ongoing cumulative one-liners of this and that

SOME FUNNY OBSERVATIONS        SOME JUST OBSERVATIONS    SAN SALVATORE

No one but no one-no matter the age, young or old, stops at a STOP SIGN.....anywhere...EVER

3 things I wish I brought: skin-so-soft (mosquitos) and oxy clean (to soak stains off clothes)
                     And a flashlight. With batteries.  The one you wear around your forehead.

If the washing machine is not stuffed so full you can't even fit another sock in it-don't start the wash

Every evening the supper is centered around BREAD and what you can put on it

There are AT LEAST 7 recyclable containers at all times...each having a different purpose

We don't eat butter because we don't know what that cow ate that gave that milk
              (but smoking 2 packs of cigarettes a day is ok)

Only feed the cats once a day so they get hungry enough to catch and eat some geckos

You don't have to be hooked up to cable tv to have to pay for it.  Just having a tv warrants paying

CACHI a fruit falling from trees everywhere.   English name.....................PERSIMMON

Another fruit that people have a lot of and are giving too much to us of.................QUINCE

Quince butter: after cooking the inedible raw fruit for a long time-It's one of the best things I've
                        ever tasted.

Many trees full of them now-everywhere-free-so I make juice.........................POMEGRANATES 

All children attend school Mon. thru Sat.  (yes Saturday)

If you sell your house in the "Red Zone"; area around Vesuvius in Naples, the government will
give you about 40,000 Euro (about $60,000 U.S.) just to get out of there.  Vesuvius is always
bubbling and ready to blow!  So people sell their houses to their friends. Gov't never checks

Grassano Park about 1 km from here-beautiful-ice cold, crystal clear river from mountain-
always around 40 deg. even in 100 deg. of Summer-there lives many BEAVER RATS!
Look just like a beaver in water-with a rat tail-and bright reddish orange beaver teeth.
Cute

No one has a clothes dryer.  Sometimes it takes 3 days for your clothes to dry outside.

Concetta (Francesco's wife) doesn't go out very much.  She always says she has to wash her
baby-Fabio(5).  "Francesco, where is Concetta?" "Washing the baby".  Too funny

You order a prosciutto cotto panini, you get a very fresh roll with ONE slice of meat-that's it!
No mayo, no lettuce or cheese or pickle.  I went to the store and got just enough meat, cheese,
rolls and olive mix to put together 2 paninis.  Gave one to MAX (12 and always hungry)
  All he could say was:
WOOOOOOWWWW!!  THANKS!!!  He'd never eaten or seen a grinder before.

When I, on the one speed, approach a certain house on the way to Telese, 4 little, tiny dogs
see me coming.  They crouch down so I can hardly see them, then as I go by, come racing
out at me barking like crazy.  I almost ran one over (by accident).  It's right near the 2000 yr.
old Roman spa that is so overgrown with trees and plants you can hardly see what it used to be.

As soon as I empty the water dish in the chicken house each morning, the duck who lives with the chickens goes and drinks the very dirty, muddy water and the rooster stands in the clean water.




For more one-liners, go to the Carovigno One-liners

Many, Many, Many jars of sugo

Sept. 26th 2012

We received 7 bins of Roma tomatoes the other day.  I don't know if we traded stuff for them or what but they just appeared and I was told on Tuesday at 3 p.m. we would start making sauce (sugo) and peeled tomatoes.  This is not something I would think to START in the afternoon as late as 3.  So Maria Pia started cleaning the tomatoes after Italo sorted the "perfect for peeling" from the the not so perfect for sauce.  What we do is after cutting up the tomatoes (in half) and cooking them, we put them through this machine that separates the pulp from the skin and seeds.  Just exactly like the machine Dora used in Battaglia.  Only this machine here was much newer with some plastic parts.  The older one in Battaglia was all metal.  The sauce comes out perfectly smooth in just the right consistency for pouring into the jars.  Then we fill the 1 liter jars 1/4 full with sauce.  Meanwhile Italo is putting a large amount of  the 'perfect' tomatoes into the biggest pot of boiling water you could imagine.  The pot covered the whole cooktop of our stove.  Then after they boiled for a few minutes he scooped them out and put them into the two sinks filled with cold water.  Then I had to removed the skins which came off quite easily.  these peeled tomatoes is what went into the 1/4 filled jars.  Caps were put on tightly and when done put into more really big pots to boil for about an hour with towels securing them in place so they couldn't move  After many hours of back breaking work and wet from head to toe, we were done.  This is not something I'd want to do again.  At least not right away.
We ended up with 132 liters (quarts) of SUGO!!  Many will be sold.  Rest for the family.
 Also a carefully measured amount of salt was added.

Picking of the grapes

September 22nd 2012

Francesco and his wife (Concerta), son Fabio(5) and daughter Allisia(8) are friends of Maria Pia and live down the road a bit on a farm with grapes.  Concerta's mom, Maria (72) lives with them and is from Sardinia.  Francesco's parents live next door to them.
So I went to help with the grape harvest.  They have about 1200 vines.  Several friends and family showed up early to help.  It was easy enough to use clippers and cut each bunch off the vine and put them in a blue colored plastic bin.  Each bin ends up weighing about 75 lbs. (35 Kilo).  Then when there were about 20 or so bins filled, I got to drive the tractor while Francesco and Jonathan lifted and emptied each bin into the trailer and brought back to the house for emptying into a larger trailer and driven to Solopaca to be made into wine.
Meanwhile back at the house the moms made lunch for everyone.  And by 1 p.m. we were very ready to take a much needed break and to eat.  We did get served espresso and an unsweetened little baked good from Concerta after about the first hour picking.  The name of this very popular crunchy bread is TARALLI.  It's shaped into a circle and tastea like nothing more than bread.  Nice.
The first trip with grapes to Solopaca weighed in at about 3200Kilos or about 7000 lbs. of grapes.
We all sat down at one long table in Francesco's parents house and were served pasta with tuna and black olives in sauce.  After looking around I thought that this was all we were having for lunch . Jonathan ate his normal DOUBLE helping also thinking that this was lunch.  Then they brought out the casserole dishes of eggplant and peppers, broccoli rabe and fried peppers and baskets of bread (and wine of course).  And then they took my bowl and filled it with fried potatoes and sausages.  By the time I was done all I wanted to do was take a nap.  It was all very tasty but way too much food for one meal.  I laid down in the grass for about 20 minutes before heading back to cut more grapes.  By the time we were all finished, I couldn't wait to get back on my bike, ride home, take a much needed shower and get a second wind.
But before finishing with the grapes, shortly after we started back after lunch, Francesco's uncle, Michael, started singing!  I thought "This day just can't get any better!".  He and I were partners in picking so he was right next to me singing in Italian with a voice that should be recorded.  His singing made my aching back not matter so much.
And then to top it all off, Francesco announced that he was taking me and Jonathan out for pizza for supper.  We went to another amazing town of Cerrato.  Must go back in daylight hours.  Really beautiful even in the dark.  The pizza was made (of course) in a wood fired oven off to the side as part of the dining room.  Place was packed.  Pizza was awesome!
All together we picked about 7000 lbs. of grapes
Another wonderful day of hard work, charming people and delicious food.
Porcini festival in the town of Cusano all next week.  Must find a way to get there. 

Hair Salon Tuesday Sept. 18th

Nine weeks of hair growth, all white, and I just had to get back to being a brunette.  Maria Pia took me to her favorite place in Telese.  She was staying to have her hair done too.  When her friend Sylvio heard we were going, he said he wanted to go too.  We had an appointment.  He just walked in, got right in and said he was staying to 'gossip'.  We were there 2 1/2 hrs. and he stayed long after his minimal hair was washed and trimmed.  He knew everyone and everyone was pleased to see him and talk.
I had a total of 4 guys work on my hair.  First one put the color in and waited.  The second one washed, messaged and messaged some more, conditioned and rinsed and messaged more.  It was wonderful.  The person washing your hair stands behind you as you lay back with head in sink.  So much easier than standing over you and washing.  Then the owner who was 1 of 2 who did all the hair cutting in the whole place came and cut my hair a few inches shorter than it was.  Then the guy who does all the blow drying came and did that.  2 1/2 hrs. later I left with brown hair again and looking quite nice.  It cost 1/3 the price for the same thing done in Ct.  I was pleased.

Guardia

Sept. 16th Sunday

Whenever I would tell someone I wanted to go to Guardia by bike they would say "Oh Guardia is so beautiful but don't go by bike.  It's all uphill".  Well I still, for whatever reason I don't know, have to set these challenges up for myself.  I guess it makes me feel good that I am not giving in to the age thing.  So on my one speed bike me and Jonathan set out to Guardia after getting a lunch invitation from Maria Pia's friend, Marilina an English teacher from Guardia.  We'll always accept an invitation to eat at someone's house.
There were hills and then there were bigger hills. I had to walk part of the way pulling the one speed through a few small towns and many vineyards.  One town actually meant city of wine.  I drank all the water I had brought.  Found a stream, filled up my water bottle from it, drank some, then Jonathan said "I wouldn't drink any ground water in Italy".  Oh well.  I'm fine and it tasted good.  But not as good as the cluster of grapes I snagged and ate to quench my thirst.  All the grapes in the Benevento area are at their peak and ready to be picked.  I'm just now seeing trucks and tractors pulling trailers overloaded with grapes going down the streets.
So as we got to Marilina's house I discovered I had a flat tire.  She said she'd bring me home-no problem.  It was about 10Km (13 miles) so walking was not what I wanted to have to do.
For lunch we had some kind of beef stew cooked in tomatoes, big flat pasta rings with sauce, rabbit cooked in tomato sauce, sausages and salad.  The meats were cooked in tomato sauce that Marilina bought from Maria Pia.  Sauce I probably helped to make.  After lunch Marilina brought me and Jonathan a couple of miles up some more hills to the center of the town so we could walk around, take pictures and would pick us up in an hour to take ME back home. Jonathan wanted to go further on his bike to the next town.
The town of Guardia was built around this huge castle which now is at least half abandoned and the other half has been turned into apartments.  The abandoned apartments were all open and looked like no one had been there for at least 50 years.  And many had  VENDISI on the door.  FOR SALE.  Guardia was on House Hunter International recently because of the amount of places for sale for around 10,000Euro.
As I had mentioned before, Clair bought one and was still in the process of finishing it when it was filmed and shown on tv.  The castle was filled with really narrow alleyways, all stone and the few places that were lived in were nicely decorated with flower pots and window boxes filled with flowers.  It took all of the hour we had to walk down to almost the bottom and around a few corners and then find our way back up to where we were getting picked up.  I definitely want to go back and spend a whole day exploring more of Guardia.
P.S.  Jonathan went on further, got a flat himself and walked home with his bike.  It was about 25 miles and he got home about 1 a.m.

Farm Work

Tuesday September 11, 2012

About 90% of what we eat, we grow.  We hardly ever buy anything from the grocery store.  We do
buy cheese, milk,  flour, sugar, coffee but not much else.  Tonight for supper we had bread, roasted cherry tomatoes, fried peppers, hummus and salad.  Maria Pia traded raw chick peas for use in the hummus and sesame seeds to make the tahini.  The lemons we got from her moms tree in town.  We usually don't have cheese every day.  Actually, not too often at all.

Because today was bread making day and there was no bread for breakfast, we picked figs to eat.  Italo's friend always manages to bring a gallon of his wine just in time when the previous gallon is running low.  For lunch (our biggest meal) we had linguini with broccoli rabe, tomato flatbread, homemade seitan,(wheat gluten) and tomato salad.

Just when I think we've almost depleted the veggies from the garden, we plant for the next season.  Now we are planting a lot of broccoli, onion,  fennel and salad greens.
We are constructing a type of greenhouse using bamboo walls for people to go in  to read or whatever to get away from the flies.  They are horrible right now.  Last month mosquitoes were horrible.  I wasn't here for that.

I have 2 roommates now.  Jonathan (24) from Belgium and Markus (23) from Germany.
Markus is a world traveler.  He's working  on his civil engineering degree from a university in Germany where college is free.  He has been at this farm before but just returned for a week until he flies home to help his uncle build a new house.  Then he'll return to college.  He wants to build straw houses or ones made from clay.  He left here the first time to go to Sicily for a month WWOOFing.  He spent a year in Australia working and living in his car that he bought after he got there.  He said he really likes sleeping in his car because he always has all his STUFF with him.  Interesting person.  Speaks English with a heavy German accent.  

I went to the market by bike this morning in San Salvatore.  They sell everything from used clothes for 1/2 Euro to olives, cheese, fruit and most anything in the line of food even live chicks and quail.

Tomorrow school starts here.  Max will be going by bike.  Every child has a choice but once you make the decision of how you're getting to school, I think you have to stick to it.  If you choose the bus, the parents have to pay.  If you choose bike, you can't ride the bus.  Max worked many hours today finishing his summer homework.

Almost everything we make to eat caters to Jonathans inability to eat dairy (cow), nuts and chocolate.
I've baked a few things substituting sunflower oil for butter.  Not as good but that's what we have to do.  Tomorrow I think I will cook with Italo's permission and make potato, chick pea curry with rice.
I'm missing baking every day but I just saw a big basket of green apples in the back room.  So maybe I can make an apple cake too. It's very nice of Maria Pia to say we shouldn't have food that Jonathan can't eat.  I know he appreciates it.

CELEBRATING THE BEGINNING OF THE GRAPE HARVEST

                                                                        JACO

A friend of Maria Pia's is staying with us for just 2 nights.  He is Jaco (18) gorgeous, from Rome and here with his parents whose father is from Solopaca, a neighboring town.  Jaco just returned from spending a month with relatives in New Jersey working at a restaurant.  His face belongs on the cover of GQ.  He went to New Jersey to learn English but when he got to the restaurant, the kitchen was full of Mexicans.  So learned a little Spanish instead.

                                                                      Let's eat

 We all went to Solopaca last night at the house where Jaco's father grew up.  All the neighbors on the street get together to celebrate the beginning of the grape harvest.  Today there will be a parade complete with music and floats.
We all walked in to this house in town, through really big wooden doors into what is now a garage.  Many years ago it housed the cow and huge vats of wine.  The house is what we would call a condo.  There are several attached so not a free standing structure.  After going through the garage and up very wide marble stairs we enter the long hallway that leads to the backyard where there are about 26 people all seated  at one long table just getting served the appetizer.  So we all sat down and ate melon, prosciutto and 4 fried fritters all a little different from each other.  2nd course was fresh fettuccini with white beans in a light tomato broth with a very hot pepper alongside.  In case you weren't full enough we then got served baked chicken with roasted potatoes.  More melon slices after that with white table grapes and cactus fruit.  Then came BABA, cake soaked in rum with gelato  and a peach slice.  The gelato was vanilla with shaved chocolate.  And all through this was sangria, water and white wine.  At the very end a champagne toast.  Now it was midnight and Jaco's mom asked if I wanted to go to the concert in town.  But it was midnight!  I wasn't going to be the stick in the mud so said SURE!  We all walked up to the main street in Solopaca which is quite long and lined with shops, restaurants and businesses on the street level and apartments on the second.  There were many, many people; afterall it was a festival to celebrate the grapes.  There was a live band playing a kind of hip hop/pop music and many people dancing everywhere.

It was a very enjoyable evening.  Good food, music and very friendly people.  It was 2 a.m. and I was still up.  But "When in Rome"......