Below The Line – Day 5 But what if today…

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Our family Below The Line experience has come to an end. We survived for 5 days with a $37.50 budget for food, for 5 people. But I almost feel it does not count; it is easy to “sacrifice” a week of your lifestyle if you can see the finish line approaching from day one. Yes indeed knowing that this experience was going to have a very short and minimal impact in our lives helped us stay on track during this very odd week.  Continue Reading…

Below The Line – Day 4 An Apple A Day

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Breakfast-coffee for Gabriele and I, a slice of homemade fresh bread, with butter for all. For the kids-a glass of diluted milk (to stretch it) .Packed the kids off to school with their Mortadella sandwiches. We have chosen mortadella, since we like it ,and its cheap. I gave each child my extra slice, so that they would have some protein to help focus at school. My older daughter has her NY state school tests this week. She has been nervous, and I feel bad that I chose this week to do the campaign. Children need a balanced diet to perform well in school, and even if I have to eat less, I refuse to allow her grades to suffer from being hungry. Im giving her my share of food. Continue Reading…

Below The Line – Day 3 Feeling the effects

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I will be short. I am tired. I am hungry. It’s dull. Very different from all the other times in life I usually say “I am hungry”. This is like an anesthesia that is progressively conquering me.

Monday was the euphoria of the beginning. Tuesday was the “look, we are not doing so bad” day. This morning I kept active and committed. I had my lunch of one slice of bread and one slice of mortadella, one glass of leftover broth from last night with an egg scrambled in it. It helped until I started yawning around 3 pm. From that moment on it has been a slow downfall until now. Continue Reading…

Below The Line – Day 2 It is already a waiting game!

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We are all hungry here. Waiting patiently for our only real meal of the day. Evelina skipped lunch at school (she did not like their pizza) so she had a slice of bread and mortadella… the mortadella is already finished! Giulia, my youngest is zoning out in front of the TV, she asked for a snack. Guess what “Here’s a slice of bread!”. Continue Reading…

Below The Line – Day 1 A little groceries, a little thinking.

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So here we are, the campaign has finally started. Our dear friend Robert has decided to move in for the week, so we now have a budget of $37.50 for 5 people, for 5 days.

The day started off with one cup of thin coffee with no sugar. We decided to invest in milk and renounce the extra 2-3 morning cups of espresso. Just a half mug to get your day going. Kids had a slice of bread with jam (no butter) and a glass of 2/3 milk and 1/3 water. Continue Reading…

Live Below The Line – Join The Challenge April 29th to May 3rd, 2013

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I grew up in a farm, in the heart of Tuscany. For the first 2 decades of my life I did not know any better, or any worse. Life was good, food was always on the table and its quality was superb at any given meal; that’s just the way it was. I was extremely spoiled, just did not know it yet.

Eventually I started traveling as a musician: Brazil, Cuba, Africa, the Middle East and most of Europe. It appeared clear to me very soon that in many of the countries I visited people perceived me as a privileged human being. That did not necessarily carried a bad connotation with it, it just altered slightly the way that ordinary people interacted with me; for many kids I have met while on the road, a single dollar out of my pocket always meant much more that I ever thought possible. Continue Reading…

Types of CSAs: More than Just Veggies

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Many people have heard about CSAs, or community supported agriculture. One of the biggest hesitations about joining a CSA program is the idea of a “fixed” menu of foods that you get each week — even if they are things you don’t like. But, did you know that there are several types of CSAs? The variety includes everything from the types of food in the CSA to how hands on you’d like to get with your produce. CSAs can also help support charitable efforts or economic development projects. Thus, you weekly spend on healthy foods has an even greater benefit for all. Here’s some of the options available. Continue Reading…

Why Onions Will Make You “Smile.”

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Onions may make you cry when you chop them up for Carciofi alla Fiesolana but their health benefits will wipe the tears streaming down your face away. Continue Reading…

Five Good Reasons to Support Local Family Farms with a CSA

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There’s over a foot of snow outside my door but its time to start thinking about vegetables! Not just the seeds to plant before the last frost (when I can find the ground again), but March and April are also the months to sign up for a CSA. Continue Reading…