We’re Merging: Welcome turtle°ink, a new thread!

Shortly after I started the turtle^haus blog I also started another blog with a literary theme, called turtle°ink. As time has gone on and I have developed ideas for both blogs (and another soon to come) I came to realize that there is an overarching theme to all my passions and interests, and that is *story* and *character*. By story I mean both real-life and fictional stories, and by character I mean both real and fictional people. So why not unify under one banner. I think turtle^haus readers will enjoy reading book reviews, interviews with authors, listening to writers read their work and watching videos featuring writers and storytellers, as well as the decorating, decluttering, interior designing, architectural themes they already enjoy right here.

And why not host all this in the *haus* of Turtle? Some of you may have been wondering about the turtle. What’s with this turtle thing, already? Well, I’ll tell you. Years ago I was about to get married and my Italian aunt wanted to give me a wedding present that would last me forever. She had recently acquired a tattoo (a Popeye anchor on her arm, no less) as an acknowledgment and celebration of herself as the “anchor” of her family. So we decided that she should give me a tattoo as a wedding present. It would last forever (and has in fact outlasted the marriage, but that’s a story for another day).

Having never entertained the idea of a tattoo before, I didn’t know what image or symbol to choose. A few days later she called and said, “I think you should get a turtle on your arm. You are so persevering, when you decide to do something, slowly and surely you achieve your goal. You never give up and you always reach the finish line.” So we went to a tattoo parlor in Florence (at the time there weren’t many at all) and I picked a sea turtle because I love the water.

About a year later I moved from Florence to New York, and about a year after that I started my subtitling and translation company, Turtle Ink (get it, get it?). Ever since I have used the turtle to identify all of my public doings. Email, websites, online handles, and so on. This is where Swimturtle comes from.

The funny thing is, I have a different reason for liking the turtle as my personal symbol. Because of my nomadic childhood I grew up thinking that the only thing that would ever make me happy or complete would be to have a house of my own, where I could put down roots and from which no one could ever evict me. Finally, at the age of 34 I achieved my dream. I finally had a house of my own, in a little town on the outskirts of Florence, the city where I was born, did most of my growing up and schooling, and one of the most beautiful cities in the world.

Well, the minute I was done moving in and getting settled, I realized that I didn’t *need* it anymore. I felt a huge load lift from my shoulders. I felt as if I could just walk out the door with the shirt on my back and never miss a single thing, house included. I’ve felt that way ever since.

The turtle carries its home on its back, has no possessions, and is at home wherever it goes. When it feels vulnerable, it simply withdraws its extremities inside its protective shell for a while (which it can also do just to take a nap and be left alone). Being half Italian and half American I am very much at home in both countries, but never completely at home in either. Too American to be a perfect Italian, too Italian to be a perfect American, it turns out I’m a perfect New Yorker. And a pretty good turtle.

If you have received duplicate posts, I apologize, but it will not happen again, since from now on all feeds and email updates will come from turtle^haus. Enjoy!!

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Tagged as: Florence, New York, Sea turtle, Tattoo, Turtles