Ten days left

before I depart for Rome. My passport's been passed, and my Visa is finally where I want it to be. Due to a series of unfortunate events (whoo...I'd better go easy on the pop-culture references from here on out) I did not receive my visa or passport until a week ago. (Dean Fortner was an invaluable resource in ensuring that I was not deported from Rome prematurely.)

Almost all of my books have arrived; my Italian textbook (Da Capo) is proving a recalcitrant buy. I've begun badgering the Half.com seller in question, but honestly I'm glad that a missing Italian textbook is the least of my problems.

It's finally dawned on me that I'll be gone from these shores for the longest period of my life. I think what I'll miss about this country are the strange things, like that commercial for Nasonex with the bee with the inexplicable Spanish accent, or maybe the bizarre cultish Active-On ads. (Perhaps I should go someplace I can't hear the TV and reevaluate this.)

I'm faced with a sudden urge to take as many pictures of the house as possible.