PCS Italy - 6 Month Mark

It's here...we've finally reached the 6 month mark of living in Italy!  Whoopee.

Everyone said it would take about 6 months to adjust (it's my first PCS ANYWHERE so is this true of other places?).

Guess what...I still don't like this place.  I've gotten to the point where I just shrug my shoulders at everything and say "only in Italy."

Whenever other wives ask me how I like it here, I just smile and tell them it's not my thing.  If they are one of those happy-go-lucky "I LOVE ITALY" peeps, then all the more to them.

I only peel paint if I start to get lectured about what my problem is about not liking this place.  Believe me, I've heard it all.

You have to embrace where you are.
You are going to be miserable for the next few years if you don't learn to like it here.
You should realize there are people out there that would die for the opportunity you have.


You aren't going to tell a someone that doesn't enjoy the taste of chocolate that there are wrong, that there are starving children in India that would die for such a treat, or that they just aren't "embracing" the taste enough.

Sound pretty silly, doesn't it.  

This goes for everything in life INCLUDING Italy.  In the end, it's not wrong to like or dislike something.  I just so happen to dislike where we are living for the next few years.

Milestones

One thing I've started doing is celebrating the milestones. I'm not talking about a huge party bash, or stuffing my face with a bag of dove chocolates. What I mean to to acknowledge the progress and use those moments to help me smile.

#1 Survived two whole weeks without hubby. This is the first time being alone in Italy and being apart since we've been married.

#2 Got gas (gasoline that is). Here in Italy we have to buy gas with special coupons. I brought one book of coupons with me thinking I was set, because Chad always only used two to three coupons for a fill-up. Little did I know, I was 10 coupon points under. Two Italian guys came out and started yelling at me in Italian and after frantically calling hubby about what to do, I ended up paying a pretty penny on my debit card. All said and done, I left the gas station a little shaken, but alive and with a full tank of gas. (I'm determined to make that tank last till hubby gets back!)

#3 Got mail. While you may laugh at this one, the APO boxes at the post office have these horrid little locks that are impossible to open. It's like the thing is trying to keep me from my mail. Today I tried to open the stupid thing for 10 minutes before going for help. But I tried!

#4 Changed the water jug by myself. Hubby was worried that I would wrestle with this one. It was really heavy and I was worried that I would have this baby in the process of lifting the jug, but I did my best and managed!

#5 Setup a new computer. I REALLY wanted to down a bottle of wine with this one, but I refrained. I am not a techy person at all, in fact I get points if I can figure out how to turn the desktop on when the power goes out.

#6 Went grocery shopping (for one). Now this might seem silly, but after shopping together with Hubby for so long, I had a hard time shopping for one. I didn't have piles of meat and potatoes or two of everything in my grocery cart. It was very weird.

We've still got a ways to go before hubby gets home. But I take each day as it comes, and celebrate every little new victory and milestone as they happen.

Yeah me!