Palermo,  February 11, 2010

Dear Rose,

it’s late, nearly midnight and I can’t sleep , and as I liked  write you last time, I’m going to write you a letter again and again.

Truth is that I have to accustom to sleep  to granny’s house. I wrote into last letter that my bedroom is small, very small. Yes, bed is small too. It barely fits me. It’s a bunk bed, and I sleep downside where mom used to sleep.  Sheets are torn, hand sewn, hand-sewn again.

I know that everybody think Sicily is always Sunny-covered and heat, but it’s still winter, and sheets are wet becouse humidity.  Unbelievable. Humidity is everywhere: into sheets, into walls, into gates, into  the whole house. My bedroom’s window looks on the street, which is not exactly a street but it’s an alley so cars can’t pass near my window, only people can walk through the alley;  when it rains water come into my bedroom’s external walls. Under the window there is a  big black stain because humidity. Granny, my poor granny that I do not know how can she deal with this, gave me an electric heater but I’m not confident tu turn it on, sis, because  humidity plus electric wires are very dangerous. I prefer to feel cold,  I prefer to be sick, I prefer to have a shorter life, so, I prefer to live!

But this cold matter it’s not only a Granny’s house matter. The day before yesterday, bar was open till late,  so Mr Gianni  asked me to stay with his family to have  a dinner  ’cause He was disappointed that I coudn’t have a dinner with my granny. They were in the habit to  dine late, because they usually close the bar after 9:00 pm. Mrs Ancilina, that is Mr Gianni’s wife, who treasures bar’s cash, cooked a good lentils soup  and then we ate good caciocavallo-cheese with bread.

Mimmo and Caterina are their sons. Mimmo the grown-up son goes to College and  Caterina, the youngest one, goes to High school. They speak a good  italian and they ask me a lot of questions about America.  They asked me things I didn’t know. They did not feel cold because they are used to be so, but i feel.

It made the cold of Grandma’s house, but more than 15 degrees celsius (60 degrees F are almost, I still have to get used to this thing of degrees). Had put the stove in the living room and did a little ‘warmer but for me it was not enough, was always too cold.

They told me that every house is so old and in those who are the most modern radiators but people often take them off since winter is normal that there is no heat in homes and also to save money.
This thing is very strange, sister. In Palermo in homes is cold. Even colder than outside.

Who would tell me that in winter in Palermo there is all this cold?

Love

Frankie

Filed under: Arenella by Frankie Lipper Tagged with: Bar • bed • caterina • cold • humidity • mimmo