For me, the New Year starts in September, not January. Being the start of the school year, September has always lent itself to new beginnings for me. The long lazy days of summer are left behind, and with it my lazy ways are sloughed off, and big plans for exciting projects and personal improvement take their place. The prospect of new office supplies (in my mind they will always be school supplies, no matter how old I get), scarves (by far my favorite accessory), tights (second favorite), soup (butternut squash, if possible), crunchy fallen leaves, crisp mornings, and endless cups of tea (Marco Polo by Mariage Frères, if you're asking) remind me that fall is the very very best time of year.

PersonalTiffany ParksSeptember 22, 2017blogs Comments

Long Time No Blog, or What I've Been up to for the Past Four Months

This winter has been one of the busiest, most exhausting, and most exciting in recent memory. It started out with a bang as I threw a bridal shower for a dear friend in early November. She's mad about the Etruscans (and in particular bronze Etruscan hand mirrors) and so it made perfect sense to throw her an Etruscan-themed bridal shower! I may have had more fun planning this shower than the bride-to-be did attending it. To put it briefly, I went a bit overboard, making Etruscan-themed decorations, treats, and even an Etruscan Bridal magazine.

PersonalTiffany ParksFebruary 20, 2015 Comment

My Rome Bucket List -- 21 Things to Do in Rome in a Lifetime

I've been noticing a trend. In case you're interested, I'm not a very trendy person. I usually pick up on things around 2-10 years after they become popular. Case in point, I just discovered Downton Abbey and Madonna's album Ray of Light. (Have you heard it? It's amazing.) However, every so often--and I'm talking very rarely--I actually get into something before it starts trending. I still claim to have started the Capri pants craze back in the late '90s. You're welcome.

Personal, SightseeingTiffany ParksApril 7, 2014 Comments

A Podcast is Born! The BitterSweet Life: Two Expats in Rome

I was 11 years old, sitting alone on an uncomfortable school bus seat on a cold Northwestern fall morning. After spending my entire elementary school life sheltered in a tiny private school, I was suddenly out in the big, scary world of public middle school. I was pretty sure I'd never make any friends. About halfway into the commute to school, a cute, dark-haired girl named Katy got on the bus and shyly asked if she could sit with me. This was the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

PersonalTiffany ParksMarch 26, 2014Comment

Twelve Months a Pope

Everyone knew the pope wouldn't be elected on the first day of conclave. With only two scrutinies, that would have been unprecedented. But most people didn't think he'd be elected the second day either. Unlike when Benny was up for election and a complete shoe-in, no one had any idea who'd be elected this time around, and we all assumed it would take at least three days. All I knew was, I wanted to be there when it happened.

Personal, HistoryTiffany ParksMarch 13, 2014Pope Francis, ConclaveComment

Celebrating 100,000 Hits!

(I'm sure there's a hilarious mobster joke to be made about that title somehow, but it's just not coming to me.) I am excited to announce that my itty, bitty blog reached the (to my ears) impressive figure of 100,000 hits yesterday! I know that there are many blogs out there that receive 100,000 hits a day, so in the grand scheme of things, 100,000 in the 2 1/2-year life of a blog sounds like small potatoes, but I'm still excited and proud!

PersonalTiffany ParksDecember 9, 2012Comment

How I Moved to Italy and Married the Love of my Life, Part 1

As you may have already guessed from the name of this blog, I love Roman pine trees. I adore them actually. Today I have come to the pines for some inspiration. I am writing this from a bench in my favorite spot in Villa Pamphilj, where the pine trees grow in straight parallel lines. No, I didn't bring my computer to the park. I would never commit that sacrilege! I am writing this out longhand. It almost feels like I'm writing in a diary, perfect for the post I have in mind.

Lifestyle, PersonalTiffany ParksMarch 30, 2012Comment

The Benefits of Letter Writing

About a month ago, I was inspired to write three long-hand, stamped, mailed letters and I wrote about it here. Well, bloglings, for all of you out there who thought I was crazy, old-fashioned, living in the past, behind the times, technologically challenged, or unable to accept the reality of this changing world we live in, well, all I have to say is, look what was waiting for me when I got home today:

Lifestyle, PersonalTiffany ParksMarch 26, 2012Comment

Procrastination and Over-sharing: a Blogger's Dilemma

I woke up this morning to a love note (complete with stick-figure drawing) from the maritino in honor of our nine-monthiversary. (I guess we're still in that annoying honeymoon phase.) In addition to making me giddy and teary at the same time, it reminded me it's time for another wedding post! (I missed this little tradition last month).

PersonalTiffany ParksFebruary 29, 2012Comment

Six Months a Wife and an Illuminated Manuscript

A few years ago, my father proudly showed me a family heirloom. He brought out a big leather-bound seemingly ancient book and carefully lifted the cover. It was a collection of German fairy stories and folktales. But this was no ordinary book, it was an illuminated manuscript, hand painted in gold, blue and red, with pages that unfolded to reveal intricate and spectacular illustrations.

PersonalTiffany ParksNovember 30, 2011My wedding, My story, personal, anscestorsComment

Faith's Vase

Last month I wrote about finding my great-great-grandmother's wedding ring, and how I didn't know it yet, but that ring would subtly steer the course of my life. I also promised that in this post I would explain how a 150-year-old band of gold could have such mystical powers, but I lied. I can't do that yet. I have to tell a little more of the back story first.

PersonalTiffany ParksOctober 29, 2011Comment

It All Began with a Ring

Just like the story of the founding of Rome, the whispers of which could be heard long before that fateful day in 753BC, so the story of my wedding truly begins on Christmas day, 1861.Last month, I decided to post every 29th of the month about a little detail from my wedding. And I think it fitting to begin not with the wedding itself, but with the machinations of fate that helped to bring the event into being.

PersonalTiffany ParksSeptember 29, 2011 Comment

A Room with a View, Fate, and the Allure of Italy

In a scene from one of the greatest films ever made, (in fact it is my all time favorite film, and has been since I was twelve years old) two English gentlemen, a vicar and a young unmarried man, are walking through a field in Surrey, talking about fate. They had previously met by chance in Florence, and their paths have once again crossed, by happenstance, it seems, in the south of England.

Lifestyle, PersonalTiffany ParksAugust 29, 2011 Comments

The Pines of Rome

A blog exploring Rome's Art, history, culture, customs, quirks, and curiosities