Katie Olsovsky's USA Journal!

You know what we haven't had recently? A journal from a USA National Team member. What with all the Utah "stuff," we need a palate cleanser.

And just like that, Katie Olsovsky gives us an update on her glamorous life playing pro ball in Italy and living near Rome. Personallly, I didn't even know that the former Trojan was still a part of USA Volleyball, but then what do I know.

After telling us about her favorite things about Rome, such as the weather ("It is just like Southern California, never snows!!"), her experience with his royal Popeness ("I went to the Vatican for midnight mass and sat inside the church for the Pope’s service."), and her familiarity with places I've never heard of (Vittorio Emanuele II and Via Condotti), Katie tells us that the drivers are nuts in Italy:

Making a left hand turn and yielding to oncoming traffic doesn’t even cross someone’s mind here! It is a very different way to drive, and for my first time being here I decided not to drive.

Crazier than the 110 at rush hour? C'mon, Olsovsky!

"I probably pass by the Coliseum two or three times a week and just say, 'Oh there’s the Coliseum again.'"

Kinda like "Look, kids! Big Ben, Parliament!"

But the one thing I really admire in professional athletes is their discipline and dedication, and Olsovsky's no exception.

"The day I got here I went on the Tiramisu diet."

OK, so she's kinda on a modified regimen. But that's OK because she hasn't forgotten "the real reason why I am here, to play volleyball!"

As a player in the BBC 1Classe Roma league, her greatest hurdle has been the discrepancy between the short socks her teammates wear ("because I was told it makes your legs look sexier") and her new-fangled American style ("I think I am a forever long sock lover!").