Smile!

The collapse of financial giants shakes the City

2008-09-15T14:00:00.000-07:00

5,000 jobs have been lost today in Canary Wharf as Lehman Brothers collapse. In addition AIG, Manchester United sponsor, see its shares slide. Last week XL tour operator collapsed leaving 90,000 Britons stranded worldwide. What's next?

Londoners to decide on future of CC in West London

2008-08-04T14:06:00.000-07:00

Boris Johnson is thinking to axe the Western extension of the Congestion Charge.
Shepherds Bush, where I live, is the nearest area to the CC border. Residents are complaining the lack of parking slots and the cost of using the car.
As a resident I can say that it's CRAZY to use the car in London and that a city with less cars means a city with faster buses and better public transport. And also in days in which the cost of petrol is too high, it means better savings....

Cornwall, July 2008

2008-07-28T14:55:00.000-07:00

Beautiful place, tidy, clean...

The Capital changes its drinking habits...

2008-06-01T01:35:00.000-07:00

31st May: to mark the last day in which alcohol is allowed on tube and buses thousands have gathered in undergrounds stations and train to make the journey of "normal" people a nightmare. Police had to closes some of the gates to stations and trains were late. Is this the best way to enjoy alcohol in a "civilized" European capital?

1st June: the ban starts, the situation is better (it's 01.40am) but just because the tube is close after midnight, I came back by bus and still there were people with drinks in Coke cans! Vomit and sick people everywhere.

Will the capital change its drinking habit from today? ... let's wait for next Friday.

(Pictures from BBC News)

(Pictures from BBC News http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/in_pictures/7429685.stm)

An Italian in UK writes to the President of the Italian Republic

2008-05-31T12:41:00.000-07:00

Carissimo Presidente,
sono un'italiana residente all'estero ormai da diversi anni, ma nonostante questo sono sempre stata attaccata alla mia cara Italia. I suoi colori, la creatività, la vivacità, genuinità e ospitalità della nostra gente sono tutte cose che fino a pochi giorni fa venivano decantate all'estero come marchio dell'essere italiano e che tanto mi rendevano orgogliosa.

Come può ben immaginare, continuo a seguire tutti i fatti di attualità, di politica, di cronaca che riguardano il nostro Paese, e mi creda, mi rattrista dover confessare a Lei e prima ancora a me stessa che mi vergogno dell'Italia ritratta in questi giorni su tutte le prime pagine dei giornali nazionali e internazionali.

Signor Presidente ma che succede? Dove è finita la succitata "ospitalità" degli italiani? E' davvero possibile che il sentimento più forte che emerge nella popolazione sia ormai la paura dello straniero, del migrante, dell'immigrato?

La sicurezza è certamente un problema serio, ma non penso che il modo giusto di risolverlo sia quello di alimentare la paura e l'intolleranza nei confronti di persone comunitarie ed extracomunitarie. Piuttosto penso che una più attenta politica di integrazione sociale sia la soluzione al problema dell'Immigrazione che a mio avviso, non coincide (come il governo vuole far credere) con il problema della Sicurezza.

Siamo in EUROPA e credo sia assurdo leggere ancora sui giornali, titoli come "ragazza italiana violentata da un romeno". Con questo non voglio sminuire affatto la bruttura del reato, mi auguro soltanto che la giustizia faccia il suo corso indipendentemente da chi lo ha commesso. Quindi mi chiedo quale sia il bisogno di sottolineare la diversa nazionalità?

Sono una ricercatrice e il mio lavoro mi ha dato la possibilità di uscire fuori dai "nostri confini" e mi creda non ho mai trovato tanta intolleranza come quella che sta nascendo e che si sta alimentando negli ultimi tempi in Italia.

Adesso sono in Inghilterra e come lei sa qui di immigrati (comunitari ed extra comunitari) ce ne sono tanti, ma così tanti che non si può più fare una distinzione. Per farle solo un esempio, a Pasqua ero ad Oxford e in Chiesa ho assistito ad uno spettacolo meraviglioso: c'era tutto il mondo rappresentato in quella piccola Chiesa Cattolica. Mi colpì e mi commosse la diversità dei colori della pelle, dei costumi, ma al tempo stesso l'omogeneità e la coralità di tutte quelle persone.

Mi chiedo quando in Italia sarà possibile respirare quella stessa atmosfera di integrazione che si trova ormai nel resto d'Europa?

Signor Presidente spero tanto che Lei non permetterà al presente governo di inasprire i rapporti tra gli italiani e gli immigrati, spero che Lei alzi la voce davanti a ministri che giustificano e incitano alla pulizia dei campi rom, spero che Lei faccia tutto quello che è in suo potere per rendersi portavoce della necessità di migliorare la politica di integrazione sociale di cui l'Italia ha oggi bisogno per confrontarsi alla pari con il resto del mondo e d'Europa.

Fiduciosa nella sua persona e nell'importante carica istituzionale che lei ricopre, la ringrazio per la sua attenzione e le auguro buon lavoro.
Cordiali saluti,

Maria Vinci

(Pugliese, 34 anni, da 5 o 6 si dedica alla ricerca sul cancro. Ha studiato e lavorato a Milano (Ifom) e a Heidelberg in Germania. Ora si trova in Inghilterra)

Coldplay video filmed in Sicily

2008-05-19T15:07:00.000-07:00

In April Coldplay have arrived in Sicily, Italy to shoot the video for the first single, Violet Hill, taken from Viva La Vida Or Death And All His Friends.

ARE THERE ANY DATES OR SHOWS THAT ARE PARTICULARLY MEMORABLE?
Being in Sicily when we got the news that Parachutes had gone to number 1.
Reviews and comments about Violet Hill

Italy shows its muscles

2008-05-16T16:36:00.000-07:00

When I went to Nepal I was surprised that there was a good Italian restaurant in Pokkara, a city not far from the start of the Annapurna trail. Everywhere in the world there is an Italian pizzeria or shop. This means that Italy is a country with a long and strong emigration history. In order to say thanks to all the people who have given us the opportunity to live, work and study today the new Italian government is breaking the EU agreement chasing immigrates from the EU countries.

Italy found itself a weak country and the only way to hide the weakness (of its economy i.e.) is to show the power and strength against the poor and weak people.

Everyone is shocked here and as it usually happens only in these cases my friends or colleagues recall the fact that I am Italian....

Bon Jovi and Sciacca (in Italian!)

2008-05-15T15:12:00.000-07:00

http://www.agrigentonotizie.it/notizie/leggi/24294/jon-bon-jovi-e-la-nostalgia-per-la-sua-sciacca.html

Finally!

2008-05-07T13:49:00.001-07:00

Habemus Boris

2008-05-02T16:25:00.000-07:00

The 1st of May London elected its Mayor, the Conservative Boris Johnson, editor of The Spectator (and occasionally BBC presenter), ending Ken Livingstone's eight-year reign at City Hall.
I went to vote in my old borough and it was funny. As an Italian it was weird not to see policemen at the polling station, situated in a council estate and not in a school. Very young staff, no queue (even at peak time), no identity check, no privacy when casting the vote. Very funny indeed, it seems like I was voting for the school rep when I was 13!
The campaign was also different compared to Italian election, no advertising for the candidate in the streets. Candidate have a limit spending including their personal expenses to campaign (i.e. travel).

Now London has changed like Rome.
My new constituency voted Boris for the 55%, Ken for 29%, Paddick for 8.40% e Green candidate for 3.30%.
My old constituency (where I voted) went for 49.50% for Ken, 29.50% for Boris, 10% for Paddick and 5% for Green.

Hopefully transportation would improve, street will be cleaner and crime beaten.

Paddick or Berry?

2008-04-25T17:09:00.000-07:00

For the London Elects 2008 my polling station is miles away from where I live as I just moved to a new area. The 1st May I am expecting a big motivation to cross the capital and express my vote that will not go to Ken, sorry but his idea of transport in London is far away from what people really need.

Two years on...

2008-04-18T14:42:00.000-07:00

The 19th of April 2006, after voting at the Italian general election, I came to UK without knowing why, for how long and what I was going to do.
Two years after (an other Italian general election, different result though) I consider myself a Londoner even if quite often I dream of an exotic place somewhere in the Far East. Sometimes I feel like I have been living in London for ages, I feel tired of tube and crowds and queues but that is what most of Londoners think of their city and that's why many of them end up in Australia or Africa.

Three jobs, two companies, four houses, two partners: life runs quickly in the Capital. No regrets at all just a pause to think about what next. What's next??? I really do not know, maybe another city but far away from the Old Continent.

Moving to the West

2008-04-18T12:58:00.000-07:00

After 2 years (this is a sharp 2 years period from 19th April 2006 to 19th April 2008!) spent in North London (N8 and N7) I am moving now to West London.
Shepherds Bush W12 is now my new area. Well known for its multi-ethnic population and some decadent areas, Shepherds Bush is also ready for a major regeneration. The new flat is in the Muslim area of W12, close to the mosque and hundreds of shops serving this community, including many falafel shops and excluding pubs, I haven't see any in a half mile radius. So no temptation for alcohol and other sins!!!

Oh my God....

2008-04-14T14:14:00.000-07:00

Berlusconi is back, stronger then ever. Are Italian people's minds under control of Berlusconi owened media?

I was thinking this today in a BBC gym where I was listening to the results from Rome.
I felt free, free to listening that Berlusconi is a salesman, free to think that having a PM who controls the media, the football, the financial market and so on is not acceptable in a modern Western democracy.

I am happy to be free, I was happy not to watch Porta Aperta or similar tv programmes, today.

Italian elections 2008: waiting for results

2008-04-12T13:08:00.000-07:00

Who will be the next Italian PM?
Tomorrow the results.

BBC interviewed 10 people from Palermo, Sicily, about their vote tomorrow:
- 6 are voting for Berlusconi
-3 are voting for Veltroni
-1 does not go to vote

CLICK HERE FOR THE EXTRACTS FROM THESE INTERVIEWS

International media has increased the coverage of the elections, with BBC sending Stephanie Holmes to Palermo, and I am here to suggest good articles to read:

Palermo heads to the polls again

Italy poll rivals make final push

Vote Berlusconi and you will get one month taxes off...

Why Italy's women are out of work

Palermo feels pinch ahead of polls

Berlusconi: Left has uglier women

Rivals pledge to revive ailing Italy

Italian politics hold back economy

Berlusconi boasts of 'good' Latin

Sicilian grow defiant of Mafia

My vote in a red mail box

2008-04-03T15:32:00.000-07:00

My vote is traveling to Italy, hopefully the result will be red... as the mail box where I posted my envelope....

A Sicilian woman candidate at the Italian Elections in UK

2008-03-15T16:33:00.000-07:00

Simona Milio is the candidate for the PD in the European electoral constituency for the Italian Elections 2008. She lives in London.
CV of Simona Milio

City Academy showcase on Fri 7th March

2008-03-08T13:17:00.000-08:00

UPDATE* The showcase was really funny and I think good! It was my first time acting in English (with an Italian accent) in front of 200 people. Larissa (with her Aussie accent) and Tanya (with her Saffa accent) were great. In the picture the hall where we had the showcase. Cool! isn't it?

I will take part to the City Academy showcase on Friday 7th March from 7pm SHARP. This is where I attend my acting class. My part will be just few minutes, the play is Our Country's Good.
Unfortunately there is an entrance fee of 5 pounds, I think the money goes to a charity.
City Academy is located between Angel and Farringdon, close to the Amnesty International headquarter. Nearest tube: Angel (Northern Line), then bus 38 for few stops or 10 minutes walking towards Farringdon.
Address:
City Academy
Finsbury Town Hall
Rosebery Avenue
London EC1R 4RP

Italian "erections", when democracy is fucked up...

2008-02-23T14:29:00.001-08:00

Old times... today

2008-02-04T11:28:00.000-08:00

I found this picture on Flickr, this used to be the Communist Party headquarter in my home town in Sicily. Cool photo, isn'it?

Unbelievable Italy...

2008-01-27T06:29:00.000-08:00

In the waiting room of the company dentist the news (BBC obviously!) flow on the screen. Four of the main news are about my country: the buffalo mozzarella infection, the rubbish shame in Naples, Mastella leaving his office as Minister and Cuffaro guilty in Mafia case. The other patients were really interested in those news, in their faces stupor and smiles... is Italy in Europe?
One week later, Thursday at 6pm, another appointment with the dentist: Prodi faces the Senato vote is the main news on the BBC screen. I have my visit and when I leave and pay at the reception Prodi lost already his job.
Difficult to explain to my colleagues that a minister who has problems with the justice and is not clean is able to lead to the resignation of the Prime Minister! How come someone who should leave his office because suspected of corruption is the one who stops the government working!
Difficult to explain it to myself as well...

Something rotten in state of Italy (BBC analysis)

Artshed

2008-01-05T03:57:00.000-08:00

Hi, this is a video recorded over the Xmas holiday with my acting class mates here in London. It's slow, sorry, maybe you would prefer to prepare a coffee o go to the loo while it loads! Enjoy! (from DrowningStreet.co.uk)

WATCH

Cuba pics

2007-12-22T16:18:00.000-08:00

Hi, here are my pics from Cuba:

CLICK HERE

I have also uploaded my pics from Iceland.

Please note that unfortunately I have lost most of my pics due to a very UNprofessional company (Truprint) to whom I have sent my 10 films to develop (each of 36), out of which I got 4 blank films. Also the quality is very very bad.

I know, I haven't switched to the digital era but I still like to play with my old Reflex camera and so far I have not had any problem. After this disappointing event I may consider to go digital.....

From FT: Starbucks bows to Italy's baristi

2007-12-20T10:11:00.000-08:00

Here is the article about coffee in Italy:

CLICK HERE

The Times: La dolce vita turns sour as Italy faces up to being old and poor

2007-12-19T03:04:00.000-08:00

Here is the article about Italy...

CLICK HERE

Cuba and after

2007-12-15T02:29:00.000-08:00

Hi all,

I am still recovering from being again in this freezing city after 2 wonderful week in the most erotic and musical country ever seen. My films are on the way to be developed (yes, no digital era has begun for me yet!) and I will upload them on Flickr as usual. In the meantime I have changed job and what better month then December to start??? Among Xmas lunches, iceskating, Xmas parties, relocation and so on the show hasn't started yet! I will keep you posted... watch this space!

Alberto's leaving do party 22nd Nov

2007-11-11T23:03:00.000-08:00

A very beautiful experience is now over, I will miss many things there and after my leaving do (quite emotional I should say!) I feel also that many people are now my best friends! What better day to say Thanks and Arrivederci on Thanksgiving!

I will try to show up at the Marquis on Fridays after work... as usual....

Beowulf European Premiere

2007-11-11T16:03:00.000-08:00

Hi, I went to the Warner Bros Beowulf European Premiere and while I was walking on the red carpet before entering the theatre I noticed that Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt were just few yards from me... and in the auditorium I was sitting in the third row, very close to the stage from where Angelina and the other actors presented the 3D premiere.

My article on London markets

2007-11-10T15:49:00.000-08:00

I got quoted in The Guardian!!! - 5th Nov 07

2007-11-05T02:42:00.000-08:00

http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2007/nov/05/officehours2

A cake for my birthday...

2007-11-03T13:13:00.000-07:00

Do not worry, I am still young or maybe I look young! This is my cake for my birthday at Yahoo!

You can find me on Facebook...

2007-10-23T10:41:00.000-07:00

Hi, while I am still posting on this blog (even if with a minor regularity) you can find me on Facebook, just type my name

See you there!

Yahoo! beats Google

2007-10-01T14:51:00.000-07:00

The 10th August 2007 Yahoo!, Lastminute.com and Google played against each other for a special cricket trophy.

YAHOO! won after beating Google and Lastminute.com

Iceland July 2007

2007-09-22T12:08:00.000-07:00

In July 2007 I went to Iceland, one of the most dramatic and extreme countries in Europe but... maybe not more then Sicily ;-)

Notting Hill Carnival

2007-08-30T12:44:00.000-07:00

Andrea came to visit me during the Carnival. We spent all the times in the sound systems area. WICKED!

Amy and Richard leaving do party

2007-07-16T06:29:00.000-07:00

Wall Street is far away....

2007-06-22T07:10:00.001-07:00

Translation: "Banco di Sicilia (Bank of Sicily), fish market branch."

COMING SOON>>>>

2007-06-05T13:49:00.000-07:00

I need to write about my crazy afternoon at Milan Malpensa Airport on Sunday 3rd June. I just need time to do it (I have also moved to a new role in my company so it's a busy period) because they are very good stories! So please keep visiting my blog... you will not be disappointed!

Thanks very much to all the people that I have met in the last week and helped me with advice and supported me. Thanks a lot to you as well!

Pics from boat cruise, London, river Thames

2007-05-24T08:47:00.000-07:00

http://www.flickr.com/photos/8376179@N08/sets/72157600314743630/

Food Festival in Clapham

2007-05-14T14:12:00.000-07:00

Here are the pics from the Food Festival at Priscilla's place on Sunday 13th May 2007.

My speciality was sangria!

Roller disco: pics

2007-05-01T03:25:00.000-07:00

Here you can find the pics from the Y! Roller Disco Night on Friday 27th April 2007:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/claudiabianchi/sets/72157600159845742/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/louisamansfield/page2/

My first Roller disco!

2007-04-30T04:37:00.000-07:00

one YEAR on

2007-04-18T14:59:00.000-07:00

My first year in London. I arrived from Palermo via Florence the 19th April 2006...

Thanks to all the people who have supported me before and after my arrival!

THANKS!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/7727515@N06/

2007-04-07T14:57:00.000-07:00

Please visit my Flickr page!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/7727515@N06/

I am looking for room, from 1st May

2007-04-07T05:19:00.000-07:00

Hi, I am looking for a room in a shared flat in zone 2 or even 1!
I need it from the 1st of May, so please contact me if you know someone who is looking for a tidy, clean, professional flatmate!
Thanks a lot!
Fingers crossed!

My bike in London

2007-04-06T15:05:00.000-07:00

This is the bike I had from mid February to early April. Very crap!

Beat the CC? no beating the tube tickets prices!!!

2007-02-18T11:13:00.000-08:00

With the extension of the Congestion Charge to West people are trying to find new ways to avoid the 8 pounds charge.
However I found the way to avoid the 23.20 pounds of my weekly Oyster travel card.
I decided to bike to work.

TfL listens to me!

2007-02-18T11:03:00.000-08:00

In December I wrote a complaint to Transport for London stating that the bus 91 wastes around 10-15 minutes just to try to enter and exit Euston Square bus station. I suggested to avoid this stop and to replaced it with nearby stops 200-300 metres from the stations.
TfL immediately answers saying that
"However, stopping at Euston is an important objective for us. While traffic can be busier around mainline stations, we are determined to provide an integrated transport network. To do this, we have to serve mainline train stations. In order to ensure that those with mobility problems are not disadvantaged, we stop close to important destinations along the route.
Nevertheless, I have made our Network Development Team aware of your comments. They monitor all our routes in order to be aware of any service issues that may need tackling. We are determined to provide a reliable service, and consider any service changes thoroughly before implementing them."

NOW route 91 does not stop at Euston anymore!

SHAME

2007-02-03T03:55:00.000-08:00

Ladies and gentlemen... the SNOW!

2007-01-28T06:47:00.000-08:00

UK: gales and storm

2007-01-20T11:51:00.000-08:00

Flight disruption due to fog

2006-12-29T12:10:00.000-08:00

I was going to Northern Italy for my Xmas holiday but on Thursday 21st December a text message from British Airways informed me that my flight was cancelled. Here the images from www.flickr.com about the temporary tend build outside Heathrow airport and other images from those days with flight disruption due to fog.

Memories from a James Brown concert in Sicily

2006-12-29T05:47:00.000-08:00

25/12/2006
Metti una sera con James Brown
Il ricordo di un concerto in Sicilia
Era la seconda metà degli anni '80, probabilmente il 1988 ma non ci giurerei, e la calda e sonnacchiosa estate di Sciacca fu svegliata da una notizia che aveva dell'incredibile: James Brown sarebbe venuto a suonare in piazza. E chi ci credeva! All'inizio si pensava a uno scherzo, visto che in città la vena cazzeggiatoria è sempre viva, tanto che ogni anno al largo c'è chi giura di aver avvistato il panfilo di Robert De Niro o lo yacht di Tom Cruise.

Ma scherzo non era: quell'anno la Regione Sicilia aveva tanti soldi da spendere e ingaggiò grossi nomi della musica per far concerti in giro per l'isola. Sciacca fu fortunata, pescò il re del soul. Ah, che anni, gli anni '80!

L'uomo di I feel good, la sex machine, insomma, sarebbe venuta davvero. E la cittadina si preparava timidamente a quell'inatteso concerto, considerato che da quelle parti in quegli anni se una star arrivava era italiana, e gli artisti di calibro internazionale si vedevano solo in tv. Anche oggi, per la verità, succede la stessa cosa.

Il grande momento giunge in una calda giornata d'agosto, e la piazza comincia a riempirsi già dal tardo pomeriggio. C'è fame di eventi, e per uno spettacolo come quello mezza Sicilia si dà appuntamento a Sciacca. Nell'attesa la fantasia genera le leggende. Robe del tipo: "Dorme in città?" "Ma quando mai, sta a Palermo". "Ma no, ho saputo che sta qui, e gli hanno portato ghiaccio in camera tutto il giorno che lui soffre il caldo". "Io invece so che viene, fa il concerto e parte subito". E via dicendo.

Il palco è insolitamente grande per la piazza, un drappo nero con la scritta bianca "James Brown in concerto" fa da sfondo. Il tutto esaurito giunge con l'arrivo della sera, lo show dovrebbe cominciare ma gli altoparlanti continuano a mandare musica registrata. "Questo non viene" è il pensiero di buona parte dei presenti, e invece, con un paio d'ore di ritardo, cinto da un mantello e corona in testa, Brown sale sul palco accompagnato da una band immensa. "I'm the king", urla, e per un paio d'ore sembrò di stare al Madison Square Garden di New York.

Grazie, James, per quella serata e per questo ricordo.

(articolo di Domenico Catagnano)
http://www.tgcom.mediaset.it/spettacolo/articoli/articolo341541.shtml

Seasonal Greeting

2006-12-25T13:47:00.000-08:00

Y! parties

2006-12-17T07:31:00.000-08:00

For the latest pictures of Y! parties look at:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/53252264@N00

http://www.flickr.com/photos/32723014@N00/

http://uk.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/melim_work/my_photos

My office and last year party:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/72163399@N00/page1/

Party at my place

2006-12-16T13:39:00.000-08:00

In the pictures: Laura and Andrea (I lived at their home until October 2006), two of my flatmates ( Scottish Christopher and Gill), my friend Marie, my collegues Claudia, Marina and Marie, friends of friends...

It's party time...

2006-12-12T02:58:00.000-08:00

Hi,
in London Xmas is a serious thing and parties are the best of this seriousness. Before going to the Hats Off party I have decided not to drink alcool but after one hour my decision overturned! Here the image of my first glass of red one...

Pics captions: Me and my first glass of wine, Italians in my office, dancing but still ok!, smiling at paparazzi and finally me transformed!

The big finish, watch me!

2006-12-10T12:43:00.000-08:00

On New Year's Eve watch the Big Finish on BBC and you can spot me among the audience!
http://www.bbc.co.uk/bigfinish/index.shtml

THE BIG FINISH with Graham Norton is the end-of-year entertainment event for 2006. Five celebrity teams will go head to head in a quiz that celebrates the best and most memorable moments of 2006. The Big Finish will be testing our celebrities' knowledge of 2006 as we look back at the top moments from the year. Here you can get a sneak look at some of those taking part - we'll be adding more names over the coming weeks so check back soon to see if your favourite celeb will be in the hot seat.
During The Big Finish we're also having live performances from some of the top names in showbiz.

Announcement:

2006-12-09T03:12:00.000-08:00

Xmas party at my place in Crouch End on Sat 16th Dec.
Please get it touch with me for more details.
Thanks

What's my job about?

2006-12-08T03:18:00.000-08:00

This is an article about my role at work (http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/6058.asp)

Burn Out in Ad Operations
June 06, 2005
By Doug Wintz

The crucial role of ad trafficker is harsh. Find out how to retain this valuable resource.

By far, the most over worked, under-appreciated, misunderstood resource in any online company is the ad trafficker. This is a job that can transform the most intelligent, rational, motivated and conscientious individual into a high-strung, irritable, error-prone employee. And THIS is the individual who is responsible for taking every bit of revenue your sales group generates and making sure it delivers as promised, on time, with accurate reporting.

So, why is the position of ad trafficker so tough? And why is this position typically neglected and mismanaged? And finally, what can be done to make this crucial role and department more rewarding to the individual and more productive to your company?

First, let�s take a look at what traffickers do. They are smart, learning and operating ad serving systems with the requisite technical knowledge needed to schedule several different versions of target ad tags. They are troubleshooters, receiving creative, sending it back, making sure it clicks as it should. They are customer service people, often interacting with their peers in agencies, at publishers, et cetera in a manner that must reflect the best interests of your company.

Unfortunately, the ad trafficker also bears the brunt of minute-to-minute problem solving. Orders are written in haste, and the trafficker is the one who needs to clarify and correct it so it can run. Creative is late, and the trafficker must make up the time and delivery. It doesn�t meet specifications and the trafficker becomes the intermediary between a confused sales person and an irate advertiser. The publisher tells the client that there is a three- to five-day turnaround time for campaigns from receipt of creative. The sales organization can demand it be turned around in an hour. The work is stressful, relentless then ultimately mind numbing. The trafficker is frequently on the low end of the pay scale, gets no commission, but is responsible for making sure that all contractual commitments are delivered as specified.

This puts a sales/ops organization in a difficult predicament. Ad traffickers are not easy to come by -- so the tendency is to keep the good ones where they are. Eventually, however, the repetition and stress outweigh the incentives to the employee and they become unmotivated, burned out and eventually leave.

So, what can be done about it?

One of the keys to keeping an ad operations organization fresh is to furnish a career path for your employees. An ad trafficker might graduate to a senior inventory analyst; or they can be put in charge of managing the development of new ad products.

If they have the mindset and make up, some can even migrate into sales and do well at it, since they know the business from the ground up.

In the meantime, while you�re keeping your current staff motivated by moving them into more challenging positions, make it a point to actively keep a pipeline open with new ad traffickers -- in fact, you might consider graduating one of your current staff to be a trainer!

Finally, recognition among peers is a highly underestimated incentive. Don�t discount �star� awards for work above and beyond the call -- with a monetary value. Engage both the sales and operations groups to create the sense that �we�re all in this together� instead of �us versus them.�

The key to keeping this valuable talent motivated is to give them something to look forward to. Furnishing recognition and a career path is vital to preventing burnout among this important resource, which after all is responsible for delivering the revenue your company lives on.

A strike called "Industrial Actions"...

2006-11-21T14:24:00.000-08:00

Coming back from Sicily I was welcomed by an Industrial Action, that's a strike! without saying it clearly. Is maybe Italy the country of every-day-strike because Italians call them with the word "strike"?

After a new job... a new house!

2006-11-11T10:39:00.001-08:00

In the picture: where I live. My house is just at the bottom of the hill. The antenna in the background is Alexandra Palace, known in London as Ally Pally, here the BBC broadcasting started its high definition service in 1936. This is also the best place for the Guy Fawkes's fireworks on 5th November.

Is journalist Simon Kuper a binge drinker or he has lost memory about hooligans problems in a civilized country?

2006-10-29T03:45:00.000-08:00

Sorry state of Italian football boosts Sicily
By SIMON KUPER

Published: October 28 2006 03:00 on Financial Times - London

"In Sicily, where it's still pretty much mid-summer, these are confusing times.

As citizens of Palermo rouse themselves with the world's strongest shots of espresso, they see round them what appear to be hallucinations. Everywhere are men wearing pink shirts. The post-machismo colours of the local football team had always been a rare sight on the island, like correctly parked cars, because Sicilian football was usually terrible. But Palermo start this weekend joint top of the Italian league. Stranger still, two other Sicilian teams - Messina and Catania - are in Italy's top 11.

The island's football has never been so strong. It would be nice to say that this symbolises a new Sicily but it doesn't. Instead, Sicily's rise symbolises the malaise in Italy, land of the world champions.

On the map, Sicily looks famously like the ball being kicked by the Italian boot. In football, as in most other things, the beautiful island generally takes a kicking. Palermo went bust as early as 1939, long before bankruptcy became fashionable in Italian football.

In the good years, when Sicilian clubs weren't going bust, they tended to scrabble about in Italy's lower leagues. When northern fans deigned to notice Sicily, it was mostly to mock it: Verona supporters took a banner to Catania that read "Forza Etna", a cheer urging on the town's volcano.

Sicilians wisely tended to ignore their own teams. The most popular club on the island was always Juventus, who play hundreds of miles away in Turin. Most Sicilians had relatives there, migrants who had gone north to work for Fiat.

But, to quote Sicilian novelist Elio Vittorini: "There's no cheese like our own cheese." In 2004 Sicilians rediscovered their own football. That summer Palermo and Messina were promoted to Serie A, Italy's highest division, after 30 and 40 years outside it respectively. Several hundred thousand Palermans celebrated in the streets with fireworks, slightly raising the city's usual noise level. The club's owner, Maurizio Zamparini, a supermarket magnate from the Friuli region of northern Italy, said: "We have realised the dream of millions of Sicilians around the world."

This summer Catania joined its neighbours in Serie A. That means frequent Sicilian derbies at the highest level. This is not altogether happy news, because, as criminologist Nigel Walker says: "The conventions of the vendetta are . . . followed not only by Sicilian peasants but also by football teams, colleges, politicians, book reviewers and media personalities."

Thus, in 2001, Catania's hooligans cheered when they landed a makeshift bomb in a stand of Messina supporters. It killed a 24-year-old. In September, Sicilian derbies generated two nights of fighting in a week. "It was like in Lebanon," commented Catania's police chief.

Sicilians get touchy when outsiders mention their tradition of violence. West Ham fans discovered this last month when they sparked brawls by showing up on the island in T-shirts that said "Hammers v. Mafia". The same joke had miraculously occurred to Slavia Prague, who, before playing Palermo in last season's Uefa Cup, put a photograph on their website of two of their players dressed in sunglasses and hats, alongside the phrase "Kosa Nostra".

But this column refuses to slur Sicily with outdated stereotypes and, in any case, it's silly to irritate people who might make you offers you can't refuse.

Sicily's footballing glory coincides with the recent capture in an isolated farmhouse of Bernardo Provenzano, boss of all bosses of the Sicilian mafia.

It's tempting to say these events point to some broader local renaissance. In fact, they don't. The island remains desperate. Each year, the Il Sole 24 Ore newspaper ranks Italian provinces by quality of life. Messina spent 2003 and 2004 in last place. Last year it bounced off the bottom but both Catania and Palermo made the last five.

Rather than Sicily rising, northern football has collapsed. The demise transcends this summer's demotion of Juventus and the punishment of other clubs for bribing referees.

Italian football has been shedding spectators for 20 years. In 1985, the Serie A averaged crowds of nearly 40,000 a game. This season it's below 20,000: lower than France (something that was once unthinkable), and the worst figure since 1970. Given all the violence, bribery, bankruptcies and exodus of stars abroad, it's a wonder anyone still watches at all. The clubs on Italy's mainland are mostly out of cash, and Zamparini points to another change: after the bribery scandal, referees stopped cheating for the big clubs. When Sicily can compete, you know the Italian system has broken down.

Alessandro del Piero, Juventus's great fantasista, when asked who he was supporting in the Serie A this season, deadpanned in a Sicilian accent: "Palemmo." So say many Italian fans, who dream of Palemmo becoming the smallest champions of Italy since Cagliari of Sardinia in 1970."

Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2006 (entire text of this column except the title of the blog post)

From free-lance to free-lesssss

2006-10-20T14:01:00.000-07:00

Hi, finally I got a new job, a very busy one! My first week was a big change. From lots of free time and no rules in my daily life to a busy desk in the office.
I am very happy because I am working for an international company with nice colleagues, managers and lots of fun. We already had a party in a pub.
The big change is obviously less time and less freedom in my weekdays.
But this is what I wanted and then I am happy!

A beach in Regent Street?

2006-10-07T06:05:00.000-07:00

Thanks to my friend Tasha for this picture in a sunny day in Regent Street in London. It was an early September... now, one month later, the situation of the weather is quite different! At least I enjoyed three sunny and perfect day in Sciacca, Sicily! 28 degrees in a beach, a real one!!!

London super-rats

2006-09-20T05:13:00.000-07:00

Rats are back in London and Uk...
Everybody knows that rats are anywhere in London, it's easy to see the little ones on the railtrack of the tube: free entertainment, while wait for the next train, included in the next 4 pounds ticket (from January this is the price!, more then 6 euros!).
And everybody knows that the encounter can happens in the kitchen as well. In this case is not entertaining at all!
A charity said that people are helping to create the new breed of super-rat: untidy Britain, fast food, litter in the streets, Mc Donalds and Co.
Rats are enjoing more food then ever, free and delivered at their places.

IF YOU LIVE IN LONDON: please keep streets clean and do not feed super-rats...
If you are eating your kebabs after an evening at the pub, please do not leave any left over in the street...
PLEASE!!!!

West Ham - Palermo: 0-1

2006-09-14T16:13:00.000-07:00

Why this t-shirt?
Outside the West Ham stadium in London stalls were selling this t-shirt.
Is this funny?

West Ham fears Palermo!

2006-09-14T06:50:00.000-07:00

Alan Pardew is convinced West Ham will "upset a few in Europe" - but first they must negotiate a way past tricky first round opponents Palermo.
Palermo finished eighth in last year's Serie A but were promoted to fourth place and direct qualification to the UEFA Cup following the Italian match-fixing scandal.
They opened this campaign on Sunday with a 4-3 victory over Reggina after a storming first half performance that sent jitters through West Ham's watching scouts Keith Peacock and Roger Cross.
But heading into the Hammers' first European campaign in seven years Pardew said: "If we could just get through this first two-legged tie I think we can make an impact, I really do. "This is the real tricky part of Europe for us. We will have had no experience (in Europe) and we have a lot of young guys who are going to be keen, maybe over-keen, to do well.
"If we get through I think with the way this team plays we can upset a few in Europe. But this tie is a big, big test for us."
The Hammers have struggled to find their attacking rhythm so far this season and Pardew knows it is vital they hit form again for tomorrow's home leg.
"The report that came back from Sunday's game was that if Palermo play like they did in that first half we shouldn't even bother turning up because they were that good," said Pardew
"The second half wasn't so good, so there is a little bit of hope for us, but it will be a tough game.
"We have got to try to push our philosophy on them because they are very good at playing the game at their speed. That will be a lot easier at home than it will away.
"They are a very good Serie A team and an outside tip for a Champions League place this season so we really are up against it.
"Their president said this could be the quarter-final but it is a qualifier (for the lucrative group stages). It is that tough for both teams.
"In some respects it's a no-lose situation for us."
That last comment in particular was unusual for Pardew, who has worked hard to encourage his young squad to attack teams without fear.

It's festival time in LondON

2006-09-12T09:11:00.000-07:00

Great summer here in London this year. I am very glad this is happening while I am here even if I am a bit concerned and worried about the coming winter season. Anyway, maybe thanks to Ken the Red, London is offering many open air events you expect in a Mediterranean country. And instead they happens here. From Regent St festival to Brick Lane festival, here the party is outside, in the street, like in a Sicilian town!
Well done LondON!

Linux Ubuntux

2006-09-12T09:03:00.000-07:00

I am trying to recover my old laptop with a live Linux CD that my friend Silvan in Turin had prepared for me. I hope this is works, I really need my laptop to look for a job. If you are trying to get rid of your old but still working laptop please get in touch with me!
Any advice on Linux?
Thanks

I am looking for a job

2006-09-10T14:46:00.000-07:00

The Yahoo! job here in London has arrived to an end. From tomorrow 11th of September I will be without a job. I am obviously looking for another one but a break is welcome! After 4 months waking up at 6.30 to get to the office at 8 o'clock finally tomorrow I can sleep until late but... I hope this doesn't last for a long time...
ANY ADVISE TO LOOK FOR A JOB IN LONDON IS WELCOME!

The image shows an example of my work at Yahoo! It is a screeshot from the Italian front page.

From Sciacca to Notting Hill

2006-08-28T15:18:00.000-07:00

I went to the Notting Hill Carnival in London and here is my comment.
Costumes are more colourful and interesting here compared with the one you can see in Sciacca, Sicily.
Atmosphere in Notting Hill is fake, Caribbean people only seem to be involved in the carnival.
I have really appreciated the sound systems in the area: they are sort of discoes with djs who choice the best of reggae, soca, jazz, soul, hip-hop, funk and so on. People gather around to dance. They are around 50 and are located not far from the procession route.
Another difference with the most established event in Sciacca is the procession of Orchestras on open-air lorries.

Summer is over

2006-08-20T13:09:00.000-07:00

The best English summer ever is now over. With temperatures ranging between 13 at night and 24 at daytime you never know what to wear on. The sky is anyway the trickiest thing in the weather issue. Is going to pouring down or today we will get some nice sunny spells? The weather forecast TV programmes cannot help. There are so crap! They never guessed the weather situation! Even BBC!

2006-07-18T03:12:00.000-07:00

2006-07-18T03:10:00.000-07:00

Reclaim the beach - London 15th July 2006

2006-07-17T14:21:00.000-07:00

From The Observer, Sunday July 16, 2006

2006-07-16T07:54:00.000-07:00

You have to love the Italians, don't you? If they didn't exist someone would have to invent them and just think what sort of tortured imagination it would take to dream up such improbably complex concepts as the Papacy, the Borgias, the mafia, Niccolo Machiavelli, Silvio Berlusconi, Leonardo da Vinci and the great Juventus referee-fixing scandal.
No fiction writer would dare come up with a plot so corny that a team could start the week as world champions and end it in disgrace. Yet we all knew it was coming and the Italians have even been here before. In 1982, the previous time Italy won the World Cup, they began the tournament in disgrace yet managed to lift the trophy through the scoring exploits of Paolo Rossi, a striker only just back from a two-year suspension after being caught up in a betting scandal back home.

From The Observer, Sunday July 16, 2006

More pics on the 9th July final - London celebrations

2006-07-16T07:52:00.000-07:00

To see more pictures on the celebration of World Cup in Central London please go to:

GALLERY 1
http://www.italianialondra.com/foto/worldcup/index.htm

GALLERY 2
http://www.italianialondra.com/foto/worldcup2/index.htm

Sunday 9th july 2006 - Soho, London

2006-07-10T15:56:00.000-07:00

Can you recognize this actor?

2006-06-22T10:32:00.000-07:00

Here we are, have you ever seen Alberto acting? Now you have this chance! From its performance in December 2005 (Quelli di Grock school in Milan) enjoy Alberto and Silvia in Who is afraid of Virginia Woolf.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zk0torEfj5I

Beer World Cup

2006-06-17T09:32:00.000-07:00

Today Italy will play against Usa, important match for its meaning (not just sport...).
Anyway the World Cup in London seems to be a beer affair. The day before the kick off, the pavements around my office (Leicester Sq) were covered by barrels of beers, never seen something like that: it was a pity not to have a camera. Instead of people in the pavements there where thousands of iron barrels of beer and trucks delivering them to pubs. It was only the beginning. With a very hot weather the World Cup turned to be another chance to get drunk before dinner times.
There are not anymore public showing of the England matches in squares or parks as the first ones in London and Liverpool have been disturbed by accidents.

Go...sport!

2006-06-10T03:21:00.000-07:00

Hi everybody!

it's not a slogan, "GoSport", but a small seaside village opposite Isle of Wight.
It would be like a town in Calabria called "Andiamo a fare sport!".

Anyway in this part of England there is a small Fisciano University even if the Lady who lives there has better ambitions for her children (Oxford, Cambridge!). On a sunny Sunday I went to visit Luisa and her family. You can have a look at the picture, I am the taller guy in the right hand side!

2006-06-06T14:04:00.000-07:00

My laptop is broken!!! HELP

2006-06-03T03:41:00.000-07:00

Hi everybody...

my laptop is broken and I am desperate!
If anybody has an old one to sell me please contact me as soon as possible. I must have the wireless slot card for the connection...

If anyone in London is able to have a look at my laptop to see if it is possible to repair or if there is an easy solution, please contact me asap!

Here is the problem: when I start it after the black and Millennium Windows screens it got stuck on a blu screen with the pointer only (it becomes a clock). It just stays on this empty blue screen for our until it got stuck for real. There is a noise as well in the hardware....

Thank you....

Dear Ken Livingston

2006-05-28T05:06:00.000-07:00

I spent an entire Saturday on the London bus network. Not because I wanted to test it but just because I needed to reached places avoiding the Tube.
The result was the most time-consuming activity in the city. Here are few examples. I waited for one hour at night the 41 bus to Crouch End from Archway underground station. I waited the 205 bus from the East End and never, never has arrived at the bus stop. It took one hour from Archway to Angel.
In addition, if you are a fresher in the city, you need to study for a special degree course to understand how bus stops work... and which is the right direction (ok, that's was my mistake yestarday, to travel in the wrong direction, twice...!)
Crazy, just crazy using buses in London.
What's happend to the money collected from the Congestion Charge aimed to improve bus network and its performance?

Bank holiday

2006-05-28T04:58:00.000-07:00

Monday 29th May in UK is bank holiday. I think it is a good idea to have an holiday attached to the beginning of the weekend. Here bank holidays are always on Mondays, in May for instance first and last Monday of the month...but in May only...unfortunately

23rd May 1992

2006-05-22T06:09:00.000-07:00

"Gli uomini passano, le idee restano, restano le loro tensioni morali, continueranno a camminare sulle gambe di altri uomini"
(Giovanni Falcone)

The 23rd May 1992 a car bomb killed anti-Mafia judge Giovanni Falcone. Mr Falcone's wife was also killed in the blast, as were the bodyguards of the magistrate. Two months later, in July, another car bomb killed Paolo Borsellino (in the photo with Falcone), who took Falcone's job against Mafia. His sister today is the candidate in the election (28th May 2006) for the regional government in Sicily.

www.ritapresidente.it

MTV is looking for me!!!

2006-05-21T23:00:00.000-07:00

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Mtv cerca italiani 'flessibili' a Londra.
Hai tra i 20 e i 30 anni e ti sei trasferito a Londra?
In Italia eri precario o disoccupato e non riuscivi a trovare un lavoro all'altezza delle tue aspettative?
La tua laurea era solo un pezzo di carta e flessibilità significava precarietà?
Se a Londra hai scoperto il lato positivo della flessibilità, inviaci una mail o un videomessaggio e raccontaci la tua storia: arrabbiati@mtvne.com oppure a redazionepugni@neonetwork.it

Se senti di corrispondere a questa descrizione, verremo a conoscerti e la tua videointervista verrà utilizzata per una puntata zero sul precariato giovanile di un nuovo programma-inchiesta che andrà in onda prossimamente su Mtv. (per l'informativa sul trattamento dei dati personali da parte di MTV vedere fondo della newsletter)
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

www.disonorevoli.it

2006-05-21T13:46:00.000-07:00

http://www.disonorevoli.it/Disonorevoli.pdf
Documenti eccezionali sul parlamento siciliano, il più costoso in Europa!

Yes! Sicily has its own Parliament, it dates back to 1130, one of the oldest in the world.
And it is the most money-consuming in Europe...

new Yahoo! front page

2006-05-21T03:40:00.000-07:00

Yahoo! has launched in Europe a new front page: engaging, quirky and fun

http://it.yahoo.com/preview
http://uk.yahoo.com/preview
http://es.yahoo.com/preview

You can post your feedback on those pages.

It's not me!

2006-05-20T18:35:00.000-07:00

I reply to all the people that, after reading in La Repubblica the article about a candidate for a job at BBC, thought that the person was me! http://www.repubblica.it/2006/05/sezioni/esteri/colloquio-bbc/colloquio-bbc/colloquio-bbc.html
Anyway today, while I was walking to "fix" my "weekend" headache, I saw in Alexandra Park (North London) the place where BBC started in 1936 the first high definition TV service.

P.S. I graduated with a final dissertation on BBC TV.

My first day at work

2006-05-20T18:19:00.000-07:00

Event happened >>> Tuesday 9th May 2006

..... come vedi ti scrivo a quest'ora (00.40) perché sono appena tornato dalla cena aziendale. Mi sembra un sogno, una giornata lunghissima e fighissima, certo non sarà sempre così ma comunque un bell'inizio. Oggi ho avuto il training pesantissimo, poi lunch tutti assieme e poi cena (super figa in un privé di un ristorante italiano) con tutto il team europeo. Ho dovuto firmare il contratto (per tre mesi) subito perché durante il training avrebbero dato delle informazioni confidenziali e quindi loro dovevano tutelarsi e poi per questioni di tutela per me sul posto di lavoro! altro che in Italia, mesi per avere un contratto! Mi hanno dato un badge con la mia foto schifosa e un laptop che però non ho usato ancora. Il tipo che mi ha fatto il training aveva un accento americano. Venerdì sarò a Milano...
Comunque qui è tutto veloce, gli uffici sono troppo americani e gggiovani. Le sale riunioni hanno nomi stranissimi (pub, attori, ecc. in base al piano) e poi ci sono i Pit Stop dove tutto è gratis, dal cappuccino alla soda (cioé coke!). Per non parlare del bar ristorante all'ultimo piano, dove alle 9.30 tutti fanno colazione come se fossero a mensa. Devo troppo portarci in questo bar.
Comunque mi sembra anche che bisogna laurà sodo, molti escono tardi e nessuno cazzeggia. Nel contratto c'è scritto che posso usare l'email e il messanger per motivi personali prima e dopo l'orario di ufficio e durante la pausa pranzo. Loro poi mi cercano la banca per aprire il conto.
Ecco quindi il resoconto della mia lunga giornata di lavoro qui a Londra in un'azienda americana!

My first week at work

2006-05-20T17:45:00.000-07:00

Events happened >>> 9-13th May 2006
New job, new adventures
When you start a new job it is very important to show the best of yourself.
As a result of what I just wrote in my first days at work (an American internet based company) I had some troubles.
1) after 2 days of intense training I lost all the slides and notes in one of the hundreads meeting rooms of the company. These papers were very important for my trip to Milan.
2) my boss told "please book a flight to Milan in 5 minutes time", I took 2 days, basically I booked the flight at 11am and I was at the airport at 4pm! Same day.
3) If I ever were President of the EU I would suggest that plugs in the continent must be the same. I left London with my laptop but when I arrived in Milan I realized that I did not have an Italian plug. As I had to start working immediately somebody replace my UK power cable (with the transformer) supply with an Italian one. When I left the office I forgot to change cables, so I went to London with my Italian cable. The UK one is still in Milan!
4) I edit the Italian website but in my first day I started editing in the UK website. Somebody obviously noted that there was something in Italian in a co.uk!

.....Speriamo che la mia fase di "una cazzata al giorno" finisca subito così posso raccontartele senza arrossire. Ieri per esempio mi sono messo a scrivere sul sito UK in italiano! adesso sono l'unico ad avere l'accesso solo al sito italiano...Mi hanno chiamato a parte in una sala per comunicarmi che avevo sbagliato, volevo sprofondare....La piu' simpatica è la storia del cavo. Arrivo a Milano ma non ho la presa italiana per il mio laptop. Mi trovano una soluzione ma lascio la presa inglese a Milano e arrivo a Londra con la presa italiana!

.......

How I turned deaf and I got a cerumen removal

2006-05-20T17:11:00.000-07:00

Everything started during my snorkelling in Maldives islands one year ago. One of my ears used to be blocked after a shower and a flight as well. So when I arrived in London I was nearly deaf. It's not the best situation if you have scheduled some job interviews in a country that doesn't speak your native language!
When my ear started to buzz during the night, I became worried and I went to the hospital (on Saturday afternoon) where after 3 hours (it was my faulty, I missed my turn because I did not recognize my surname with an English accent!) I had a visit, the nurse confirmed that my ears (both!) were packed with wax but "I am sorry, we do not do this treatment". She suggested other hospitals, but they were very far from my place.
At the end I registred to a GP doctor.

Friday 5th May 2006
......Poi sono andato dal GP per farmi togliere il cerume ma mi ha dato l'appuntamento il 19 maggio, quando in pratica non riuscirò a sentire più una parola...

..... ho bisogno di una consulenza medica. Forse tua sorella conosce qualcosa. Ho un orecchio tappato a causa del cerume (che schifo, ma deve pur servire a qualcosa se il corpo e' una macchina perfetta!). Sono un po' sordo e non e' il massimo per i colloqui. Sono andato all'ospedale ma non lo tolgono, mi sono registrato dal medico ma l'infermiera puo' farlo solo il 19 maggio. Ho messo la Cerusolina ma non e' successo nulla. Il cono qui non lo vendono, mi dicono che ci sono delle gocce ottime ma sinceramente gia' due medici dicono che my ear is full of earwax quindi evidentemente ci vuole qualcosa di forte. Io volevo soltanto migliorare la situazione in attesa del 19. Potresti x favore chiederle cosa si puo' fare? Grazie....

Friday 19th May 2006
....ci sarebbero tanti interessanti aneddoti da raccontarti, per oggi scelgoquello più positivo: finalmente ho avuto il cerumen removal! ci sento troppo bene, anzi mi gira la testa a volte per questo nuovo disorientamento..a metà. Si proprio a metà, perché XXXXX, la nurse, mi ha chiamato al cellulare alle 4.45 per dirmi che preferiva che io arrivassi molto prima dell'appuntamento datomi alle 18.30. Purtroppo, non essendo mai uscito dall'ufficio finora alla rush hour, ho impiegato molto più tempo per arrivare e quindi dopo avermi detto che anche l'altro orecchio era packed with wax, mi ha detto che comunque non l'avrebbe fatto perchè io le avevo promesso al telefono di arrivare prima. Non c'è niente da fare, tutti sono contro di me qui! Ieri una tipa al supermercato stava chiamando la polizia perché ero sovrappensiero e stavo guardando lei che digitava il pin della sua carta! Come facevo a dirle che stavo morendo di invidia. In effetti non ero interessato al pin ma volevo capire come mai ame prima in quello stesso supermercato non mi era stato chiesto. Quando anche io avevo la carta... (vedi il post sulla carta di credito, uno dei primi in questo blog)

.....

My first part time and unpaid job

2006-05-20T16:54:00.000-07:00

20th April 2006 - From an AD in a website:
"Work Placement
XXXXX is looking for an Italian-speaker to help out on the International Desk. The work placement is unpaid and the hours can be arranged to suit the right person. Please contact xxxxxxxx for more information. "

28th April 2006
.... oggi sono andato da XXXXXXX e finalmente una tipa giovanissima che parlava velocemente e usando slang mi ha spiegato il dirty job! Devo prendere da 30 boxes tutto il materiale di questo fotografo degli anni 60 che ha scattato tanti vip da Cannes a Sanremo. All'interno di queste mega box ci sono tanti piccoli box e all'interno di questi ultimi le buste numerate con i negativi. Bisogna inserire in un Excel le dida e contare quanti negativi ci sono per busta! Mi hanno detto di andare in jeans perché ci si sporca e devo indossare i guanti. Il posto comunque è da matti. Mi hanno fatto fare il giro dei tre piani e mi hanno presentato qualcuno. Fra due settimane c'è la festa informale di tutti coloro che a Londra lavoraro per agenzie fotografiche....

....Da XXXXX prendo le foto di un fotografo italiano, traduco le dida dall'italiano all'inglese, commentandole se occorre (tipo Rita Pavone, cantante popolare...), le conto e inserisco tutti i dati in un file Excel. E' un lavoro sporco che faccio in una cantina con i guanti e il liquido per pulire gli occhi alla mano! però è a due passi dal Tower Bridge e allora mi fa sentire veramente a Londra.

How I lost my credit card forever

2006-05-20T16:29:00.000-07:00

Event happened >>> 25th April 2006

... ieri mega delirio. Avevo finalmente chiesto quanto costava la camera, quindi ieri mattina mi sono precipitato al bancomat per prelevare. Ovviamente non avevo mai ricevuto il PIN internazionale visto che la carta mi e' stata cambiata a settembre. Cosi' ho usato quello vecchio ma non funzionava. Poi sono andato al Monte dei Paschi di Londra in quanto ieri era festa li' e non potevo parlare con la mia banca di Sciacca. Il tipo al Monte dei Paschi mi suggerisce di andare allo sportello di una qualsiasi banca e di chiedere il cash advance per cui il pin non occorre. I tipi si sono insospettiti nonostante io avessi spiegato i miei precedenti tentativi e la Visa ha chiesto loro di ritirare la carta. Poi sono ritornato con il tipo del Monte dei Paschi ma era gia' stata distrutta!
Insomma lui dice che hanno abusato, visto che il mio passaporto ha lo stesso nome della carta e in piu' c'e' una foto per cui possono controllare che sono io. Mi ha anche detto che non e' mai successo una cosa del genere a un loro cliente.
La nuova carta dovro' prenderla di persona per cui ho tentato di aprire un conto qui ma se non ho una lettera di una datore di lavoro non lo aprono. In sintesi sono nei casini. Che merda!

...la persona allo sportello mi da detto: " I am sorry, I must retain your card. It will be sent to your bank, and then destroyed, by tonight". Era il 25 aprile scorso...

.... Ieri mi sono fatto requisire la mia carta di credito quindi sono nei casini per avere soldi! ho sbagliato pin piu' di tre volte, poi sono andato a uno sportello per provare un cash advance con la Visa e ovviamente il sistema ha risposto che non mi autorizzava e che anzi la carta doveva essere ritirata. Nonostante il nome fosse quello del mio passaporto la tipa allo sportello ha dovuto eseguire la procedura e ora sono nei casini con i soldi!!!! ma tutto ciò fa ovviamente parte dell'avventura!

....Come parte dell'avventura, mi è stata ritirata la carta di credito; la mia banca non mi aveva mai dato il nuovo pin internazionale dopo avermi rinnovato la carta alcuni mesi fa, e così dopo tre tentativi la carta è andata al macero, tutto di fronte a una persona che, nonostante avesse il riscontro del passaporto, ha dovuto eseguire le procedure...cioè complicarmi la vita!

.....- il 25 aprile mentre il sistema bancario italiano faceva festa mi è stata ritirata la carta (che fungeva da carta di credito e bancomat) da unapersona in carne e ossa e non da un ATM! non riuscivo a capire quale fosse il pin giusto, dopo i 3 tentativi entro in banca per un cash advance ma la Visa non dà l'autorizzazione, la tipa allo sportello passa ancora la carta e la Visa dà il messaggio di ritirarla. Di fronte al mio passaporto con foto,indirizzo e nome che corrisponde alla carta la tipa allo sportello hapensato di farmi passare un nightmare eseguendo ciò che un computer le hadetto di fare. E ora sono senza soldi ma ciò fa parte dell'avventura.

THE IDEA, pls read it first

2006-05-20T16:08:00.000-07:00

Thanks to my friends in Barcelona (Ivan Garreta and Maika Petitbo) and my friend in Legnano, Italy (Prisca Destro) tonight I decided to start a blog.
In order to begin I will paste texts in Italian from e-mails (clean from personal details) I sent to my friends since I moved to London, exactely one month ago.
I am sorry for those of you who cannot read Italian but I look forward to giving a life to this blog and this is the quickest way.