Are Italian-Americans Italian? People keep telling me we aren’t. When I say I am Italian, Italian-Italians, those born in Italy, look at me with suspicion and scoff. American Uber-patriots chide me, telling me that I am American. In their minds, to associate myself the culture of my forbears is close to treason. With so many … Continue reading Are Italian-Americans Italian?
Invading Marsala
Today we invaded Marsala, traveling in the footsteps of Garibaldi. As I wrote about in my book, Italianità: The Essence of Being Italian and Italian-American, Garibaldi is the Italian version of Washington. Just like Washington, Garibaldi led a group of volunteers to victory over the professional army of one of the world powers at that … Continue reading Invading Marsala
An Italian-American Christmas
Several years back, an evangelical Christian co-worker was complaining about the secularization of Christmas. “Jesus is the reason for the season,” he declared, literally raising his arm, pointing to the heavens above. “What does Christmas mean to you? Is it a holiday or an holyday?” he asked, almost daring me to answer incorrectly, or at … Continue reading An Italian-American Christmas
The Woman in Red
Today is a great day! Today is the reveal of the cover of my daughter's upcoming book. As my daughter has said "When The Woman in Red was still just a bunch of words, scratched into my notebook I allowed myself to daydream about what it could look like. What image of Anita would my publisher … Continue reading The Woman in Red
The Cerberus of Selinunte
Today was an easy day, we did a simple loop ride in the Menfi area that took us up into the hills above the town and then to the Greek ruins in Selinunte. Now, I am certain what I am about to write will seem strange, but several years back when rereading the first few … Continue reading The Cerberus of Selinunte
The Climb was Worth the View
Ciao Tutti !!! Today we left the seaside city of Sciacca heading for the pleasant mountain community of Caltabellotta. The keyword in that previous statement is mountain. I am on a bike. So, before you read much further you could pretty much guess what my day was like. I started the day looking up at … Continue reading The Climb was Worth the View
Under a Sicilian Sunset
Another day cycling through Sicily. I have likened these trips to eating an excellent bag of potato chips when you are very hungry, not just hungry, but a maddening craving for something crisp and salty. You look at the bag only to realize that it isn’t that big, certainly not large enough to fill the … Continue reading Under a Sicilian Sunset
