[ITALY] All I Ever Wanted Was a Simple Kind of Flight...

From: Christine Stromberg
Date: Sunday, May 14, 2006 8:10 pm
Subject: Where are you, are you safe???

Tara, You were supposed to email me as soon as you arrived safely... I am worried. Mom

***

From: Tara Rose Stromberg
Subject: RE: Where are you, are you safe???

yes i am safe. but thats about the only good thing that's happened so far. my luggage, along with Asal's, Jessica's, Willis' and half our plane's passengers is "missing." Which either means it's at Heathrow Airport in London still, or nowhere to be found. They said it would be sent to our Florence address by tonight at the latest 10 Pm, because it would arrive at the Italian airport by 5:00. As of now, it is midnight here, and we have no luggage whatsoever.

I am pissed as shit. And I am not joking. We went through hell today. And I need a shower. And I need my meds. And I can't get in touch with anyone at British Airways so far, probably due to the fact that our phone services suck and don't work half the time. im trying to call london and i cant get through or get the right country code. im having a conniption, and i cannot rest until this is resolved and i start thoroughly beating someone's ass into the ground.

im sorry but im upset. i wish i could call, but there's no way for me to do so. and i have class tomorrow, and no clothes, or soap, or anything. and ive been in the same clothes for two straight days now. and i have gotten no sleep whatsoever.

ill e-mail you soon when i hear more.

***

From: Christine Stromberg
Sent: Sunday, May 14, 2006 7:50 pm
To: Tara Rose Stromberg
Subject: Re: Where are you, are you safe???

Well at least you are SAFE!! I was worried. Calm down and relax it is out of your hands . At least everyone's luggage was lost that way they need to find a plane load of luggage not just yours (which by they way you should have filled out you luggage tag. (at least I get one told you so)).

We love you and are still jealous of your circumstances, you will BE FINE!! your young and with people you know in the same situation. Stop fretting. Trust me, every thing will be fine. You will laugh at this in the future. So you wear the same clothes, the airlines will probably make some kind of mends. RELAX. we love you MOM and crew.

***

From: Tara Rose Stromberg
To: James Morrison
Sent: Sun, 14 May 2006 19:36:46
Subject: where do i begin?

i mean that in the most cynical way i could possibly fathom. i know this is supposed to be an exciting time, and i have so much good stuff to tell you, but for now it is completely overshadowed by the fact that our airline has somehow "misplaced" our luggage....(or as they phrased it, it's just plain "missing.") This happened to almost everyone on the goddamn plane, and it was supposed to be here at 10:00 pm tonight, and it never came. my luggage has all my clothes, everything i need, and i have class tomorrow, and i am still wearing the same clothing i had on Saturday. So i am stuck in smelly sweaty clothes, with no meds, no soap, no nothing. and i have no idea where my luggage is.

i know, im being neurotic, but at least i have good reason. right now, it's 1:23 am in florence, which means it's only like 6 or 7 over there in NYC. I am so tired, you have no idea. My legs are shot and I haven't slept in two days. more on that later. i just needed to vent and also let you know that ive been thinking about you and miss you more than ever because im having such a shitty yet not-so-shitty-day cause im in Italy....but i have nothing to my name ^^ including money. again, more on that later.

but its gorgeous here, and im sure im just overreacting, so dont worry. i hope you're doing alright and worrying even less about your own problems (oh, we are such poor souls!) i am going to get some stamps and euros and everything else tomorrow after my class in which i will be smelly and grumpy, and then write you a LONG letter about my adventures in Europe in less than twenty four hours, and how i came to have such an odd day....ya know, all that stuff. itl be great, ill laugh, you'll laugh, itll be good times. and i can forget about being pissed off about this whole day ^^

so stay tuned for a letter! (or if it's too annoying for now, maybe another e-mail, or some pictures and stuff...) and ill tell you about my james-bond-esque eluding of customs and mad-dash through the london airports. it was insane. and because of such insanity, i have to get to bed before i collapse, and stop typing even though i actually have SO MUCH SHIT to talk about, but i should stop now and let you breathe and not worry and say goodnight.

and send you lots of warm lovin' and happiness, and hope for me on the homefront as i battle those damned confederates-oh wait, that's you ^^ although ive found myself quite a war against this strange european craziness.

seriously, im going to stop talking and go rest[.....]ill talk to you soon! i need sleep! im going mad! i hate jet-lag and british airways!

nighty-nite,
tara

***

From: James Morrison
Sent: Mon 5/15/06 12:52 AM
To: Tara Rose Stromberg
Subject: a simple kind of life.‏

Wow.
I'm trying to think of things to say like: don't worry about it, or, that's okay.
But not having clothes is a bad thing.
If you think about the basic needs of humans: food, shelter, CLOTHING!
Look at the bright side, at least you have clothes on you now! It's not like you traveled naked (which is a fashionable thing to do in Europe) & then had no clothes delivered. I would suggest you make very good use of the clothes that you have on your back, as simple as that sounds. Also, try to sweat as little as possible. It's easy, like holding your breath, you can also hold your sweat.

Here is a beautiful song: 

I've been so cold
I have no clothes
Where did they go?
Nobody knows

I always was the one with all the cloth
Now I feel poor as a moth

& all I wanted were my simple clothes
a simple kind of life
& all I needed was a plain white shirt
to cover up my stuff

This song is about a girl who has no clothes! She is therefor naked all the time & cannot "cover up her stuff" which is really hard for her. Be happy that you at least have the clothes you are wearing & try to just live in the moment and soak up the Italian sun. I think clothes are stupid anyway. I'll bet your stuff will show up soon.

I've been doing fine & just hanging out with my whiskers. Leaving Tuesday morning and will arrive in LA that evening. Will be crazy busy after that & have been trying to relax until then. Feeling really out of it from sleeping and doing nothing.

How is your room? What is the time difference between us? Are there Mafia Italian dudes all over the place?

Rest & let the oxygen be the only medication you need=)...that and this song.

RICK**

*James was flying to Los Angeles to shoot his film, "Melody," with some friends from film school.

**Reference to a really funny skit series we both saw on SNL with Amy Poehler and Horatio Sanz....at least we though it was hilarious.

[ITALY] Mission: Cheap Tickets to Florence

In the Spring of 2006, I enrolled in a summer semester for NYU in Florence for Screenwriting classes. I was afraid I would never get accepted to FAMU in Prague.




Even though I eventually did get accepted into BOTH programs, I was stoked to go to the country of my heritage, and was even more enthralled when I found out that many of my fellow students from Sight & Sound Video/Documentary were going to be there as well.

Willis, Jessie, Jessica, Asal, JR, and Drew were all taking a "30-sec Commercial Reel" class with legendary underground filmmaker, Amos Poe. We decided to travel together, and me being the cheap sorta-Jew that I am, took on the task of researching every single airline under the sun for the perfect price. We finally settled on a plan of action, which required us to take three forms of transportation within a span of 10 hours.

I had never been overseas before, let alone been on a plane for more than 2 hours. None of us really spoke fluent Italian. I hardly had enough money to eat, let alone fly. It was gonna be a trip, alright.....

***


From: Tara Rose Stromberg
Date: Friday, May 12, 2006 6:03 pm
Subject: URGENT! I have booked a train!.....for me....

Dear Asal and Jessie and Jessica and Willis (yes, the male comes last...),

So I just booked a train at 12 noon for the 14th, this Sunday, when we arrive in Milan and need to get to Florence. I went on TrenItalia, put in Milan and Florence as the departure and destination and chose the Eurostar train that leaves at 12:00 and arrives at 14:45. Attached is a copy of my Purchase summary. Look at it. Use it. Wear it out. It is your best pal forever and always.
So there you have it. We just have to get there by 12. somehow. Jessie said that the bus from the airport is cheaper than cabbie, so that looks god. I'm gonna call a travel agent and find out exactly how far away the airport is from the train station. God help me.

So please, CALL OR E-MAIL me to let me know you got this and have purchased a ticket, so I know we're all set, and no one gets left out. If not, I will be calling your ass tonight. :P

We'll meet at the terminal tomorrow afternoon; I will be there hella early due to my nueroticism, and Jessie, I believe, is meeting us Sunday at the train station or airport, right? Right. 

Now I'm going to pack. Because I haven't done any of that yet. Stop laughing, it's not funny. :(

See ya soon!!! (And I best be hearing from ya...)

Tara

***

From: Andrew S. Willis

Sent: Friday, May 12, 2006 11:07 pm

To: Tara Rose Stromberg

Cc: Asal, Jessie, Jessica

Subject: Re: URGENT! I have booked a train!.....for me....

Hey guys,

1. Tara- don't hate the playa hate the game.

2. I made my reservation, all is well I have my confirmation code and all that jazz so that's good.

3. So uh... on the train website, there is a tiny little button in the top right hand corner that says "english" you click on it, and it makes you happy. At least it made me happy. what with the translating and all.

4. I'm in the city right now, is anyone up for splitting a cab ride to JFK? I dun know, seems like a good idea. Let me know.

5. Holy crap we're going to Italy.

That is all.

~Willis

Trip Down Memory Lane...

A disclaimer, if you will.....

This blog is really a personal journey, if anything: remembering the good, the bad & the ugly of all the places I've been and the people I've met....and some I wish to forget.

Nevertheless, there's something therapeutic about digging deep into the past and reliving moments; whether it's through photos, mementos, or letters. I have a habit of not only saving everything and anything - from grocery lists to childhood drawings to letters from friends - but also, of taking them out from their dusty closet boxes to reminisce whenever I feel the urge to remember a past that I have outgrown, yet possibly never let go of.

Maybe this will be my way of letting go. Or perhaps, it is just another exploration as I venture into the future.

And, if by some slim chance you choose to accompany me on this lampoon journey, just remember: you asked for it.

Below is merely a glimpse of what I've kept hidden away after all these years. Don't know how old I was when I made these, but I must have been young. When I was a kid, I was lucky enough to have been able to take a bunch of trips, mostly with my Aunt Diane and Uncle John.

One day, enamored with my travel achievements, I began to make "luggage stickers" of all the places I had visited....some more than once. If only I knew how many places I was yet to see.....

My Uncle Jerry (also my godfather) and Aunt Debbie lived here for many years.
He worked for Kodak.

....it was always my fave, and probably always will be. 

Grandma lived in Brooklyn until she moved to....

..."Stinky" Staten Island.
When I was younger, the garbage dump was still going strong....in odor.

Philadelphia (yeah, yeah, I know it's spelled wrong above.) 

Philly is home to a Zoo, Sesame Place, great museums, and yummy cheese steaks.

I've been to the Poconos so many times, I couldn't even keep track if I tried. 

Though I never went canoeing, I did go to Shenandoah's Water Park.