MN Little Italy 20 ........Buon Natale !

[Rosa]

Here we are then ........

Hello everyone- happy new year, we are snowed in and internet is intermittent, so dashing in and out quickly!

Back to A$$ End on Thursday,snow permitting!

Happy New Year Buch.

McNulty my friend has a delicious recipe for red cabbage. I can give it to you after school run as I am going there anyway.

That's it for me for now. Must go and do all the paperwork that's been piling up on my desk for months!

ciao.

Hello! Still clinging onto Xmas holidays here. -5 to new job. Terrified. So made really big American cookies to keep me occupied. And making fish and chips tonight.

MM - sorry to hear it wasn't the best start. Let us know how you get on; I am sure that things will look much better when all your possessions are in place as there nothing worse than an empty cold flat to depress you...

On the Wire - we have now finished series 1... Have ordered the reminder on Amazon...

Thank you Sput, that sounds lovely!

Sorry McN I forgot I was in such a rush.

Is Franca all right? And Rosa?

Happy New Year!!!
We've just come back from a few days away with friends in le Marche.
We basically spent our time stuffing our face with delicious food, so my NY's resolution is to try to lose 3 kilos . It will never happen, but there you go.

I hope you all had a lovely Capodanno... and that you are all enjoying your The Wire set .

Gio ! Yuppie!!! aren't they gorgeous? I spent hrs stroking my new uggs... and then I stained them while frying a lemon sole ...

SG, are things developing? How are you feeling?

MM how's it doing in geneva?

Hi everyone! Happy New Year!

Hope you're all ok.

Not been about much (though started a thread about trying not to buy clothes this year).

Posted once on the boarding school thread, and that, combined with general holiday low mood (am always a bit grinch-like at Christmas), sent me into a bit of a black dog. Not much helped by DD and DH being ill, then me. Etc. Someone mentioned earlier Sunday night blues: god, I got those so bad at school; and worse when we had exeat and then had to go back on the Sunday. Shudder.

And our internet connection has been dreadful recently, so hard getting online.

Anyhow...

MM - hope all's well in Geneva. Gosh, what a change. Thinking of you.

SG - how are things? So close now!

Semester 2 starts next week. Am so underprepared... Arrrrgghhh.

Oh hello Penthe, so good to see you

I'm highly impressed by your resolution, something I'd never be able to commit to (in fact, I've just had a very productive sales hunting afternoon )

Sorry to hear you had a bad mood over Christmas. How did the inlaws behave? Was it dreadful?

We'll see if I stick to it! What did you buy in the sales? I will have to live vicariously through others!

ILs never made it... Which was both good & bad. Good because obviously the hassle and arguing is almost never worth it; very bad because the reason they didn't come is because SIL is divorcing her DH so there is turmoil back home. Bad also, from a selfish p.o.v., as we could have done with some help to sort stuff out in the house which we struggle to do without extra pairs of hands.

Sorry Penthe but have been sniggering at your thread, and everyone going well I just bought this lovely dress, pair of boots, jumper blah blah, but now I-m signing up (til the next purchse).
Actually I am jealous because a) I have no choice atm than to refrain from buying clothes and b)I have loads of nice clothes in my wardrobe if only I was a size smaller.

LOL Sputnik! Too true.

It could all turn very ugly (so to speak!).

My intentions are good, though! I haven't bought anything this year yet... (in fact, not since November, I think...).

Oh Penthe sorry to hear about your sil.

. Yes... I'm in fact thinking of joining, but I seriously need at least a new pair of trousers (I was impressed by someone owning 14 pair of trousers... ). I've only got six, surely I deserve a new pair?
Anyway, I bought 2 jumpers today. Yes. In a lovely shop. I feel guilty now.

Nooooo, don't feel guilty! Aim of thread was not to inspire guilt. I'm just so weak-willed that I can't do something unless I feel someone (in this case MN) is watching me. It is the result of being institutionalised. I have serious motivation problems.

Tell me more about your jumpers...

Yes, I'm the same. And btw, I agree with the principle of trying to consume less or at least trying to buy ethical, which seems an impossible mission (have you read Gomorra and the bit about the textile district controlled by the camorra in the south?).

mmm I've hopeless at describing clothes and don't have links. One is a thick, cable knit, oooh god, how do you say a collo alto???. The colour is a bit talpa . The other is a dark grey tunic like jumper with short and wide sleeves.

I've? I am hopeless

Yeah, am trying not to go on about the ethical thing on the other thread because it's not my responsibility to guilt-trip others and it's boring when people preach. But I had one of those moments last month when I was reading something or other about sweat-shops, and I just felt that my cheap thrill was a bit too cheap, IYSWIM?

Not read Gomorra - should I?

Your jumpers sound lovely. Do you mean a roll neck?

Yes roll neck.
Yes, I see what you mean about not guilt tripping other people and I agree.
I've only just read the first chapters of Gomorra, it's very harrowing and depressing and I can't read it all in one go.
I was totally unaware (shame on me) that there is a lively textile district (nr salerno, if memory serves me well) made up of little laboratori in nero with skilled seamstresses etc. Apparently many high end designers have their clothes made there, by people who are paid in black and are in fact controlled by the camorra.
So, it sounds like it is very difficult to find "ethical" clothes. Mind you, the same can probably be said for all sorts of product. aiuto!!!

products.
Have to go to bed, it's very late here. Hope to see you back soon penth.

Off to bed now.

Notte!

x-post!

Yes I agree your thread is definitely a laudable intention, Penthe, and agree with the ethical thing. I knew someone who made handbags for Fendi, she was paid peanuts and kicked out as soon as the orders were down. You-d think a company who charge as much as they do for a bag would find room in their profit margins to treat their workers decently, wouldn-t you.
You should read Gomorra, but agree it-s a bit grim, and the lack of paragraphs drove me crazy by the end.
There are some ethical clothes sites out there, I seem to remember the Guardian has a page somewhere with a bunch of links.

Dp works for a firm that gets all its (highly expensive at retail point) shirts made in Albania for 80 cents each, then they sew the made in Italt label on in A.
There are loads of those mini-sweatshop places near us. You walk past what seems to be a monolocale or garage on the street and then one day realise there are 30 women on sewing machines behind the closed shutters.

Forgot to say welcome back Franca. Those jumpers sound nice.