)(( hannah mello ))(

the smell of 2006 and 23

i'll never forget 1997. that was the year matt bradshaw asked me the question i haven't been able to forget. it's the question that now drives my friends crazy-- every time a birthday or a new years day comes around. actually, i don't think i've ever given matt credit for it. now is the proper time.

i remember when he asked it too. well. let me first set the scene. six foot four matt was stretched on a swively office chair. we'd been dreaming about the future. you know that ceiling-stare that only happens when you're thinking about the future? you kind of stare at the corner of the ceiling too. the space where two walls meet. it's as if your eyes are trying to split the walls' union and see the sky. this is NOT the kind of ceiling-stare that's defined by expressionless boredom. no. it has a dreamy look about it. maybe a bit of a smirk. maybe a twinkle in an eye or both. anyway, yep, matt had that exact stare. he straightened up in that swivel chair that barely held his weight and scooted his long legs under the walnut desk.

"ok. i've got one for you. in a word, what would you say last year was. an adjective maybe. and in a word, what do you want 1998 (the next year) to be?"

i loved that question.
i love it still.
i love to ask it of myself.
i love to ask it of others.
it's the kind of question that turns a calendar date-change into a rite of passage.

back to present-day. i must say that 2006 smells different than 2005. 2005 had an aire (to play on words) of urgency about it. i felt like 2005 was silently screaming: "holistic life change or bust". 2006 is a bit more quiet. i think she's feminine. :) oh gosh. i have problems. seriously though, her voice is more beckoning than driving. i feel carried into january instead of propelled. 2006 i think will be a year i won't forget. (although i hope to never forget ANY year... i guess i mean, i think 2006 may be one of my favorites. i can feel it already. the smell is captivating.)

new years day started off in the company of those i met in the Florence hostel that was my short-term home. i'll never forget them. not in mass, but as individuals.



each of the three boys from Turin. each of the two girls from Mexico. their characters-- so rich and distinct in their personalities. their hopes and dreams-- which i heard in their comments about themselves and their context of life. their way of befriending me, the stranger. i expected to welcome 2006 alone, and was unexpectedly with company instead. and such a company it was.



in my travels, i've had the habit of taking photographs of the number 22-- the age i am right now. during travels just before and after new years, i found myself drawn to photograph the number 23 wherever i saw it as a street address. i guess because in 2006, i'll be 23. i fell across some interesting places at the address #23 in Pisa and Siena specifically. here are those photos.



pisa's 23.




siena's 23.

(check out SEE in Pisa's
and the out-of-the-box looking logo with LABORATORIO ARTISTICO in Siena's...)

anyway, i don't think i'll obsessively photo the #23 all throughout 2006, no. i guess, i just was a bit curious when she first arrived.


>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

p.s. on the dreamer tangent:

a bit of etemology i've picked up along the way as a faux english teacher. :) in english, we have two distinct words for those that look to the future. 1. visionary (often used in a positive sense. for example: a good leader is a visionary whereas a manager simply is an organized individual) 2. dreamer (one who is in a kind of dream-like state-- even a stupor-- spaced-out possibly-- in regards to the future). however, there is only one word in italian for both of these concepts. in italian, to be a visionary is to be a dreamer and vice-versa. in other words, a visionary is an impractical individual that is a bad leader. an interesting cultural distinction. the american dream (and the historical english conquest mindset) meets the rooted, accepting, and often risk-less italian way.

posted by )(( hannah mello ))( @ 2:20 PM