m e l i s s i m a.

Y o u-Foria.»

Russia - Ramona Falls

Postcards from Italy - Beirut

The times we had / Oh when the wind would blow with rain and snow / Were not all bad

Paper and Glue - Emma Pollock

I often stand and stare at you / Protected by the glass

Only You - Matthew Perryman Jones

I wanna taste you again / Like a secret or a sin / Breathin’ out breathin in

Your Hand in Mine - Explosions in the Sky

Isn’t it Lovely - Katie Costello 

Isn’t it lovely: the pitter-patter of the rain / The drops fall upon your face each with it’s own domain

3 Wishes - Dave Thomas Junior

If I had three wishes / You would be all three 

 Life Before Aesthetics - Denison Witmer 

Life before aesthetics is / A mindset to impart impossibility

Made for Each Other - Jack’s Mannequin

I talked so much, I’m sure / I didn’t realize I’d gone crazy 

City Lights - Katie Costello

Lost and Far From Home - Katie Costello

Transatlanticism (Vitamin String Quartet Cover) - Death Cab for Cutie

My Idea Of Sunrise (Gaben & Phil Mashup) - Mango vs. Leigh Nash

Everything changed when I met you / I touched your hand, you took my heart / And you lead me to a better place, just the two of us 

Forgiven - Denison Witmer

Calm Me Down, Kissless.»

It always gets to me; the transitional period between seasons that always makes dimmer my smile, and leaves me with that uncomfortable feeling of wearing slightly oversized socks. My body can feel it… that it’s almost time to go back.

The sun becomes less playful, the ocean waves more rough, and the warmth of my summer love story begins to feel chillier in its approach. I find myself in a daze more times that I’d prefer, over-thinking the simplest of things and feeling uneasy for a while. (All of such, usually entirely unnecessarily, of course. But impossible to ignore.)

And all I want is for you to calm me down…kissless.

“Don’t you love New York City in the fall? Makes me wanna buy school supplies.” I look forward to this line every year, and to that Cranberries song playing in the background… Imagining Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks walking to work as utter strangers, completely in Love with one another. But school supply shopping is a chore where I live, and Cosmopolitan Love, much too cumbersome to bother with. In Europe, such is all nonsense that gets in the way of a mid-day caffè. School supply shopping was special when I was growing up… The smell of fresh notebook paper, the smoothness of a ballpoint pen; all foreign pleasures now. Things change. And then I miss them…I miss them a lot.

Just the thought of disappearing into the clouds of an August afternoon…of going back…kissless.

The colors of New England leaves, the crisp air at football games, carving pumpkins…lighting scented candles in the backyard on Sunday school nights, cuddling under plaid patterned blankets to stay warm. N o s t a l g i a. 

I’m going to start counting my Septembers. 

Pure.»

I hope that my combining of these four short films into a single post doesn’t devalue any of them in any way, because they’re each absolutely beautiful. They were shot by Leonardi Dalessandri, an Italian cinematographer, I’m assuming, for pure fun.

The colors that come through in each shot are so vivid and so full of life, like the places and faces captured themselves. Each scene, a taste of Italy; the pure place that I call home. 

{Visit his website by clicking here.}

‘An Autumn’s Tale’ | Shot in Parma, Emilia Romagna (Italy)

‘A Day Like Today’ | Shot in Parma, Emilia Romagna (Italy)

‘Suddenly, Last Summer’ | Shot in Moliterno, Basilicata (Italy)

‘Ghost Town’ | Shot in Val d’Agri, Lucania (Italy)

Sunday’s With Nonna.»

It’s Sunday in southern Italy, and that means, that in the Abate Household, nonna’s working her magic in the kitchen. 

Ever since I was a little bambina, summer Sundays consisted of church, an aperitif at a local cafè, and the kneading of dough to make home made gnocchi for our Sunday feast.

Today’s even more special, though, because it’s sprinkling rain outside, in pure sunlight…

And you can taste the magic.

H a p p y  S u n d a y, from our home to yours! 

JCU Exposure.»

Yeah, man! A handful of my photos are being featured on the John Cabot University website this month, plus, a link to one of my complete albums—-woot woot! Thank you, Multicultural Club, for a wonderful talent show, thank you Study-Abroads for another wild semester, and thank you JCU for making me feel like Rome is Home. Cheers! http://www.johncabot.edu/

French Navy.»

Shot in Paris - Barcelona - Rome

French Navy -Camera Obscura, My Maudlin Career

Hipster love at its finest. I want to be in a video like this some day…

“L’Intoccabile:” ENNIO MORRICONE.»

I can’t put to words how I feel when I hear this song…a song that, quite frankly, I’m not really sure the name of. All I know is that the original was composed by the absolute one and only, Ennio Morricone (born in my neighborhood of Trastevere, and now living somewhere in Rome), and that a remastered version was recently perfected by Karl X Johan. 

I’m pretty consistent when it comes to material that I love, so it should come as no surprise that I’m revisiting this masterpiece. It’s high up on my  ”All-Time Favourite List of Everything”…But there’s no need to take away any more from the music; I’ll let it do the talking.

[You can hear Morricone’s score in the movie, “The Untouchables,” but really, Morricone is “L’Intoccabile,” (“The Untouchable”) if you ask me.]

Flames by Karl X Johan

‘La Douche Vita.’»

The Daily Show - La Douche Vita