Some post dinner musings...

I miss Meijer for one. I know those of you who have vacated Michigan understand what I mean. But you probably still don't have to walk 15 blocks to a grocery store and then carry your purchases home... uphill. For some reason, this reality has hampered my desire to work hard making my dinner. I wonder why... ? Because I have to work so hard to get the ingredients (especially if you take into consideration all the "translating" I have to do to get anything at all).

There are other things that you realize you've taken for granted - like an oven. Especially when you're making pasta and have a hankering for garlic bread. If you're like me, you go to the frozen food isle, buy a loaf of garlic bread, and pop it in the oven for 8 minutes. No, not here. No oven. No frozen garlic bread. No problem: butter some bread, sprinkle with garlic powder. No garlic powder... and still no oven. And bread is weird here too. You'd think that Italians are baking up a storm and there is fresh bread on every corner. Not really. I think that might be the French. Well, anyway, tonight I chopped up some fresh garlic and sauteed it in butter with some salt and threw my weird bread into the sizzling butter. Presto! It was fantastic. So, problem solved. It just takes a lot longer.

There is ham in the spaghetti sauce. I feel like sausage makes more sense. I also like how Meijer has practically an entire mile-long isle devoted to dressings. Italy doesn't seem to have heard of dressing. They make their own - at least that's what everyone tells me. Or they just spritz it with olive oil. That hasn't really satisfied my hard core hankering for raspberry vinaigrette. And with all the work getting to and from the grocery store... I have yet to attempt making my own dressing. I'm sure I will eventually. Especially since the aforementioned store has only 2 dressings. The one I bought is white and creamy looking (I was hoping it would be ranchy). It tastes like a weird mix between miracle whip and the "special sauce" on a Big Mac. I really hate miracle whip. I put some cheese in it. Cheese ALWAYS helps. I also thought I would buy gorgonzola for my salad. It came in a gigantic block. Unlike the nice tubs of crumbles at home. And although I KNOW gorgonzola smells pretty bad as is, THIS smelled really bad and no hope of being crumbly. It was really really soft. And tasted like what I imagine the gorgonzola at home would be like if it expired. So, nix the gorgonzola - check. :-)

Sorry if this sounds like a long ode to Meijer. I don't mean to sound like I'm composing funeral dirge either. More just stating some facts of life. For the record, it took ages, but I really enjoyed my dinner tonight - especially that garlic bread.

In other news, while climbing the stairs post Mass, I was practicing some pronunciation, inspired by all the signs I was passing (O Italians, please don't think ill of me as I appear to be talking to myself), and I rolled my Rs consistently for a few tries! This may seem like no big deal. But really, I have NEVER EVER EVER been able to do that. Once. While watching Spanglish and following Penelope Cruz's instructions. No repeats ever. And all the Italians seem to roll an R for eternity - beautifully, perfectly. Anyway. I can't do it right now. Maybe it was a stair climbing miracle. I am still proud.

I also thought I brought my sweat pants with me. But I didn't.

I bought a "cashmere" scarf off a street vendor on my way home. I love it. It might even really be cashmere... it is all kinds of soft anyway. People say that the cheap stuff on the streets in Italy is actually the real deal. Like Prada bags. Who knows. If I were in NYC, it would be a fake. I don't care though... it was cheaper than the scarves I buy at home and absolutely nicer and softer. Hooray!

Alright. I have procrastinated long enough. Italian homework time! Ciao!