An Italian Sense of Time

I watched this animate with my son. It describes cultural and personal differences in a sense of time and he has some interesting insights on the difference between cultures in Northern and Southern Italy.

I've just read Willful Behavior by Donna Leon. So far I think it's my favorite book in her series about a Venetian detective. The writing style is elegant and the pacing is excellent. I also love the way she describes the food culture in Venice and the big family lunches that Brunetti's wife Paula cooks when she is not teaching. This is very satisfying armchair traveling. It wouldn't surprise me if this series is filmed for television.

I picked up some lovely winter greens at the market and have been chopping the kale and bok choi and mustard greens into really small pieces to make them edible while they are still raw. Add to this a mustardy lemony dressing and roasted almonds or herbed walnuts and this is so good with bits of blue cheese and some buffalo sausage on the side.

Sweet Time

Isn't it wonderful to have an extra half hour to sleep in? What a gift. I have had a lost weekend, a migraine weekend, but I did manage to bake zucchini muffins, go to the winter market at Nat Bailey and read three books. (Thank god for drugs.) I got to putter around in the garden, harvesting the last of the amaranth and pulling up the stalks so my winter crops get more sunlight. My rare nematodal marigolds are finally blooming and they have an incredibly pungeant smell, even in the cold. So far we've had an amazing November and even now there is a patch of clear sky out there. The bees are closed in for the winter with their own honey and pollen but no queen. They do still seem to be keeping themselves warm by forming a ball. I noticed this a while ago when I took the feeding box off.

Time to go and make breakfast and lunch. Enjoy that extra few minutes this morning.