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Friday, Nov. 6/On my nightstand

November 6th, 2009 Kristi Leave a comment Go to comments

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Outfit:

Turquoise tee (gap)

Levis

Boots

Vintage mexican silver choker

Menu:

Breakfast: oatmeal with banana

Lunch: wheat thins with cream cheese; salad

Dinner; breaded chicken cutlets; brussel sprouts, rice; wine

Finances:

$20 at the market

 

FILM

I’m not sure if I mentioned but I watched District B13, a sci-fi last weekend.

Then we started renting (through Netflix) the Battlestar Galactica tv series, season 1. We are HOOKED. I love it. I also love Edward James Olmos. I had an opportunity to meet him once and I still am thrilled about it. I was in awe. I whipped out my Spanish and flirted a tiny bit (even though I am so happily married) by saying “El gusto es mio” (the pleasure is MINE!) when I met him. He rocks.

 

On My Nightstand

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The lovely Stephanie at Bonjour Madame sent me Mireille’s new book, so I am looking forward to digging into it.

Also, Mama Gena’s latest, Owners and Operators Guide to Men.

The Sunday Philosophy Club by Alexander McCall Smith (you might recall I received this recommendation from reading The Daily Connosseiur.)

Slam by Nick Hornby is the last book out of the box my friend sent me that I think I will like.

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  1. Priscilla
    November 7th, 2009 at 18:56 | #1
    Reply | Quote

    My husband and I just watched the whole Battlestar Galactica series via Netflix. It was one of the best television shows I’ve ever seen, truly, and I am not even much of a sci-fi fan.

  2. Kristi
    November 8th, 2009 at 07:34 | #2
    Reply | Quote

    Priscilla,
    I’m not a HUGE sci fi fan either, but wow am I loving this series. We are watching it via Netflix, as well. First series. I actually cried last night one episode was so good (it was the one where Starbuck was abandoned on the moon and then flew back in the ceylon ship) I just think the acting is fantastic and the story line is so well done.
    Thanks for commenting. Also, I am enjoying being a new reader to your blog this morning. I haven’t ever cheated on bookclub, but this month am skipping the book because I’m not going to buy it new and it is unavailable in time at the library.
    I must say that Three Cups of Tea was one of the most important books I’ve read this past year. It gave me so much insight into what is going on in Pakistan/Afghanistan right now from the people’s perspective. I may even re-read it. I encourage you to try to read it, even if it is not in time for bookclub.

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What is it about those Italian women? You know the ones I’m talking about: beautiful, sexy, dressed to the nines just to take the kids to the park. They have a certain something that is indefinable. It is in the way they dress, the way they prepare their meals, the way they spend their leisure time.

It is because they know the importance of la bella figura. Roughly translated from Italian, it means putting you best foot forward in everything you do. It means cutting a beautiful figura. The opposite of la bella figura is la brutta figura, which is what someone might say about the falling down drunken guy at the party or the super tackily dressed woman at church. It means ugly figure.

La bella figura is much more than your appearance. It goes much deeper than that. It is about how you act. It is about how you treat others. It is about how you care for yourself, your home and your family. Living a life in line with la bella figura doesn’t take money. In fact, it is more about how to have class without a lot of money.

Someone who exudes la bella figura will have clean, pressed clothes and be well groomed. They will not be rude or sloppy. Their fingernails will be impeccably groomed. Their hair shiny and clean and their shoes will be polished. They will not have stray threads hanging from their suit hems. They will not be driving a car in need of the car wash.

La bella figura means driving that 15 year old car and meticulously cleaning it and caring for it. It means keeping your belongings in good repair. It means taking time to clean your house and not cluttering it up with meaningless objects.

When you focus all your spare energy, time and money on the things that bring you the most amount of pleasure, then you are truly living a life in line with la bella figura. The best part about it is that you don’t have to be Italian to do so. You just have to think like an Italian.

Italian children are raised to present la bella figura in whatever they do. From the time they are small and are groomed perfectly to attend church or school, they know that appearances count. They count because it is the first thing people judge about you. That first impression does matter. Appearances are also important because when you take the time to look nice, you are showing that you care about yourself. When you care enough to look good, it shows you have good healthy self esteem. Nothing is more attractive than self confidence.

In addition, dressing nice also shows respect for others. If you invite people over for dinner and greet them in flip flops, baggy sweats and a stained shirt, it is really disrespectful to them. The same if you dress sloppy to go to church or even to the market. By dressing nicely and being well groomed, you show respect for everyone in your world.

Having la bella figura means presenting yourself in the best light possible in all your interactions.