November 2006
Monthly Archive
Sat 25 Nov 2006
Posted by Robert C. Nordvall under
2006No Comments
Short Notes from Scotland
Money
Scotland is a lovely place and prices (in British pounds) are not exorbitant. Unfortunately the US dollar is toilet paper in the exchange rate with the pound so it is expensive to visit here.
Major Stories in Italy and Great Britain
When I left Italy, two big stories were the teacher who had sex with some students and an incident in which some high school students hit and abused a mentally handicapped classmate. When I got here, I saw in the paper two stories on the exact same themes. Bullying in schools is a big topic on both Italy and Great Britain. I recall seeing stories about it in the USA, but before I left in 2002, it was not such a major topic in America.
TV Hostesses
It is quite a difference to see TV hostesses here dressed in ordinary rather than revealing clothing.
Scotish Faucets
The modern apartment I am staying in has a type of faucet I have never seen before. Both the hot and cold water come out of a single spout, as in all modern faucets, but they come out of different sides of the spout rather than being mixed together. So you can burn your hand if you put in under the hot water side. I have no idea what the purpose is of such an arrangment.
Public Service Advertisment of National Health Serevice on radio and TV
In this item, various people recount how they or someone in their family did not call an ambulance when they suffered chest pains because they thought it was or might simply be indigestion. With the typical British stiff upper lip, they did not want to make a fuss. The idea of ad is to encourage people to get medical help immediately when they have such pains. Such an ad would be unnecessary in Italy. In Italy, if it was in fact merely indigestion, the person would still think it was a heart attack. Italians are never slow to think the worst.
Understand the Scots
I can understand an Italian speaking Italian easier than I can understand a Scot with a thick accent speaking English. Most Scots are not that hard to understand. It seems that the lower class Scots have the thicker accent that is impossible to decipher.
Restaurants
Like many countries without a highly praised national cuisine, Scotland is host to a multitude of ethnic restaurants. I have eaten Mexican, Turkish, Spanish, and Italian food as well as local Scotish fare.
Fri 17 Nov 2006
Posted by Robert C. Nordvall under
2006[2] Comments
Off to Scotland
I leave this week for a week in Scotland. So perhaps there will be no edition of this Week in Italy for the coming week.
As Always, Italy Follows USA
All things bad in the USA eventually arrive in Italy. A couple of years ago there was article in local paper here about two female teachers in the USA who had been engaging in sex with their students. Last week a substitute middle school teacher in Italy was discovered (in a room at the school) having group sex with five students aged 13-15. To her credit, she did not make some week-kneed psychiatric defense of her actions. Her first statement was ‘What is wrong? These students seemed to be older and one of them, in fact, is quite good looking.’ But, of course, after she got a lawyer, her story changed (Truth is often the first casualty of talking to a lawyer.) and she said that she was, in fact, the victim; the students had forced her to have sex with them.
Restaurant Acoustics
In is often hard to hold a conversation with your dinner mate in an Italian restaurant. The acoustics are often terrible for two reasons. First, the restaurant tables are very close together. The spaces are small, and the proprietor has to fit in lots of people to make money. Second, and more importantly, everything is build of stone and brick. There are no sound absorbing surfaces.
The New National Budget
It is in process of being approved by Parliament. Public opinion polls show it is very unpopular. Opponents of the government say that these polls show it is a bad budget. It may in fact be good, bad, or something in between, but the public opinion polls tell you nothing about its quality. Any budget that attempts to make change, even much needed change, will be unpopular. Those who will lose by these changes, know so immediately. Practically nobody in Italy is willing to sacrifice his or her personal interests for the long term prosperity of the nation. Many of the benefits, however, will be long term so that the those who hopefully will be helped, don’t see the benefits immediately.
Writer’s Party
I went to a little social get together for folks, like me, who write for the English language newspaper, The Florentine. Since the party was hosted by two Americans, the refreshments were hot dogs, potato salad, and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. There were about 20 people there, but only three men. The other two men were husbands of writers. This reminded me of a bit of wisdom most guys figure out too late. In high school it is smarter to work on the school newspaper or yearbook than to play a sport. The newspaper and yearbook staffs are almost all girls. I discovered that The Florentine, despite the fact that the writers work for free, still has not become profitable. Income comes from ads only since the paper is distributed free. I don’t know when the Business Plan of the paper calls for it to turn the corner. A couple from the USA started it. Now the husband has returned to the USA, and his wife is splitting her time between the USA and Florence.
Famous Murder Case
A woman a few years ago was convicted of murdering her young child. She has always declared her innocence. She also said that she would go to prison rather than use an insanity defense. There has never been a motive discovered for the killing although a motive in such a case may be often difficult to find. This week, after another expert examination of her, there was a report that she suffers from a sleep disorder, related to epilepsy, that may have caused her to kill her child ‘in her sleep’ without knowing that she did so. Of course, the fact that this may have happened, doesn’t show that it did happen. The head of the national epilepsy association was not pleased with this report that something related to epilepsy could cause a person to be violent. He noted that if she had such a condition, there would have surely been more than one episode of it. It is difficult to imagine a mother killing her own young child so this new report does allow a comfortable explanation of a horrible case.
Buying British Food in Italy (Warning: Contains Adult Material)
Some British friends were talking about a store here where one could buy canned goods from Great Britain. I said that buying British food in Italy reminds me of an old joke. A man comes to a house of prostitution and says ‘ I’ve been traveling for over a month. I want a woman who is ugly, mean, and nasty, and will make fun of me while we make love.’ The madam of the house says ‘You do not understand sir. We have here lovely, beautiful, kind women who will gratify your every wish.’ The guy replies ‘You don’t understand. I am not starved for sex. I’m homesick.’
New Hospital
Plans are for a new hospital to be completed in Pistoia in 2011. Don’t hold your breath. Meanwhile, an addition has been put on the current hospital that is decorated both inside and outside with some exemplary art works, including a large painting by Sol LeWitt. ( For those in the know about artists, other artists represented in this new building include Claudio Parmeggiani, Hidetaschi Nagasawa, Daniel Buren, Robert Morris, Gianni Ruffi, and Dani Karavan) In the cover article about Pistoia in the in flight magazine of Alitalia, photos of this addition, especially the art works, were featured. So even though there are constant articles about the precarious state of public finances in general and particularly the finances of the health system in Italy, there is still money for art.
Interviews of New Members of Congress in the USA
I heard two such interviews on radio from the USA. The new members talked about loyalty to their constituents, the main issues facing them, and the thrill of being in such an august and venerable place as the US Capitol. How different from Italy. In Italy one does not represent constituents but merely members of your party. Nobody thinks that the location of the Italian Parliament is a place of national pride. A new member of the Italian Parliament would talk only of the issues facing the body and would be more likely to parrot the ‘party line.’ In fact, a new member of the Parliament would not be interviewed by the media in Italy . Only the heads of the parties talk to the press.
Sat 11 Nov 2006
Posted by Robert C. Nordvall under
2006[3] Comments
New Telephone Number
Now in addition to my cell phone, 329-1270677, I have a fixed phone (see item below on Fastweb) which is 0573-1941380. Of course when calling from abroad these numbers must be preceded by international access code and Italy country code (39). Under some calling plans it is much cheaper to call a fixed phone than a cell phone.
The Tale of the Lost Billfold (contd.)
You may recall that I lost my wallet in France. It found its way to the Italian Consulate in Paris which sent my Italian ID card (but nothing else) to the police in Pistoia to return to me. When I asked the consulate about the wallet and the rest of its contents (fortunately not much), I was told that they were authorized to return only the ID card. I would have to come to Paris to get the rest. I decided to write them one more letter pointing out the obvious fact that it is not a great bother to throw the whole wallet into an envelope and mail it to me. As a little incentive, I decided to play the ‘family’ card. I told them that the most important items in the wallet were the photos of my granddaughter. This gambit had partial success — they mailed back the photos but nothing else.
Medical Correction
I wrote in a recent issue about an epidermal anesthetic during childbirth. My college classmate and medical school professor, Dr. John Hare, sent me the following clarification. He has not been retained, at a modest annual retainer, as medical consultant to This Week in Italy.
“The anesthesia for delivery you refer to is epidural, not epidermal. The dura mater is a tough fibrous layer (dura) that covers the brain and spinal cord. Nerves exit it — pelvic and vaginal in this case — and the anesthetic numbs the pain. Epidermal anesthesia would be in the outer layer of the skin, exterior to the dermis and wouldn’t any good.”
Open Doors in USA
More than one Italian has mentioned to me that in American films you often see someone walk into a house without having to unlock the door. The idea of open house doors is amazing to Italians where everything is locked — two or three times.
Election
As always I was surprised by the extent of US election coverage in Italy. The state of the American economy is important to Italy and other European countries because of import-export issues, but American domestic issues have no effect on Italy. Of course, there is interest in the fact that someone of Italian heritage, Nancy Pelosi, will be Speaker of the House. The first Italian in the USA to be elected to a major office was Fiorello LaGuardia, mayor of New York in the 1930s. His name is still well known here.
It’s Hard to be an Optimist
I see myself as more optimistic than the typical Italian, but I understand why optimism does not pay here. I had a plane ticket to see my son and his wife in Germany. Originally the plane was to leave in the early afternoon, but then its time was changed to early morning. It was possible, theoretically, to get to airport by train and cab in time to make the plane, but I ended up not able to get a cab at Taxi Stand at the Pisa train station for 20 minutes. Of course, at the stand there was no phone number to call a cab. I had to go into station to get the number at which time a cab arrived and took some other passengers. After I called, it still was a 10 minute wait. I ended up having to take an overnight train that night to Germany.
In a German Train Station
At the end of the platforms in any train station is an walk area to walk from one platform to another. I was doing so when I noticed that almost everyone seemed to be walking the other way. The I realized that the pedestrians in the walkway had organized themselves into two lanes , just as on a highway, all going one way on one side of the walkway and the others on the opposite side. I was in the wrong lane. Being used to Italian train stations (absolutely no organization to flow of foot traffic), this caught me by surprise.
On Italian TV
A very popular show in Italy is Stricia la Notizia which has things like TV bloopers, stories of incredible Italian inefficiencies, and other comic episodes. Of course, it has some half dressed babes. One feature is Fare e Refare (to make and remake) which shows photos of prominent celebrities over the last 10 years and the effects of the various plastic surgeries they have undergone. If the Italian state medical system would pay for cosmetic plastic surgery, which it doesn’t, that system would be bankrupt in one year in Italy.
Fastweb
I decided to try this service which provides fiber optic service for computer, TV, and telephone. As typical it has taken over a month to get the lines installed. First they come to install a general line to the apartment. Then a second group comes to arranges within the apartment the lines for TV, phone, and computer. Then a third guy comes to install the decoder for the TV. The third guy hasn’t arrived yet. I am getting a hand-me-down computer from a friend. Fastweb has a very cheap introductory offer for the monthly costs until December 31, but by the time they finish the installations, there is not much left to the low cost period of the introductory offer.
Bedside Care
A good friend of mine was hit by a car while crossing the street. The driver had no insurance, but this is less of a problem in Italy because the medical expenses are paid by the state. I don’t think my friend would sue for other damages anyway. I note that his family has arranged that a family member or someone hired by the family is with him for all 24 hours of the day. This is not untypical in Italy. I cannot determine the extent to which this practice reflects suspicion about the quality of care in the hospital or simply reflects the desire of the family to show its care and concern for the patient.
Italian Education Levels
Less than 10% of adult Italians have a university degree and less than one-third have a high school diploma. Twenty per cent of the population is over 65. The figures on educational achievement may reflect in part the very low level of educational attainment before the end of WW II. Current university graduation rates are much higher although still lower than the average in Europe. My guess is that the same is true for high school completion rates.
Sat 4 Nov 2006
Posted by Robert C. Nordvall under
20061 Comment
A Suspicion Confirmed
Before I moved to Italy in 2002, I tried to communicate with some businesses in Italy via e mail with not much success. I suspected that these businesses had e mail addresses but in fact did not use the e mail. Two computer consultants in Italy who work with businesses confirmed my suspicion. A business in Italy may want to have an e mail address on its business card so it looks modern but never read the e mail that arrives. Another example of the importance of style over substance in Italian life.
As They Argue about the New Budget, Italian Politicians Still Have Time for the Absurd
Italian parliamentary bickering reached new heights on Friday as a row broke out over the rights of a transsexual lawmaker to use the female toilets .
The storm blew up in the morning as Vladimir Luxuria, Italy’s first transsexual MP and a former drag queen, took a toilet break during a House voting session. Luxuria, a leftist who considers herself neither male nor female but prefers to be referred to as ’she’, subsequently ran into Elisabetta Gardini, an ex-showgirl who is now the spokeswoman of opposition chief Silvio Berlusconi’s Forza Italia party. Gardini contested Luxuria’s right to use the restroom, saying that “this is the ladies and you can’t come in here” .
Luxuria said afterwards that she always used the female toilets and had never had such problems before .
“I’ve been using female loos for years and the ones in the House for months. I would never have imagined being attacked in such a violent way,” said the 41-year-old lawmaker, who was elected to parliament in April with the Communist Refoundation Party (PRC)
——–
I don’t know if Luxuria has had a sex change operation. If so, she is anatomically female now and would not be able to use the urinals in the men’s room. The fact that she considers herself neither male nor female may indicate that she has not had the operation. In other countries, this confrontation between two show girls might take place at the backstage rest room of a theatre; only in Italy does it occur at the rest room in Parliament.
The Seductive Semi-Weekly Market at Pistoia
I’ve mentioned before that at this market, if one looks closely, one can buy excellent clothes for almost nothing. My church in Florence also has a monthly Thrift Shop with used clothes, often in fine condition, sold at ridiculously low prices. Now in shopping there is the maxim ‘If you don’t need it, it is not a bargain.’ A wise maxim, but I can’t follow it with all the nice clothes at bargain prices. As a result, I have to discard clothes from time to time to have enough space in my closet for new purchases. After discarding some fall and winter clothes recently, I still ended up with 21 winter blazers and sport coats. I do have the informal title of the Most Elegantly Dressed Man at my church.
Jorio Vivarelli
He is a well known sculptor who lives near Pistoia. His home is also a museum of his works. I visited it recently. You can find out about him in English at the web site www.fondazionevivarelli.it
He has two major outdoor works in Philadelphia — a fountain, Adam and Eve, at the Hopkinson House and another fountain, Tuscan Girl, at the Southwest corner of Cherry and the Benjamin Franklin Parkway.
He is in his 80s now and confined to a wheelchair. After viewing his works at the museum, I was taken up to his room for a visit. I received free three publications of his works, one of which he signed for me.
Don’t Make Fun of Your Girlfriend’s Husband
This is the lesson of the week from Pistoia. A man was murdered. His photo in the newspaper showed him in full western dress with a cowboy hat and a buckskin fringed jacket. It looked like the Marlboro Man had been done in. The killer turned out to be the estranged husband of the girlfriend of the victim. According to the husband the two of them saw each other in a parking lot and the victim began to make fun of the husband (one imagines some slurs about the sexual prowess of the husband) who became so enraged that he clubbed him to death.
Sending the Army to Naples
The rate of murders in Naples has reached so high a point that there is talk of sending the army there to restore order. Wiser politicians point out that this may be a short term help, but the problem is an endemic one, a culture of disrespect for the law (I notice in the background of news reports from Naples that few motorscooter riders are wearing helmets despite the recent crackdown) and violence that is entrenched in Naples and much of the south of Italy. Until you change this culture, even the army cannot solve the problem. It is doubtful that troops would be permanently posted in Naples.
It may well be that even the current high rate of murders in Naples is not higher than in some cities in the USA. But in the USA the murders often take place mainly in a certain zones of the city, usually inhabited by minorities. Residents in other parts of the city tolerate this level of violence so long as it doesn’t spread to their neighborhood. In Naples the killings may now be spreading throughout the city.
Buying Melons
I enjoy the excellent melons in Italy. Recently when I tired to buy a melon at the daily outdoor fruit and vegetable market, the seller said he had none — the season for melons was over. I did not know if the season was truly over or if he said this simply to excuse the fact that he had none. So I bought a melon the next day at the supermarket. It turns out that it had almost no taste. The merchant at the market was probably right — the season is over.
Olive Pressing
I helped some friends pick olives and went with the husband and son to the mill where one has olives pressed. This was a quite new mill where a modern machine with a large screws to press the olives has replaced the traditional millstone pressing. You can have the olives pressed with pits removed or still in the olives. With the pits intact you get a little more oil, but it is a little more bitter. The oil obtained came out to 14% of the gross weight of the olives crushed. At the mill, while you are waiting for your olives to be processed, there is a full kitchen and dining area where you can bring your food and eat a meal. You can also go up to the machines and watch the process; in the USA potential injury liability issues would make the machines off limits to customers. In Italy there is not such a constant fear of lawsuits; also the Italians, I think, want to see for themselves their olives being pressed.
Weather
It has been an unusually warm fall. No cool weather until this week. I am visiting my son and his wife in Germany this weekend where there a possibility of snow.