3 '''Tip:''' as always, start from the bottom and proceed bottom up to keep time flowing in one direction.
7 ==== Exchange Rates ====
9 Looks like I'd better convert all my money to dollars *now*:
11 http://www.x-rates.com/d/USD/EUR/graph30.html
13 What do you think about it?
18 I forgot to tell you about the kewlest building in EmAiTee:
20 http://www.eecs.mit.edu/images/big-stata12.jpg
22 See also: http://www.eecs.mit.edu/stata-link.html
26 After a long time, I finally get to (ab)use MIT's wi-fi and
27 barf my short-term brain buffer into my BrainDump.
29 Tonight we went to an Irish pub next to Kendall, where I got
30 to know a few more Ximian employees. I got rumors that
31 the famous kernel hacker RobertLove would be there, so after
32 a while I turned to the guy next to me and asked: "Is
33 RobertLove really going to come?". And he replied: "Speaking."
35 Another guy told me: "Hi, I'm BAHB". "Pardon?". "BAHB!".
36 "What???". Federico promptly helped me out: "Ha detto che si
39 The beer was good. I discovered that a BlueMoon is the
40 nearest approximation of a WeisseBeer I can find here,
41 and I'm not at all displeased by its taste.
45 My landlord has recently switched DSL provider and Internet
46 doesn't work any more: the sync light on the modem flashes.
47 It seems that crappy ISPs are a common disease in the States
50 Yesterday, he called for service and, finally, they told him
51 they would send a tech today from 8AM to 18PM. They refused
52 to be more specific. And so I've agreed to wait here to let
53 the guy in... I care about it for myself too!
57 By the way, today I'm exactly 150 pounds (use GoogleCalculator
58 to get it to SI units).
60 150 pounds = 68.0388555 kilograms
66 They told me Roxbury is quite an infamous suburb of Boston.
67 And my first impression confirms that: shops are uglier,
68 parks and streets are somewhat dirtier (but not as much as
69 in NewYorkCity!) and, most importantly, some of the neighbors
70 look creepy. Especially in the night, streets are crowded by
71 people with criminal faces and many homeless.
73 You know I'm not the type who's easily scared off by a bunch
74 of zombies, but I'll feel much better when I'll drive a car.
78 I've finally settled in my room. There's no need to describe the house
79 in detail, as it's the most typical colonial design: two floors plus
80 basement, front and back yards, sliding windows, wooden floors
81 everywhere. You've come to know them very well from the movies.
83 Today I went to the mall to gather the essentials: a blankets,
84 a pillow case and some bath towels. The bed is comfortable and
85 I was quite tired already, therefore I fell asleep early in the
86 evening and kept on until 8 AM.
88 '''WARNING: TIME WARP OCCURRED'''
92 '''WARNING: TIME WARP IMMINENT'''
96 Alberto: Attento a convertire € in $ perchè € si sta apprezzando,e quindi $ svalutando rispetto a €.
98 Belle le foto scovate da Massimo. Have a good stay in Btn.
100 Massimo: Bernie, you taught me: http://www.google.com/search?q=100+USD+in+EUR
103 Massimo: Since Bernie could not give us any picture, I had to use flickr: here they are!
105 http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=bernardo+innocenti
110 ==== BankOfAmerica ====
112 I went to BankOfAmerica and opened a bank account. I went there wearing a yellow T-shirt
113 and a weary pair of jeans. In the beginning, they referred me to a young guy who quickly
114 tried to offer me a student's saving account. When I queried for interest rates, credit
115 cards, and dollar/euro conversion rates, they finally realized that I was going to move
118 When I've shown them my balance, they immediately switched me to a very polite girl who
119 took all the time to explain me everything in detail until after their closing time and
120 recommended me to open *3* different accounts to get a rate of 4.80% with no fees!
121 I totally hate when people judge you by your wealth, dressing, or other stupid status
122 symbols, but maybe a bank is the only exception where it makes sense to do so.
124 Banking appears to be far, far simpler here. I already feel like I know
125 everything while in Italy I still can't read most of the paperwork I get from
128 Batt: Or maybe american bankers are so skilled that you are happy while, in truth, they have stolen your money forever :-P
130 Massimo: Yahr yahr! He didn't realize they already got 4.80% of his balance from his pocket with a magician move! Yahr yahr! Anyway... 4-5% rate is not absurd in the US. It has always been almost like this as far as I can remember (maybe sometimes it was even 6-7%). It's useful for someone (like bernie), but tragic for someone who does not have any money and to buy a house with those mortgages it's almost impossible. Still, the US has got a very low rate in comparison with other extra-european countries.
134 ==== Good News, Everyone! ====
136 '''After a long struggling, I've finally found a room!'''
138 And I'll be moving in *today*! But I'm writing on Thursday the 3rd, actually (aren't you thinking fourth-dimentionally yet?).
140 The room is nice and comes with some forniture, including a desk. It's on the second floor
141 of a house where the landlord lives with her wife and a very friendly puppy.I like it
142 that way: all those houses shared by students I've seen so far tend to become unmaintained
143 and dirty quite quickly, while this one is a real house with a fully operational kitchen,
144 bathroom and even a clean back garden!
146 My landlord is Armenian, but have been living here in Boston for a long time. My first
147 impression is he's a very nice person, honest and easy going. I haven't met his wife yet --
148 she'll be back on Sunday.
150 I'm afraid the house is a bit far away from MIT, in southern Boston. But that won't
151 be a problem as soon as I buy a car. There may even be a chance to rent or buy the
152 car readily from my landlord's son.
154 I don't know the address yet. I should, but I forgot the sheet on the table when I went there. And I can't call my landlord either because I've stolen his cell phone by mistake also. Yeah, I reckon I mustn't a good impression, actually :-)
157 '''Camy''': the landlord lives with '''his''' wife
159 ==== Do You Speak English? ====
161 Some of you will be pissed off by this change, but I'm starting to make
162 some international friends here and none of them could read Italian.
164 Writing in English is also what I need to improve my writing skills.
165 For the few of you who barely know English, some more reading surely won't hurt!
167 [[http://translate.google.com/translate?u=http%3A%2F%2Fbender.codewiz.org%2Fwiki%2FMayBlog&langpair=en%7Cit&hl=en Google Translator]]
170 As always, I'd very much appreciate being told about any mistake I make.
172 ''Massimo: ok, let's start with those horrible contractions my poor eyes had to read: '''Won't''' and '''I'd'''. Hey Bernie! You already went back home from NYC. Ain't gonna play with ya 'nymore!''