Author Archives: Jc

Hawaii Public Radio Interview

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Benjamin Sota was a wonderful guest on Hawaii Public Radio! He talks about our UH production of La Strada.

You can play the file on your computer as well as download the mp3 file if you want to add it to your audio library.

Here’s the link: http://www.hawaiipublicradio.org/content/conversation-monday-february-25th

Ben was our fourth guest and his segment starts about 47-minutes in the file.

Enjoy!

Rituals for the Sick

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biacnoenero

Rituals practiced after the war if you were sick and needed to be cured in Italy(Information based on interview with Olga Caruso and Antonino Calvo–February 9, 2013):

-Death: If you wanted to check if someone was dead you would put a mirror under their mouth to see if it would fog up. Many times people were incorrectly thought dead—the families wouldn’t shut the coffins tight in case you needed to get out. Many were thought dead but later woke up. Perhaps Matto isn’t really killed? Just misdiagnosed? Just a thought.
-Cough: If you had a cough you would be brought to smell cow manure as it was said to alleviate your cough.
-Malocchio: If you had a headache caused by malocchio you would have a cup placed on your head. A cloth would cover the cup while those around you prayed to make the pain go away. You could measure how bad the malocchio was by using your palm to measure the distance from your wrist to your shoulder.
-Headache: You would attach sliced potatoes to your head with a rag hoping that the pain would leave.
-Bruise: Raw meat placed on the area, especially in the case of a black eye.
-Broken arm: Smear egg whites all over your broken arm. Or you could have your arm wrapped in cactus.
-Toothache: Rinse your mouth with cow urine.
-Deep cut: Sugar placed on the cut.
-If you had an earache you would make a paper cone, place it in your ear, and then light one end of the cone–catching it on fire.

Italian Proverbs That Might Pertain to La Strada…

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proverbi italiani

On Life:

-Ride bene chi ride ultimo: The best laugh is reserved for he who laughs last

-Sbagliando s’impara: You learn  by making mistakes

-Chi non risica, non rosica: No pain, no gain

-Meglio perdere un occhio che la reputazione: Better lose an eye than your reputation

-La vita è come l’ombra, quando è più bella svanisce: Life is like a shadow, when it is most beautiful it vanishes

-Dai un pesce a un uomo e lo nutrirai per un giorno, insegnagli a pescare e lo nutrirai per tutta la vita: Give a fish to a man and you will nourish him for a day. Teach him how to fish you and you will nourish him forever

-Risate e pianto viaggiano accanto: Laughter and tears travel together

-Decisa la tua strada – seguila ovunque vada: Once you decide your path-follow it wherever it may take you

-La volpe perde il pelo ma non il vizio: A fox loses his fur but not his bad habit
-Disse il verme alla noce, dammi tempo che ti buco: The worm said to the walnut, “Give me time and I’ll make a hole in you.”

On Art:

-La critica è facile, l’arte è difficile: Criticizing is simple, creating art is difficult

On Friendship:

-Nelle sventure si vede l’amico: We see our true friends in toubled times
-Chi trova un amico trova un tesoro: He who finds a friend finds a treasure

On Love:

-L’amore non è bello se non è litigarello… Love isn’t great unless there is little bit of fighting involved

 

Italian Superstitions

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corno

Italian Superstitions

by Scott Simon
NPR radio show to listen to.

Great example of a real Italian accent too!

Listen: NPR_Italian_Superstitions

Extra List For You:

Never lay a loaf of bread upside down

Never stick a knife into a loaf of bread

Never cross arms when shaking hands or while toasting in a group

Never toast with a glass of water

Owls are bad luck

Number 17 is bad luck

Do not let your cup clink with another if you are toasting with a plastic cup

Do not throw away bread and if you really have to, kiss the bread first

If you sweep a broom over someone’s feet or if you sit at the corner of the table, you won’t get married

Don’t knock on wood, touch iron instead

No crossing utensils on your plate

If you hear a ringing sound in your ears someone is gossiping about you

Malocchio: Has to do with someone looking at or thinking of someone else with envy. The person who is being envied becomes at risk of all kinds of bad luck unless a rituals and prayer is performed to drive away the malocchio

Corna: Making a fist and then pointing only your index and pinky finger up is called, corna. If your hand is pointed down, this gesture is warding off il malocchio. If pointed up, it is an extreme insult.