For the first time in my life I have an abundance of nicknames, and none of them has to do with my last name. Back in the US, with the exception of the name Kissapher given to me by my aunt Cindy, all of my nicknames revolve around my last name, which can be considered an unusual name. Jacoozi,Jacuzzi, Ginzo,Gizmo, Ginzo Gonzo Goo, Snoozie, Shnooz,Janooz and so on and so forth. In Italy my last name is a fairly common last name in the southern part of the country, so all of my names here stem from my first name or from my place of origin.
I think that my first nickname was Christopher Lambert which I received upon being introduced to everyone. Everyone... " Christopher, you mean like the actor, Christopher Lambert"? Me...."Yeah, sure man. What ever you say."
The first name that really stuck was Chris and Chips which was given to me by my roommate Miki. "Chris and Chips", followed by Miki pretending to ride a motorcycle, and humming the Chips theme song. "Do you know C.H.I.P.S"? People still call me Chips after six months.
For awhile I was called "Marines", or "O' Marines". I'm not really sure where that one comes from. I think it was from a catering event where someone said I worked like a Marine. I'll take that as a compliment any day.
"American Boy" is probably the most widely used name by everyone. It comes from the Estelle and Kanye West song of the same name that has been playing on the radio constantly since I arrived.
Then there is "What's American Boys" which is a quote from an old Italian movie. This was eventually shortened to "Boys", which is always used by my other roommate Giuseppe.
"Americano", "America",and "Cristoforo Colombo" round out the names that have been filling my life for the last six months. Suffice it to say, I am rarely called Chris or Christopher and I am never refered to by my last name. It has definitely been interesting watching the names develop.
Things are really progressing here. Benny is no longer a puppy, the oranges are oranging and the olives are starting to darken as well. Also the prized white truffles are starting to make their way into the restaurant, and they are definitely some stinky nuggets. The season starts to peak in about a month, but there are already truffle hunters bringing in their finds. Ciao.
