because you really want to know about my alphabet.

You've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with the ABC's of YOU.

A - Age: 29

B - Bed size: queenie

C - Chore you hate: scrubbing nasty, old, wet, formerly crusty crap off pots and pans

D - Dogs or cats: small baby kittens only

E - Essential start your day item: coffee & smoothie breakfast combo

F - Favorite color: rojo

G - Gold or Silver: Silver

H - Height: 5'11.72"

I - Instruments you play: I used to be able to play clarinet and took piano in college. Plus my singing voice is AMAZING.

J - Job title: scientific & English document editor; future bookstore owner

K - Kids - I sure do love them, but I don't want any of my own.

L - Loud or quiet: this is silly. But I'll choose quiet.

M - Mom's name: Mary Carol

N - Nicknames: Jan, Janny, J-bird, Regretta Person, Janevie, Jan-Jan, Janey, Janny, Handicapped Twin (or "HT"), ROSE, Neighb, Bonzi, Jon, Jonny, Jenny, Jynni, Word, Geddeeeeeeezzzz....The list goes on and on, really.

O - Overnight hospital stay other than birth: no thank you.

P - Pet Peeve: pen-tappers in otherwise quiet spaces

Q - Quote from a movie: "Ted, where's that fancy corkscrew? You know that fancy corkscrew for the wine bottle? Uh-Ted?" (Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter)

R - Right or left handed: Right

S - Siblings: Rosaurio Dawson Rose Rosacea Rosalita Rosalia

T - Time you wake up: rarely before 9:30, dahling

U- Underwear: under WHERE?

V - Vegetable you dislike: eggplant, and I had way too much that soggy stuff served to me in Argentina a couple months ago. Yech!

W - Ways you run late: I tend to forget VERY IMPORTANT THINGS inside and have to run back and forth to grab all the goods pre-departure. Once I was on the way to the Atlanta airport for a trip to Europe and realized I had left my suitcase in the parking lot. Neat.

X - X-rays you've had: Teefs, neck, foot

Y - Yummy food you make: breaded chicken breast! Pasta with sauce! artichoke & spinach dip! Guacamole! Hummus! Stirfry! I am a CHEF!

Z - Zoo favorite: In Melbourne, FL, it's the crazy birds who have been known to peck at my father's head A. Hitchcock-style

I want to be a part of BA, Buenos Aires--BIG APPLE

Oh, it was probably a mistake to sing that song. Now it's going to be in my head for hours. Ick.

All that is to say that I'm returning to Buenos Aires for the first time since I studied abroad there in spring 2001 (that's pre-economic crisis, folks). It was one of the best, most rewarding, and most challenging times of my life. It is my belief that the majority of traveling students feel that way about study abroad programs.

When I got to Bs. As., I was a month away from my 21st birthday and spoke not two licks of Spanish. (Granted, I could say "Hola," which I thought was spelled O-L-A, and I could say one extraordinarily rude thing that didn't sound so bad translated into English.) The first full day I was there, I was STARVING and had no idea how I could go eat. I went to a neighborhood store and pointed to an orange juice container (something familiar!) and perhaps a pack of crackers. Smiled a lot to show my gratitude. Ate the snack and was still hungry.

One of my randomly assigned roommates was a hot young thing from Columbia (that's the university, not Colombia the country). She was confident, funny, smart, and (joy of joys) Spanish-speaking! She took me to a restaurant we found around the corner from our place and ordered for me after translating the menu items.

photo courtesy of Arturo Vasquez, random guy I found on Google Images search

I met so many friends there, started feeling more excited and open-minded about my life (which had recently gotten sort of bland and sad for me, friends and loved ones living away from NYC or moving to other countries). A semester in BA was exactly what the doctor ordered. Since my mid-May 2001 departure, I've been daydreaming about returning. I've spent hours upon hours looking at maps of the city and poring over my photos of gorgeous buildings, lush parks, charming little plazoletas.

Am I very different from the Janet that landed at the Buenos Aires international airport almost exactly eight years ago? Perhaps. Do I want the same things out of this trip as I did the last one? No.

I'm going to try really hard not to annoy my traveling buddies with tales of people they've never met; I'm going to make the effort to keep those old stories to myself (and perhaps email them to former fellow students of the ill-fated first edition of NYU in Buenos Aires). I don't want to relive the long nights I spent drinking too much tummy-expanding Quilmes dancing with friends.

What I'm most excited about is strolling down the beautiful streets, wandering through the parks, soaking up the energy of the city. (Oh you sweet, sweet cliches--keep on keepin' on!) I want to shake myself awake a bit and be somewhere where I'm not entirely comfortable. I want to practice my Spanish and have a lot of alone time. I want to drink wine in a park-side cafe with Liz and Chris and Sweet.

I'll be gone for a month--just cashed in my SkyMiles today for the plane ticket. I'm so, so happy. I'm at the point in my life where this makes sense: my job can be done from anywhere I have internet access, I have some money saved for an apartment and living expenses, and I have the time. It just so happens that one of my dear friends will already be down there (Chris is spending 3 months in Argentina); it just so happens that two of my best friends will be taking turns sharing my adorable apartment with me. Sigh. I feel like a girl with a big ol' crush that makes her smile to herself all the time.