Aware that we live in Paradise.

I’m getting my true love to restaurants she’s never been to before. In her hometown. In Carbonia. In Sardinia. And I consider that one of my greatest accomplishments. Teaching her how to be spoiled. Like many women, she’s reluctant to go out and dine alone. Of course, when she’s with me, she’s not alone. And yesterday, we had a leisurely and wonderful time. At a cozy restaurant. Recommended by one of her teaching colleagues. The place was a real winner. I’m sure we’ll go back. Again and again and again. It could become a favorite. We had a corner table. In a little nook. Away from the rest of the customers. Mainly a long table filled by a social group. Maybe 15 or 20 people. I didn’t bother to count. I was too occupied with my true love to do that. Marveling at how she’s becoming more mellow and more relaxed. Every day. I like that. Anyway, we focused on a single course lunch. Rather than the more traditional multi-courses. Even a single course can be a bit too much food. But this was just right. I had a traditional Sardinian pasta with a sauce made of mushrooms, blue cheese and almonds. Which made it triple delicious. One of the best meals I’ve ever had in Italy. I’ll have it again. But I also want to try a pizza. There are about 30 kinds on the menu. My favorite is with salami and a variety of other toppings. Depending on my culinary mood. One thing I’ve learned, by the way, is that what Americans call pepperoni isn’t the same thing in Italy. In the USA, it’s sort of miniature slices of salami-like sausage. But in Italy, pepperoni is a mild pepper. Really, a yellow or red pepper. Well, my true love had a spaghetti dish this time. With tomato sauce. And I sampled it. But preferred my own entre. For dessert, the restaurant owner tried to interest me in homemade peach cake. Ttempting. However, I opted for a dish of vanilla gelato/ice cream topped by sprinkles of white chocolate. My true love had ravioli-like little pastries filled with cream cheese and honey.. And she gave me one to sample. Which earned her a spoonful of my gelato. It was a continuous pleasant afternoon. Because after lunch, we drove to one of our favorite beaches and didn’t return until after dark. Satisfied. Contented. Well aware that we live in Paradise. –Jim Broede