spokesmodeling

NYU Poly ad in the NYTimes 4/17/11 (Education Life section p. 29)

Picture for NYU Poly graduate school brochure April 2011

it's a slippery slope...

Ok so please don't think I am the worst daughter ever after watching this, but I had to post it because it is the funniest thing I have ever filmed and possibly ever witnessed. 

Background: my mom and I have been going to Zermatt for 6 years in a row now for our skiing ritual. The past 3 years we've been joined by Heather, and discovered that not only is Zermatt skiing paradise, but also excellent for the sledder in us all! This video was filmed as my mom attempted to cross a ski slope that the sledding trail intersects and happens to be quite steep to cross on foot. Crossing this ski slope has been a nightmare for my mom for years now, always thinking of what would happen if she were to slip. Last year as we walked through the forest she even collected sprigs of evergreen leaves that she wanted to tie to the bottom of her shoes to give her some added traction while crossing this passage. 

I never expected what would happen this year, and was even more surprise at how my sister Heather reacted!

Monday, back to work.

On Monday, I had planned to go back to STMicroelectronics in Agrate Brianza where I used to work to have lunch with my former colleagues and check out the old stomping grounds. I arrived around 1 pm and was met at the entrance to ST by 3 of my ex colleagues. Not having my badge anymore, my colleague Andrea vouched for me at the entrance and we stated that I was with NYU, seemingly at ST for the afternoon for important business.

We walked through the plant, past familiar buildings and some familiar faces. Once we walked into the cafeteria, I spotted my group of once colleagues, now great friends. Just as if no time had passed at all, we took our spots in the lunch line and started joking around and the guys started playing the classic practical jokes that had been constant between us while I worked at ST. Even the lunch pass that I was given by my colleague Marco stated that I was a representative of Motel Rona, a skeevy motel just across the road from ST that we always used to joke about. Classic!

Lunch at ST is provided by the company, so it's free to employees. Five courses: first course is pasta or rice, a second that's meat based, vegetable sides, water, fruit, bread..! And not like the cafeteria fare you might find in the US either, this food is really tasty.

After lunch we went back to the building where our lab is located, enjoyed a post-lunch espresso and a cigarette, and then went into the lab. It was really great to be back there. I had been a part of the research group when we first opened that lab, and from when we first moved into the lab and were busy choosing new equipment and apparatus to being in there on Monday a lot of work had been done. The PCR device that our team has been developing for the past few years has advanced leaps and bounds since I joined the team 3 years ago, and made huge progress even in the past 6 months. Great job ragazzi!

Aperitivo!

Of the things that I miss most about Milan, I think aperitivo is probably number one. I've written about this before; but briefly, it's a daily phenomenon that takes place in the majority of bars in Milan where you order a cocktail and gain access to a buffet full of freshly prepared treats. Clearly, an aperitivo was in order during my short weekend in Milan.

Maria and I arrived at Yguana early, in order to hold down a table for the 20 or so friends I expected to show up. Yguana has an awesome spread when it comes to the buffet, and the cocktails are served in swimming pool-sized chalices. It's located right in Piazza Vetra, which is just around the corner from the funky/bourgeoisie area of Corso Ticinese and Le Colonne di San Lorenzo. It's like the Williamsburg of Milan, if you will. Hipster central.

Marco and his girlfriend Anna were the first to show up, and the four of us ordered our first round of cocktails. My drink, the Negroni sbagliato (or Negroni gone wrong), is a cocktail that became my beverages of choice while living in Milan. It was invented in Milan I don't know how many years ago in a historical bar called Bar Basso, a Milanese friend once informed me. If you've never heard of this cocktail, you're not alone: I haven't found one bartender in New York who has (much to my chagrin). FYI, here is the recipes for the Negroni sbagliato, and a picture of me and mine from Saturday evening:

Negroni sbagliato

--> The classic Negroni uses an equal part of gin instead of prosecco. These cocktails are usually served on the rocks and with a slice of orange. 

• 3 cl prosecco
• 3 cl Vermouth Rosso
• 3 cl bitter Campari

The evening went on, and friendly faces started pouring into the bar. Colleagues, best friends and their new boyfriends, old friends that were in Milan for the weekend from London and France all filled our table. We hadn't been able to make reservations since it was a Saturday night, but even if we had it wouldn't have helped much because I had no idea that so many friends would show up to share some drinks and catch each other up on what's been going on in the past few months. It was a splendid evening, with my only complaint being that it went by too quickly!

Here's a snapshot of some of my lovely amici Milanesi from Saturday night!

il rientro

After a quick flight over the Atlantic, I landed early last Saturday morning in rainy London. I don't know if it was the butterflies in my stomach or the lingering suspense of the Swedish thriller movie "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" that I caught on the flight, but for some reason I couldn't sleep. After dashing through the security checkpoint obstacle course in Heathrow's terminal 5 I made it to my red eye flight to Milan, and before I knew it we had landed at Linate.

Instantly, I felt as though I had arrived at home. Rowdy Italians joked around with each other while waiting for luggage and the distinct smell of rich espresso emanated from the airport bar while I briskly made my way to the bus eager to get to Milan.

delicious breakfast, Milano style!

 I had to wait for my friend Maria to finish work on Saturday morning, and to kill time I enjoyed a cappuccino and brioche al cioccolato (which amazingly costs just 2 €) and tried one too many incorrect PIN codes for my Italian debit card, which was then eaten up by the ATM. No big deal, I just had to wait 2 days for the bank to open and 3 weeks to get a new bank card sent to me (anything less would be un-Italian).

Maria met me at Porta Genova a little while later. It's the most wonderful thing reuniting with great friends; even if a substantial amount of time has passed, it can feel like you just saw each other the other day and practically pick up a conversation that you left off months ago. She was just as bubbly and wonderful as she always has been and it was such a treat to catch up on that sunny Saturday afternoon. The weekend was off to a wonderful start!

un piccolo riassunto

Since it's been a really long time since I posted anything of substance on this blog, I think it's about time to give the people I haven't spoken to in a while an update on what my life has been like since last August.

Geographically

At the end of August I moved to the other side of the Atlantic, to New York City. I know I'm from here and all, but believe me, the transition from life in Milan to life in New York was no piece of cheesecake.

Italians from all over Italy will tell you that Milan is a fast paced, hectic, and stressful place to live. To me that simply means that they have never tried living on the island of Manhattan. Milan, in comparison with NYC, is a relaxed, go with the flow, take an hour lunch break and as many espresso breaks as you want, kind of metropolis. Upon returning to NYC one of the things I found most different were the schedules adhered to by my friends and family and their availability to just chill. In Milan, on any given day of the week, I would usually be able to round up 3 or 4 of my friends to meet for a post-work aperitivo: sit down, chit chat, grab a cocktail and something to nibble on. When I tried to arrange this kind of impromptu gathering with my sisters or friends upon my return to NYC, the responses I got had changed from, "Si, certo! A che ora?" to "Great idea! Let's figure something out for next week!" Sigh.

Professionally

I resigned from my position as a research engineer with STMicroelectronics at the end of August, and in early September I was thrown into university with a transition abrupt enough to make me want to pinch myself to make sure I was really in Brooklyn and not in Agrate Brianza anymore. I have started my PhD at the Polytechnic Institute of NYU, majoring in Materials Chemistry. Last semester was full of old experiences made new again, like making friends in my classes and pulling all-nighters at the library in preparation for exams I felt completely unprepared for.

There was one interesting aspect of returning to university that was definitely unexpected.

long time no blog

So it's been what.. almost 6 months since I last posted something on my blog! Horrible. I actually forgot that I even had a blog until I got into a discussion with my internet un-saavy mother last night about why people even have blogs. I opened up mine, and started reading some of my posts to her. I actually realized that what I had written about was kind of entertaining, and that I should pick this up again.

I did stop blogging for a reason, however. This was because my life was in a period of change, and it was stuff that was difficult to deal with in my head, let alone on my public blog. I think I've gotten things sorted out in my head now, however, and I couldn't be happier with where I am.

The last time I posted anything, I was getting ready to resign from my position at STMicroelectronics and move to my hometown, New York City. That was in August 2010. Now it's January 2011 and I have settled back in my old NYC ways. I am no longer a young professional, but now a mature student. I've gone from living in my own fabulously chic apartment in the center of Milan to squatting in my mom's apartment on Manhattan's east side. I have gone from eating fresh mozzarella and tomato caprese salads to bagels and lox.

The change in scenery has been refreshing to my senses, and I hope to post more about what I'm up to these days soon! ciao ciao