I AM A Gardener - Yes, We Have No Tomatoes

August…sun…heat…TOMATOES!

If you are of Italian heritage, of course you have an “orto” (kitchen garden), and of course you grow vegetables, and of course one of those vegetables is the tomato.  Looking back over the years, my life story is "peppered" with tomato memories.

My dad was the gardener in our family and he took great pride in his tomatoes.  

My dad, circa 1958 - Isn't he proud!!

They often did not make it into the kitchen.  He would pick the tomato, wash it off with the garden hose, and hand it to me like an apple. “Here, take a bite of THIS!”  And I would…bite deeply into the red flesh, feeling the juices still warm from the sun, running down my chin.  

We often ate tomato sandwiches.  Bread, a little mayo, sliced tomatoes, sliced onion and a piece of lettuce.  Who needed baloney when you had ripe tomatoes?  

And the excess harvest?  Well a whole day was devoted to canning in the basement and its aroma would permeate the entire house.  Tomatoes were peeled, simmered with some seasoning, placed in sterile canning jars and stored for the winter months.

When I was a young mother and we bought our first house, one fine day in May my dad arrived at my house with a shovel, some fertilizer and tomato plants.  He spent the afternoon digging a small garden against the back wall where he planted my tomatoes.  There…now the house was complete.  I tended them as I was taught but it was Dad I called if I ever saw a fat juicy tomato worm!

One of the many advantages of living at Palos Verdes Shores community is the opportunity to have a plot in our community garden.  Though I have to endure the local wildlife of birds, squirrels, gophers and raccoons competing for the harvest, it still affords me the pleasure of growing tomatoes.  

My solar activate sonic gopher repellent that seems to be working!

Gino and Jessie love to go down to the garden to “help” me.  

"I can help you, Mima! Let me do it!"

This year we purchased 7 plants from Laurel's Heirloom Tomato Plants in Lomita.

Jay does the dig and carry!

All planted!

 I have spent the last few weeks reaping what I have sown!  

Just one day's pickings!

Some ripening on the window sill.

In addition to making some favorite seasonal recipes and freezing fresh sauce for winter months I have had the joy of sharing some of the bounty with neighbors and grounds keepers.

Ahhh - gazpacho!

Fresh tomato salad.

Both sets of grandparents had “orto”s so it is very natural for me to follow suit.  They didn’t spend time worrying about a lovely manicured lawn.  To them, it made no sense to spend your time, money and energy in growing something you could not eat!   

It is only now, in my golden years, that I am beginning to grow something other than vegetables and I take delight in watching the Monarch butterflies circling my glorious milkweed bushes. 

My milkweed in full bloom.

A visiting Monarch butterfly.

Gino looks for caterpillars every time he comes over!  I hope this one sticks around long enough for him to see it!

And...a monarch caterpillar that we are praying makes it into a cocoon.

And the cycle of life continues.....

I Am A Ritualist - Marc & Charlotte's New Home

When Jay and I were dating, one question I asked him was “What rituals are important to you?”   

To him a ritual had a religious connotation and he said he had none.  To me, rituals were more like traditions…certain behaviors we perform around meaningful events. 

My first memory of a ritual was how we were taught to greet our great-grandparents.  Grandma and Grandpa Rosso spoke Italian and I was taught to approach them politely, say “Si benedica” (Bless me), and they would put their hand on my head and say “Dio ti benedica” (God bless you). Then I would get a kiss!  That ritual bonded me to them.

Later, as my children were growing, when they would leave the house I would often make a cross on their forehead before they left, saying “God bless you and keep you safe!”  In fact sometimes, if I didn’t, my youngest Marc, would run up to me and say “Aren’t you going to bless me?”

I guess some rituals could be called superstitions, some could be aids to reduce anxiety, some could hold a religious significance.  But for the most part, I think of them as glue that holds us together as a family!

Yesterday I had the opportunity to enact a ritual that I especially enjoy.  Marc, Charlotte and Gino received the keys to a house they just purchased in Long Beach. 

They asked us to meet them at the house for our first “tour.”   

Whenever a family member moves into a new house my first visit to the home includes bringing 4 specific Italian Housewarming items:  A bottle of wine, a loaf of bread, a box of salt and a broom.

Bread (il pane): the staff of life, symbolizing Basic Sustenance

Salt (il sale): symbolizing the extra zest to lift life from the ordinary

Wine (il vino): symbolizing joy and happiness

Broom (la scopa): symbolizing the "sweeping out" of old baggage, old problems, negative emotions

I don’t know who appreciates the ritual more…the recipient or ME.  It is a way for me to acknowledge all the good things I wish for them and it also says…no matter where you go, where you live, how old you are, or how many times we might disagree, somethings are constant and you can count on them.  We are a family and nothing can take that away.

Some of my children have more brooms than others!  I remember Joe telling me once when he was preparing for yet another move, "I was going to pack my old broom but then I remembered...Mom will be bringing me a new one!”

Marc, Charlotte and Gino…I wish you much happiness in your new home.  May its walls hold the sounds of love and laughter!

I Am A Fishwife - Shopping for Calamari

As I continue to mature…ahem…I realize that the events that often bring me the most energy and excitement and make me feel “young” are the ones where I venture into something unknown and try something new!  Saturday morning was such an event for me.

When we first moved to PV Shores, our good friend and painter, Themis Americas (a transplant from the city of Kalamata on the Greek Peloponnese peninsula) came to our house with a huge bag of fresh (read uncleaned) squid.  “Calamari” I exclaimed!  Not only did he gift me with squid but he showed Jay and I how to clean them and told us…shhhhhh…where to buy it!

 

Jay with Themis

Christmas is coming, I am Italian, I am preparing the dinner for Christmas Day, I need a vegetarian dish…Calamari!  So Saturday morning Jay and I set the alarm, got up early, and headed down to the huge building at the harbor where many fish mongers sell their catch to the public. 

Many of the doors were closed and we realized that those who want the best choice are there at 3 am.  It was already just past 7:30 and many had folded up shop!  But the last shop, the LA Fish Company, was open and we ventured in.  Fortunately we knew enough to wear old shoes because the floor was totally wet from the ice and water used for the fish.   

 

And what fish they had and what prices!  I was fortunate that when I entered a friendly woman shopper took pity on me and became my guardian angel.  Sue lived in Carson and came here often for fresh fish.  She swore this place was the best! 

Jay and I stood in awe of the variety displayed…all fresh (read uncleaned). 

 

Look at the blue lips on the parrot fish!

Then I spotted the little squid I was looking for in a large box with the price written on a piece of cardboard…50 cents a pound! Sue showed me how to get the plastic gloves on and where to get the large plastic bag and we both dug into the treasure trove.  She had never prepared this so I told how I cleaned them and how I prepared them.   

Finally a had my selection 

Weighing and paying!

but before I left, Sue pointed out her favorite fish to me…pompano…and told me how she prepared it. So I selected two fresh ones (read uncleaned) and then she said… "They will clean them for you for about $1 a fish!"  So I gave them to one of the men working on the tables along the side and received them back cleaned and butterflied!  He didn’t want any money… "Merry Christmas” he said…so we tipped him instead!

We were so energized after the experience that we treated ourselves to breakfast at the Pacific Dinner

and talked about the task ahead of us for the afternoon…cleaning that bag of squid and getting it packaged for the freezer…and the recipe I would use to prepared it for Christmas Day.  I went home feeling at least 10 years younger!

I Am An Explorer - A Day of Discovery

My husband loves maps!  It can be a globe, an atlas, Google Earth, or an AAA local map…he can pour over it and notice things that never hit my radar.  I look at a map and I search for the name of a city I am hunting for and that is it.  He sees so much more…the change in altitude reflected, blue curvy lines of rivers, the green patches that indicate a grassy area.  That is why, when we travel, I handle the logistics…the airline flights, the hotels, the trip insurance while he handles each day’s itinerary…where we are going and the route we will take.  As a result I have been treated to some of the most interesting sights and undiscovered jewels of locales and we always travel in a loop…so we never retrace our steps.

Yesterday, Jay stopped at AAA and procured recent maps of our locale and last night he was pouring over them with his highlighter and his magnifying glass.  

Today, he invited me to go with him for a ride.  He promised it would not be far and yes, we could stop at the Italian market, A-1 on 8^th street on the way home.

Where did we go?  About one mile down the street from our house to the end of Western Ave.  There he had seen a small patch of green on the map that turned out to be White Point Park.  We are fortunate to live along the coast but most of the coastline here is rocky cliffs and it is only at a few secluded locations that you can actually make your way down to the water.  This was one of them.  We drove down a steep incline to the water’s edge where there were rocky breakers, surfers, fishermen and people sitting…contemplating.  The air was crisp and clear and we spotted rocks covered with seagulls.

We returned up the incline and discovered a lovely little park and then, a Nature Preserve filled with walking trails.   

This part of the Palos Verdes Peninsula is subject to ground movement and this area is restricted for that reason but has been restored to its natural habitat.   Loved this sign..."On this restless ground lies a gem of open space!"

We walked around the preserve, commenting on the plants, the birds, and reading the signs about the Native Americans who originally lived here.  We passed many people walking their dogs, some boys on a dirt bike, everyone just enjoying the natural beauty set in the midst of our urban area.

From there we headed to the Italian Market.   

We have shopped here before and always seen the sign of Mirabella Winery next door but it is always closed.  Today as we walked buy it was open so we ventured in.   

How could we pass up a building with a bulletin board like this to greet you!

 

What a surprise!  Inside this large warehouse were all shapes and sizes of wine casks, grape crushers and other wine making equipment 

and inside the tiny salesroom was Tony Mirabella.   

He told us his story…his family had run this business for over 70 years and were able to provide everything a home winemaker could need to make their own wine.  It used to be a booming business. Now, even though most of the old Italian and Croatian home winemakers have passed away or moved away from San Pedro, he still stays in business, open 2-3 days a week unless it is crushing season,  because it is his heritage.   

Just standing in there looking at the items brought back old memories of homemade wine, the glass bottles under the sink or under the table, ready to be pulled out when a guest arrived at the house.  My brother, Fred, is such a wine-lover…maybe I can introduce him to Tony and he can take up wine-making when he finally decides to retire!  I will know right where to take him!  Salute!