what the heck is up with these pants.

I would just like to say thank you, Cameron, for recognizing that I am fashionably challenged. Clearly I had no idea what these pants were and plan to go do some intense research at target.com. Also, could someone please post a phonetic spelling because currently I am thinking that you pronounce it similar to the name Groucho Marx and I'm like 99% sure that's wrong. Anyway. I don't think I like the idea, I'd just like to say for the record. I have seen these pants around, but when I have seen them they have been on very very very thin girls who wear them with baby t-shirts that show like 3 inches of very tan, muscular midriff and who also wear their hair like Lindsey Lohan and really big fashionable sunglasses. So I don't have a very good perception of them.

Just would like to say I went to "www.chapelthrill.com" by accident trying to see the blog and you should all go. Seriously.

I am about to tell you the scariest story in the world. Well, scary to me, because I have a stalker. A real one.

Sooo last like, Thursday night I was riding the bus home. My roomies wanted to stay in the city awhile longer but I was beat and headed home. If you didn't know, I have a COMMUTE. I am sometimes on the bus for an hour or so...but usually later at night it can be just a half hour, so not too bad, right? I got on the bus at the stazione (the START of the line) and get off at Antella (the END of the line) and was chillin out, read the Italian newspaper that was on the seat in front of me for awhile. This man, who looks smily and cheerful, sat in the seat in front of me and asked (in Italian) if he could read the newspaper. It wasn't mine, so I was just like, "whatevs, dude," and turned on my iPod. I was reading a book but couldn't focus on it, and I kept noticing that the guy in front of me kept sneaking glances at me. I was like, ooook, whatever, and about 10 minutes into the ride he turned around and started talking to me. Now, I'm a friendly person, and I really like speaking Italian so I chatted with him for awhile, told him I was studying here, blah blah blah. He asks for my phone number. I don't actually have the number memorized, I keep it on a card in my wallet...but I told him I had left the card at home. He asked if he could see my phone and try to get it out of there, so I gave it to him because the keypad is LOCKED and I was not about to tell him how to unlock it. He fiddled with the phone for like 10 minutes and kept talking to me. Finally I asked him where he got off, and he was like, oh, my stop is already passed, I'm just riding with you now. This is the point where I freaked out a little. I had originally planned to walk home from the bus stop (it's kinda far from the house and usually our host dad picks us up after we call him) because it was a nice night, but I decided THEN that I would be calling Marcello to pick me up. I took my phone back and he gave me HIS number and told me to call him right then so he would have my number. I told him I didn't have any money on my phone (phone system here is different, you have to keep your phone "topped up" with money so you can make calls) which was clearly a lie. He busted out HIS phone and tried to take a picture of me with his camera phone which I put a stop to with a quickness. Then he started bugging me about when we were going to get together again, was I free the following morning? The following evening? Apparently his stop was like 25 minutes before mine and we just sat there talking and whatever. When we got to my stop, I called Marcello and asked him to pick me up, the dude tried to like GRAB me as I got off the bus, but I pulled away and was like CIAO!

Ok so I thought that was the end, right? I got rid of the scary man, Marcello picked me up and I told him about it, and he was just like, be careful, you can call me whenever, blah blah blah. This was awhile ago! I forgot about the scary Moroccan man! (oh yeah he told me he was from Morocco and he WAS smily and friendly but in a VERY SCARY WAY). This morning, I get out of the car at the bus stop and THERE HE IS. Kat and Piya get out and my brain just like shut down. We look at the bus schedule and realize we missed the bus and the other isn't coming for a half hour. I suggest we go to the other bus stop in Antella, they look at me like I am nuts but I whisper that the scary scary man is at the BUS STOP. So we walk away. HE FOLLOWED US!!!! He is like saying my name and we are just ignoring him and walking away. SO we get to the other bus stop and pretend to be very interested in the schedule. He comes up and he's like, "Mary Ellen, cara, mi ricordi?" and I just stared at him. He kept asking me if I remembered him and I just looked at him and pretended I didn't speak Italian. Then he asks me in ENGLISH what my name is and I was just like...um...why? Who are you? What? And he keeps asking and finally I told him my name was Debra (what? where did I come up with this?) and that I didn't speak Italian. So he like wanders into a bar. I am so nervous, I am like shaking. This man is crazy. He comes back OUT and asks us if we want coffee, and we're all like NO, and I just give him this look like he is nuts. That is it. We get on the bus, he doesn't, it's done. RIGHT!?!?! I am so afraid to ride the bus alone now. Because CLEARLY he was in Antella JUST TO FIND ME AGAIN. He doesn't LIVE there!!! Kat suggested that maybe he lied and actually does live in Antella....but really....he didn't get off the other night....AHHHHHH. I'm so bugged out. I'm going to attach myself to other people and never be alone again. Actually, that's not true. I have to be brave...but seriously it was the weirdest thing ever and he is so creepy and scary and he's after me...

Ok sorry for the excessive drama. I'm really not THAT afraid but I am freaked out and I don't really know what to do. If I see him again...um...I still don't know what I'll do. AH! I need some of those pants and then I could suffocate him with all the excess fabric.