Three Peas in a Pod XII

by Julianna Squicciarini

We are home.

We left at 9:30am, Paducah time, and arrived at 8:30pm, Charlotte time.

It rained the entire drive.

We are so incredibly glad to be home – I have really missed the Squicciarini 3 who stayed here, let alone the Bartos 3 in the outer Charlotte area!

Our house looks the same, except there’s a crib in my room now.

There is truly no place like home.

Blessed are You, L-rd our G-d and G-d of our forefathers, Who led us toward peace, emplaced our footsteps toward peace, guided us toward peace, and made us reach our desired destination for life, gladness, and peace.

Destination: College – Day 4

I woke up at about 7:00am this morning, rolled off my air mattress (the leg muscles one builds when one sleeps on the floor – incredible!), and quietly completed my morning routine.

Katelyn, clad in sweat pants and sweatshirt, helped me carry down my bags and walked me all the way out to my car in the 40-degree weather. The sages teach us to accompany our guests as far as possible on their journey, which usually means to at least walk them down the driveway or to their car, or suchwhat. Katelyn more than fulfilled that mitzvah, and made me feel very treasured. Especially with it being so cold.

I drove off, down TN Highway 30 East, encountered a bit of snow just before Asheville, reveled in the novelty of driving through two tunnels, bounced around in the driver’s seat to my mix CDs (complements of Joshua & Mary), and made it safely back to The Residence.

Two things worth mentioning: one, I enjoyed a delightful repast with our beloved “Aunt” Darnell in Asheville – such fun to catch up with good friends. The other, my car officially broke 100,000 miles on my return trip, and I plan to have a party celebrating that fact.

Suggestions welcome.

As much fun as it is to travel, to spend time with friends, to see place, to build memories, there certainly is no place like home.

A Tale of Two Fingers

A little excitement rocked the Squicciarini world here at The Residence Friday morning. I heard the sounds of my sister Christine…crying. (!)

Christine, the tower of strength? Christine the Flinty? Christine, who is made of steel covered in silk?

It was inconceivable.

So I rushed downstairs to find out what was going on.

Turns out that Christine had made the family a delicious zucchini egg casserole, using our brand new, Williams-Sonoma mandoline. In the midst of cleaning this dangerous kitchen tool, she inadvertantly sliced off the tips of two of her fingers. It was pretty intense…and there was a good deal of blood going on – I’ll refrain from further descriptive comments, in case you’re one of those people who gets easily grossed out.

Being the homemade, slightly eccentric, all-natural family that we are, Christine’s first thought when this happened was to staunch the bleeding with cayenne pepper. I hear it stung like nobody’s business, but it definitely did slow things down. After cleaning the wounds, we smothered them in People Paste, which is made up of myrrh, echinacea goldenseal, and cayenne, mixed with honey, and wrapped everything safely in gauze and medical tape.

Our mother assures us that everyone cuts their fingers on a mandoline once. It only takes one time, she says.

Christine and I, previous to this incident, had talked about getting ourselves mandolines for our hope chests, but…not anymore. We are now convinced that they are of the devil. Only sharp knives for us!

“Elusiveness”

by Mary Squicciarini

One of our friends recently finished reading The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy, and as this lesser-known classic is a Squicciarini family favorite, we seized the opportunity to have him over for a showing of the 1982 film starring Anthony Andrews, Jane Seymour, and Ian McKellen. The evening included delicious homemade pizza, and a chance for our guest to try ”oil and vinegar” with his pizza crust… <raises eyebrows>…   

We (mostly) resisted the temptation to quote any of Sir Percy’s witty repartee during the movie. It was a disappointment to our guest that the “pepper-snuff” moment of genius was not included in the film, but overall he agreed that the acting and dialogue are superior. It is an excellent story of daring and great character…

We kicked him out of the house at 10:00, and as the evening was a great success, we’re already looking forward to next time. <grin>

Unorthodoxy

We entertained an honored guest at The Residence Thursday evening… my esteemed grandfather was in town and he joined us for a delicious meal of seared flank steak and Julia Child’s cream of mushroom soup.

It’s quite an event having my grandfather over, one which happens infrequently since he does not live in Charlotte anymore. He makes a quiet entrance, occasionally while we are still trying to finish the work day, but his presence draws everyone like a magnet. His conversation is invariably fascinating. He has opinions on every subject under the sun, and we could listen to him talk for hours. Recently he has started telling stories from his high school days, which are always highly amusing.

Our time at the dinner table was quite comical. I don’t think we’ve laughed that much over dinner in months. My grandfather has highly unorthodox ideas about certain eventualities, both political and personal… which I am not, unfortunately, at liberty to share. His no-nonsense approach to life in general is entertaining, but at the same time often educational and thought-provoking.

Look for “It’s All About Me,” the greatly-anticipated autobiography of Henry F. Stelzl, coming to a bookstore near you in 2010.

Let There Be Space In Your Togetherness, Finale

With the reliability of homing pigeons, my parents turned up back at The Residence right on schedule Sunday afternoon.  I thought that was significant to note, just in case anyone was concerned… now that it’s Monday… you know, like they might have jetted off to the Bahamas or something. They are… here. We are also here… which means everyone important is here. You wouldn’t believe the emotional reunion possible after a 48-hour absence.

Let’s Raise a Glass

A wave of fitness has swept The Residence recently, as our matriarch has thrown herself into a whirlwind of activity into which the rest of us cannot help but be swept. She is a blur of action these days… running around town, walking around the neighborhood, swimming around the pool… and I marvel sometimes at the extent of her influence on our family (though I know it’s no surprise that a mother could have the power to affect change within her own family), because considering that we are a group of lively, determined ‘young adults’ it seems unusual that almost all of us, in one way or another, would so easily alter our habits or routines in accordance with the example set by a parent. She has set a personal course toward a well-balanced, physically active, healthy lifestyle, and we find ourselves moving in the same direction, voicing encouragement and agreement, wondering silently why we had not taken these steps sooner, knowing the answer is that even as grown-up and self-sufficient as we like to think we are, we still require a leader with initiative. My mother answers this need with quiet wisdom, motivating by patient example. We love her, care for her, and yes… we follow her.

Relatively Speaking

We had a family of total strangers over for dinner last night, and by the end of the evening we were not only related, but practically best friends as well. Truly. I mean, is that cool or what? It was like discovering long-lost cousins, and spending a few fantastic hours getting to know them… starting with their arrival at our home and introductions all around… then discussion of our mutual Italian heritage accompanied by screams of excitement as we found out that both of our families are descended from the Marzigliano famiglia of Bari, Italy. It was a beautiful time.  

This brings up what I like to call the Italian House theory (to unapologetically spoof a popular religious doctrine). It goes like this: if you feel a special sense of connection to an Italian family, such as ours – if you love being around them, guess what? You’re related. Absolutely. I guarantee it. (The real question is, how far back is your common ancestor… but trust me, chances are almost certain you can find one more recent than Noah).

Supercalifragileisticexpealadocios

Random question… how many of you have ever had an anonymous gift from Tiffany’s show up on your doorstep?

It happened to us yesterday.

I tried so hard to convince everyone it was an early birthday gift for me… but I was overruled by the consensus that it was a graduation gift for Christine. <sigh>

This reminds me of the time we found a package containing $1000 in small bills… in our mailbox. (yeah, the “early birthday gift” line didn’t work then either…)

Basically we’re always finding stuff around our house. Sometimes it’s unpleasant, like mice in the pool, and other times it’s pretty nice, like presents or money. 

Never Stop Looking.

:: [(no subject)] ::

1. Almost every day someone finds our website by searching for poolside seats. This is because of a small post last spring which announced the availability of our swimming pool, called “Poolside Seats Are Now Available.” The post, somewhat deceptively titled, had nothing to do with poolside seats (it can be summarized as “the pool is open.”). *googles poolside seats* But there we are on the first page of hits. Perhaps disappointingly, we don’t sell poolside seats… we don’t even have lovely Pottery Barn-type photos of our outdoor furniture. What is a poolside seat? A chaise lounge? A lawn chair? Could a porch swing be considered a poolside seat? Or should the term be used literally, like sitting on the actual pool edge and dangling your toes in the water?

2. We set up a distribution list for our family, used it all the time because it was so much easier than typing six email addresses, and found out recently that one of our business partners, a Canadian firm, has been on the list all along… somehow.  *frowns at the in-house technicians* This security breach has potentially compromised internal affairs at The Residence (or at least given LPI a few really terrific pics of the vacation rentals at Holden Beach and copies of several birthday lists).

3. And speaking of security… someone in North Carolina just got a new camera! It wasn’t us! But… we paid for it! Anyone using ecommerce these days runs the risk of fraud, but it’s one of those things we never expect will happen to us. We weren’t sure about the charge on our business credit card… the email “OK, WHO SPENT THE MONEY AT NEWEGG?” went around to QV employees… and then after a short but painful formal inquiry we realized that yes, there are thieves among us. Well, not among us, but…you get the idea. So if you just purchased a new FUJIFILM camera with our card (and don’t want to admit it), you’re welcome. Enjoy. Take lots of pictures for us.