'He's coming to America...dum dum dum dum'

It is true, I am leaving Italia on Febuary the 8th and coming back to America. I was trying to get my visa extended but was not able to do it while here in Italy. The only way I could remain in Italia and not technically be illegal would be to return to America (specifically San Francisco where my Italian consulate is) and apply for a new visa. Then I would have to, of course, purchase a new air ticket back to Italy and play the paperwork game again, more or less. That's a little hard to want to do when it is something that should have been taken care of before I even left to come here. And according to me the uncertainess of when exactly I would get my visa complicates things. I imagine at minimum it would take a couple of days (considering I have all of the correct papers to apply, which is hard to know unless they have everything there and can tell you). I do feel like I've arrived to a point where I am feeling more at home in Milan. Making more friends, meeting more people and such. Even if I have to end it at this point it does give me a nice feeling of independence. That I'm able to make it in a foreign city, meet people, experience things without a real social network already set up (i.e. studying abroad with a bunch of people, or working somewhere with people your age, or taking university classes together).

But that is ok, I have still had an enjoyable experience. The teaching has been enjoyable and given me a nice idea of if I would want to do it as a career. I still think that being a professor would be the way to go. For example, a lot of my students are rowdy. Well, pretty much 90% of them would be getting in trouble for things that they do if they were doing them in America. But the pedagogy in Italy is different and this type of high school attracts students that are not exactly the 'I really enjoy learning and want to get good grades and continue on to university'. Sure, they are there, but the mentality is perhaps more along the lines of 'If I get held back a grade, that's ok. I just really want to get a job when I graduate and not much else. Can I have my piece of paper now (diploma)?' Seeing as I am a teaching assistant I don't really have to deal with behavioural problems. If they are being exceptionally loud or rowdy I usually employ the 'I'll just stop talking' trick, which works most of the time because there are usually a couple of students who then end up telling the other ones to shut up. But then of course I have to resort to shushing, a sharp whistle, a clap of the hands and such. Being a professor would eliminate a lot of that. We've weeded out most of the kids who don't care at all by that point in education. You don't have to worry about Johnny picking on Suzy. It has more of a libertarian feel to it, as in 'Hey, if you don't want to come to class that's your decision. I'm not gonna track you down, you've gotta be responsible'. Seeing as I enjoy teaching, enjoy my summer breaks, would like to continue studying or learning in one form or another as I get older, shooting for the professor position could be good. The problem is that right now I couldn't see myself going back to school right away. I just think that I've been doing school for so long (what, at least 18 years, year after year, right?) and that I need a new experience. A more real-life experience, whatever that means. I suppose it means earning some money, getting a more legit job than my summer jobs, finding a place to live, etc. We will see what happens when I make it back to Portland and get readjusted to everything.

Anyways, back to the initial topic. Now my 'extend-the-trip' plan is as follows: stop my return flight on the east coast and make my way back across the states while visiting friends along the way. The first stop will be in Washington, D.C. where one of my cousins lives. Two of my good friends from high school and college also live there. Both have been kind enough to let this vagabond man camp out at their place. Then the tentative plan is to hopefully go to Illinois and visit my friend John for a little while and then hopefully to Boulder where my friend Monica lives, then probably home to Portland. I'll probably use a mix of airplanes (JetBlue) and probably take the train at least once for the experience. If you are reading this and are living somewhere else then Oregon shoot me a message! Who knows, maybe we'll be able to meet up as I make my way back.

I'll be keeping up the blog until my arrival back in Portland. Thanks to all of you that have been reading, there's still a little bit to come.