Oh, how we wish we were in Rome today for the 2,764th birthday celebration. Tanti auguri, Roma. Read the mythological birth story here; the celebration schedule, here. If you have children, or are a teacher, visit BBC Primary History - Ancient Rome for Kids. It's a terrific & fun resource.
If you'd like to make a traditional Roman recipe, here's a slideshow & recipes. Easy-peasy but buy the best ingredients you can.
We posted last June on young artist Olivia Bouler's inspiring project to save birds on the Gulf Coast during & in the aftermath of the BP oil spill disaster. On the year anniversary, much remains to be done; frankly, things are just a mess. Read about Olivia's new book here. Starting today, read the Audubon Society's one-year update on conditions in the Gulf. You can sign a petition there to urge Congress to act on Gulf Restorationnow.
To prove that we can make anything (anything!) about Italy, here's a GG Custom Peep in Venice via the Marshmallow Peeps website. Click here & make your own peep-avatar (& let the children have a go at it, will ya:). Giulia will have to count as a kid this a.m.The second photograph is the winner of the Washington Post Fifth Annual Peeps Show.
We are determined at GG Central to enter the contest next year. If you read the Post's story, you'll see that it's a group thing. But every time we get set to do this, someone (are you reading this a certain sister?) drops out. Visit the site for all things peep. And just try to stop twisting words around to include "peep" or "eep."
ciao-meow/GG Silly Central
("Chilean CoPeepapo Mine Rescue"by Deb Lindsey for the Washington Post)
A joyous holiday to our Jewish friends around the world. We're going to make this Toffee-Chocolate Matzoh recipe today. Yum.(Here's an article about the origins of "sweet Passover.")
We had a lot of positive reactions to the Italian language lesson post earlier this week. As we're pressed for time today for a longer post, take a look at the BBC's French language page, too. It's very much worth checking out all the links. If you have slower internet, you can read transcripts rather than watch videos; you can also access these from outside the UK, so no excuses! If you can't be in Paris (or elsewhere in France) in April, you can at least refresh your French - or begin it for the first time.
...needs your help if you live in the Washington, DC area. There will be a donation day on Saturday, April 16th at area Whole Foods Markets. They will be accepting bicycle (& financial) donations but before that, they need you to spread the word via blogs, Facebook, Twitter, residential & company listservs.
It's been a busy day here but we had to share this photograph of a little girl & a wombat. It's by our favorite Sam Hood in the State Library of NSW Archives. We're not experts on marsupials so here's a National Geographic page on the little devils. Here's a link to a cute wombat coloring page.
I have a theory that there is something in the Italian landscape which inclines even the most stolid nature to romance. --Miss Lavish, A Room with a View
It's not just the landscape; listen to that language. Do you want to learn Italian (or brush up on your skills)? You should sign up for a course. GG's editor went to Casa Italiana in Washington, DC. But if funds are low or you want to do something at home first, check out the BBC Italian Language page. Test yourself first (on the website) if you know any Italian. Then move through the page links; it's an excellent site. For a wonderful book on what it's like to "become Italian," definitely read Dianne Hales La Bella Lingua. We won it in a giveaway via Bleeding Espresso, a favorite stop every week. Dianne's book is absolutely superb & renewed our dedication to all things Italian. Check out her blog, too.
We mentioned Meatless Monday briefly in December & January. So we should declare ourselves: GG Central is officially meat-free on Mondays (& truthfully, most days). It's easier than ever to find terrific & easy recipes for veggie meals. Here's a link to the website's history lesson (Meatless Monday began during World War I & returned during World War II).
If you're a blogger, visit the Meatless Monday website & take the pledge & ask for a link. You don't have to be in the States, just to be clear. Everyone is very, very welcome.
Today, we're making the quick pasta dish shown above. As stated last year, Giulia is excused from MM as she is an obligate carnivore. Please do not talk to us about making her a vegetarian. It makes GG's editor really very cranky. You don't want that, right?
A new series with a familiar name begins tonight in the States: Upstairs Downstairs. In case you've been hiding under a rock (listen up, Mia aka Bronx Zoo Cobra), the series is related to the venerable old show in that 165 Eaton Place is the center of the action & co-creator Jean Marsh is involved. Unrelated to the original series: there's a monkey named Solomon. Giulia can hardly wait for this simian storyline.
Here's a review/recap by Jane Austen World. If you'd like to attend the Twitter Party, click on Jane Austen Today (or just log on & use the hashtag UpDownPBS). Tweeting begins at 9pm EDT. These people are hilarious if you just want to laugh at one-liners. GG's editor isn't modern enough to watch & tweet simultaneously. Ahem.
Can I share with you my worldview? All of humankind has one thing in common: the sandwich. I believe that all anyone really wants in this life is to sit in peace and eat a sandwich.--Liz Lemon
Saveur magazine's Sandwich Issue is on the stands now. Explore it & see if world peace breaks out. Yeah, no. We're still fuming away here at GG Central in Washington. If the government does shut down, the Cherry Blossom Festival parade will still be held tomorrow morning thanks to the help of the DC Metro Police. Check here for updates.
ciao-blurgh-meow/GG Hoagie Central
PS: The winner of the sandwich photography contest is Denise Woodward. Congratulations!
Between 1933 and 1945, millions of children were displaced as a result of Nazi persecution. Now, more than 65 years later, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum is using postwar photos and the power of the online community to find out what happened to these children.
You can help by going to Remember Me to browse through some 1,100 photos of displaced children and share them with your family and friends. Who knows, you might even hold a clue that could identify a child, reunite relatives, or piece together a wartime or postwar experience.
The more people who see the photos, the greater the chance of identifying these children and raising awareness about the experiences of the most vulnerable victims of war and genocide.
Please share this with your family & friends on Facebook & Twitter. Thank you.
Have you followed the adventures-by-tweet of the now-recaptured Bronx Zoo's Snake? She's a witty Egyptian gal. The zoo's naming contest Who's that Sssssnake is open through Thursday (EDT). We hope she continues to tweet as it has provided many laugh out loud moments since March 28th.
Update - The cobra has been named "Mia" & will make her debut-at-the-zoo on Sunday, 9 April.
With the fate of Mad Men finalized, you might be thinking where oh where will I get my MM fix until March 2012? Where can I read features on the 1960s? Who are these "regular" people who get the interviews with creator Matt Weiner & MM actors? And perhaps most important - where can I read about ceramics of the 1960s?Basket of Kisses is the place for you.
The warm & witty Lipp Sisters rule with a benevolent hand & keep things moving in the most collegial manner. They spice it up with contributions from fellow Basketcases & fold in a judicious amount of side posts on movies & a few television programs. Roberta & Deborah introduce their blog thusly: Basket of Kisses: The unofficial blog of AMC's Mad Men. Where all the cool kids meet & greet to talk about Don Draper, Janie Bryant, Christina Hendricks, Jon Hamm, Matthew Weiner, & subtexty things.
Now run along & have a great Monday (& do something nice for at least one person or animal. OK?)
Happy birthday year to Amnesty International. See The Guardian's slideshow of the best of the posters (the one by Picasso is a favorite & available as a notecard).If you would like to get involved, here's an activist toolkit that will get you started no matter where you live.
Hope your Sunday is a peaceful one. Giulia is asleep & therefore the house is very, very quiet.
ciao-meow/GG Sunday Central (La Colombe et le Prisonnier, 1959 via The Guardian)
For some fun, read Juliet Lapidos' article I've Seen Every Woody Allen Movie in Slate. Then skip over to rank your favorites, the merely good, & the ones you'd toss into the chipper. Voting ends April 5.
Have a terrific weekend. It's cold here (still). Fume.
Oh, how we wish we were in Rome today for the 2,764th birthday celebration. Tanti auguri, Roma. Read the mythological birth story here; the celebration schedule, here. If you have children, or are a teacher, visit BBC Primary History - Ancient Rome for Kids. It's a terrific & fun resource.
