Little Italy 24

[BananaGio]

Ciao tutte!

We have another primary meeting to go to sta sera. They don't tell the names of the teachers either here. Normally it is the 5a teachers that take the prima. It is a hard choice but by the sounds of things Gio your choice is pretty much the same as mine I think will be.
DD1 is at an advantage having done 2 years of full time asilo so the afternoons will not be too much of a shock. I am already telling here its either gym club or hip hop dancing as 4 nights a week is too much !!!!! As for the buona merenda we are the salami panino kind as well when there is an activity !

Oh wow, I like hip hop dancing! Wish my dc would try it out.
I always pick them up with a big merenda, because, even if they usually eat their lunch they always come out of school starving.
Panino al salame is a firm fav here too!

ds only does swimming at the moment once a week so think will just keep on with that and not add to it with anything else for now. maybe look at football or something after the first year. My first reaction when we were told that we wouldnt know who the teachers would be (possibly from 5 but not confirmed) was annoyance but after thinking about it I think its better. At least it reduces the amount of behind the scenes recommendations etc going on and there is more chance of the kids being treated equally when classes are allocated. Or am I being naive
Was watching Servizio Pubblico yesterday (have missed Santoro!) and was left wondering if we are on the verge of a revolution!! Well not really but the level of anger from the strikers everywhere is quite sobering. Was switching between cheering when the vile Castelli was told "non rompermi i coglioni" and walked out of the studio to shouting at a fisherman who was saying he had voted for Berlusca for years and everything was Monti's fault.

Yes, I agree that not knowing who the teachers are might reduce the recommendations.
Mind you, that they are usually quite attentive at making "homogeneous" classes, the right balance of boys/girls, the right balance of "ages" (like not putting too many children born in december in the same class), the right levels of abilities by reading the reports of the teachers from the materna.

Oh gosh yes, it does seem we are on the verge of a revolution. Another reason why I left facebook, everyone seem to be in a state of permanent anger (and most people don't have reasons to be, really)... I am fed up to be honest, Italians seem to don't know anything about our recent history.
I have just seen the scene when Castelli is told to go and fuck off and honestly I can't think of anything better to say to a person like Castelli...

Belated happy new year all

not surprised you deregistered facebook. Work of the devil.

I'm not deregistered - just inactive but it's surprising the amount of people who can find you even when you have a common name and no photo and no info and no posts! I don't have time for it and have even less time for people who comment on my inactivity!

If I want to contact someone I just call them. Nice and old fashioned and how it shoud be.

So there was an earthquake? Again? Goodness - noone hurt I hope.

agree Franca re Castelli. Agree also re the anger. For the first time I have had a few anti-straniera comments from people directed at me recently as well. Worrying times. Mind you you only have to go through the MN threads over the last few weeks to see the anger in the UK as well. Been some horrible benefit bashing threads.
Happy New Year Giveitago. How are things? How's Ds doing with his Italian these days?
Did you feel todays quake Franca?

Hello Giveitago, happy new year! My problem with facebook weren't my "friends" who are lovely and pretty much like minded, but that I had started to posts on various forums of current affairs and I got fed up with the venom, the anger and ignorant remarks.

Gio, how awful re the straniera comments, what did they say? ... I also totally agree that the level of anger (often unjustified, lets be fair) is quite high pretty much everywhere, not just in Italy.
Here in Milan at the moment anger seems to target the congestion charge (which instead I fully support)... bah!

Oh yes, I felt the earthquake today. It wasn't as bad as the last one. There was no loud bang this time. The desk I was sat at shook gently (what a weird, weird sensation), I immediately looked at the lights hanging from the ceilings, but they didn't move this time. The other day they shook like crazy. Bloody hell!

Oh franca - you obviously have more detailed usage of facebook than me. Mine is just a load of people from university - I haven't seen them for 25 years (yes I'm that old) and my view is I can't remember them and they probably remember my name and nothing else so no common ground.

Why are people angry? I thought the entire thing with the new administration was a good thing? Is it that people are taking their frustrations out on foreigners? Who is this Castelli person? Since B went I've completely lost touch with any politics.

Erm How can you be so cool about a minor quake? Is this common?

Giveitago, no, I am not cool at all about the quake, the other day I almost freaked out! However, in Italy earthquakes are always a bit on the back of our minds, as it is a very seismic area.

Why are people angry? For a variety of things.
There are those who have every right to be angry, like people who are loosing their jobs with the economic crisis, or people who've been unemployed for a while etc.

I am supportive of this new government, I had no respect whatsoever for the Berlusconi government for a variety of reasons and I am happy to have a decent PM, who is working hard, who is able to liaison with the EU, who is respected abroad, instead of spending his time shagging prostitutes, telling jokes and being allied with a racist party.
This new govmt in order to control our debt had to start with serious cuts to our spending, which have proved unpopular with many.

First of all the reform of the pension scheme. People will have to work for a higher number of yrs. Disappointing, I agree. But people couldn't really think that Italians were the only ones in Europe who could retire earlier than anyone else in Europe, given also that we have one of the highest life expectancy rates?

Etc, etc, etc. It is as if people only now have discovered in what a state this country is, while for yrs they have been fed the lie that all was well... and they get angry. But what I wonder is where exactly were these people 2, 3 yrs ago. Why do they get angry now for their pensions, while 3 yrs ago they didn't lift a finger when our school system has been hit by the silliest cuts ever made?

Thanks for the summary - it's brought me up to date! And I'll watch out for this Castelli guy.

Earthquake didn't hear about this one. You are far braver than I. I cannot imagine - dh's village was hit by a huge one in the 1980s and he was let off national service to help out. It was bad. I cannot begin to underdstand.

Yes - the politics and impact on the people - now I can imagine that. It's the same in the UK - we were all aware that reforms were needed but the party in power wanted continued votes so left things as they were. We are now all paying. We were happy to believe the lies, really.

Yup people will lobby for their own issues.

We've got a difficult year ahead in this household.I've got a very real threat that I'll be made redundant by the end of the year it's 50/50. I've never been sacked before! But lets see - at least I have a job for the next 12 months. I'm grateful.

I'm just hoping things will pick up by the time all our kids leave school.

Hope everyone doing OK.

I was thinking exactly the same yesterday Giveitago, that I was glad in a way that this was happening while ds is small because I can at least have the hope that when he is older things may be better.
Franca couldnt agree more re your post. I get angry with the people who were happy to turn a blind eye to Berlusca and co for so many years, with the completely ineffectual opposition parties, with the fact that the only bloody thing we have debated here for the last few years is Bunga Bunga and with the people that are now blaming Monti for all this. As for Bossi slating Berlusconi because he wont bring the government down - words fail me. So far I have a lot of respect for Monti. Very different to how I feel re the cuts in the UK however, I dont think you can compare easily the situation there and here. The reforms here needed are completely different from the ones there as they are beginning from completely different levels of requirement in my opinion. And the economic situation in both countries is down to very different reasons (albeit with some shared elements-global downturn, eurocrisis etc).
Anyway all very early for this so onto lighter stuff like earthquakes . I hope there havent been any other ones. Re the lights shaking I will never forget the chandelier wehave in the living room swinging violently like a pendulum (sp?) from side to side when L'Aquila happened. I remember me and DP had both jumped out of bed and when we saw that we said shit that's a big one somewhere. And then in the morning turned on the news and saw. I cant imagine what it was like to feel it there. And always scary when you get these clusters because you wonder if a big one is round the corner. ci manca solo questo qua!
Re straniera comments Franca I was given hell at the ASL when trying to re-register after falling off the list (?) recently and was asked (I kid you not) so you are foreign, you arent married and yet you want our health service. I was in there arguing for half an hour before the vile woman was eventually overuled by her boss and I was granted my doctor! Other thing was a friend of mine (non-Italian) was laughing about something Italian not working with a shopkeeper who was laughing along when a well to do Signora came up to her and laid into her telling her as a foreigner how dare she say that and if she didnt like it then go home! Friend said politely Signora I am home, I am married to an Italian (who thinks the same as me re this issue), we have an Italian child and the Signora reiterated mi raccomando, sta attento! Nice!
On a lighter note and then I will sign off what has become a blog this morning today I am going with FIL (who has been lovely recently) , dp and ds to eat cinghiale and porchetta in the Castelli . Buon weekend tutte!

Giveitago, sorry to hear about your job, it is so stressing. At least it's another 12 months, that will often give you the time to look for a new one.
Is your Dh from Irpinia? That was a big earthquake, lots of people died, entire villages were wiped out, it was very traumatic for our country.

Gio, again, I have to agree with ypur analysis. Also, I think that in the years I lived in the Uk (at the height of the Blair yrs) many things were done to improve the quality of life of people.. Here they dilapidated our finances by not doing anything!
and on your behalf for that woman in asl... See? If something similar happened in the Uk she'd have big problems at work... Here? Nothing.

Have a lovely weekend...mmm porchetta! We are waiting ds to return from his school trip, I can't believe he's gone for 5 days!
This afternoon we are watching HP andnthe deathly hallows part 2 at last! And tomorrow morning dd has a gym garetta.

Ciao!

Oftrn? Mhopefully, I meant

GIo have you got your doc for 5 years as thats all I can have mine for as well ?!- Totally mad. I can see the logic behind what Monti is doing and to be honest I have respect for him. The thing is the jobsworth people in the offices beneath who need stricter advice on how to act / follow things up and not interpret them how they wish ! As for Bossi I always knew he was a bit OTT but he has 100% lost the plot now. The UK agree things are different but I can see where Cameron is coming from and hell he is trying like mad to make things work. He won't get in in the next election so the Uk will be back where it started from. Ok so New Labour is different than it was in the past but I think in principal they will not maintain or try to take forward what Cameron is trying to do. It is about time that people started to realise how bl**dy fortunate they are with some of the benefits in the UK. I do hope however that the people who genuinely deserve them and need them don't suffer. And reading some of the benefits threads I do wonder.
Giveitago hi , fingers crossed that you don't loos your job or that you find another presto.
As for the earthquake I have felt 3 small tremors in about 10 years. One a picture moved and it was short and sweet - I think the epicentre was in Slovenia. then the other 2 were just as brief... Scary but short.
Have great weekend. Mine will be at home today as minirosa is full of cold with little febbre . DH is working until midnight and dd1 has a party I ave to ask a friend to take her . DOmani we should be at lunch with cuguini but I think that will be postponed as well !

Sorry to read about your job giveitago and good luck in the search.
How was HP Franca and how did ds get on? Is it lovely to have him back?
Rosa now I have my doctor forever!! The result of my kicking off at the ASL and having the boss etc being involved was the bitch woman said to me - here you go and I will give you permanent healthcare so you dont need to come back. Said in very begrudging, so dont darken our doors again evil benefit taking forriner tones along with a hint of "take this bribe of permanent healthcare and dont complain to our superiors about our racist and totally misplaced way of dealing with you". Not that they needed to worry because as Franca said- what would happen to her if I did? A big fat niente!
Quanto ho mangiato bene ieri! Antipasti that just kept coming to the table of porchetta and a zillion other things then polenta and salsiccia. So good! Gorgeous day as well, blue skies and had that faint whiff of a spring that isnt too far away in the air.
I agree that some good stuff happened under Blair Franca (although I will never get past Iraq with him) and agree also Rosa that some changes need to happen in UK. My issues with what the coalition are doing are who they are targeting and the speed of the cuts. Especially while the boss of the RBS which the tax payer owns 83% of is getting a £1 million bonus while Cameron says thats ok because it's reduced from the £1.5k it should have been. Oh and he cant do anything because it would be breach of contract if he didnt get a bonus. After 15 years of working in a bonus and commission based industry I wish I had been aware of the fact bonuses of a certain level were set in stone before now .

Gio it sounds like you had a lovely day ..... Jealous. Minrosas febbre went up and up and up hitting 39.3 even with nurofen and tacchip - last night round 3am it was 38.5 and sta mattina 37.2. She is drinking and starting to rompe in modo suo. NOt eating but (don't tell MIL) I gave her a bath this morning as she sweated so much last night .. It is mega cold here today and the wind is up so we are staying firmly at home. I still think she just has a nasty cold but will wait and see . Unless anything drastic happens I will not be rushing to the paed on Monday despite MILs instructions.
Franca how happy was ds when you got him back? And you of course? DId he get any sleep / eat /wash?
Gio I so agree with the banks and big bonus - I read an article in the Uk that they wanted to cap them it would have been in the tory graph or the times as that is what my parents read. Mind you the banks over here need halting somehow they keep popoing up , all over the place new ones left right and centre but the population is the same and many like us are closing accounts as the costs are too high . We had 3 in one and 2 in another and 2 in the post office . All for various reasons, work , before getting married , etc we have closed 4 and have no intention of even thinking about opening any more.
There was another benefits thread ...I worked for so bloody long paid into the UK system and it is bulls*t that I am entitled to anything over here as its a 'dual system'. I was not even entitled to the Eu1000 cheque when DD1 was born as we had over Eu28,000 in savings. When minirosa was born they diddn't even send me the letter.... Child benefit - qua non existent, housing benefit and council houses are so few its daft. How many people pay for their own badante as carers or a carers allowance is so had to get or even come by? Right off to cook pizzette as we should have been going to a cugino per pranzo and I have the pasta sfoglia pronto.....

Hello, Rosa sorry to hear Minirosa is unwell, I hope she gets better asap, poor thing. And we all know what it feels to be trapped indoors with a child who's poorly .

Gio, yummie! Gorgeous food... I crave some good food, it is difficult to eat well in Milan unless you spend a ridicolous amount of money.

Ds had a fantastic time at scuola natura and is now in a funny mood. He is super tired of ours, but also a bit malinconico, happy to be home, but missing his time away, iyswim.
The last HP is amazing Gio, good I love the HP movies! I def have a big crush on aan rickman now.

I seem to have lost my cooking mojo, does it happen to you at times? I am fed up of the usual food and i don't want to make an effort, help!

Irpinia? God knows - I've heard the word - perhaps it's near dh's village. He is about 1.5 hours from Naples so maybe? But it was huge at the time but it was in the 1980s. Horrible for them.

Well, I for one think UK needs to change and it needs to change pretty quickly. I was in Italy when we had the riots and I know family a that lived above a shop that was set on fire.Noone came to help and they had to run for their lives with nothing. I was so surprised at people justifying this attempted murder as the 'real' victims didn't realise that there were people were living above the shops when they set fire to them to eradicate evidence of their thieving. That makes it OK then I suppose. To me that is the sum total of the UK these days.

The current administration reckons it's addressing our inflated sense of entitlement but it's doing it a very divisive way.

I'm very underwhelmed at how the UK govt is dealing with our many issues. But labour is no better.

But on a happy note I had some old friends around today - it was amazing and lovey and just what we all needed.

I'm also buying a steam cleaner - I'm very excited (sadly!). Cannot wait to use the thing.

Hey - spring is on the way - super.

Givitago it pretty much summons it up. However with any reform , drastic changes there are bound to be people that are going to be hurt / affected worse than others as so many 'blanket' sweeps are made that don't take into consideration the 'real' people that do actually need these benefits. You would think that people could use logic or common sense in allocating the benefits but so many people have abused the system that its hard to be practical and sensible at the same time. I keep paying voluntary contributions for my pension as I have paid into the Uk system for 20 years and I am determined to get something back seeing as I get a fat NOTHINg at this end despite it being reciprocal ( My a*se) sorry but its a bug of mine.
Gio I am so jealous at your permanent healthcare. My Card is valid for 5 years only. If when I go back for the next one they say 5 years again I will complain like mad as its not right. When I had a permesso di soggiorno then it was valid for 10 years. However now I have the carta PERMANENTE di soggiorno then the time is reduced. I own a house here , am married here am a European citizen and yet they still find a way to make it hard for you....
Franca I regularly hit a cooking block and then sit over cook books to get inspiration or at least another couple of dishes to add in to the selection. I hope Ds settles back into normality again its probably hard for him to switch back into home life after having so much freedom !
I am at home with minirosa. She does seem a bit better today actually its round lunchtime that her febbre goes up so we will see. Will keep her off domani as well I think just to try and get her 100% fitter. Her nose doesn't seem as runny either ( mine is ) in fact am debating whether a good sweat in the gym tonight is a good or bad thing. Seeing as I have been at home for 3 days not sure if it will be too much of a shock to the system !

Giveitago, yes, Irpinia, that's the name of the area around Naples. I think it was 1980, I remember it very well.

Rosa, I hope minirosa is on the mend, poor darling.

I still can't believe they don't give you a permanent card, but also dd's card (dd was born in the UK) expired, and I had to go and get a new one!

Ok Irpinia sounds right if it's a region. If so, that's where dh is from (a village in the region).

Yes, completely get the idea that sweeping changes can also sweep also the people who have been honest. I hope the new changes see this (but I doubt it).

I have a steam cleaner now - it's Karcher - anyone have one? I've done a few little tests in various areas but really need a tutorial. But loving my new toy. Would be better still if I knew how best to use it.
Yikes.

What's this 5 year healthcard thing?

I'm just right now booking flights to Italy for the summer - still going to cost the three of £600+ but better now than later.

Hope everyone ok.

Yeah, Irpinia is an area of Campania.

Oh a steam cleaner! Sounds fab!!

200 quid is a lot of money, are you flying into Naples?

Still snowing here, beautiful, but freezing...
how are you all?

Bora wind , snowing but its more gusty snow IYKWIM. I think we are in Siberia.....Cold no correction Very cold....

looks beautiful up north from the pics have seen on the news. Cold here but nothing excessive yet.