Update for Everyone VIII: He who laughs have the last laugh

[Battista Minola 1616]

Today is the first time in five years that April 1st is just any other day in my life as single instead of my anniversary with my girlfriend.

Maybe True Federalist was right... [post is from the Update VII thread, which is locked]

Today marks exactly four years and a half my girlfriend and I are a couple. Purple heart

You definitely are not from a place that celebrates April Fools Day if you began a relationship on April 1.

We do April Fools Day. It was just a coincidence we became a couple on April 1. A coincidence which many, many people have joked upon as you may imagine.

Or maybe your girlfriend enjoys brick jokes.

[Battista Minola 1616]

My left-leaning mom is looking at lake houses in the Carolinas this week.  She just texted me to ask about election data for those areas because she was worried that they are too pro-Trump.  I didn't realize that my mom was BRTD.

If I recall correctly your mom is an atheist, so she most definitely cannot be BRTD.

[Battista Minola 1616]

Owing to Battista and Cath stylishly modelling the avatars of ex-communist European nations, and some family heritage there, I have decided to sport a Latvia avatar. (Also, I think red and the shape of Latvia complement each other well.)

Obviously I don't have any family heritage in Slovenia instead, but I chose it as a neighbour of Italy I have been to, whose shape I like more and whose avatar is more unique than my previous one, the Vatican City. I opted for a restyling.

[Battista Minola 1616]

Today is the anniversary of the first death among my great-grandparents [thirty years since he shot himself] and as I only realized some hours ago, it is also the anniversary of the death of my last great-grandparent [she died of natural causes seven years ago]. I find this coincidence... remarkable.
All of my grandparents are alive so the closest people to me to have died are my great-grandparents (or at least the two of them I was able to properly get to know in my life).

[Battista Minola 1616]

I don't think I have mentioned here yet that a few weeks ago I bought a necklace with a big metallic cross as a pendant. It is really beautiful and (obviously) spiritually significant, although it kind of outshines my palmetto-and-crescent necklace, which is much smaller.

[Battista Minola 1616]

Today is the Feast of the Republic, commemorating the referendum held on June 2nd, 1946, in which Italians opted to change from a monarchy to our current form of government. Happy 75th birthday to the Italian Republic!

[Battista Minola 1616]

Today is the Feast of the Republic, commemorating the referendum held on June 2nd, 1946, in which Italians opted to change from a monarchy to our current form of government. Happy 75th birthday to the Italian Republic!

I have a friend who is very interested in Italian history who is quite left-wing (he reminds me of Nathan here in many ways) who says he would have voted for the King in 1946.

That is surely odd but it's an idiosyncrasy I can understand. Any particular reason for that?

[Battista Minola 1616]

Last Saturday I walked about 45 km, almost surely the longest distance I have ever covered in one day, from La Spezia to Levanto making a sacred visit to a sanctuary in the Val di Vara in between as part of a vow. It kind of destroyed my legs, but it was worth it.

[Battista Minola 1616]

Last Saturday I walked about 45 km, almost surely the longest distance I have ever covered in one day, from La Spezia to Levanto making a sacred visit to a sanctuary in the Val di Vara in between as part of a vow. It kind of destroyed my legs, but it was worth it.

Great stuff! Do you plan to go to Santiago? (As it happens, my father has a longstanding ambition to spend a few weeks walking from La Rochelle to Santiago.)

That's something I would like to do sometime in my life, but I'd say it's not in my proximate future plans. (As it happens, my father also has a longstanding ambition of doing the Camino de Santiago.)

[Battista Minola 1616]

Today I received my first dose of vaccine against COVID!
It was also a double day of sport, with two finals of important tournaments in London where Italians competed. Matteo Berrettini lost the men's single at Wimbledon in the afternoon, disappointingly but unsurprisingly; but this was more than compensated by the Italian team winning the European Cup of football at Wembley - playing against the home team of England even - tonight. What a gleeful day!

[Battista Minola 1616]

Can someone teach me how to speak Zoomer?

I am a Zoomer and I am proud of not speaking the language.

[Battista Minola 1616]

Today I received my second dose of vaccine against COVID!
By some coincidence, just like the day of my first dose, it was also a great day for my country in sports. Italy won two Olympic gold medals in athletics, in both cases our first medal in the history of the event: Gianmarco Tamberi in the men's high jump and, more surprisingly, Marcell Jacobs in the all-prestigious men's 100 metres. Another gleeful day!

[Battista Minola 1616]

A few weeks ago I gave my signature for a number of referendum proposals to reform the Italian judiciary. Despite the proposals being spearheaded by political factions I dislike (Lega and the Radicals), I think they were mostly rather valid. I know that there is significant opposition to this especially from the left of centre, on the rationale that the judicial reforms proposed by Minister Cartabia and currently discussed in Parliament are sufficient, but I feel like I did the right thing, I exercised my rights as a citizen. I would rather err on this side here - if I have a change of heart of any kind I can always vote No when and if the actual referenda happen.

[Battista Minola 1616]

I am currently on holiday in Siena (beautiful place) for about a week. Today, on the Feast of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, I got to attend Mass in the ancient and very magnificent Siena Cathedral - which incidentally is dedicated to the Assumption of Mary. It was just wondrous!

[Battista Minola 1616]

I have just (as in, a few minutes ago) left Italy for the first time since joining this forum, for a short holiday in the French Alps area. Greetings from the Col de Montgenèvre!

[Battista Minola 1616]

Today I reached a new personal highest point in altitude! I went to the summit of the Cime de la Bonette, a peak of 2860 m above sea level in the French Alps. The mountain is quite easily accessible because just below there is the mountain pass of the Cime de la Bonette; from there a loop road around the mountaintop comes out and reaches 2802 m which apparently makes it the highest asphalted through road in all of Europe; and finally from there a short footpath leads to the very summit.
This beats my previous record (Col d'Agnel / Colle dell'Agnello) by around one hundred metres.

[Battista Minola 1616]

I am back home in Italy. The French - and Monegasque - vacation was really nice. Among things I had not mentioned on here yet, I visited the city of Lyon, I gazed at the starriest night sky I had ever seen around Barcelonnette, and I took a stroll on the famous (or infamous since 2016...) Promenade des Anglais.

[Battista Minola 1616]

I am in il bel paese for the next five days, Umbria and Rome specifically.

Congratulations! Your momentary D-IT avatar will surely cause me to confuse you with Clarko95 at least once, lol.

[Battista Minola 1616]

In what constitutes a fairly unsurprising development, today I was diagnosed with ASD, specifically Asperger syndrome. This was oddly relieving I must say. Funnily I felt quite the opposite in the not-so-distant past, perhaps because of fear of stigma.

[Battista Minola 1616]

I last posted in this thread when I was diagnosed with Asperger's two months ago. I had an expectation that its cathartic effect would give a positive swing to my life. However it only seems like there has been a regression instead. The last few days have been particularly... hollow.

[Battista Minola 1616]

I last posted in this thread when I was diagnosed with Asperger's two months ago. I had an expectation that its cathartic effect would give a positive swing to my life. However it onldepy seems like there has been a regression instead. The last few days have been particularly... hollow.

It's interesting that's been your experience because as a late ASD diagnosee myself, I felt great relief in being able to better understand why I'm inclined to behave or think in certain ways. The regression may or may not be related, but 20% of autistic people also have depression. I've been having some hollow days myself lately.

Well - I did feel a relief in being able to better understand my behaviours and thoughts. However I also fell into a state of lacking more and more the will and ability to progress things. I did not expect this.

[Battista Minola 1616]

Happy new year 2022 to the haters and losers, of which I am one.

[Battista Minola 1616]

Happy new year 2022 to the haters and losers, of which I am one.

Work hard, be smart, and always remember: Winning takes care of everything.

But President Trump told me we are so sick and tired of winning...

[Battista Minola 1616]

Today [well yesterday using European time] I got my third dose of anti-COVID vaccine, or as the kids say I got 'boosted'. You do what you gotta do.

[Battista Minola 1616]

Today [well yesterday using European time] I got my third dose of anti-COVID vaccine, or as the kids say I got 'boosted'. You do what you gotta do.

Did you get paid?

No, but I am not a venal person anyway.