venerdì 31 luglio 2009

Capitolo CXXXIII: Aggiornamenti sparsi

Tempi duri cari miei ma si vede la luce in fondo al tunnel.
In questo momento ci stiamo godendo le prime ore di internet wireless onestamente pagato ....una pacchia. E ci voleva dopo quasi un mese senza rete.
Io e Fra siamo convalescenti (speriamo di esserlo) dopo una influenza lampo di 24 ore: l'untore sono stato io a quanto pare e come pegno da pagare ieri mi sono trasformato da malato (mattina) a infermiere (sera). La piu' in salute e' la piccola Teresa che ride, ci fa le coccole, sgattona.
Da ieri sera la piccola ha fatto i suoi primi 10 passi senza sostegno...un bella emozione considerando che lo svezzamento ormai e' compiuto. Abbiamo paura che il prossimo passo sia la richiesta delle chiavi di casa.
Il tempo di Pittsburgh e' davvero un orologio svizzero: da tre anni gli ultimi giorni di Luglio ed i primi di Agosto sono umidicci, caldi, piovoso il piu'. Ricordi precisi e prove fotografiche alla mano. Per fortuna dura meno di dieci giorni. Giusto in tempo per l'arrivo del Christian, fedele lettore del blog nonche' amico Torelliano.....si mormora che arrivera' con una macchina anni 70. Attendiamo attendiamo.
Per il resto tutto procede come sempre tra cena tra amici, grigliate, giornate lavorative .....sono settimane che speravamo di darvi una bella notizia che inizia con c e finisce con asa ma si vede che il tempo non e' ancora maturo.
Voi sarete per lo piu' in vacanza...al mare o in montagna.
Godetevela.....
un abbraccio grande
Lele

giovedì 16 luglio 2009

Capitolo CXXXII: Storiella sugli americani, passatami da un americano.

Vale la pena sforzarsi un poco con l'inglese. Ero piegato in due.

YARD WORK AS VIEWED FROM HEAVEN

(Overheard in a conversation between God and St. Francis)

God: Francis, you know all about gardens and nature; what in the world
is going on down there in the U.S.? What happened to the dandelions,
violets,thistles and the stuff I started eons ago? I had a perfect
no-maintenance garden plan. Those plants grow in any type of soil,
withstand drought, and multiply with abandon. The nectar from the
long-lasting blossoms attracts butterflies, honeybees, and flocks of
songbirds. I expected to see a vast garden of color by now. All I see
are patches of green.

St. Francis: It's the tribes that settled there, Lord. They are called
the Suburbanites. They started calling your flowers "weeds" and went
to great lengths to kill them and replace them with grass.

God: Grass? But it is so boring, it's not colorful. It doesn't attract
butterflies, bees or birds, only grubs and sod worms. It's
temperamental with temperatures. Do these Suburbanites really want
grass growing?

St. Francis: Apparently not, Lord. As soon as it has grown a little,
they cut it....sometimes two times a week.

God: They cut it? Do they bale it like hay?

St Francis: Not exactly, Lord. Most of them rake it up and put it in bags.

God: They bag it? Why? Is it a cash crop? Do they sell it?

St. Francis: No sir, just the opposite. They pay to throw it away.

GOD: Now let me get this straight. . . they fertilize it to make it
grow and when it does grow, they cut it off and pay to throw it away?

St. Francis: Yes, sir.

God: These Suburbanites must be relieved in the summer when we cut
back on the rain and turn up the heat. That surely slows the growth
and saves them a lot of work.

St. Francis: You aren't going to believe this Lord, but when the grass
stops growing so fast, they drag out hoses and pay more money to water
it so they can continue to mow it and pay to get rid of it.

God: What nonsense! At least they kept some of the trees. That was a
sheer stroke of genius, if I do say so myself. The trees grow
leaves in the spring to provide beauty and shade in the summer. In the
autumn they fall to the ground and form a natural blanket to keep the
moisture in the soil and protect the trees and bushes. Plus, as they
rot, the leaves become compost to enhance the soil. It's a natural
circle of life.

St. Francis: You'd better sit down, Lord. As soon as the leaves fall,
the Suburbanites rake them into great piles and pay to have them
hauled away.

God: No way! What do they do to protect the shrubs and tree roots in
the winter to keep the soil moist and loose?

St Francis: After throwing the leaves away, they go out and buy
something called mulch. They haul it home and spread it around in
place of the leaves.

God: And where do they get this mulch?

St.. Francis: They cut down the trees and grind them up to make mulch.

God: Enough! I don't want to think about this anymore. Saint
Catherine, you're in charge of the arts. What movie have you scheduled
for us tonight?

St. Catherine: "Dumb and Dumber," Lord. It's a really stupid movie about. . .

God: Never mind--I think I just heard the whole story from Saint Francis!

sabato 11 luglio 2009

Capitolo CXXXI: le coincidenze

Vi e' mai capitato di non sopportare il vicino che non butta mai la spazzatura dentro il bidone ma la getta soltanto vicino....vi e' capitato vero ?
Pensate allora al sapore agrodolce nello scoprire che questo vicino se ne sta andando ma che e' anche il segreto fornitore della connessione wireless gratuita che tu stai usando da due anni.

Tempi magri ci aspettano per qualche settimana ....ma anche tante novita' in serbo per voi. A presto ....spero