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A R C H I V E D...S U N D A Y...M O N T H L Y S
Soaking Up the Last of Sunny Days
With farmers market bounty and an old book on my shelf about a WW2 spy
(and possibly the inspiration for Ian Fleming's James Bond.)
I've mentioned before that, as a kid, I loved '40s & '50s black and white movies - especially ones about WW2. (An old soul kid, I guess?)
Since then, I've studied this War and, after finding my grandfather's Honorable Discharge describing his survival during the Meuse-Argonne Offensive on the Western Front, I've became more interested in WW1 as its precursor.
...
There's a new book, The Strategists, written by scholar and author, Phillips Payson O'Brien, that looks pretty interesting.
I, however, think a better title would be...
... A Face Only a Mother Could Love.
Amazon's Note: "Churchill. Hitler. Stalin. Mussolini. Roosevelt. Five
of the most impactful leaders of WW2, each with his own individualistic and idiosyncratic approach to warfare. But to understand their military strategy, we must first understand the strategist."
J U S T .. S A Y... " T H A N K.. Y O U,... P A T T I "
Unless you're a fan of SPAM calls, this tip is for you.
If you are disturbed by intermittent buzz buzzes - or whatever customized ring tone you've set on your iPhone - I have a solution. (There must be something similar for Androids.)
1) GO TO SETTINGS
2) SCROLL DOWN TO "PHONE"
3) TAP
4) SCROLL TO "SILENCE UNKNOWN CALLERS"
5) TOGGLE TO "ON"
This clever move will not affect people in your contact list. You'll still see their caller ID and your phone will still ring when they call.
All other callers, including pesky SPAMMERS, can also still call and can still leave a voice message. The DIFFERENCE is that you won't HEAR their calls. No interruptions. No buzzing!
The downside is that you'll miss calls from people who aren't in your contact list but who you DO want to talk to - like your doctor's office. If you're expecting such calls, toggle back OFF until you get the call and then toggle back ON. Even if you forget to temporarily toggle off and you miss the call, the caller will still be able to leave a message.
A N O T H E R... B E N E F I T
Imagine how nice it would be to spend time with friends who have this feature activated on their phones. Let's face it, every time your conversation is interrupted by a call that your friend chooses to answer, that caller has become more important than you. Is it just me that turns off my phone or at least doesn't answer when I'm with a friend? Same with texting. Focus, my friends! Be in the moment. Enjoy the friend who is actually sitting before you or walking by your side.
" B I - L I N G U A L "
Have you ever noticed that spelling "socks" out loud sounds like you're speaking Spanish? Go ahead ... I'll wait.
S ... O ... C ... K ... S ... See what I mean?!
Speaking of words, have you noticed how the English language is changing? Words that once meant one thing now mean another? This evolution - or devolution - has happened throughout history. But it seems a little extreme and nonsensical lately. I recently heard Richard Dawkins (British evolutionary biologist, zoologist, author, and emeritus fellow of New College, Oxford) say something interesting on the Triggernometry podcast,
"Words are our servants, not our masters."
I don't always agree with Dawkins but believe he's right-on here. What do you think?
S A Y I T A I N ' T S O, J O E
On May 31, 2021, the most devasting news
was published nationwide.
The Ronzoni Company, established in New York City by a young, Genovese immigrant in 1892 (officially in 1915), declared that the production of its stelline (little, star-shaped pasta) would cease as of January 2023.
If you know... you know...
This stelline was the key ingredient of a soup that epitomized the childhood of all little paesani boys and girls for over 100 years. But it's more than that. It's a cradle-to-grave staple, the panacea for colds, flu, achy bones, frosty toes, and even teenage heartbreaks... ok, adult heartbreak, too.
It's Italian penicillin.
The catastrophic news crushed the souls and stirred the memories of thousands who instantly went into mourning. You may think I'm kidding, but the grief is real!
So real that I was moved to buy a momento.
M A I D I M E N T I C A T O
N E V E R F O R G E T
Store shelves once stocked with the iconic blue and yellow boxes emptied as loyalists began to hoard and store the itty-bitty macaroni. ("macaroni" is a general term for pasta, not just the elbow-shaped pasta.)
EBay scalpers posted boxes selling for $54.33 each. One nostalgic Instagramer posted, "I'm putting my last box in a glass case and framing it in my living room." Online petitions to save the stelline went viral. The fact-checker, Snopes, investigated the claim: "It just can't be true." I always ask who is fact-checking the fact-checker but in this case, Snopes honestly reported that this disaster was, indeed, true.
Callous, cruel, and heartless remarks were aimed at suffering, dejected and defeated soup lovers - scorning them for overreacting and reminding them of substitutes. True, Barilla makes a tiny ball-shaped pasta (above right) and Colavita makes a star. I've made both. They are fine but Colavita's star is too big and Barilla's ball is too dense. Fact! They're just not the same.
Everyone's nonna made her soup differently although similarly. This one is from mine, Angiolina Lorenzi Polidori: (no measurements as they always changed - a "handful of parsley one day may be only half-full the next.)
(1) Chicken stock (she made from scratch, of course, - carrots, celery, onions, garlic, S/P, and chicken bones) but I use a store-bought organic (organic does taste better.) If you have the remnants of a parmesan cheese rind, throw it in - and then remove before making the soup.
Some nonnas (nonne - I know, if you're checking my translation) would remove the bones and rind after stewing the broth and then crush together the remaining vegetables and add back to the broth. (You can use a blender or Cuisinart.) But mine skipped this step because she knew I liked my soup "clean."
(2) Once the broth is done, add pasta and boil until it is cooked. Top with fresh parsley and parmesan.
Note: I once asked my grandmother what her secret was in making it taste so good. Besides the homemade broth, she added a little tomato paste. I do the same and I also save the cooked carrots and add them back into the soup. Sometimes, I'll throw in a smashed tomato.
It's that time of year to make a few batches. I'll freeze and enjoy during the winter
or whenever I feel nostalgic.
R E A D E R Q U E S T I O N.
Last month's Sunday Monthly prompted a reader to ask me about paint. While I showed the new colors on the exterior of my house, this reader is painting her kitchen cabinets and wondered if I had a favorite brand of paint.
Well, yes I do especially when it comes to kitchen and bath cabinets - or any woodwork that gets wear and tear.
Before linking to my favorite brand, I'll say that for other surfaces such as walls and ceilings, I like the colors from Farrow & Ball. Since I couldn't come up with my own words to tell you why, I'm copying from their website.
"Farrow & Ball uses a combination of pigments and minerals that interact with light in different ways to create unique, high-quality colors. This allows them to achieve a wide range of colors and finishes that change and evolve over time, depending on the light and the time of day."
Bottom line - they have interesting colors that you can't quite define. They have more dimension, and seem to me, ones I don't see with other brands.
When it comes to cabinets, my go-to paint is C2 Paint - described as "Artisan Pigments, Exclusive Technology, and Eco-Friendly."
I used C2 for the first time in 2018 in the navy blue kitchen below. I knew it would be handsome but didn't know it would be more than that! It almost has a lacquered effect. You can read more in my column here C2 Paint
I hope you've been finding my series on the history of architecture interesting. If you haven't, you won't mind that I'm skipping it this month. If you have, I'll resume in November. If you don't know what I'm referring to, you can catch up in Past Issues sstarting with Issue #8.
WISHING YOU AN ABUNDANCE
OF HALLOWEEN CANDY
