What Does The Prayer Really Say?
W D T P R S

Everyone…. RUSH over to Vultus Christi for a great shot of St. Gregory!

In the newer calendar today is the feast of St. Pope Gregory the Great.

Here is this Pope’s entry in the Roman Martyrology. There might be a slight flaw in the Latin text.

Can you find it?

Memoria sancti Gregorii Magni, papae et Ecclesiae doctoris, qui, vita monastica inita, munere legati Constantinopoli functus est et, ad Sedem Romanam hac die tandem electus, et terrena composuit et sacra servus servorum curavit. Verum se exhibuit pastorem in rebus regendis, in egenis omnimodo subveniendo, in vita monastica fovenda, necnon in fide ubique firmanda vel propaganda, quapropter multa etiam de re morali ac pastorali egregie scripsit. Obiit vero die duodecima martii.

Here at The Sabine Farm it is Labor Day, though every day is a day of labor at The Sabine Farm.

Today I share with you readers the purple fruits of the place.

Here are some grape bunches.  It wouldn’t be a good Roman place, in Horatian splendor, without grapes.



The third wave of blueberries is coming in.



Finally the plums are ripe!



We also have apples, such as these next to the Sabine Chapel.  They aren’t quite ready yet.



Here is a view of the domus Sabina.



However, there are other dwellings which guests enjoy. 

The house on the left is occupied by the owner of the whole place, at least when he is here.

If I don’t get back to Rome for the whole winter, this is a good Sabine skating pond.

And another pair across another Sabine field.



Another field within the fence, looking toward some corn.



There is a LOT of mowing to do here.  It can take a couple says on a tractor.



The Sabine Pond has trout.  The area is fairly nicely landscaped.

The greenhouse is a busy place in the spring.  Right now I have most of my herbs inside.

And if you don’t like things too tidy, you can hike around in about 80 acres of forest. 

The outdoor Stations are not yet set up on the paths.



And from the front door of the domus Sabina humilis, sed sarta et tecta.

This is pretty much my view from my window, as I type away here.

Just a taste of The Sabine view, in case anyone wonders why I like to split my time between Rome and here and why it takes dynamite to get me moving.

This is in from Apcom and Curiosità su Papa Ratzinger – Benedetto XVI

PAPA/ PRANZO MARGHIGHIANO CON CIAUSCOLO, ROSSO ‘KOMAROS’ E PASSITO
Antipasto di salumi,penne,filetto,crema di riso il menù di Loreto

Loreto (Ancona), 2 set. (Apcom) – Antipasto all’italiana, penne al pomodoro e basilico, filetto ai ferri con patatine novelle e insalata verde. Per finire crema di riso ai frutti di bosco. Il tutto ‘condito’ con vino locale ‘Komaros’ delle Marche, ‘Cardinal Bonaccorso’ dei colli maceratesi e un ‘Dorato moscato passito.

È questo il menu di Papa Ratzinger che pranza nella ‘Sala Macchi’ del Palazzo apostolico a Loreto.

Menu preparato dall’Istituto d’Istruzione Superiore Alberghiero ‘Antonio Nebbia’. L’antipasto comprende prosciutto crudo, ciauscolo, salame, olive verdi, insalatina.

Alla mensa sono presenti circa 40 vescovi della Conferenza episcopale italiana, guidati da monsignor Angelo Bagnasco.

Not bad. 

I got this from The Crescat...  o{]:¬)  (I am not sure if she visits here, but I link to her on the sidebar too … you should check out that funny blog!). 

This sad little video… well… sorry about this, World!

Pretty girl, no? 

My friend Zadok is at work, warning us about the imminent parousia!  To him I tip my biretta,... o{]:¬)  while there is still time.

Here is the article Zadok points us to.

My emphases and comments.

Angry Italians to go on national pasta strike
By Malcolm Moore in Rome

On the 13 September, there will be no spaghetti, fettucine, farfalle or rigatoni in Italy, as the country goes on its first-ever pasta strike. 

Angry Italians are downing their forks in response to a 30 per cent price rise in the nation’s favourite food, along with steep rises in the price of coffee, mozzarella, bread, biscuits and schoolbooks.  [This is no joke.  Some years back, food was my lowest expense in the scheme of things.  It rapidly became one of the highest.]

A second strike over the increase in the price of a cup of coffee in a cafe, from 70 euro cents (50p) to one euro, has also been threatened. [I might even take to the streets for that!]

According to Italy’s four largest consumer groups, the average household in the Bel Paese will be stung for an extra £700 [!] this year on their shopping.

"Giving up pasta for the day will be a symbolic gesture," said a spokesman for the consumer groups. "Italians should not buy any pasta that day, and try their best not to eat it at home."

Most Italians eat pasta at least once a day, and consume around 54 kilograms over the course of the year. [The old "standard" measure for a portion of pasta for a man at a meal used to be 100g, but I think that is lower now.  I usually go with about 75g.  Usually we weigh pasta to measure it.]

According to a recent study, many of them prefer pasta to all other pleasures. A survey by SWG, a polling company, found that nearly half of all Italian men and women would never give it up and would [Just to put this in perspective….] rather have a plate of spaghetti than sex. 

Consequently, the strike-organisers are prepared for serious withdrawal symptoms. Emergency stands offering free bread and milk will be set up in all major Italian cities for those in need of carbohydrates.  ["And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth."]

The pasta-makers said the reason for the 30 per cent price rise was a shortage of wheat because farmers were switching to produce crops for the biofuel industry. [I HATE ETHANOL!   I HATE IT!  It is screwing up the political debate in the US, where politicians are forced to take the Ethanol pledge in Iowa for the sake of their stupid caucus.  It screws up engines, costs too much to produce, and pollutes more than fuel without it.  Where does this get good?  And now… the parousia.  I used to think the end would come before the end of the 7th game of a World Series between the Red Sox and the Cubs… but now I am not so sure.] Currently, a half-kilogram (1.1lb) pack of pasta costs around 70 euro cents (50p) in Italy and 70p to £1.10 in the UK.

However, a spokesman for the consumer groups said the rises were rampant speculation by the producers.

"The statistics show the price of grain has now fallen, but the price of bread, for example, keeps rising, without any link to the wheat price. According to our analysis, bread, fresh pasta and deserts have gone up by 12, 20 and 70 per cent respectively in the last year, while milk has increased by over 300 per cent."

The threat of the strike drew has drawn a rebuke from the prime minister, Romano Prodi. "There is no justification for the alarms over price rises," he said. In fact, he said the prices "are in some cases going down substantially".  [Ummm…. liar?]

He warned, however, that the "the price of prime materials should not be influencing, in a significant way, the final price that consumers pay. There are ample margins for improving efficiency to recuperate the money, just as occurs in other European countries."