Hello?

*Warning, not for those with weak stomachs. This post contains mention of "stinky" things.



After seemingly abandoning my blog for so long, I hope the following conversation can at least partially explain my absence, if not totally excuse it.




M: Before we go, do you have everything you need?


Me: Yes, I think so.


M: Plastic barf bags?


Me: Yes.


M: Candy? (Referring to the strong sugarless licorice candy I always carry in my pockets nowadays).


Me: Yes, I couldn’t survive without it y’know.


M: Handkerchief? (Referring to the heavily fragrance laden tissue that I always carry in my pockets nowadays).


Me: Yes, I am ready.


M: Well, it looks like we can go, but do you have to go to the bathroom first?


Me: Oh, you're right, I better go do that. I am highly suggestible this way. That and my bladder capacity has recently decreased.


Finally we are ready to face the gauntlet of cigarette smoke and other "strange smells" that will assail my poor innocent nostrils on yet another of our visits to le ostetriche, the kind midwives of Santa Anna.


What amazes me nearly as much as finding out that I am pregnant again after ten years (ten years people!) is that every clinic or doctors office or hospital that I have had to enter recently always has a crowd of smokers outside the door. I literally have to breathe through a perfumed handkerchief while running and gasping and telling my stomach to please not revolt. I hate throwing up, but hate even more when it happens in public. When I am not pregnant I don’t mind smelling smoke, as long as I am not eating, but it is merely a slight annoyance. But now, cigarette smoke is the kiss of death, and when I smell it, the scent lingers in my nasal passages for hours, tormenting me. Having gone through this twice before, I know that my sense of smell will return to normal after the birth of the baby, but for now... if I leave the house, I must always carry my "barf kit".


In my previous two pregnancies, I endured the morning sickness which was really morning, noon, night, (actually any time I was conscious) sickness for the entire length of the pregnancy! This time though, I already feel quite hopeful. I have moments during the day when I don’t feel sick at all, and only strong smells bring it on. I would love to have a more "normal" pregnancy, like the many women who begin to feel better between their 14th to 16th week.


I am past that and am in my 19th week of pregnancy now. But things are definitely looking up. I still can't eat out in a restaurant because of the many smells, but especially for the scent of coffee. That affects me nearly as badly as cigarettes.


I can more easily cook meat for my family now.


Just this morning I went for a walk. I actually left the sanctuary of my house without having an appointment somewhere! I left for the pleasure of seeing the wild flowers in the grass, and the blue sky and sun shimmering the green leaves of the trees. I love that we have a park so near our house. This morning I discovered that although the park has quite a few people in it early in the mornings, they are usually joggers! Joggers don’t normally smoke, at least not while they are jogging. And there were wide open spaces which makes a quick getaway easier for me.


I have hope that maybe this time, I will be able to enjoy being pregnant. My previous memories of pregnancy include much sickness, moving on to tender breasts, moving on to becoming enormous like a beached whale, accompanied by strange aches and pains and learning to live with less and less sleep at night because really, trying to sleep with a watermelon in your tummy is nearly impossible. I think that this discomfort in latter pregnancy is a training mechanism your body has, so that when you have a newborn that won’t let you sleep for longer than an hour at a time, you are already used to the lack of sleep. Or. You are so desperate for sleep that you crave being able to FINALLY give birth even when that means that the watermelon must come OUT. Anyone less sleep deprived would know better.


The boys are ecstatic and can’t wait for the baby to arrive in December. My youngest often caresses my tummy and talks to the baby. My oldest tells me how beautiful I am and asks many questions. They both are a lot more cuddly with me lately, and I think they are just amazed that there is a baby growing inside me. Me too, to tell the truth. It is an incredible thing to realize. I have been feeling it move around inside like a little fish. Next week will be the ultrasound. If the baby is not shy we should be able to see if it is a boy or a girl.

Better than KFC?

The thing about cooking with kids is, I always assume it will be way more work for me. But yesterday afternoon when I told them the menu for dinner, they enthusiastically volunteered themselves as chefs. So after I skinned and de-fatted and washed the chicken I showed them what to do. They did it all with little mess, and a lot of silly conversation. How nice for me!

Observations by the budding chefs overheard:

"Weird. Raw chicken feels slimey slippery kind of jell-O-ey, except it has a bone."

" I am putting my chicken in a bath, a barbeque bath."

" I am massaging my chicken."

"You can't massage that chicken! We have to eat that!"

"Hurry, the chicken is tired of being in the bath and it wants to be in the crackers."

" Ma, we have to wash our hands again? I just did! Why do you have to wash your hands every time you touch raw chicken?"

And my favorite remark: "Mom, I'm tired of cooking. Will you finish?" Of course it was the last piece of chicken to go into the cracker mix.

Later, they were so proud of their efforts that they invited a friend over for dinner. I don't know how the topic came up but their little friend mentioned eating rabbit. One of the boys said "You can't eat rabbits! They are too cute!" Amen. I've trained them well. Boys after my own heart.

And I Get the Wacky Postman!

A couple of weeks ago, I checked our mailbox and found an interesting note. It was from the post stating that on that day they couldn't deliver our package to us because we didn't answer the doorbell. We were home all day. The postman never rang us. The interesting thing about this note was the time. The postman wrote: "Attempted delivery at 12:15". I started laughing when I looked at my watch, and it wasn't yet 11:45. M complained to the Italian post. They sent a letter to him, basically passing the buck. They said it wasn't their fault because they sub-contracted out to another delivery company for that particular piece of mail. Ok, Va bene. We now know it wasn't the Italian post's fault. So we simply shrugged our shoulders and said, ok, weird... but no big deal.

So today? The sun is shining and the birds are chirping and I was flitting domestically around the house when all of the sudden the intercom buzzes. I answered but the man was talking so quickly I couldn't understand him. All I got was that he was a postman. I hurried downstairs to see if we were getting a package or something. It was something! I got chewed out in Italian! Rapidly. It was because of the complaint my husband had made. He said he had rung the bell and we never answered. I asked about the time discrepancy and he said something hardly intelligible, and at the same time untrue, so before I got angry and said something not nice back to him I said, "Well, whatever. You can say what you want to say, but we know this should never happen." Then I left him in mid rant, and went back in the house. By that time I was fuming. I am sure that a postman or delivery service person would never come to my house to chew me out in America! And what is worse? I heard him loudly proclaiming his innocence to our neighbors. Che bello! I am trying to imagine making a complaint over his rude behavior but if this is what already happened... maybe it's not a great idea. Any Expats out there have prior experience with this kind of stuff?

The sun is still shining, and the birds are still chirping, and I am cheerful again. I can't believe I let the postman raise my blood pressure.

What's going on?

Even the dog is interested. Time to go play outside!

A Makeover!

No, not a makeover for me, although that would be nice too! Today I decided to paint the doors that lead from the entrance room of the house to the hallway. The doors may have needed to be painted, but more than anything I was just itching to use my new paints. I haven't felt creative for a while, so it was nice to be back in the groove for a few hours today. I had Delta pose in the picture, because the before photo would have simply been too boring without her.

Before:

Then when the boys came home from school I asked them for a little help. I like to encourage them to be creative.

They each painted for a few minutes, but then they went to play outside.

After:

I thought Delta should be in this photo too. She is just so cute!

Here is another photo, this time without Delta. (Edited to add a new photo. I added highlights to the painting Saturday morning), after seeing the painting in better light (daylight).

So, this is how I spent my friday afternoon. I hope yours was as enjoyable! Happy Weekend everyone.

Am I a real blogger now?

Hi there folks! This here is my 100th post! Quasi Italiana! is growing up. I can’t believe I have posted so many things here about normal everyday life, and that others read it! I am still tripped out that there are people from all corners of the globe, not just my family who read this blog. For this post, I would have liked to have written something profound and earth shatteringly moving about life as an American expat in Italy. However, nothing came to me. Life is life with its share of joys and imperfections whether you are here or there.

This blog has been good for me in several ways. It is a nice way to show my friends and family what we have been up to recently. I no longer send a million emails to them; they can simply click here. Another plus of having this blog, is that it gives me something positive to focus on almost every time that I post. When I look back in the archives, I see so much good in our lives... and I realize our family must really be grateful. The big things are covered: good health, a nice house to live in, friends and family near (at least this is partially true) and we always find some way to amuse ourselves when time permits. So, having this blog points out to me personally how much I have to be thankful for. Even if I believe deeply in my heart that everything that I love about Italy, I could happily take back home (to the US). That statement may shock Italophiles everywhere, but for me it is true. For example... Italian food. It is wonderful, and I love it and now I know how to cook many new things. That knowledge would go with me if we were ever to move. Another example? The touristy things to enjoy like monuments, palaces, churches and other cultural gems... I have many memories of these, enough to satisfy myself for a long time. And these are things that are easy to indulge in, all that is needed is a new vacation. Let’s see... most of all I have learned that relationships with friends and family can be maintained even if you live on other continents from each other.

There are times I don’t want to be here. Sometimes I feel the effort is not worth the reward. Sometimes the endless smog, and endless noise, and all the people living on top of each other in this city really makes me feel unhappy. I really do miss the country life. Sometimes it has less to do with Italy and more to do with all the things I am missing about life in the USA. So far I haven't outgrown my homesickness. I am starting to wonder if I ever will.

I don’t love everything about life here in Torino Italy. There are many things that I would never say to this audience because it isn’t positive or uplifting. Plus I have too many good stories to tell that are a lot nicer to read (and write) than the things that cause me disappointment. Would I be ecstatic to move back to the US? Yes. But it isn’t in the plans, and so I will continue to embrace my new life here, and share the adventures with you. Maybe I need to listen to other’s good advice, that happiness can be found simply by choosing to be happy, regardless of the circumstances we find ourselves in. I am not sure. But my mind is open and my heart is also. Even with all that I just wrote about the imperfections of life here... life in the US is also imperfect.

Fiera dei Vini

Last Saturday night we went to the Fiera dei Vini (wine fair) for dinner since it was held in the Parco della Pellerina which is just a hop, skip and a jump from our casa. When we walked in the building it smelled fantastic! There were vendors selling hot grilled sandwiches, dishes with polenta, pasta and more, crepes, all kinds of desserts and candies, and of course wine.

So many choices. I went ahead and ordered a grilled pork sandwich on a piadina which is an Italian flatbread that while thicker is much the same to me as a flour tortilla. My sandwich came with grilled red bell peppers (which are known in Italy as pepperoni - not to be confused with the salame that we Americans love on our pizza) and sauerkraut which Italians call krauti.

Zibibbo is a wine of Sicily that is one of my personal favorites. It is a strong wine that is similar to Marsala, that has been partially fermented and then distilled without the addition of spirits. The Zibibbo is made from grapes that have been partially fermented in the sun. It is an old process. So old that it comes from a formula known in the middle ages. Trust me, it is good.

After dinner, we strolled past the vendors again letting the boys choose what they wanted for dessert. Crepes were the choice.  I chose Babba al Rhum. It is a pastry that is cooked, and then soaked in a sauce made of two parts water, one part rum, and a lot of sugar.



After the Zibibbo and the Babba our defenses were down and when we walked past an amazing display of Torrone in many different flavors, we couldn’t resist. We bought one kilo of Torrone in the flavors of Limoncello, arancio, Tiramisu’, Nutella, and Pistacchio. Mamma mia!

Oh pinguino, how do I love thee?

We left Torino around 8:45 am and had parked, and deposited Delta at the doggy daycare and entered the aquarium at Genova by 11:15. The boys were very excited, but M and I were carefully guarding the secret. There were penguins on exhibit! Gabriel has loved penguins since the first grade, when his class studied penguins extensively. This boy couldn't have been more pleased to see them. We visited the aquarium at the same time as a few (noisy) classes did. They were loud, but had in their favor the fact that they were short, ha! So they were easy to overlook. (Ok, terrible pun, I know).
So what does the aquarium of Genova have to offer? A lot! First and most importantly there were the penguins, but there were also seals, dolphins, sharks, baby crocodiles, a python, turtles, many tropical fish, jellyfish, iguanas, piranhas and more that I just can't remember. We also viewed a nice 3D film "Mostri degli abissi" (Monsters of the abyss). The boys were also able to pet some skates. It seemed to be well organized with more than 30 ecosystems on display, one of which my favorites was a reconstructed madagascar forest.
The only downside was that out of respect for the animals we couldn't take flash photos except in certain areas.

Master Chef Tempts Dieter

I'm strong, but for pity's sake, how was I supposed to resist that!?

Hey, lookey!

( Photo of document has been edited to preserve personal privacy, thank you!)

I got my green card, er rather, pink card, the carta di soggiorno. That's right folks! I am almost Italian, quasi Italiana in fact. This little pink paper is nearly equivalent to what we call a green card back in the U.S. The boys and I are as close to being Italian as we can possibly be unless we go out and take our citizenship test! And after filling out the appropriate paperwork, we only had to wait for nine months. So although we were waiting for the famous (or should I say infamous?) inefficiency of Italian Bureaucracy, I really can't complain! Less than a year's wait? Great job guys!

Now, what do I do with this pretty pink paper?

Carnevale e' arrivato!

The carnival season has arrived! Yesterday (Sunday) afternoon, we came home and found that parking along the street of our house would be impossible. Traffic was insane, there were crowds so thick it made driving difficult, and we faced oncoming traffic (yeah, they were confused and going the wrong way) in a small one way road. Finally we arrived at our house and parked inside the gate. Living so close to the Parco della Pellerina is both a blessing and a curse. One one hand, we are close to all the exciting events that take place there, from the various circuses and festivals, fairs, and amusement parks which the boys love, but... we are close to it, so we bear the brunt of the massive influx of humanity that also goes there. Parking on the sidewalks and in the middle of the roads becomes common, and the noise! Loud noises in the middle of the night. I have prior experience with this though, from last year, and keep a pair of earplugs near my bedside.
After some time at home, we heard lots of booming music, but we thought it was simply "Luna Park" an amusement park just across the road where we planned to take the boys after a comfortable "digestion" period that we needed after our excellent lunch.
I was in the kitchen putting away some dishes, when I saw a pink dragon go floating by on the road below the house, bordering the park. I stepped out on the balcony and discovered it was a parade going by.
We all put our coats on and made our way outside to join the fun.

This is Gianduja, the King of Carnevale here in Torino. You can read more about him here.

I am not sure exactly what this charming float filled with "Chimney sweeps" of Mary Poppins had to do with Carnevale... although it is a mystery that I am sure I could have solved if first I had enjoyed a beer or two.

This is an example of the confetti that covered that covered the streets and people, like colored snow. Actually, from here on out, I will refer to it as coriandoli, the Italian word for confetti. After all you know, "When in Rome..."

Matthew was amazed when among all the people standing along the side of the road, a clown walked up to him and took his bright green pom pom and started brushing the coriandoli off Matthew. They stared solemnly at each other. After all this work of cleaning Matthew, the clown grinned and...

dumped a large handful of coriandoli all over Matthew's head. (I can't quite believe that I managed to catch that moment!) That was simply luck.

Despite the cold there were many ladies in skimpy costumes that I felt very sorry for! It is one thing to parade around in a warm country, but here in January? Brrrrrrrr!

The children, although in costumes, were also bundled up warmly. Matthew shyly gathered coriandoli from the road with some girls around his age and then they pelted each other with it. It was nice to see the Torinese (people of Torino) so animated and smiling. After dark, the parade finally was over. We walked back up the hill, tried to remove as much coriandoli as possible, and went inside our warm home.

Later, we heard some loud booming! What was that? We went out on one of the balconies and saw this beautiful firework display.

La Befana

Today was the day of La Befana.

There are different legends about her...

One of these, says that there was an old woman who was asked by the three kings about the road to Bethlehem. She indicated the road and asked the three kings why they were looking for that place, and the three kings explained who they were looking for.

She decided to go with them, but she was late because she was looking for some candies for baby Jesus in her home, and when she came back outside the three kings were gone. She went to Bethlehem anyway to see this baby, but she didn’t know how to find him. So she began to give these candies to any child she met. And from that moment she was the one who brought candies to children.

My own two boys are thrilled at another chance for candies, and goodies after Christmas and the holiday for the New Year.

The Befana brings candy to good children, or coal to bad boys and girls. Sound familiar? In fact here in Italy, boys and girls don’t receive stockings from Santa Clause or even Babbo Natale (as he is better known here), but on January sixth they receive stockings full of these things from the Befana.

Last year I was amazed. The Befana looks like a scarey witch, (not in the above picture because I picked a cute one) who seems much more in keeping with a Halloween holiday, than anything to do with Christmas. But believe me, she is much adored and loved here.

So my two boys miss out on Christmas stockings, but they aren’t missing a thing. Even if we forgot the holiday with the Befana... the nonni would make sure that she stopped by our house with a couple big stockings of candy.

This year I managed to get with it a bit more, I am learning a whole new life after all. And according to the kids, what is not to love about the Befana? Hmmm....

An old woman bearing gifts or candy and stockings who flies on a broom? Or a jolly old man in red who flies by reindeer? Never let it be said that I am too old to adjust!

What we have here...

... is the effect of staying up past mid night to wish each other a "Buon Anno!" Poor sleepy puppies! So everyone napped frequently New Years day. We are off to a sleepy start for 2007.