arrivederci august--and happy BlogDay 2007!

Again I’ve waited until the last possible day for my Monthly Musing. What can I say? I’m just not a summer person, especially when summer equals over a hundred degrees Fahrenheit for more than half the time.

Go ahead, smart aleck--ask me why I live in southern Italy. I know you want to. But that’s a post for another day.

The month of August gets a reprieve from my otherwise lukewarm (hah!) feelings, though, because as you’ve seen, it has given me two of the most precious people in the world to me, my niece and nephew.

My childhood best friend’s birthday was yesterday as well, and one of my best friends from college turned another year older on the 23rd--indeed, the last couple weeks of August are packed with celebrations of the birthdays of those I love…new friends included!

And then there’s a little matter of school starting up, which I always loved so much. Yeah, I was a geek like that.

In fact, starting Monday (a holiday to you in America, but not to me!) I’m starting my new regime of taking the next step in learning Italian. I have some grammar books, yes, but I also acquired a high school textbook (from two of the cutest 17-year-old boy twins you’ll ever see) on what I’d call “government and civil law” or something similar in America—I’m ready to learn about Italy’s governmental structure (sorry, I don’t get the Parliament thing) and what it considers basic human rights.

You know, all that knowledge you take for granted because you grew up with it *and* had to learn it in high school?

So I’m starting school with many of you, but before I hit the books, I have time for one more silly haiku (there’s always time for haiku, right?):

Heat, humidity,
Mosquitoes, sleeping is rough--
Sticky, sweaty, blech.

And now on to BlogDay 2007, a day on which all bloggers are encouraged to find and publicize five new blogs. I was tipped off about this by Sara of Ms Adventures in Italy, and I thank her kindly.

Here are five great new-to-me blogs for your enjoyment:

(1) Vanielje Kitchen: I'll let the author describe this blog--"The kitchens of my childhood reflected my heritage, loud, boisterous, always full, the air thick with laughter and spices, a simmering melting pot of cultures and influences, French, English, Dutch, Malay & African, and underpinning it all a deep reverence for family and food, and the smell of home: vanielje." Great stuff.

(2) The Late Bloomer: An American living in France who calls her blog “The Late Bloomer” not only because she finds herself blossoming in new ways into her 30s but also because she started blogging late in the game--only a month after I did, though! Charming, witty, just fun to read.

(3) Charlotte's Web: A South African mom, wife, writer, editor, reader, traveler, dreamer living in Germany. Makes you want to get all tangled up in Charlotte's Web. *groan* But seriously, on my first visit, I spent quite a while looking through archives. A true pleasure.

(4) A Child of the Universe: Dana is a nutritionist and herbalist in California and often writes things that I wish I would've written myself. Seriously. She uses the words "wanderlust" and "vintage" in her profile and talks of her dream of having a farm/B & B in Italy and taking lots of wonderful photographs. Are you starting to realize why I like her so?

(5) Debbie Egizio: An artist and designer whose blog really is her playground (she even says so in the blog description); it's so much fun to wander around there and see her creations--and I have my trusty bloggy-friend somepinkflowers to thank for leading me to Debbie's place. Thanks somepinkflowers!

So what are your five? Come on, you know you want to play!

Happy Labor Day weekend to my American readers,
and arrivederci agosto!

buon compleanno mia!

Mia Rose and her stinky toes,
Green/blue eyes, and button nose.

Princess gowns, tiaras, and sparkly heels,
Cheerleading skirts, bracelets, and ear-piercing squeals.

Cornsilky blond hair pulled back in a pony,
Your birthday dinner will be delicious with Nana's macaroni.

Eight years you're here, from baby to young girl,
They've passed like a blur--an awesome pink whirl.

I wish you many happy things for the coming year,
That breeze you feel? It's me--I'm near!

My favorite niece you'll always be,
Even though they say you're just a little pujie.*

(drawing by P's niece, Sara, age 9.)

Happy, happy birthday and first day of school!

Baci e abbracci
Aunt Shell

*Family joke. My grandmother used to call something smelly a "pujack" which she told us was a smelly goat; it's been shortened for Mia, because, you know, she's little and all.

eleven years ago today...

I was working at a certain family amusement park, passing out laser guns and explaining why it's not appropriate to hit people in the darkness of the game room, when from the corner of my eye I noticed my brother--in blue hospital scrubs carrying something blue in his hand-- and my mother--bearing fried food--approaching.

I knew this surprise family visit, capped by my brother's beaming (and I do mean *beaming*) face could only mean one thing:

I had a nephew.

My sister-in-law had called the night before to say her water broke and that she was going to the hospital, but that bouncing baby boy didn't make an appearance until after one in the afternoon the following day.

And since then he's provided countless smiles, laughs, hugs, and kisses as well as the all-important concept of "hugging you down," a bear hug/tackle best carried out on the floor and with a running start.

Some of my fondest memories involve my nephew, my now-deceased grandfather, who was sure that he was the only one that could get the little guy to sleep (he was right for a while there) and Kit-Kats, which Pap insisted were not candy because of the wafers involved (that made them cookies, and OK to give him darn it!).

I can't believe eleven years have passed since that wonderful day when you taught me that I really was a "baby person" after all. Amazing what a cooing smile can do.

And so to Michael, my favorite nephew, I wish you a happy, happy birthday and a year full of joys, big and small; I only wish I could be there to share this day with you (except for the getting braces part--you're on your own there).

I miss your hug-me-downs terribly.

And don't let Manny do this to your cake!

Baci e abbracci
Aunt Shell

bella bags contest winner!

Two weeks, many gorgeous bags, and 91 (wow!) comments later,
we have a winner in the Bella Bags E-Party and Contest!

Congratulations Robin!
I'll be in touch shortly about your bag.
And you can thank P as he's the one who drew your name from the basket.

Thanks *so* much to all of you who participated by commenting and/or buying a Bella Bag--
and special thanks to Marcía, the wonderfully talented bag lady (hah!)
who made all this fun possible.

I'm off to bed now my peeps (it's after midnight where I am!).

A presto!

what's that saying about wild horses?

Right, um, I know I said I wouldn't be around, but I have some things to share:

1. Want to know more about life as an expat? Check out my post, Top 5 Hidden Advantages of Being an Expat, over at ExpatInterviews.com.

2. Looking for a quick end-of-the-summer getaway in which there will be flying fruit? Put on your best Gallagher plastic and read my post, The World's Biggest Tomato Fight: Bunol's La Tomatina at TomatoCasual.com.

3. Hankering for a bag o' books and bath goodies? Head on over to Welcome to My World of Dreams where you could win such a bag (if you're a US or Canada resident) or a $30 Amazon gift certificate if you're international like me--I didn't read too closely the first time around, but Judy Thomas was lovely enough to come over here and point out that we're *all* invited to the party celebrating the launch of Long and Short Reviews no matter where we live! Woohoo!

4. Missing What's Cooking Wednesday? Here are two food-related sites that I found recently and have fallen in love with: Chowhound.com and The Traveler's Lunch Box. Seriously. LOVE.

5. And finally, have you reached the end of the Internet? Don't know what else to read? Here are five posts/blogs I recommend:

• 5 Powerful Reasons to Eat Slower at Zen Habits. This kind of builds on our discussion about obesity and weight loss from a little while ago but comes from a different angle. If you haven't seen this site and are remotely interested in becoming a more peaceful, productive, happier, oh just better person, this is a great place to start.

• Introversion at Crazy Dust in My Coffee. Being quite an introvert myself, I love how Ally Bean broke this down so that even the most extroverted of extroverts can understand--or at least I hope they can because I don't think it can be explained much better.

• The Seven Virtues: Charity at The Verge. I could link to any one of former-Italy-expat Jennifer's posts and sing its praises, but since I love this particular one so much, here you go. I've never seen another blogger who incorporates fine art so seamlessly into her posts. It's too beautiful for words, really.
  

• Mysteries of Life at Burnett's Urban Etiquette. This post is from a while ago, but I adore it as I do all of this Miami Herald contributor's stuff. James Burnett has a knack for pinpointing exactly what I want to say about a given topic *or* giving me a new perspective that I hadn't considered. I think that's cool, so you should read him.
  

• Also, my naval is pretty at The Moon Topples. These are Maht's (grudgingly given) answers to a meme about what he likes about himself. I just heart the way Maht expresses himself through his various creative mediums, and I think a lot of you will too. If his answers to a meme made my recommended list, you know he's good.

OK, now I'm really vacationing from the blog. If I ever have children, you think separation anxiety might be a wee bit of a problem?

Still wishing you were here!

i'm back with an interview with...me!

Just a quick note to direct you to an interview I did with My Melange: Infusing European Culture into Your Lifestyle.

Check me out, would you? Be forewarned that I'm about to get in your face! Hah!

You'll understand in a moment.

Wish you were here!

my italian vacation (sort of) and your summer homework

Taking a cue from fellow Italy expat bloggers Shelley, Sara, Jessica, and Sara, I'm taking a little time off away from the blog.

I know this is odd for those of you in America, especially, to wrap your heads around, but here in Italy, just about everyone takes most if not all of August off. P and I aren't going anywhere since everyone comes to us (ah, living in southern Europe is so tough!), and in fact, we're both still working.

But we'll also be spending plenty of time with his 6 brothers and sisters and 16 (or is it 17?) nieces and nephews that are here right now, so I'm taking a break from posting for a little while.

I'll still be around visiting your blogs, though (can't keep me away if you tried!) and I may even pop in to say hello here, but while I'm gone I have some suggestions to keep you busy:

1. Head over to The Island Review, a great site for keeping up with all the contests and give-aways going on via the Internet, including a fabulous contest for digital camera lovers through PicaJet--you can win a PicaJet FX and/or RoboImport!

What's all that you say? It's about making our digital photos the best they can be and also keeping them organized, so do click on the above links for more information. Hurry, ends August 15th!

FYI, the author, Kailani, is a dedicated mom, wife, and flight attendant who also writes An Island Life from her home base in Hawai'i. I know. I'd hate her too if she wasn't so damn sweet.

2. I've told you about the group She Who Blogs before, and now I'm going to send you to one of our most recent members' blogs: Model Behavior.

You should visit all the member blogs as they're all wonderful (seriously!), but when I clicked on this one, I wanted to read every post from the beginning. I think we all know that's a rare warm fuzzy in the blogosphere, so I wanted to pass it on to you.

3. Another of my recent discoveries is The Passionate Palate, and for those of you who enjoy a great food blog, this one is for you.

Jeni, the author, also runs Passionate Palate Tours, food and wine tours through Italy, and I've had great fun corresponding with her the past few days. Give her some comment and link love!

4. Check out a great post on work and life balance over at Writing, Work and Weasels, and for those of you who can read Italian, go read Audrissima's L'onestà, la bellezza nella semplicità e l'amore--and why not comment and tell them I sent you?

These are my favorite posts of the day so far, but the day is young, bloggers, so get writing!

I really *should* start posting my favorite posts every day...hmm...hello Google Reader? Something for me to think about over the break (while I am reading many, many books).

5. Spread the word about my Bella Bags E-Party and Contest on your own blog, then come back here and tell me (or email me) and I'll send you special link love when I return.

Woohoo! We're all winners!

There are so many more recommendations I have for you, and that's what I'll spend part of my vacation compiling, I promise.

See, I'll be thinking of you, so that makes it OK, right?

Here's your postcard in advance:

Hope all your days feel like this.

ms adventures in italy "tour del gelato"comes to calabria!

Here is, finally, my first contribution to the Tour Del Gelato, brainchild of Sara of Ms. Adventures in Italy--and from what I've been reading in the blogosphere, my timing isn't too bad as it seems many of you in the US could use a touch of relief (see bottom of this post for a suggestion).

To my readers enjoying cooler weather, I'm jealous, but at least I have gelato!

Today's destination today is actually a place I've mentioned in a previous post (Eating Out in Calabria), and it remains my favorite gelateria (place where they make gelato, of course) around here.


It's appropriately called "Golosia," which means something along the lines of gluttony or greed in Italian, and it's been holding down a well-trafficked corner of the SS 106 (Calabria's version of California's Pacific Coast Highway) in Gioiosa Ionica Marina since 1989.

There are 32 different flavors in the gelateria section, but they also make cakes, pastries, cannoli, and torrone di mandorle--an almond nougat that's shipped all over Europe and even to America. Their concoctions have been honored in various prestigious events throughout Italy, including the famous EuroChocolate in Perugia (ooh, which I now see will be held on and around my birthday this year...hmm...).

Golosia also operates as a restaurant, and the place itself is rather large with seating for 60 inside and another 300 outside--some nights there's even a piano bar.

Right, but you want to see the gelato, right?



See those wafers in the "crema" flavor? They stick one of those in every cup or cone (two if you ask nicely). Pretty!

Now, as you might know, I'm currently cameraless, so these shots were taken with my friend Carla's camera--which had precisely 15 minutes of battery life left even though we were heading to a fun event (report coming soon!); needless to say, I had to snap quickly and then close the camera, snap and close, snap and close. So these aren't the greatest photos, but I think you get the idea.

Since Carla was dolce enough to give me free reign with her camera during our adventure, I promised her a spot on the blog. Here she is enjoying a banana cone, which I highly recommend as the banana flavor is *so* good. All their fruit flavors are made with fresh fruit, of course, so there's no weird artificial, medicinal banana flavoring going on here.


I'm sure the guy in the background only thought I was a *little* weird for snapping and closing repeatedly.

This visit I had a small cup of pistacchio (my staple) and "bacio." For those who don't know, bacio means kiss in Italian, but in the chocolate world, it's a small candy made by Perugina with a hazelnut inside. That description is pathetic for just how good they are, but it'll have to do until you can try one.

Anyway, the "bacio" gelato is made with them and, whoa, is it chocolatey. And delicious. Especially with pistacchio. Yum.

So next time you're in Calabria and looking for a great gelato, head to:

Golosia
Piazza Zaleuco
Gioiosa Ionica Marina (RC)
Italy

***SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT***

I read over at Lively Women that today, August 9th is Dairy Queen's Miracle Treat Day, which means that they're donating all proceeds from Blizzard desserts purchased today to the Children's Miracle Network.

If you have a DQ near you, I hope you'll head over and get a Blizzard (with Reeses Pieces if you're thinking of me!); my mom and I used to volunteer for our local Children's Miracle Network carnival every year as I was growing up, and it's always held a special place in my heart.

So enjoy a DQ Blizzard guilt-free today with my blessing!

Ah, and if you haven't signed up for my Bella Bag contest yet, go here.

what's cooking wednesday:linguine with tomatoes, zucchini, and grilled shrimp

Hello faithful readers! I have a favor to ask....

Would you kindly click over to Tomato Casual where I've posted Tomatoes and Zucchini - A Match Made in the Garden?

There you'll find out more about What's Cooking Wednesday; be sure to let me know you've visited!

Buon appetito!

answering your questions: italy edition

Hey, remember when JennieBoo tagged me with the eight things meme and you wrote in with your questions after I asked for help?

For those who haven't been following, go read parts one, two, and three of my answers to catch up because now we're on the fourth installment of responses...and I *still* won't have gotten to all the questions by the time I'm done here.

You are such an inquisitive bunch!

These questions all have to do with Italy in some way or another, so let's start with a photo to get us in the mood.


Now settle in and get a cup of whatever it is will get you through this--it's a long one.

1. Sharon in Sicily asked me to name the strangest thing I've seen in everyday Italian life.

Oh where to begin? I'm going to go with something that truly baffles me and that no one has been able to adequately explain to me thus far.

Italians are notoriously obsessive about the cleanliness of the inside of their homes. So then why, oh why, is there so much litter, graffiti, and occasional bouts with garbage piles *outside* of them?

The juxtaposition of the two extremes is just...well...it's quite simply the strangest thing I have seen in everyday Italian life.

2. My Melange would like to know what my favorite spot in Italy is and where I'd like to go that I haven't yet been; in a related question, Kimberly wants to know where I'd suggest a first time overseas traveler head first.

You probably don't know this and maybe won't even believe it, but I'm not well-traveled within Italy at all--Calabria, yes, as I've seen everything in depth and many times (except the area around Cosenza--no offense to the Cosentini!). But I've never been to the biggies like Rome (gasp!) and Florence.

Wow. That felt like confession. I feel better now.

Anyway, right now, I'd have to say that my favorite spot in Italy is, well, home.

But a close second is Serra San Bruno, the site of an 11th century monastery nestled up in the Serra mountains (part of the Sila range) about 45 minutes away from me. It's a wooded area with walking trails and spots for picnics--there's even a little stream running through it. So peaceful and relaxing.

I also like Taormina in Sicily, which is gorgeous although quite touristy.

I've meant to travel more, I swear, but it's kind of expensive especially since I've been busy working to save up for various other things; travel just hasn't been a priority.

But on Kimberly's point, the first place we'll probably head once we get out and about is Rome--I think it's the most logical starting point for discovering Italy (but then I've never been very logical, which explains my roundabout route). Plus P's sister lives just outside the city, so that'll cut down on our costs.

3. Bec wants to know more about how long it took me to be fluent in Italian, or at least to be able to understand and respond.

First, as background for those who don't know--I came here without speaking Italian aside from "ciao" and some food words.

Now on becoming fluent, let me put it this way: the basics are easy, especially when you're immersed and don't have a choice but to learn, as was my situation. I went back to the US after six months here, and I was getting along just fine on a day to day basis by the time I left.

That said, four years later, I'm still not where I'd like to be, but I can hold my own in pretty much any situation. I think in Italian, dream in Italian, and often count in Italian, so I'd say I'm well on my way. What I need to do now is really study grammar and expand my vocabulary, and then I'll consider myself truly fluent.

I'd say it'll take a couple more years, though, because this, unfortunately, isn't much of a priority either. I've gotten a bit lazy, I'm afraid, and I'm quite happy to simply not struggle every day with easy things. When I'm ready for a challenge again, I'll pick up some books and study.

4. Stefania wanted to know if Italy's lifestyle really is more laid back and how I spend my days.

Great question, and I'm so glad you asked!

I live in a 350-person village in southern Italy, so yes, the lifestyle here *is* pretty laid back; people do things on their own time and when they want, thus our many expat complaints about lines at the post office and the doctor's office and not having our phone lines fixed for months.

That said, there are also cities in Italy, especially the farther north you go, that are very much like cities anywhere--a lot of rushing around and, unfortunately, a lot of stress. Our friend Michellanea is in Milano, and I think she'd be the first to tell you that she ain't taking afternoon naps and sipping limoncello all day.

Of course, neither am I, but I'm also not rushing around trying to get as much done in a day as possible--or having to cover great physical distances to get those things done (this is a general difference between city and rural life, I think, and not Italy-specific).

My average day? I do the same things as most everyone else only I work from home (except when I'm teaching) so I can schedule things when I want--some mornings I have errands, for example, and those are always more stressful than anything else I do. Other than that, I do yoga, take Luna on walks, work, get cappuccino at the bar with a friend, work, cook, eat, do laundry, clean, talk to my mom on the phone, blah blah blah.

Oh, and blog of course.

5. And finally, we have Anno:

It seems to me that there are so many romantic memoirs published about life in Italy (Eat Pray Love, which I Loved Loved Loved; and Under the Tuscan Sun); when you read these books, do you snort in derision, or is there something in them that still resonates with you?

This is a fabulous question. I'm laughing as I imagine my snorts of derision. I'll have to work on those--sounds like fun!

Hmm. How can I say this? There are some authors' styles that I appreciate more than others. Frances Mayes in Under the Tuscan Sun really pours it on; she's a flowery writer recounting the stresses of restoring a villa while she's in the US and trying to find creative ways to use all the wonderful flowers and vegetables in her Tuscan garden. She's half in the US and half out and obviously had a considerable amount of cash to work with.

Let's just say we didn't share the same experience.

That said, I didn't hate the book, and indeed, I found some passages that I liked enough to copy into my quote book such as:

Where you are is who you are. The further inside you the place moves, the more your identity is intertwined with it. Never casual, the choice of place is the choice of something you crave.

I identified with this sentiment as I read it during the year between when I decided to move here and when I did. So no snorts there.

On the other hand, I *really* enjoyed Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia by Elizabeth Gilbert, and yes, I keep promising a review, and it'll come at some point. I definitely recommend it as I enjoyed following Gilbert's journey, but interestingly, more on a spiritual level than anything.

Again, no snorting.

But I will say that if you want to read a spirited, down-to-earth "I moved to Italy" book, check out Extra Virgin: A Young Woman Discovers the Italian Riviera, Where Every Month is Enchanted by Annie Hawes.

Here are some of my favorite parts:

No matter how much you feel you're in the middle of nowhere around here, completely unobserved, you're sure to come across someone who saw exactly what you were up to--or who knows someone else who did.

Expats in small towns? You with me on this one?

I mentally take my hat off to whatever unbelievably desperate person first discovered the edibility of the olive--I'm sure I would have starved without ever guessing for a moment that the things weren't poisonous.

For those who don't know, raw olives aren't fit to be eaten--and if you don't believe me, you're welcome to try for yourself.

Lucy [Hawes' sister] and I are thinking longingly of a quiet place up a mountain, a place where people only speak one at a time, and in English. We need to rest our reeling brains.

Here here!

And finally, addressing a subject near and dear to my heart:

I, meanwhile, far from being modernized, have recently found myself being put through a typically Italian trauma...I have transmuted, inexplicably yet inexorably, from a signorina to a signora.

Perhaps I should explain that "signorina" means a young woman, and "signora," well, doesn't.

And that wraps up today's Italy Edition answers.

P.S. Figs Olives Wine--I haven't forgotten about your Italy-related question; I just have bigger plans for it.

P.P.S. If you haven't checked out the Bella Bags E-Party and Contest, get there! And do keep checking Bella Bags because Marcía's adding new bags all the time.

CONTEST: get your exclusive bella bags by marcía here!

The other night I was strolling around the Internets at my dear, sweet, beloved P's request, looking for what I'll call a man bag. They're quite popular here in Europe and great for the summer as pocket space is rather limited.

I picked up a nice canvas one for him at the market last week, but he's already looking toward winter and the rainy season, so I'm on a mission to find a nice leather pouch--a cross between a fanny pack and a small purse--kind of looks like a camera bag.

Anyway, I typed in "borsetta di pelle," which means small leather purse, and I stumbled across one of most wonderful sites I've seen in a long, long time: Bella Bags by Marcía.

These are some of the cutest, most original, most fun [insert more positive, superlative adjectives here] bags I've seen, and I immediately thought of all of my wonderful readers who might also enjoy a Bella Bag or two or three, etc.

So I contacted the bella Marcía, and starting now until 19 August, you can get your very own Bella Bag at 15% off just by entering the coupon code "bleedingespresso" at checkout!

These bags and other accessories make fabulous gifts--birthdays, baby showers, holidays, thanks for being my friend days, or, you know, just for yourself when you want to carry around a bag that no one you know will have.

And we *do* love to be unique, don't we?

Also, for those of you who are green-minded (go you!), Marcía has ultra-cool organic shopping bags made of 100% organically grown cotton that are only $14.00 a piece:

Here are some more of my personal favorites:

Beach Bag (now on sale!)

Hand Bag (now on sale!)

La Borsetta

Book Bag

Gym Bag

There are lots of different, unique choices from fabric to shape--yoga mat bag anyone?--and you can even give a gift certificate so that special gal can choose her own bag.

If you don't see the exact one you want but have a great idea, Marcía will work with you on a customized bag as well.

Also, throughout the contest, do check back on the site for new additions!

Once I saw the Bella Bags site, I was planning on featuring Marcía's bags on here anyway, but then I saw that I could earn a free Bella Bag by hosting an online party. I assure you, though, this is not my reason. And a contest was born.

***CONTEST***

Through this sale, if I happen to earn enough Bella Bag points for a freebie, I will randomly pick a name from those who comment on THIS POST up until (and including) 11:59 p.m. (that's 23.59 to some of you) (CEST) on 19 August; the name selected will get a free Bella Bag (I'll pay for shipping).

Each name will only be entered once in the random drawing, and you can live anywhere in the world to enter.

But there's more! Even if I *don't* earn enough points, I'll go ahead and spring for a bag myself and then pick a winner (same guidelines as above on eligibility and selection).

To be clear, that's ONE winner, either sponsored by your purchases or by mine. Bag is always my choice, though, so for your sake, I do hope we have similar tastes.

Sound good? Any questions, please leave them in the comments or email me.

As I wrote to Marcía, supporting creative entrepreneurs is important to me because I truly admire anyone with the talent and drive to forge ahead doing what they love.

On that note, if any of you creative entrepreneurs out there would like to be featured here (I'm looking at you Jane!), shoot me an email and we can work something out.

And to my fellow bloggers, why not host an e-party of your own to support the wonderful creative souls that surround us?

Now you should:

(1) Leave a comment here for your chance to win a Bella Bag;

(2) Tell your friends, family, and fellow online addicts to come over here and comment as well (and, you know, have a look around if they so desire); and

(3) Go over to Bella Bags by Marcía and buy a Bella Bag of your own. Be sure to use the coupon code "bleedingespresso" at checkout for the 15% discount, and this way you'll be *sure* to have the coolest bag to close out the summer...or already have a head start on your holiday gift list.

Happy shopping and in bocca al lupo!

crazy blog owner and his contest

At The Wooden Porch, I saw the following announcement:

Over at Ashwin's Blog, you will find one crazy blog owner!! You can win $2500!! To enter just copy this text and paste it in your blog!! But hurry, this competition will not last long! So get posting!

Seriously, head on over to see what this about, and then post the text on your own blog (and please link to me if you're feeling especially kind) for a chance to win $2500.

Also, watch this space for a very special, very first "Bleeding Espresso" contest coming soon, which was actually, I swear to you, planned before I saw this one. I even have the post ready and everything.

Apparently there are contests in the air.

Best of luck!

**EDITED: I must add here that a very trustworthy source has emailed to warn me that said Ashwin is fond of putting spyware on others' computers through the double-underlined links on his site; my source has also told me that I may, perhaps, be spammed "to death" once I am linked to him through Technorati. Hmm....

So, in sum, enter this competition at your own risk.

My contest (coming Monday!) won't have these issues (well, or a $2500 prize either).

I pinky swear.

**EDITED again: Turns out this guy was a big fat loser who basically created a new blog to "win" the contest, thus keeping the money firmly in his pocket while he stacked up an impressive number of Technorati links.

But if you did originally link to this guy, you can now replace it with a link to ContestBlogger.com for a chance to win (a real) $100 in the Ashwin Khanna Revenge Contest. Deadline is September 7.

Pretty nice of them if you ask me, and a cool site to boot.

calabria's version of urban photography

Two of my favorite bloggers consistently and amazingly share photos of their cities--She Who Blogs founder Frances (Blogjem, Blogforth, Photostroll, and The Meme Section) reports from New York and Sarala (Blogaway) from Chicago.

These two lovely ladies have inspired me to post some photos I took while walking around our nearest "city" of Catanzaro not too long ago.

**EDITED to add that our correspondent in St. Augustine, Florida, a one "somepinkflowers" also does a heck of a job showing off her town's beauty on Tourist Tuesdays. If you haven't been there yet, you have no idea what you're missing!**

Admittedly Catanzaro isn't much of a city (you with me Cherrye?), particularly compared to the Big Apple and the Windy City; good ole CZ doesn't even have a nickname as far as I know unless an abbreviation counts.

But there's just something about an even remotely urban landscape that I always love.

I'm not going to caption or explain these because I'd rather you do it--tell me what strikes you, how they make you feel, what you think is portrayed, whatever you'd like to share.

And then, this weekend, if you have a working camera (unlike me, sniff sniff), take a walk around you are (urban or not) and share what you find with us.

Link here in the comments if you like, or send me an email and I'll do the linking.

As always, click to enlarge.

Ah, and also check out my latest post at TomatoCasual--How to Flirt Your Way to Choosing Better Tomato Plants. Sounds fun, doesn't it?

Buon weekend!

what's cooking wednesday: fried zucchini slices

On the heels of our wonderful discussion about obesity and eating healthier (most commented on post ever around here!), I'm posting a recipe that *so* doesn't qualify as healthy for this week's What's Cooking Wednesday.

I do hope that when I post such gluttonous dishes you realize that these aren't meant to be eaten every day--today's fried zucchini slices, for example, I make once, maybe twice a year. These would be great as an appetizer at a special summer dinner party.

Anyway, remember those stuffed zucchini flowers from last week? Well now we're working with the actual fruit--yes, zucchini is technically, botanically speaking a fruit just like the tomato.

These are pretty simple, and you just might be able to slip zucchini past even the pickiest eaters.

Fried Zucchini Slices

One large zucchini, cut into 1/4 inch slices

1 c breadcrumbs
(*not* seasoned, if seasoned, omit onion and garlic powder)
1 tsp onion powder
3/4 tsp garlic powder
2 tbsp grated parmiggiano cheese

1 egg
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp milk

vegetable oil for frying

Wash and cut zucchini slices, leaving skin on. You can slice them thinner than what I recommend, but then you lose the zucchini flavor--thicker slices, of course, would give you even more zucchini bang for your euro (or whatever currency you're currently using).

Combine egg, salt, and milk in small shallow bowl. Mix together bread crumbs, onion and garlic powder, and cheese in a separate small shallow bowl.

Dip zucchini slices in egg and then coat well with bread crumb mixture. Be sure to keep them separated from one another until you're ready to fry (avoid stacking).

Fry zucchini slices in hot vegetable oil until golden brown and then let cool on paper towels to absorb excess oil.

These are best served warm so if you won't be serving right away, I suggest keeping them warm in the oven.

Buon appetito!