The Dajti Diva 8 January 2009

It is 1831 here in Tirana, and I haven’t left my apartment all day. Waking up at 0700, excited about another day, I commenced my morning ritual of making espresso in my Italian mocha pot and steaming milk in my little metal Turkish coffee maker, both on my recently purchased, two burner electric stove. As the coffee was brewing and the milk frothing, I decide to bring my laptop into the living room and organize the book I just started writing. I am still in that “fear of beginning” phase, but I think today, I nipped it directly in the bud! I poured my freshly brewed espresso and milk into my red coffee mug embossed with the two-headed eagle that is Albania’s striking flag, and begin typing.

Suddenly, I glance at my cell phone, shocked to see it is 1315 in the afternoon and I have been writing my book the entire time, stopping only to make more espresso and consume a plain banana and apple snack.

I am utterly astounded by the creative being I have allowed myself to become in the seven weeks since I moved to Albania. Even though this book has been inside me, screaming to be written for the past ten years, I couldn’t write a word of it living in Washington DC, even had I tried. Not just because I wasn’t being authentic and true to myself, working for the Department of Defense (DoD), but because of television. I have always loved and loathed television. As a veritable escapist, I am so easily sucked in by the latest reality drama on the Bravo Network—Jackie Warner’s catty and sassy Workout; the Queen of the Aussie Bitches, Tabitha’s Salon Takeover; and my favorite, the delectable Top Chef.

So after writing this morning for four hours straight, my brain began to hurt, because I don’t remember writing that much since graduate school. I took a long break by preparing a simple lunch of cucumber yogurt salad with fresh tomato and a quarter of a chicken breast I roasted last night in my tiny, portable oven. Retreating to my bedroom because it’s too cold in the living room, I extended my break to listen to about five Hip Tranquil Chick podcasts which are quite inspirational. I also learned I need music on while writing, so I created a 362 song playlist on my IPod to listen to while writing. I am listening to it right now; Enya’s Only Time is currently playing.

After creating and uploading the eclectic playlist, I take my first luxurious bath in this new apartment, feeling a little bit guilty about it though since hot water and power are quite limited commodities in Albania. But it was SO worth it.

Getting out of the bath at 1730, I wash the dishes using only cold water because I do not have hot water in the kitchen. Craving nothing but vegetables, I roast organic broccoli, carrot, red pepper, and zucchini with a dusting of Italian olive oil, salt, and pepper. Still listening to Hip Tranquil Chick podcasts in the kitchen, I eat the vegetables one at a time, savoring each bite. After peeling and eating two sweet and juicy mandarins for dessert, I go back into my bedroom, push play on the IPod and decide to begin this blog as a warm-up for, hopefully, another four hours of writing. What was I afraid of before? Why are any of us afraid to begin projects so near and dear to us? It’s that wicked fear of success and today, while I didn’t go to the gym, I conquered my fear of beginning.

Thank you Kimberly Wilson, designer of the Hip Tranquil Chick podcast. I bet you never thought your audience would extend as far as Tirana, Albania and the ironic thing is that for five years, I too lived within walking distance of your Pink Palace in Washington DC, in Logan Circle! I used to be a government flunky in DC, and like you, I gave up my steady paycheck to live a life of authenticity, nurture my inner hip tranquil chick, and to write. I christen my blog, the Dajti Diva, for the majestic Dajti Mountain under which the colorfully enigmatic city of Tirana is nestled.