Hey Guys,
What a nice holiday week I have had. I worked the first part of the week and then hung out with Jerry on Tuesday and Thursday nights.
We went out for New Years to a clib called Magazzini (Pour Homme). It was really cute and open bar all night long. The guys were hot and
I got my make out on. Check out my facebook profile for some photos for the night.
Alos, I just wanted to update you all on my life and what I have decided to do.
After much thought and business analysis (consulting matrices/frameworks) I have decided to return to Columbia
in the Spring to finish my degree. In this time, I will continue to look for dream opportunities. If they do not come,
I will return to the Tom Ford Collection in September. In the meanwhile, I will outline for my boss some areas in which
I can bring value to the business, in the hope that he will allow me to do these things form New York (so that I can have
an extended internship period on my resume). I also believe that I will be able to get school credit for this work. I believe
this decision will serve me the best in the future. Thank you all for your input. It helped me put my head around this situation
and brought new perspectives and thoughts that I had not previously considered. I do feel like a burden has been lifted off of
my shoulders and I can move forward.
I was supposed to have a date on Tuesday with Simone but he got sick and we had to postpone. I will see him on Sunday and keep you
updated on how it goes. He is so cute and texts me everyday. We will see where this goes (in a month).
I am also preparing for interviews with Louis Vuitton Italia (LVMH) and Larusmiani in the month of January which I think will go well.
My hope is that I have offers from these two companies in addition to the Tom Ford opportunity. This will allow me to really enjoy my
time at Columbia before I graduate. Anyway, I wish you all a Happy New Year! 2010 is going to be amazing, can you feel it?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xW1fXL3s7bk
-Anwar
Friday, January 1, 2010
Monday, December 28, 2009
Holiday Weekend
Hey Guys,
What a relaxing holiday weekend I had! I ended up staying at Jerry’s house from Thursday afternoon until Sunday afternoon. He is a great host. He cooked so much and kept me completely fat and satisfied. He really made this holiday season a great one for me. On Sunday I left around 3pm, only because I had a date at 4pm. I think I would have stayed there forever, and he would have seriously let me. Anyway, I had a date with a 33 year old philosophy teacher named Simone. He was a tad dorky, but I liked him. He was on time and we had a great conversation about family, holiday times, politics, cinema, and personal histories over cappuccinos. I was expecting to hang out for an hour and take a nap before going to the club, but we ended up hanging out until 7pm. It was a good time. He was friendly, cultured and patient. I will see him again on Tuesday night for dinner. I will keep you updated on how things progress. What all of that also means is that means I got no pre sleep before the club: Il Borgo. Like a true professional, I worked it out. Jerry and I went early to take advantage of the buffet (aperitivo). I paid his entrance which I felt I had to after hosting me for nearly 4 days. He was appreciative but like a true English gentlemen, trying to repay me. Sweet. Anyway, the aperitivo really worked me out with turkey, fish, lasagna, etc. I got my life from that buffet last night. Anyway, right before attacking the buffet, I saw a guy (Ivan) I had a date with like 2-3 months before. The same guy who got me into all of the fashion shows during Milan Fashion Week. I mention him because I ended up making out with him a lot last night (while many guys in the club stared and gagged). I loved it. Jerry said in that making out moment he fell in love with me. He surely did have his eyes closed while kissing me. I, on the other hand, had my eyes opened, and was winking at other hot guys while kissing him. It was real T, y’all. Get into it!
Anyway, the night was filled with dancing with hot guys from all over the globe. It is crazy how many people gag when Jerry and I come into a room. Jerry is so striking, its unbelievable. I always tell him, B, YOU ARE GORGEOUS! I think guys are crazy intimidated to go up to him, besides the stand off-ish nature of the Milanese in general. Anyway, we got home at 4 and I was still amped from the club so I really didn’t go to bed until like 5. I am currently running on 2 hours of sleep.
Also, on Sunday I sent an email to my boss outlining everything about what the decision to stay would entail for me. He just arrived in the office and we will discuss it today, he has already told me. So we will see how things turn out.
Sincerely,
Anwar
What a relaxing holiday weekend I had! I ended up staying at Jerry’s house from Thursday afternoon until Sunday afternoon. He is a great host. He cooked so much and kept me completely fat and satisfied. He really made this holiday season a great one for me. On Sunday I left around 3pm, only because I had a date at 4pm. I think I would have stayed there forever, and he would have seriously let me. Anyway, I had a date with a 33 year old philosophy teacher named Simone. He was a tad dorky, but I liked him. He was on time and we had a great conversation about family, holiday times, politics, cinema, and personal histories over cappuccinos. I was expecting to hang out for an hour and take a nap before going to the club, but we ended up hanging out until 7pm. It was a good time. He was friendly, cultured and patient. I will see him again on Tuesday night for dinner. I will keep you updated on how things progress. What all of that also means is that means I got no pre sleep before the club: Il Borgo. Like a true professional, I worked it out. Jerry and I went early to take advantage of the buffet (aperitivo). I paid his entrance which I felt I had to after hosting me for nearly 4 days. He was appreciative but like a true English gentlemen, trying to repay me. Sweet. Anyway, the aperitivo really worked me out with turkey, fish, lasagna, etc. I got my life from that buffet last night. Anyway, right before attacking the buffet, I saw a guy (Ivan) I had a date with like 2-3 months before. The same guy who got me into all of the fashion shows during Milan Fashion Week. I mention him because I ended up making out with him a lot last night (while many guys in the club stared and gagged). I loved it. Jerry said in that making out moment he fell in love with me. He surely did have his eyes closed while kissing me. I, on the other hand, had my eyes opened, and was winking at other hot guys while kissing him. It was real T, y’all. Get into it!
Anyway, the night was filled with dancing with hot guys from all over the globe. It is crazy how many people gag when Jerry and I come into a room. Jerry is so striking, its unbelievable. I always tell him, B, YOU ARE GORGEOUS! I think guys are crazy intimidated to go up to him, besides the stand off-ish nature of the Milanese in general. Anyway, we got home at 4 and I was still amped from the club so I really didn’t go to bed until like 5. I am currently running on 2 hours of sleep.
Also, on Sunday I sent an email to my boss outlining everything about what the decision to stay would entail for me. He just arrived in the office and we will discuss it today, he has already told me. So we will see how things turn out.
Sincerely,
Anwar
Friday, December 25, 2009
Merry Christmas
Hey Guys,
I hope this holiday has been filled with joy and laughter. I have stayed in Milan this holiday season and it has been a great relaxing day. I came over to my friend Jerry's house to celebrate Christmas. We cooked a sick meal and I made an Italian version of my famous cheesecake. It was really great and I have been satisfied the entire day. The highlight was definitely being able to skype with my Mom, Brian, and my sister Cyncere.
I'm sorry I haven't been able to update this blog since my first day of work last Wednesday. I'm a working girl now and also still trying to figure out if I want to stay on for an additional 6 months. This is what I laid out for my BFF Yui about the situation.
1.The decision is either stay on and finish bschool in December:
+
Improve language skills to complete fluency
know how to develop a collection
work more intensely with Tom Ford
possibly be in a better job market after graduating
-
not graduate with class
go to school in the fall no knowing anyone
need to probably move (and negotiate salary so that I can sustain myself)
2.OR go back and not return:
+
had the experience and can put it on my resume
graduate with class
-
3.OR Go back to bschool and come back in the fall (if a perfect full time offer is not found):
+
finish school
graduate with class
time to look for a great full time position
still get the experience
improve language skills
-
having graduated without a full time position
Right now I rank them 1, 3, then 2.
I am grateful to be in the situation that I am in. Either way, I truly don't lose. I understand that and will make my final decision on New Years Eve.
I love you all and miss you all.
-Anwar
I hope this holiday has been filled with joy and laughter. I have stayed in Milan this holiday season and it has been a great relaxing day. I came over to my friend Jerry's house to celebrate Christmas. We cooked a sick meal and I made an Italian version of my famous cheesecake. It was really great and I have been satisfied the entire day. The highlight was definitely being able to skype with my Mom, Brian, and my sister Cyncere.
I'm sorry I haven't been able to update this blog since my first day of work last Wednesday. I'm a working girl now and also still trying to figure out if I want to stay on for an additional 6 months. This is what I laid out for my BFF Yui about the situation.
1.The decision is either stay on and finish bschool in December:
+
Improve language skills to complete fluency
know how to develop a collection
work more intensely with Tom Ford
possibly be in a better job market after graduating
-
not graduate with class
go to school in the fall no knowing anyone
need to probably move (and negotiate salary so that I can sustain myself)
2.OR go back and not return:
+
had the experience and can put it on my resume
graduate with class
-
3.OR Go back to bschool and come back in the fall (if a perfect full time offer is not found):
+
finish school
graduate with class
time to look for a great full time position
still get the experience
improve language skills
-
having graduated without a full time position
Right now I rank them 1, 3, then 2.
I am grateful to be in the situation that I am in. Either way, I truly don't lose. I understand that and will make my final decision on New Years Eve.
I love you all and miss you all.
-Anwar
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
OMG,First Day on the TF Collection!
Hey Guys,
-The Ride
The train was very straight forward. I got to Central Station at 800am and got the train at 815, which got into Novara at 855. The ride was relaxing and woke me up. It gave me the opportunity to get my Italian read on with New Moon. (That Bella is a mess right now in the book). Anyway I took a taxi to the Zegna location, which was about 8-10 minutes away. The taxi driver thought I was a model (of course I gagged). I always get this, you guys can even ask Allegra. When were in Venice they thought I was a model as well, since I was tall, skinny, and beautiful. I gag when men (Italian men, at that) tell me that.
-The Entrance
I was a tad nervous when I pulled up to building since it was well before 10am, the arranged meeting time for me and the General Product Manager Luca F.. The group was great though and showed me to my desk and bought me a coffee and chatted a bit. It was really funny because I forgot how nosy Italians are. Everyone in the office was apparently dying to know who I was. Oh yeah, I was giving ovah dark chinzed blue suit with amazing shoes, and trimmed beard. It was the cuteness.
For all my gays out there, the gay count in the office was about 3, including my ‘company tutor’ or mentor. Well, I saw a book on his shelf that said Gay Elegins, or something like that. I wrote him off as gay gay gay. Is that wrong?
-The Fitting
The most interesting thing I did today was participate in a fitting for these white pants. The fit model was EVERYTHING. He gave twin of Raoul Bova and you all know what I did… GAGGED! I gave him no life though, even when he was trying to speak English with me or talk to me about New York. He was dying for attention toward the end of his day. Gorgeous men are so easy (to get)!
-The Conversation
Toward the end of the day, I got the chance to sit down with Luca F. and talk about what I would be doing and if there were any special projects he wanted me to do. Toward the middle of the conversation he said that he would prefer to have me for 6 months and keep me on for the new spring/summer campaign so that I can see how a collection is made from beginning to end. It had me thinking. Should I do it and finish Columbia Business School in December? He also said that I could always come back in September do the Fall/Winter campaign although I don’t know if I’m too excited about that option as much. What do you guys think?
Also BTW, the Career Services Director at SDA Bocconi sent my resume to LVMH Italia and they contacted me same day (yesterday). They want to interview me in January, so I also have that to look forward to!
-A
-The Ride
The train was very straight forward. I got to Central Station at 800am and got the train at 815, which got into Novara at 855. The ride was relaxing and woke me up. It gave me the opportunity to get my Italian read on with New Moon. (That Bella is a mess right now in the book). Anyway I took a taxi to the Zegna location, which was about 8-10 minutes away. The taxi driver thought I was a model (of course I gagged). I always get this, you guys can even ask Allegra. When were in Venice they thought I was a model as well, since I was tall, skinny, and beautiful. I gag when men (Italian men, at that) tell me that.
-The Entrance
I was a tad nervous when I pulled up to building since it was well before 10am, the arranged meeting time for me and the General Product Manager Luca F.. The group was great though and showed me to my desk and bought me a coffee and chatted a bit. It was really funny because I forgot how nosy Italians are. Everyone in the office was apparently dying to know who I was. Oh yeah, I was giving ovah dark chinzed blue suit with amazing shoes, and trimmed beard. It was the cuteness.
For all my gays out there, the gay count in the office was about 3, including my ‘company tutor’ or mentor. Well, I saw a book on his shelf that said Gay Elegins, or something like that. I wrote him off as gay gay gay. Is that wrong?
-The Fitting
The most interesting thing I did today was participate in a fitting for these white pants. The fit model was EVERYTHING. He gave twin of Raoul Bova and you all know what I did… GAGGED! I gave him no life though, even when he was trying to speak English with me or talk to me about New York. He was dying for attention toward the end of his day. Gorgeous men are so easy (to get)!
-The Conversation
Toward the end of the day, I got the chance to sit down with Luca F. and talk about what I would be doing and if there were any special projects he wanted me to do. Toward the middle of the conversation he said that he would prefer to have me for 6 months and keep me on for the new spring/summer campaign so that I can see how a collection is made from beginning to end. It had me thinking. Should I do it and finish Columbia Business School in December? He also said that I could always come back in September do the Fall/Winter campaign although I don’t know if I’m too excited about that option as much. What do you guys think?
Also BTW, the Career Services Director at SDA Bocconi sent my resume to LVMH Italia and they contacted me same day (yesterday). They want to interview me in January, so I also have that to look forward to!
-A
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
This Is It!
Hey Guys,
The time has finally come! Friday I found out that I could start working on Wednesday, thank the Lord! I feel like everything happens for a reason. If I had started earlier I would have never been able to hang out with Allegra when she came and go to Venice with her. I also would not have been able to actually get there since my card was eaten up and I had no way of getting any money out (key takeaway: Always have a small stash to hold you over for a week). On Friday I got my new CHASE ATM card (bye Wamu, I loved you) and got the ok that I can start on Wednesday. I was definitely relieved when I heard the news. Iasked Jerry to come over and we shared of bottle of wine and caught up on the week, since we hadn’t seen each other for about a week. On Saturday I just chilled out and leisurely went to the school to be on the internet and watch some American TV. TVSHACK.NET is a life savior! I wish I had it when I was living in Germany. Anyway, later that night I went to my friend’s Daniel’s house. He and his boyfriend made dinner for Jerry and me. It was nice His boyfriend is from Gambia and made some traditional Gambian food. I wish I could give the name of the dish, but it slips my mind at the moment. I know it was white rice with a spicy okra sauce on top. After that we went to Magazzini. It was fun but this time the crowd was a little younger which I was not a big fan of. I definitely got some life nd ended up kissing 2 people, but only one of them was a make out session (harmless, not even hardcore). Then Jerry stayed the night at my house and left in the morning. I had plans to be productive on Sunday but I opened my wndow and felt how cold it was outside and decided to stay in for the day. I was on the computer all day chatting with family and random guys of Christmas present and past, perhaps even future. I basically set up dinner dates for myself from Wednesday to Saturday! I will keep you all updated on how all of them go.
Wed with Giuseppe
Thursday with Massimiliano
Friday with Andrea (cooking lesson)
Saturday lunch with Giovanni
Then Saturday dinner at Jerrys.
I had another date but I double booked Wednesday by accident and will hve to postpone Luigi until Monday. =)
Monday I woke up early and went to the Government building to get an official Italian SSN or codice fiscale. That went well. I then went to the school to sign my contract and look up directions to the building. After signing the contract I felt a sense of accomplishment and really didn’t do much except for getting caught up on some shows: Private Practice and Gossip Girl. I went shopping at the Duomo, where the day before the Prime Minister/ President Silvio Berlusconi got sucker punched (rock/statue thrown at his face, really big news here). Just imagine Brack getting punched by a random Republican against his policies. It is truly insane.Anyway, I found these shows at Zara that I thought they ran out of. They are som brown loafer high tops. They can be put low or high, very cute!
On Monday I also sent an email to my ‘company tutor’ at Zegna (Tom Ford Collection) Luca Ferri. He got back to me same day which was amazing here. It was definitely a good sign that we will be able to work well together. He told me the first half of the internship is in Novara at the manufacturing facility and the second part of the internship is in the Tom Ford Showroom. YAY! Really exciting! He also told me that we are working the Monday after Christmas so my trip to London to be with Allegra and her family has been cancelled, unfortunately. It is all good. I will get to London soon enough. Tuesday I woke up early again because I had my Permesso di Soggiorno (Residence Permit) meeting. I got there on time and the office did not have me in the schedule, and I presume they did not even have my paperwork. I was so over it so I just left, came back home and rested until 2. I am still a little bit sick; I think I got sick again after going out on Saturday night (Jerry is also really sick). Anyway, I know I will get up for tomorrow’s first day. I really can’t believe this day has finally come. I wanted to quit this process so many times and at this moment I am happy that I didn’t. Ok, now I have to shave and get my train tickets to Novara (where my job is). Much love and thanks for all of your support in this drama called my Milanese life! Oh yeah, now my focus is full time jobs. I have the Director of Career Services here looking into LVMH as well as a men’s luxury brand Larusmiani (possibility of VP level withn 3-4 years). I also emailed the Inditex Group with an update of my new experience. We will see how that goes!
-A
The time has finally come! Friday I found out that I could start working on Wednesday, thank the Lord! I feel like everything happens for a reason. If I had started earlier I would have never been able to hang out with Allegra when she came and go to Venice with her. I also would not have been able to actually get there since my card was eaten up and I had no way of getting any money out (key takeaway: Always have a small stash to hold you over for a week). On Friday I got my new CHASE ATM card (bye Wamu, I loved you) and got the ok that I can start on Wednesday. I was definitely relieved when I heard the news. Iasked Jerry to come over and we shared of bottle of wine and caught up on the week, since we hadn’t seen each other for about a week. On Saturday I just chilled out and leisurely went to the school to be on the internet and watch some American TV. TVSHACK.NET is a life savior! I wish I had it when I was living in Germany. Anyway, later that night I went to my friend’s Daniel’s house. He and his boyfriend made dinner for Jerry and me. It was nice His boyfriend is from Gambia and made some traditional Gambian food. I wish I could give the name of the dish, but it slips my mind at the moment. I know it was white rice with a spicy okra sauce on top. After that we went to Magazzini. It was fun but this time the crowd was a little younger which I was not a big fan of. I definitely got some life nd ended up kissing 2 people, but only one of them was a make out session (harmless, not even hardcore). Then Jerry stayed the night at my house and left in the morning. I had plans to be productive on Sunday but I opened my wndow and felt how cold it was outside and decided to stay in for the day. I was on the computer all day chatting with family and random guys of Christmas present and past, perhaps even future. I basically set up dinner dates for myself from Wednesday to Saturday! I will keep you all updated on how all of them go.
Wed with Giuseppe
Thursday with Massimiliano
Friday with Andrea (cooking lesson)
Saturday lunch with Giovanni
Then Saturday dinner at Jerrys.
I had another date but I double booked Wednesday by accident and will hve to postpone Luigi until Monday. =)
Monday I woke up early and went to the Government building to get an official Italian SSN or codice fiscale. That went well. I then went to the school to sign my contract and look up directions to the building. After signing the contract I felt a sense of accomplishment and really didn’t do much except for getting caught up on some shows: Private Practice and Gossip Girl. I went shopping at the Duomo, where the day before the Prime Minister/ President Silvio Berlusconi got sucker punched (rock/statue thrown at his face, really big news here). Just imagine Brack getting punched by a random Republican against his policies. It is truly insane.Anyway, I found these shows at Zara that I thought they ran out of. They are som brown loafer high tops. They can be put low or high, very cute!
On Monday I also sent an email to my ‘company tutor’ at Zegna (Tom Ford Collection) Luca Ferri. He got back to me same day which was amazing here. It was definitely a good sign that we will be able to work well together. He told me the first half of the internship is in Novara at the manufacturing facility and the second part of the internship is in the Tom Ford Showroom. YAY! Really exciting! He also told me that we are working the Monday after Christmas so my trip to London to be with Allegra and her family has been cancelled, unfortunately. It is all good. I will get to London soon enough. Tuesday I woke up early again because I had my Permesso di Soggiorno (Residence Permit) meeting. I got there on time and the office did not have me in the schedule, and I presume they did not even have my paperwork. I was so over it so I just left, came back home and rested until 2. I am still a little bit sick; I think I got sick again after going out on Saturday night (Jerry is also really sick). Anyway, I know I will get up for tomorrow’s first day. I really can’t believe this day has finally come. I wanted to quit this process so many times and at this moment I am happy that I didn’t. Ok, now I have to shave and get my train tickets to Novara (where my job is). Much love and thanks for all of your support in this drama called my Milanese life! Oh yeah, now my focus is full time jobs. I have the Director of Career Services here looking into LVMH as well as a men’s luxury brand Larusmiani (possibility of VP level withn 3-4 years). I also emailed the Inditex Group with an update of my new experience. We will see how that goes!
-A
Friday, December 11, 2009
Cont. Allegra
Hey Guys,
So where did we leave off? Oh yeah, I remember, Allegra was texting me because she was worried that I was never coming home. Anyway, Sunday was a bit of a blur as I was out of it. Allegra went out on her own and came back around 5pm, just as I was in shower. I had to open my window (after hearing her knock on it) and give her the key. She took a picture so maybe you might be able to see how mortified I was standing in my open window butt naked for the world to see as they passed by. Anyway, after that we packed and went to dinner around 8pm to this authentic Pizzeria called Spumante's. It is loud, completely full, and very Italian. Many consider it one of the best pizzerias in the city. You can see most families going there in the evening time. It is quite good and all they have is cheese pizza. We had a blast. We then got home and met up with Jerry to go out to Il Borgo. While at the ATM, the machine took my card and did not give it back! I was slightly freaking out cause I had no money and no way of getting money but Allegra was there to calm me down and cover for me. We went to club and had a blast. We met up with our friends Daniel and Ibrahim and started dancing, first in the house room and then in the R&B room. I saw a couple of people that I knew there and also met and flirted with some hot guys. Allegra has the pictures to prove. We also got Allegra in the action and lots of guys were coming on to her as well. It was so fun. They were all a shady mess. Please check the facebook photos to see what I am am talking about. We also saw one guy from the Dominican Hair Salon as a Barback and he was hooking Allegra up with free drinks. Then on the way home around 5 we took this bus home and some guy from Peru kept on yell HOLA. Drunk Allegra began engaging with him and then got mad at him because he called a black pussy, in mixed Spanish/Italian. It was hilarious. This guy was so drunk and slobbering all over the place, even on my jeans. Anyway, we finally got home at 530 and Allegra cooked all the food in my house for herself, Jerry, and me and we ate it like savages. I got a new card sent to me and we then had an hour before we needed to wake up to go to Venice. I didn't go to sleep but Allegra and Jerry did! At 6:30 Jerry went home and Allegra and I went to Central Station and were soon on our way to Venice. Allegra was passed out the entire trip and I was in and out of it. We arrived in Venice in no time and left the station two messes! We had directions to our hotel but seriously Venice is the most confusing city I have ever been in. After 20 minutes of going nowhere we finally got a map. The map only got us so far. Google Maps was wrong for the first time in my life. It only took us half way there. We finally ended up at the nice Belli Arte Hotel. What should have taken us 20 minutes to do took up 1.5 hours. What a mess! We got in our room and crashed for about 2-3 hours. After the nappy poo we were off to see the city. Too bad in the winter time it gets dark at 4pm. We finally got our lives together and went to Piazza San Marco, got lost a little bit, and returned back when the rain really started coming down hard. We went on the internet and then Allegra had a migrane so she had water and I had candy and she began to lay down. I then met my hot 33yo trick that I had been chatting with for about week beforehand. We met for a drink and spent 2-3 hours just chatting it up. He is a professor at the local university and researches the biology of fish in the area. He was trying to get me to go to this club off the island but I didn't feel comfortable leaving an area I knew nothing about, so he walked me to my hotel and we started making out. We then went back to his place to do the due. After 'the session' I came home feeling like the end of the Madonna "Justify my Love" video. In the rain, holding my clothes on my body completely and utterly joyous, just giggling at the whole situation: http://video.yahoo.com/watch/14227/817532
Anyway, the next day we woke up early and hit all the major sites from Frari, Basiilica, Doge Palace, Campnile, Piazza San Marco, Accademia, Rialto Market, Santa MAria Della Salute. It was a whirlwind of a day but we got to see a lot and meet some very interesting characters. One woman from Columbia who was telling us the MJ was still alive, and a mask maker who was telling us about the history of masks in Venice and how he makes them to eat everyday. Good Times, Good Times. Allegra and I parted at 730 so I could make my train at 9. It was so cold in the train station and on the train. The train did end up getting to Milan until 1am, completely delayed. I got sick from the days in Venice and the ride home but would not trade it in for the world. I have just been recuperating at home since returning. I start work next week at Zegna, working on the TOm Ford Collection. It is quite exciting, although I don't know what to expect.
-Anwar
So where did we leave off? Oh yeah, I remember, Allegra was texting me because she was worried that I was never coming home. Anyway, Sunday was a bit of a blur as I was out of it. Allegra went out on her own and came back around 5pm, just as I was in shower. I had to open my window (after hearing her knock on it) and give her the key. She took a picture so maybe you might be able to see how mortified I was standing in my open window butt naked for the world to see as they passed by. Anyway, after that we packed and went to dinner around 8pm to this authentic Pizzeria called Spumante's. It is loud, completely full, and very Italian. Many consider it one of the best pizzerias in the city. You can see most families going there in the evening time. It is quite good and all they have is cheese pizza. We had a blast. We then got home and met up with Jerry to go out to Il Borgo. While at the ATM, the machine took my card and did not give it back! I was slightly freaking out cause I had no money and no way of getting money but Allegra was there to calm me down and cover for me. We went to club and had a blast. We met up with our friends Daniel and Ibrahim and started dancing, first in the house room and then in the R&B room. I saw a couple of people that I knew there and also met and flirted with some hot guys. Allegra has the pictures to prove. We also got Allegra in the action and lots of guys were coming on to her as well. It was so fun. They were all a shady mess. Please check the facebook photos to see what I am am talking about. We also saw one guy from the Dominican Hair Salon as a Barback and he was hooking Allegra up with free drinks. Then on the way home around 5 we took this bus home and some guy from Peru kept on yell HOLA. Drunk Allegra began engaging with him and then got mad at him because he called a black pussy, in mixed Spanish/Italian. It was hilarious. This guy was so drunk and slobbering all over the place, even on my jeans. Anyway, we finally got home at 530 and Allegra cooked all the food in my house for herself, Jerry, and me and we ate it like savages. I got a new card sent to me and we then had an hour before we needed to wake up to go to Venice. I didn't go to sleep but Allegra and Jerry did! At 6:30 Jerry went home and Allegra and I went to Central Station and were soon on our way to Venice. Allegra was passed out the entire trip and I was in and out of it. We arrived in Venice in no time and left the station two messes! We had directions to our hotel but seriously Venice is the most confusing city I have ever been in. After 20 minutes of going nowhere we finally got a map. The map only got us so far. Google Maps was wrong for the first time in my life. It only took us half way there. We finally ended up at the nice Belli Arte Hotel. What should have taken us 20 minutes to do took up 1.5 hours. What a mess! We got in our room and crashed for about 2-3 hours. After the nappy poo we were off to see the city. Too bad in the winter time it gets dark at 4pm. We finally got our lives together and went to Piazza San Marco, got lost a little bit, and returned back when the rain really started coming down hard. We went on the internet and then Allegra had a migrane so she had water and I had candy and she began to lay down. I then met my hot 33yo trick that I had been chatting with for about week beforehand. We met for a drink and spent 2-3 hours just chatting it up. He is a professor at the local university and researches the biology of fish in the area. He was trying to get me to go to this club off the island but I didn't feel comfortable leaving an area I knew nothing about, so he walked me to my hotel and we started making out. We then went back to his place to do the due. After 'the session' I came home feeling like the end of the Madonna "Justify my Love" video. In the rain, holding my clothes on my body completely and utterly joyous, just giggling at the whole situation: http://video.yahoo.com/watch/14227/817532
Anyway, the next day we woke up early and hit all the major sites from Frari, Basiilica, Doge Palace, Campnile, Piazza San Marco, Accademia, Rialto Market, Santa MAria Della Salute. It was a whirlwind of a day but we got to see a lot and meet some very interesting characters. One woman from Columbia who was telling us the MJ was still alive, and a mask maker who was telling us about the history of masks in Venice and how he makes them to eat everyday. Good Times, Good Times. Allegra and I parted at 730 so I could make my train at 9. It was so cold in the train station and on the train. The train did end up getting to Milan until 1am, completely delayed. I got sick from the days in Venice and the ride home but would not trade it in for the world. I have just been recuperating at home since returning. I start work next week at Zegna, working on the TOm Ford Collection. It is quite exciting, although I don't know what to expect.
-Anwar
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Week with A!
Hey Guys,
I have not been able to write in this blog because Allegra (a really really great friend form boarding school came to visit me all last week. If I repeat some things, I apologize.
What a week it has been. I arrived last Sunday around 8am to a quiet cloudy Milan in the morning. I came home and passed out until 4pm. For the rest of that day I handled some business, reloading my cell phone, getting my monthly unlimited subway pass, grocery shopping. Later in the night I went to a friend’s house, Jerry Osei Tutu. He is a very together guy from Ghana who has grown and lived in London all his life. He lived in Rome for 2 years before coming to Milan to continue his own line. Also, he founded a human rights organization. He is a very together fellow and I just live for him. He cooked me a spinach dish and chatted and finished a bottle of wine (Pinot Nero). He and I have already painted the town but you will hear about that later. Oh yeah, I actually had a threesome scheduled but I did not want to be a mess before Allegra came, and inevitably it was going to make me a mess. Anyway, Monday, I again woke up later (2pm) and got myself together and went to the school to figure out how we were doing with the internship paperwork. It turns out HR guy Zegna was dragging his feet again and there was drama about me needing an actual work permit. This was unknown to me especially given the fact we decide to go through Bocconi for the internship. Long story short, I have not received my contract yet since. I still had to register myself in Italy, by getting some paperwork, going to different post offices and paying even more money. It was not that big of a deal though. I was able to get everything done by 7pm, just before the post office closed and just in time to pick up Allegra form Central Station at 730. She ended up coming in at around 8pm. I took her to my place which is 10 minutes away by subway to my apartment at Piola Station and we immediately went to the grocery store to get all the food we needed for the week. Allegra was fascinated by all the cheeses. I think she was in that aisle for 10-15 minutes. She wanted a special kind of cheese from sheep’s milk. I couldn’t translate sheep in the moment but later found out it was (pecoro). She ended up getting the cheese she wanted (from Tuscany). She then proceeded to snack on chips, wine, and cheese for most of the night. Later on we had salad and spinach and ricotta tortellini. We chatted all night until she passed out on the sofa. Tuesday we went shopping at Loreto a shopping area about 10 minutes away from me by foot. We found some stuff at Sephora, Benetton and I found some stuff at Zara (as usual). We then went to the post office (always an ordeal in Italy) to mail something for A. After that, we went to the Dominican hair salon to get her hair straighten. We ended up running into Charnae, my SDA Bocconi MLT partner in crime. She had just returned from Turkey with Mesha (mixed black/german girl from Fashion program) & Fabio (her BF), and her whatever he is, Giovanni. She said they had an amazing time which makes me want to visit Turkey so badly. I’ve heard such amazing things about the place and I seem to get along with the Turks so well, it seems like a natural place to visit and fall in love with. Anyway, you know the Dominican hair salon was a riot. I left Allegra there with Charnae for about 15 minutes to check my email and send some emails to my luxury professor/career services director to update them on the drama of the internship, but soon returned to the hair salon a block away. The gay hairdresser was telling the T about the Italian men, the crying all the time and saying I love you within two days of knowing you. I was gagging as he was calling them out. We finally finished around 8pm and took the bus home. I told Allegra to not punch her 10-ride ticket since the popo never comes on and checks and you all know what happened. Allegra was a pro and played dumb American. I was giving new American since I had a subscription to the Milan transportation system. Anyway, they must have repeated 20-25 times that we had to swipe our card every 75 minutes to renew it. I decided to take the brunt of this reprimand since A was the newbie and it was me who told her not to stamp. I will say that by the end of the trip, Allegra was not stamping on her own accord, and nothing seemed to happen. =) They basically stayed on the bus for 3-4 stops when they usually just stay on for one stop. One of the officers was just berading me and completely in my face, to the point that I had sit back so that there was some space between us. Anyway, it was funny and we got to my place around 9 to stop by the local pizzeria, pick up some pizzas, and meet my friend Jerry who came over and shared some pizza and wine. Good times, good times. After he left, A and I stayed up until 3 in the morning to catch up on Brothers and Sisters. Good times, good times. Wednesday Allegra and I went to the Duomo, Vittoria Emanuelle Galleria, and architecture exhibit, and ran into a free Leonardo di (caprio) Vinci painting exhibit, which Allegra later found out that it was just one painting. We then walked down to my school to go to this great Indian restaurant. It didn’t open until 7pm so I went to recharge my monthly internet and then we went to a local café and had an Aperitivo. This is where you order and drink and receive the benefits of a nice little buffet. When the barista came out with our drinks, he accidently spilled everything on Allegra. I’m talking peanuts, chips, her gin and tonic, my orange fanta. Even the glasses broke. Of course we cracked up but everyone was completely silent. I took a picture of the peanuts in Allegras cooch. Hilarious! After that we went to Indian food, which was always good although Allegra was not a huge fan of the spiced chicken. We went home and passed out. Thursday I rested at home and leisurely got up while Allegra went out on the town to catch a few more sights (Egyptian Museum, Castello Sforezco, etc.). Later in the day I went to school and tried to work out my internship situation. I checked my email and I finally received a message fromt the HR guy at Zegna (after two weeks of hearing nothing from him) after calling three times a day everyday and emailing everyday. He mentioned that he was fighting for me to have this internship. Anyway, I become very calm and at peace with the entire situation as I entered the career services office. Deep down inside, I knew that I had done everything on my side, Tuesday Bocconi said that everything was ok on their side, Wednesday the CEO of the group I would be working on gave his ok through my luxury professor. Everyone was ok with the situation but there were still issues from Zegna, which at this point I found to be funny. The career services and Simone (the student relations coordinator) were pissed and embarrassed. I was surprised to know this but the Director of Career Services even sent my resume out to other places while waiting for Zegna to get their act together. It was something I was not expecting and a completely nice gesture. It is always good to know that you have people on your side. I left my school to meet up with Allegra at the Duomo. We went to this restaurant called Ciao and walked around and shopped a bit, most notably at La Rinascente. The Italian equivalent of Saks Fifth Avenue Department store. We then went to a surprise Bday party that Jerry organized for his roommate. It included some very interesting weird characters that all spoke English, so we couldn’t really talk about them. It was mostly friends of Vincenzo. All of them seemed to love black people. One woman even had a mixed son (who opened the door as we arrived). The guy that we walked in the party with (Patrick) was has a black BF and some people originally thought that he and I were together. Never that. This man was a mess, Hammer pants, not the cute trendy ones, and a weird black and white pattern shirt. His head was shaved on the back and sides and the top was long and curly! What! No shade but shade! We were actually talking about him on the train without knowing he was going to the party. Friday Allegra went out and did her own thing and I stayed home again. I had been sleeping a little too much all week. I think I was physically manifesting my frustration with my internship situation through sleep. That and the fact that I never converted my sleeping schedule to the Euro time zone. =) but seriously, Allegra was a God-send. I didn’t really mind not working last week. I had one of my best friends in town from the States (my first US visitor while abroad) so things were pretty much OK and realigned my priorities. Back to Friday. I finally got the HR guy’s cell phone number and kinda bitched him out on the whole situation and how unprofessional he was during this entire process. I asked him for two things
1. the decision since the HR dept was meeting to today to discuss my situation
2. His colleagues name since he was going on vacation next week
in email format and ended up not receiving them, what a disappointment! I ended up staying home and having to make copies of my visa and registration papers to send to Simone so that he could scan and send them to Zegna for their meeting. I hope to hear one way or another by tomorrow (Wednesday 12/9). Friday night We tried to catch up on Private Practice but my Internet had messed up because the woman did not give me the promotion like I usually have, so the credit ran out very quickly. It was ok though, because A and I just chatted it up until late talking about everything from babies, marriage, abortions, Obama’s healthcare plan, past relationships, current relationships, and future relationships. It was actually great to have a long, serious conversation with her. I love her perspective on things.
Saturday A and I went to my school to get our Venice T together, book hotels and hostels, we went to central station to get our tickets, and we also went shopping for her sisters back at Loreto. After we got home, I had to rest for like 30 minutes and then we went to Aperitivo at a local bar and watched the Inter-Juventus football (soccer) match. Then Jerry came over because I had planned for us to go out to Magazzini Generali, the best gay club in Milan hands down. It reminds me of Circus in LA or Hiro’s Ballroom in NYC. Huge location, men are delicious and down for anything, hahah. Anyway, we met up with some of my friends Daniel and Ibrahim. They are a couple; Daniel is Eastern Euro and Ibrahim is Senegalese. We had so much fun. You know I was workin it and flirtin with everyone. I ended up three way kissing my friends, kissing some random guy on the dancefloor, and a guy in the bathroom. Messy but always fun! The men were living for me and Jerry. We were definitely getting our mad flirt on, at least I was, and people could not deal, in a good way. It was really cute. The couple left around 4 and we left around 5am and got home at 6. Jerry and I came back to my apartment and chatted for a while before he made his way home. Allegra ran into the living room around 8am where I passed out and told me that she can never have children because she was worried sick. She actually texted me around 5am through her US number because she ahd a panic attack about where I was and if something had happened to me. It was hilarious but I ended up thinking that she would make a great mother. She also kept thinking that she had no keys, no phone, so she felt helpless. She knew I am a grown man though and I was doing me, like always.
More to come about Sunday night at Il Borgo and Venice with A!
I have not been able to write in this blog because Allegra (a really really great friend form boarding school came to visit me all last week. If I repeat some things, I apologize.
What a week it has been. I arrived last Sunday around 8am to a quiet cloudy Milan in the morning. I came home and passed out until 4pm. For the rest of that day I handled some business, reloading my cell phone, getting my monthly unlimited subway pass, grocery shopping. Later in the night I went to a friend’s house, Jerry Osei Tutu. He is a very together guy from Ghana who has grown and lived in London all his life. He lived in Rome for 2 years before coming to Milan to continue his own line. Also, he founded a human rights organization. He is a very together fellow and I just live for him. He cooked me a spinach dish and chatted and finished a bottle of wine (Pinot Nero). He and I have already painted the town but you will hear about that later. Oh yeah, I actually had a threesome scheduled but I did not want to be a mess before Allegra came, and inevitably it was going to make me a mess. Anyway, Monday, I again woke up later (2pm) and got myself together and went to the school to figure out how we were doing with the internship paperwork. It turns out HR guy Zegna was dragging his feet again and there was drama about me needing an actual work permit. This was unknown to me especially given the fact we decide to go through Bocconi for the internship. Long story short, I have not received my contract yet since. I still had to register myself in Italy, by getting some paperwork, going to different post offices and paying even more money. It was not that big of a deal though. I was able to get everything done by 7pm, just before the post office closed and just in time to pick up Allegra form Central Station at 730. She ended up coming in at around 8pm. I took her to my place which is 10 minutes away by subway to my apartment at Piola Station and we immediately went to the grocery store to get all the food we needed for the week. Allegra was fascinated by all the cheeses. I think she was in that aisle for 10-15 minutes. She wanted a special kind of cheese from sheep’s milk. I couldn’t translate sheep in the moment but later found out it was (pecoro). She ended up getting the cheese she wanted (from Tuscany). She then proceeded to snack on chips, wine, and cheese for most of the night. Later on we had salad and spinach and ricotta tortellini. We chatted all night until she passed out on the sofa. Tuesday we went shopping at Loreto a shopping area about 10 minutes away from me by foot. We found some stuff at Sephora, Benetton and I found some stuff at Zara (as usual). We then went to the post office (always an ordeal in Italy) to mail something for A. After that, we went to the Dominican hair salon to get her hair straighten. We ended up running into Charnae, my SDA Bocconi MLT partner in crime. She had just returned from Turkey with Mesha (mixed black/german girl from Fashion program) & Fabio (her BF), and her whatever he is, Giovanni. She said they had an amazing time which makes me want to visit Turkey so badly. I’ve heard such amazing things about the place and I seem to get along with the Turks so well, it seems like a natural place to visit and fall in love with. Anyway, you know the Dominican hair salon was a riot. I left Allegra there with Charnae for about 15 minutes to check my email and send some emails to my luxury professor/career services director to update them on the drama of the internship, but soon returned to the hair salon a block away. The gay hairdresser was telling the T about the Italian men, the crying all the time and saying I love you within two days of knowing you. I was gagging as he was calling them out. We finally finished around 8pm and took the bus home. I told Allegra to not punch her 10-ride ticket since the popo never comes on and checks and you all know what happened. Allegra was a pro and played dumb American. I was giving new American since I had a subscription to the Milan transportation system. Anyway, they must have repeated 20-25 times that we had to swipe our card every 75 minutes to renew it. I decided to take the brunt of this reprimand since A was the newbie and it was me who told her not to stamp. I will say that by the end of the trip, Allegra was not stamping on her own accord, and nothing seemed to happen. =) They basically stayed on the bus for 3-4 stops when they usually just stay on for one stop. One of the officers was just berading me and completely in my face, to the point that I had sit back so that there was some space between us. Anyway, it was funny and we got to my place around 9 to stop by the local pizzeria, pick up some pizzas, and meet my friend Jerry who came over and shared some pizza and wine. Good times, good times. After he left, A and I stayed up until 3 in the morning to catch up on Brothers and Sisters. Good times, good times. Wednesday Allegra and I went to the Duomo, Vittoria Emanuelle Galleria, and architecture exhibit, and ran into a free Leonardo di (caprio) Vinci painting exhibit, which Allegra later found out that it was just one painting. We then walked down to my school to go to this great Indian restaurant. It didn’t open until 7pm so I went to recharge my monthly internet and then we went to a local café and had an Aperitivo. This is where you order and drink and receive the benefits of a nice little buffet. When the barista came out with our drinks, he accidently spilled everything on Allegra. I’m talking peanuts, chips, her gin and tonic, my orange fanta. Even the glasses broke. Of course we cracked up but everyone was completely silent. I took a picture of the peanuts in Allegras cooch. Hilarious! After that we went to Indian food, which was always good although Allegra was not a huge fan of the spiced chicken. We went home and passed out. Thursday I rested at home and leisurely got up while Allegra went out on the town to catch a few more sights (Egyptian Museum, Castello Sforezco, etc.). Later in the day I went to school and tried to work out my internship situation. I checked my email and I finally received a message fromt the HR guy at Zegna (after two weeks of hearing nothing from him) after calling three times a day everyday and emailing everyday. He mentioned that he was fighting for me to have this internship. Anyway, I become very calm and at peace with the entire situation as I entered the career services office. Deep down inside, I knew that I had done everything on my side, Tuesday Bocconi said that everything was ok on their side, Wednesday the CEO of the group I would be working on gave his ok through my luxury professor. Everyone was ok with the situation but there were still issues from Zegna, which at this point I found to be funny. The career services and Simone (the student relations coordinator) were pissed and embarrassed. I was surprised to know this but the Director of Career Services even sent my resume out to other places while waiting for Zegna to get their act together. It was something I was not expecting and a completely nice gesture. It is always good to know that you have people on your side. I left my school to meet up with Allegra at the Duomo. We went to this restaurant called Ciao and walked around and shopped a bit, most notably at La Rinascente. The Italian equivalent of Saks Fifth Avenue Department store. We then went to a surprise Bday party that Jerry organized for his roommate. It included some very interesting weird characters that all spoke English, so we couldn’t really talk about them. It was mostly friends of Vincenzo. All of them seemed to love black people. One woman even had a mixed son (who opened the door as we arrived). The guy that we walked in the party with (Patrick) was has a black BF and some people originally thought that he and I were together. Never that. This man was a mess, Hammer pants, not the cute trendy ones, and a weird black and white pattern shirt. His head was shaved on the back and sides and the top was long and curly! What! No shade but shade! We were actually talking about him on the train without knowing he was going to the party. Friday Allegra went out and did her own thing and I stayed home again. I had been sleeping a little too much all week. I think I was physically manifesting my frustration with my internship situation through sleep. That and the fact that I never converted my sleeping schedule to the Euro time zone. =) but seriously, Allegra was a God-send. I didn’t really mind not working last week. I had one of my best friends in town from the States (my first US visitor while abroad) so things were pretty much OK and realigned my priorities. Back to Friday. I finally got the HR guy’s cell phone number and kinda bitched him out on the whole situation and how unprofessional he was during this entire process. I asked him for two things
1. the decision since the HR dept was meeting to today to discuss my situation
2. His colleagues name since he was going on vacation next week
in email format and ended up not receiving them, what a disappointment! I ended up staying home and having to make copies of my visa and registration papers to send to Simone so that he could scan and send them to Zegna for their meeting. I hope to hear one way or another by tomorrow (Wednesday 12/9). Friday night We tried to catch up on Private Practice but my Internet had messed up because the woman did not give me the promotion like I usually have, so the credit ran out very quickly. It was ok though, because A and I just chatted it up until late talking about everything from babies, marriage, abortions, Obama’s healthcare plan, past relationships, current relationships, and future relationships. It was actually great to have a long, serious conversation with her. I love her perspective on things.
Saturday A and I went to my school to get our Venice T together, book hotels and hostels, we went to central station to get our tickets, and we also went shopping for her sisters back at Loreto. After we got home, I had to rest for like 30 minutes and then we went to Aperitivo at a local bar and watched the Inter-Juventus football (soccer) match. Then Jerry came over because I had planned for us to go out to Magazzini Generali, the best gay club in Milan hands down. It reminds me of Circus in LA or Hiro’s Ballroom in NYC. Huge location, men are delicious and down for anything, hahah. Anyway, we met up with some of my friends Daniel and Ibrahim. They are a couple; Daniel is Eastern Euro and Ibrahim is Senegalese. We had so much fun. You know I was workin it and flirtin with everyone. I ended up three way kissing my friends, kissing some random guy on the dancefloor, and a guy in the bathroom. Messy but always fun! The men were living for me and Jerry. We were definitely getting our mad flirt on, at least I was, and people could not deal, in a good way. It was really cute. The couple left around 4 and we left around 5am and got home at 6. Jerry and I came back to my apartment and chatted for a while before he made his way home. Allegra ran into the living room around 8am where I passed out and told me that she can never have children because she was worried sick. She actually texted me around 5am through her US number because she ahd a panic attack about where I was and if something had happened to me. It was hilarious but I ended up thinking that she would make a great mother. She also kept thinking that she had no keys, no phone, so she felt helpless. She knew I am a grown man though and I was doing me, like always.
More to come about Sunday night at Il Borgo and Venice with A!
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