The Way Things Were (Warm Greys, 12)

Just because the black and white world I live in has few greys doesn't mean everything is either hot or cold. Some things are warm....but not in Italy.

A warm spring day in Chicago is not hot.
And an Indian summer day isn't hot either.
Pools, lakes and seas aren't hot.  And neither are baby bottles.
All of those things are 'warm' in America, but in Italy they're caldo.  And caldo means hot.
The dictionary defines warm as caldo.  And it says that hot is caldo, too.

But some of the best things in life are warm.....socks, hugs, mittens, breezes, blankets, welcomes, slippers, sand, and apple pie.

I guess if I want Italians to start feeling the warms, it's time I start seeing the greys.
 

I took this in black and white and it seemed cold.

And then I tried it in color and was surprised to see the warm pavement.

The Beginning of The Way Things Were
Call me what you will, but I call myself an emigrant....an emigrant who should stop talking about her homeland every day.  (Expat has too many rich, white person connotations and immigrant is what my Italian friends call me.)  Many years ago, my foreign (expat) friends in Chicago continually pointed out the differences between life in their countries and life in Chicago.  I might be mistaken, but their use of the word 'different' often sounded a bit like 'better'. 

Not long after moving to Italy (about three hours) I started doing the same thing.  It has finally dawned on me that if my friends in Italy think like I used to think (if it's better in your country why don't you go home?) it might be wise to keep my American mouth shut in Italy and share my thoughts with the other side of the world.  Hereafter, when I notice something different, be it better or just different, I'll (try to) hold my tongue and add it to my list of The Way Things Were.

My goal is to keep it simple with a few words and a photo,  giving the readers the choice of better...or just different.   With more reflection I'll probably realize that some of the "betters" are here and some of the "betters" are there.  In the end maybe they really are just "differences."