There’s something soothing about working with nature’s bounty so, I was able to focus my thoughts on the important things in life as I set about canning my bread and butter pickles.

Later I pondered the various obstacles in my way as I cleaned and trimmed green beans and set them to boil for green bean salad.

Then I was able to contemplate the future as I cleaned and chopped some basil in order to freeze it for the winter.

I’m sure I’ll have plenty of opportunities in the coming weeks to do some more thinking and pondering as I prepare other garden goodies. And while I don’t often have the time to putter around in the garden, I really do enjoy it and, if you could make a living at it, I’d love to do something that was tied to the earth. Unfortunately, in this day and age, only large agricultural companies are able to make any money in the farming business.

Of course, while I was working the land, I’d also have to have other intellectual pursuits because otherwise I would be lost.

Still, the simple life is very appealing.

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——-

Even though I’ve never seen your face, I love you anyway. Do you know, I was convinced from the very beginning that you were a girl. We never will know, but I still have those images in my mind of a little squirmy baby dressed in a little pink body suit. I tried to picture you and wondered if you would look like your daddy or like me or a little bit of both. And, while I suffered through 24 hour nausea, I relished it at the same time because I mistakenly believed that it was a sign that all was going well, unlike the last time. I was so positive that I even started thinking about names. But then I found out that your little heart wasn’t beating and that it had most likely stopped weeks before. I didn’t cry then as we made the necessary arrangements and I wasn’t able to grieve for several hours afterwards. Instead I was forced to talk to people and act as if my world hadn’t suddenly tilted and gone dark. I was on auto-pilot, walking and talking in a fog. It wasn’t until hours later that I was able to mourn, when I was alone and no one could hear me, especially your brother since I didn’t want to upset him. Then I buried my face in the pillow and moaned and wailed as my heart broke yet again. And, I cried again after the anesthesia wore off even though I didn’t want anyone to see my private grief. You were only with me for 11 short weeks, but you will always be a part of me. Please forgive me if I say it’s all for the best and try to find reasons why it’s a good thing for your brother to be an only child. I’m only trying to keep myself going. Your brother’s smiles and giggles are good medicine for me though. So, I’ll light and candle for you and for the other one who we never got to meet. Know that you will always be in my heart.

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There are women (and even some men) here who spend every possible moment sunbathing at the beach – so much so that they’re skin takes on what I can only call an “overly cooked” look. We’re not talking a healthy glow, we’re talking full blown roast beef. Move over George Hamilton (does anyone remember who he is?).

But then, maybe I’m the only one who finds that unattractive.

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I went to cut some chives the other day and found this tiny one on one of the chive blossoms.

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After my third night in a row without sleep, I was ready to try anything when O mentioned a “decotto” that his mother used to make. As I said, I was willing to try anything, but was also interested to find out what this old-fashioned folk remedy was.

Of course, I also had to look up the word “decotto” since it wasn’t anything I had ever run into before. “Decotto” means decoction which comes from the verb decoct and means to extract the flavor by boiling or to make concentrated, boil down. Not to be confused with the word concoction which comes from the verb concoct, meaning to prepare by mixing ingredients or to devise using skill and intelligence. Now a decoction is a concoction, but a concoction isn’t necessarily a decoction. Got it?

Anyway, off O went to get the inside scoop on how to make it and to go shopping for all of the ingredients.

When he came back, we got everything ready and put it into the cauldron pot to boil.

After I heard the ingredients I figured that it certainly wouldn’t do any harm and might even do some good.

If you’d like to make your own decoction concoction you’ll need:

3 apples, quartered (do not remove the skin and seeds)
rind of one lemon
rind of one orange
about 8 dried figs, cut in half
2 handfuls of barley
(I added some cinnamon too because it just seemed like the right thing to do)

Throw all of this into a pot and cover it abundantly with water. Bring to a boil and then let it simmer for an hour or two. Strain out the bits and drink the hot liquid.

It was a little bitter, so you could add sugar to it if you’d like. I didn’t because I was so sick of sugar that I didn’t mind the bitterness. It also makes quite a bit, so I put it in a pitcher and then would heat it up in the microwave.

I’m sorry to say that it was no miracle cure for my cough, but I did find it very soothing for my aching throat.

Bottoms up!

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Yes, the plan had been to do a simple finger food buffet party and it evolved into a much larger, sit down food affair, but that’s ok. It probably was easier since finger food takes a lot of prep time.

A good bit of the preparation was actually done on Friday, but on Saturday there was still a lot to do and my brother-in-law and his wife along with my parents were all railroaded into helping all volunteered to help.

We started out with antipasto kebabs (cherry tomatoes, mozzarella, mushrooms, salami, etc. strung on a stick and marinated), some bakery bought mini pizzas, homemade finger sandwiches (cucumber and goat cheese with olives), ventricina and capocollo and frog eyes (which mom made and were a big hit).

Next up it was a cold pasta dish made with chicken breast, carrots, celery, a creamy pesto sauce and grapes. That was definitely a change for the Italian palate – some liked it, some didn’t, but that was fine.

Then it was time for the meat dishes – meatballs in brown gravy and Judith’s fabulous pork cooked in milk. (That recipe has a big thumbs up. It’s delicious, easy to make for a large party and leftovers are also delicious. Thanks Judith for all your help!!). Along with the meat I made a big Caesar’s salad with homemade croutons (another novelty for the Italian crowd).

We followed that up with fruit salad served in a watermelon carved into a basket and then, of course, the birthday cake.

Wine and beer were flowing, as was the conversation, but I was too busy to take any photos.  You see, the idea was that everyone would help themselves, but I guess that was too foreign of an idea for this crowd. We ended up serving everyone, which in a way might have actually been the better solution. After I thought about it I realized that it would have just been mass confusion as everyone descended on the tables with no rhyme or reason since organization seems to be in short order here.

There were, of course, some sour spots. One of our guests considers any food that she herself didn’t make or pick out (as in a restaurant) to be inferior and God forbid if it happens to be something that she’s not familiar with. She, of course, also knows best how to make the few recipes that are in her repertoire and doesn’t hesitate to let people know this. Consequently, most of the food she was served ended up getting thrown out. Unfortunately, she’s brainwashed her kids into thinking the same way she does so they didn’t eat much either. Now, it’s possible that they truly didn’t like it, but you should at least try it. The whole attitude gets to me along with the narrow-mindedness. (Not to mention how incredibly rude that kind of behavior is.) Life is about trying new things. Why paint yourself into a corner and miss out on new flavors? Last year I made a Devil’s Food Cake for Luigi’s birthday and she didn’t taste a single bite even though everyone else positively raved about how good it was. (And I know it’s not because she doesn’t eat chocolate, because I’ve seen her do it.)

This year the cake was a luscious sponge made with 20 eggs. It turned out to be delicious, extremely light and airy, so I kept it light by spreading some cherry flavored whipped cream in the center, then covered it with buttercream frosting and decorated it with a Winnie the Pooh frozen buttercream transfer.  I’m no professional cake decorator, but it didn’t turn out too bad.

Luigi got lots of presents and lots of attention of course. He quickly learned that the bags that people were carrying in the door were for him and, despite his usual reticence, was giving people kisses left and right. After all, they were giving him prettily wrapped packages, so I guess he figured he was going to give something in return.

I think a star has been born though because after hearing everyone sing “Happy Birthday”, then blowing out the candles on the first try, he got a wondering, self-satisfied look on his face as everyone clapped and cheered for him.

Blowing out the candles

Although there were a few sour notes, the party turned out to be a lot of fun and I think most people enjoyed it. Cleaning up the next morning was another story though.

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My original plan was to have some hors d’oeuvres and finger foods, but somehow it evolved into an antipasto buffet, a cold pasta dish, two meat dishes, a carved watermelon fruit salad plus a homemade cake.

The idea was to keep it simple so that we could have a bunch of friends over. Well, we didn’t keep it simple and the guest list has now exceeded 30 (with threats to O if he invited anyone else).

So, think of me over the next few days as I’m frantically cleaning and cooking (and blowing up balloons). Let’s hope the hors d’oeuvres and antipasto dishes are tasty, the unorthodox pasta dish goes over with the Italian crowd, the meat comes out tender and delicious and the cake doesn’t fall.

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We haven’t given up swimming forever, but we do have to wait until the pool opens back up again. I guess since the sea is so close they don’t stay open during the summer. Of course, it does also give them time to perform some maintenance, so all is not lost. In the meantime we’ll either have to go to the beach or just wait until September when it opens back up again.

Of course, we have to see if mom has time to make trips to the beach. Swimming was held on specific days at specific times so I just made sure I was free and didn’t schedule anything. I guess I’m going to have to put “going to the beach” on my calendar.

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Maybe I’m way off base here, but I imagine it being a couple with children where one or both of the partners has been out of work for a while. I imagine them having gone through all of their savings and now, having reached the end of their rope, they’re forced to steal diapers and food in order to survive – or at least keep their children healthy.

We get lip service saying that things are getting better, that we’re getting over the economic crisis, but instead of hearing about more jobs being created I keep hearing about more people getting laid off. And, instead of hearing heartwarming stories, I hear heartbreaking stories like this one.

This isn’t limited to Italy though. Just today I heard from a friend whose daughter is in trouble because her husband has lost his job and now, not only do they have no health insurance, but they’re worried about paying the bills and the monthly rent.

But, the rich keep getting richer…..

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I had a friend who somehow managed to function on only 3 or 4 hours of sleep per night. In fact, he physically wasn’t able to sleep more than that, he would automatically wake up. When I was sitting in meetings pinching myself to stay awake, I used to wish that I had that same ability. He said it was annoying, I thought it would be fantastic.

Then I moved to Italy. Since I wasn’t working at the time I think I spent the first month catching up on years of missed sleep. But, I felt like I was wasting time. I needed to be working and not sleeping.

One of the biggest culture shocks that I had was when I went somewhere that required me to wait. The doctor’s office, hairdresser, post office and other similar places were a nightmare to me. People thought nothing of waiting for over an hour (sometimes hours). Even if I had nowhere that I had to be, it still chafed me to have to wait so long. I found it frustrating and would end up being irritated for the rest of the day.

But everyone doesn’t perceive time in the same way. To some people I guess that having to wait isn’t all that big of a deal.

Here’s an interesting video that talks about time perception and raises some very interesting points. What do you think?

www.youtube.com/watch?v=A3oIiH7BLmg

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