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Original poster

Brand new MN Little Italy (22)

1000 replies

Francagoestohollywood · 15/04/2010 13:14

hello, ciao, etc

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Sputnik · 21/04/2010 22:13

Me too, except I'm still on War and Peace. Whose bright idea was that?

AllQuietOnThePippisFront · 21/04/2010 22:17

OH Sputnik I want to move in now! Can you not see me in there?
Damn half a morning gone tomorrow looking at it! Thanks !
I am so happy for that news! God I can imagine a big weight having been lifted off your shoulders!yuppieeee!!

Franca et all could you please write me a list of good books by italian or non-anglo american authors? thanks.

off to bed too.

AllQuietOnThePippisFront · 21/04/2010 22:18

LOL! I have been meaning to start W&P for months and now that is summer I am not so sure - it is def a winter book - no?

night night

Original poster
Francagoestohollywood · 21/04/2010 22:25

Lol, W&P it was deffo Pippi's idea. And now she is putting off reading it !!!

Pippi, I'll make you a list tomorrow, I promise. I'm off to bed now

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BananaGio · 22/04/2010 08:10

Fantastic news Sputnik . So happy for you! You must feel like a new person.
Rosa you are not being OTT but is a losing battle. I was very cross at myself when my parents were over,we went to the beach, it was late March and warm but not hot, ds had his t shirt on and was running around in pants. I didn't consider putting cream on as didnt feel that hot iyswim. Also he isnt pale skinned. That night he had scarlet cheeks and pink arms from the sun and oh the guilt!!!!!!!!!He didnt seem in any discomfort but I felt awful.

Original poster
Francagoestohollywood · 22/04/2010 10:39

Pippi I've just emailed you a list of some sort...

It's getting cloudy here, damn!
Today, ds has is "saggio di coro", as they've practiced for months with a choir teacher at school... he woke up with a blocked nose and a coarse voice... poor ds! (he loved this choir business...)

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Rosa · 22/04/2010 10:51

Back later but had to post how pleased I am for you SPutnik - bet you have aged about 20 years....

Sputnik · 22/04/2010 15:41

Yes, which I could've done without really!
We're still not completely out of the woods yet as he is language has a long way to go, but he has made so much progress in the last few weeks I am quietly optimistic. The neuroligist said the stress of moving house may have set him back.

Original poster
Francagoestohollywood · 22/04/2010 16:53

I'm sure he'll make lots of progress, he is going to amaze you!

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Original poster
Francagoestohollywood · 23/04/2010 10:48

Well Rosa, I guess you should come to Milan and start some sort of language business:

The lovely lady who comes 2 hrs a week to chat/play in english with the dc is sadly going back to the USA. So, I've started to look for someone else and contacted a place, with mother tongue teachers, specialized in teaching to children etc etc etc (I can't send the dc to group lessons, as their english is obviously very advanced/fluent etc). Guess how much money they are asking me???
700 euros for 30 hrs of teaching. per child

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giveitago · 23/04/2010 11:25

Franca - well then I'm off to Milan as I was tesol teacher. Is that how much you can earn, really? But I'm not that great with kids as I was more of a corporate company teacher.

DS walking fine yesterday as I booked him a gp appointment that day and he just 'recovered'. We then went on a school trip that involved 2 hours walking- what a great recovery eh?

DH in bad shape as he's got rotting gums (mainly down to him) and I had to take him to gp and also to peridonist yesterday for treatment. Bless him. He's 47 and if he hasn't figured out how to look after himself he never will. Yep he was in pain, but given we've been doing this for 4 years with no progress outside the surgery I'm afraid I've had to cut him loose on that front.

Wonderful weather and I'm going for a jog in a bit to work on my middle aged belly. It's not looking good and ds wants me to take him swimming soon. Oh bloody hell.

Original poster
Francagoestohollywood · 23/04/2010 11:28

Yes, that's how much I've been quoted. Not sure how much money goes into the teachers pocket though.

It's raining here!

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giveitago · 23/04/2010 11:42

Well, it's Italy and you are going to get a proper summer so you guys are fine!

We are blessed this week. So I'm making the most of it. What I find very hard in the UK is deciding when to do the big pre summer leg waxing as it's a real effort to keep epilating, and not to mention painful. I'm holding off and wearing jeans as I don't think our weather is going to last. Ds will have to wait for his swimming.

dh says there's a coup going on in Forza Italia right now - does that mean that that the big B is finally on the way out? I don't see it myself. Not yet.

What I don't understand is that dh calls himself a socialist but is really into Finni.

Original poster
Francagoestohollywood · 23/04/2010 12:04

Not sure what's happening in the PDL right now, I'm waiting another few hrs and then I'll start to look for the latest news!
Actually (I have lefty leanings), I'm scared that anything might happen, as I'm very worried by the Lega.

Well, I suppose Fini is the most respectable in the PDL.

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Original poster
Francagoestohollywood · 23/04/2010 12:04

Oh getting rid of unwanted hairs is the bane of my life.

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Bucharest · 23/04/2010 13:27

Franca, In all honesty, that price is pretty damn good. Down here the schools would be charging you anything up to 45 euro an hour for one-one lessons and about 150 a month for 8 hour long group lessons. (those were the going rates last time I sent a spy to ask at the local school)

Can't you find someone privately willing to do it? The pain of going through an organisation is that they will be less flexible when the dcs can't go etc. I know the school I worked for allowed 2 lessons during the whole year to be "re-couped".

Just avoid British Thieving Institutes like the plague whatever you do.

Sput- great news about ds! You must be relieved!

Original poster
Francagoestohollywood · 23/04/2010 13:35

Actually, yes, I've been thinking that it's not that bad, considering that they will come at our house! and 30 hrs will mean what, about 6 months? It is lots of money though.

Btw, the British Council managed to piss me off big time, when I asked them info 2 yrs ago and they weren't ready to meet our needs.

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Original poster
Francagoestohollywood · 23/04/2010 13:38

Thanks Buch, so do you think it's worth considering, eh?

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Bucharest · 23/04/2010 13:43

It's a pain that the money, I'm guessing, has to be paid up-front? Good that they will come to you though...

What about any erasmus exchange students at the uni or something? Wouldn't they have a noticeboard offering their services? You'd probably get a much more flexible deal.

The BC are weird, very corporate based and only really interested in the big bucks from that sort of teaching. Have the, erm, pleasure of working with a BC teacher in my summer job and she is a total PITA. (the kids all hated her as well)

Original poster
Francagoestohollywood · 23/04/2010 13:47

I'm not sure if they want to be paid upfront, I suppose so though. And that's a huge pain.

I will also put notices at university and ex pats clubs etc. But I think I need someone with experience now, as I think the lessons can't be just play based now. Now they play a bit with this lady and also read/spell etc, which they enjoy.

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giveitago · 23/04/2010 14:04

BC are very attached to FCO hence their reputation.

Are intercambios popular in Italy. IME they can work out pretty well for a more advanced student as long as they are evenly matched.

Rosa · 23/04/2010 14:33

I was thinking of charging 30 Euros for a group of 4 for an hour ...Maybe not enough me thinks.
All battling with some kind of virus here. DH is at the end but with a silly silly cough which won't go so have told him get to the doc matey as its gone on to long. Hence I am suffering from lack of sleep and feeling shite. Minirosa is full of cold and feeling rotten cry cry cuddle cry. and DD1 seems to have a version of the cough ! I also nearly got my lights knocked out today when a guy with a trolly ( carello) came up behind me diddn't shout Attenzione or Permesso like they all do and rammed me in the back , I fell over the buggy as MIL was pushing so I called him not a nice word as I went into a shop and he came racing back all big and sweaty threatening to call the vigili - Prego I said serve un telefono? Anyway the guy in the shop I was in threw him out as he said he couldn't come in like that ......So I bought 2 lightbulbs instead of one !!!!
MIl was a bit as she said well you did call him a 'onzo '.......

giveitago · 23/04/2010 18:04

LOL serve un telefono. Bit wild?

The one and only time I've taken a pop at someone was when ds was almost two and very active - we went to a wedding where ds was so bored he insisted on running around the tables for the entire 8 hours where other kids were sitting at their tables for the 8 hours.

Someone came up to us to ask if ds was an imbecille. At this point I had a spectactuar sense of humour failure and laid into this guy. It wasn't my finest moment but it made me feel great. No authorities called however. Lots of mouths on the floor and I was happy to leave.

Worse was to come when I went out to the local supermarket the next day and the owner asked what special provisions I'd made at ds's school in light of his 'defects'.

Original poster
Francagoestohollywood · 23/04/2010 21:31

Oh dear, rosa you poor thing! 30 euros would be a huge bargain!

Giveitago, at imbecille

I'm officially knackered. Have watched a movie (Matilda) with the dc, hoping to help them (well ds) wind down, but then he tried to play football again instead of putting his pj on. Heeeelp.

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Original poster
Francagoestohollywood · 23/04/2010 21:33

Sorry laduies, I don't make much sense, do I? I'm sooo tired.
Rosa, I wanted to say I'm sorry for the bugs and for the incident in the street. ANd also that I think you should charge more, at least 40!

good night, I hope you get more sleep tonight

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