Remembering Khaled

Lamplight, quietness and flipping pages
naked,
sand
still clinging to our bodies
Khaled picks his way
through
this well worn journal.

and finds himself strangely absent .

troubled,
in not finding himself there,
that he is somehow less
real,
less
important,
less
memorable,

on this hajj through this strange land.

but for me he is everywhere,
as present as the bright blue of the sky over the atlas mountains
or the indigo scarf he so painstakingly
wraps
himself in.

and so for me,
scribbling
in this book seems so unnecessary.

but he doesn’t know that he is my first thought
opening
my eyes
and my last conscious one before
going
to sleep.

he is there in the smell of warm bread and lamb
coming
through opened doors
in the medina

he is there in the souk
ever watchful
protective and thoughtful
discretely following, and a bit surprised
that a small westerner, not even in galabiyya
can find her way home without his help.

he is there barefoot
in the house of new friends
smiling
as he waits for the tea to be poured.

his kisses too
linger,
like the sounds of a Milhûn
played out with handqa and kamenjah
sometimes
on my neck
and sometimes
just along my fingertips.

i wish he would see himself through my eyes
if
only for this moment.

maybe then he would feel himself as timelessly
as i do
and
as life’s moments are meant to be.

for while memories of kasbahs and mountain villages can fade
with time,
becoming less clear,
our particular love
is woven with a different silk

not a mirage,
fading
in the desert heat.

it was real,
even if only for that moment
when it thirsted.

for understanding.

While happily slurping a wonderful plate of pasta last night with Angelo , Eric and new friend Kim, I was delightfully informed that Carbonara, that wonderfully peppery, typically romano dish, that all North Americans and Romans alike adore, dates back in Italian food history to a mere 1944. A time shortly after the allies arrived in Rome.

Funny enough, and Wikipedia confirms, the union of these perfect ingredients seems to have been the brain child of intelligent, if frugal roman cooks and well supplied American GI's. The soldiers had bacon and powdered eggs, the chefs their fantasy and so this creamy first course was born.

eheheheeh.

It is nice to know, in these days of "why are we there and when are we leaving?" that there was a time when an American soldier's presence meant positive change.

Sometimes a song

walking down yet another subway corridor.....MP3 headphones jammed in my ears to make me forget (or remember) my breath is always taken away, when the song that randomly shuffles into my ears mirrors my mood, bringing me to hot wet tears.

i guess this is one of the reasons i listen to music in solitary spaces....because it slices through all my best laid defenses and when played out through instruments or other voices, speaks so many things i often can't find the words myself for.

sometimes life gives. more often however, it takes. and often in red raw strips of pounded flesh. and for me, it is always the goodbyes that are best to be avoided. be they on snowy winter eves, Milan airports, or even a taxi stand near torre argentina. for me they are best remembered with violins and guitars, in a crowded Roman metro, where for once i am glad to be standing, squished with my face against a wall.

l'ultimo bacio

Cerchi riparo fraterno conforto
tendi le braccia allo specchio
ti muovi a stento e con sguardo severo
biascichi un malinconico Modugno

Di quei violini suonati dal vento
l'ultimo bacio mia dolce bambina
brucia sul viso come gocce di limone
l'eroico coraggio di un feroce addio

ma sono lacrime mentre piove, piove
mentre piove, piove
mentre piove

Magica quiete velata indulgenza
dopo l'ingrata tempesta
riprendi fiato e con intenso trasporto
celebri un mite ed insolito risveglio

Mille violini suonati dal vento
l'ultimo abbraccio mia amata bambina
nel tenue ricordo di una pioggia d'argento
il senso spietato di un non ritorno

Di quei violini suonati dal vento
l'ultimo bacio mia dolce bambina
brucia sul viso come gocce di limone
l'eroico coraggio di un feroce addio
ma sono lacrime mentre piove, piove
mentre piove, piove
mentre piove, piove

Celebrating Homecomings

OK.....in keeping with my, I will now catalog the wine I consume so my faulty memory has a record....I have come across some holes in my theory of completion.

This is a wine my friend Eowyn brought back from Paris that we enjoyed to celebrate are new apartment and finally having some much needed time to sit and just chat and revel in the fact that a panel painting conservator and a lover of books now share an apartment in what used to be a book conservation studio.

While I am a big fan of Saint Emilion, this was a wine producer I was unfamiliar with. Trying to get details, I have discovered that for 2002 there was a marked change in grape blends with 2003 reverting back to only two grapes. Can't find out why. Can't find a link to the vineyards to ask, and, as a result....have on incomplete record of the vintage based only upon previous vintages.

oh well!

Puisseguin Saint-Emilion
2002

Grape variety: Merlot , Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon,

Growing Conditions: Unverified for this year. 20 ha family estate, located in Puisseguin Saint Emilion. Soil is clay limestone. Harvest usually occurs each September where growing conditions are normally sunny, and dry which produces a decent maturity.

Date of Harvest: Usually September 1 to 10 Date of Bottling

FERMENTATION
Method: Unverified this year. Traditional vinification usually occurs in cement tanks with immersed cap.

TECHNICAL CHARACTERISTICS
Brix: ---- Alcohol Content (%): 12.5
pH: ---- Extract (g/lt.): 0-5
Color Intensity: ----
ACIDITY (g/lt.)
Total: ----
Malic: ----
Volatile: ----

SO2 (mg/lt.)
Total: ----
Free: ----

Special comment by the wine maker: ----

Tasting Comments: It is a Blending mainly with Merlot, which adds a bit of softness Château Teynac is vinified to keep imperatively the fuity taste, that is well rounded and especially easy to drink. Aging potential 6-8 years.

For those of you in the I can't find good wine hinterlands

COLVECCHIO

2001

Grape Variety: 100% Syrah

Growing Conditions: Montalcino was subjected to a biting spring frost which significantly reduced yields in many vineyards. June offered some rainfall, however the extreme heat of July onward, even if at a more gradual pace than previous years also affected grape quality. Weather conditions during harvest were said to be “ideal”.

Date of Harvest: September 1 to 10

Date of Bottling: April 2003

FERMENTATION

Method: In stainless steel at a controlled temperature of 24-26° C for about 10 days. Maolactic fermentation in barrique, followed by 14 months barrel aging in French oak ( 38% new) plus appropriate bottle aging before release.

TECHNICAL CHARACTERISTICS

Brix: 24.5

Alcohol content (%): 14

pH: 3.9

Extract (g/lt.): 33.2

Color Intensity: 1689

ACIDITY (g/lt.)

Total: 5.7


Malic: 0.02


Volatile: 0.6

SO2 (mg/lt.)

Total: 95

Free: 33

Special comment by the wine maker: “Because Syrah is a grape variety that supports the heat well, in extremely warm vintages such as 2001, it perfectly expresses itself”.

Tasting Comments: Excellent Ruby to claret colour. First nose bouquet is both spicy and fresh, with hints of tobacco, smoked meats, strawberry and red currants. The tannins are notable, but not in an overpowering way. Has good mouth feel and a sufficiently balanced acidity. The wine is well structured, though with some bottle inconsistency noted between tasters. Should be good for moderate aging.