HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — Elisabetta Canalis has heard plenty of criticism since she started dating George Clooney nearly a year ago.
"There are some people who just don't want to see me happy," the 31-year-old Italian model tells Italy's Vanity Fair.
She adds: "I sometimes feel insecure, but if you are loved then you always feel great. [George] reassures me all the time. He is very close. I feel more embraced than ever before."
The couple faced criticism almost from the start, but Canalis says she never let it get to her.
"I did not feel offended: its absurd; there is no point in giving it any importance," she says. "It certainly affected me the other day to be asked by the lady at the cash register of supermarket in Alghero [her home town in Sardinia, Italy]: 'Is it true that you are his girlfriend?' "
"I have heard of women – even famous women – that due to this [relationship] removed his photo as screensavers from their computers," she continues. "Maybe I am a bit stressed. But in the end the best revenge over these jealous people is to be happy. Because that is the thing they do not forgive you for."
Despite the public scrutiny, Canalis says dating one of Hollywood's most eligible bachelors is a trip down memory lane.
"The idea of being so loved is overwhelming," she gushes. "George has given color back to my life. I feel great — it's as if I am 18 years old again!"
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