On sustaining my good mood.

I’m in a good mood. Virtually all the time. Because I’m able to do what I want. Read. Write. Live in Italy. With my Italian true love. Wow! What a life. Would be hard for me to complain.  Though I occasionally find reasons to gripe. About this and that. Just so I don’t forget how to do register a complaint. Mainly, I  complain about the American political and economic system.  But since I’m away from America for about half the year, it’s become easier to ignore. I hardly ever watch TV any more. And when I do,  it’s in Italian. Of course, I still read newspapers. On the Internet. The New York Times. For editorials and  a few news reports.  And the Chicago Tribune and Chicago Sun-Times. For sports stories. I certainly don’t miss American television. I still get to see some of the American shows. But all of ‘em with dubbed in Italian. Which makes even the serious shows sound hilarious. I’m able to identify most Italian politicians by sight. But thank gawd, most of the time I can’t understand what they are saying. Another advantage of not having yet mastered the Italian language. My favorite Italian politician is a communist. And amazingly, he has a decent chance of becoming the next prime minister.  That would help sustain my good mood. –Jim Broede