class. I stopped by the student life office to see their ash Wednesday church services posting, and found one that I would be able to find in the dark. A girl caught me on my way out of the university, and insisted on talking to me for five minutes, which would have been fine, if I didn't have mass to go to, and if it wasn't raining. She decided to walk with me and we chatted about relationships a bit. I always feel guilty when I talk to other girls about boys because I never have problems. Once home I had time to grill a sandwich and look up directions to the church. I have new cheese, and it is amazing on grilled sandwiches, delicious. Once I had my directions I needed to get dressed for church. Mother ingrained in us very early on, no jeans, which I still follow for the most part, especially on holidays, and especially at a new church. This part of the day was a bit troublesome. I have two pairs of black pants with me, one pair invites plumber jokes, and the other are about six inches too long. Plumber joke pants are absolutely not an option for church, but long pants and a rainy day were not sounding terribly inviting. I also have khaki's and gray pants, but I wanted black. Too solve my problem I put on a pair of my heels, and my pants still dragged on the ground, but I went with it, I needed to go. I realized on the bus that my black tights and the dress I brought would have been just fine, instead I looked a bit like gumby. The pants were so long they gave the appearance that I had no feet, just legs that got wider at the bottom and curved off. Just in case you need a visual aid here's a picture of gumby. Also walking in stilettos on roman cobblestone, not easy, but I think I did a pretty commendable job of not looking like a fool. I found the church with absolutely no trouble. It was amazing, and actually an International church, which means that everyone speaks English, the mass was in English, fantastic. Being in this beautiful church with such an intimate crowd of people, (it doesn't hold very many) was a wonderful feeling. I love being in church, and my joy was so powerful I almost cried several times in mass, probably wouldn't have been the best impression on the people around me. I don't think the church is catholic per se, but mass was very similar, I'm going to leave the link to their website here: http://www.caravita.org/ this will probably become my regular church, and I'm thinking I might just try a bunch of the big traditional catholic ones over the semester. I've been home for awhile now, and am absolutely exhausted, the good news is that class tomorrow isn't until three forty, so I can sleep in as long as I want :D