Last night while messing with my camera, I set it down on the kitchen counter and this image popped into the viewfinder. Hmm. I like that. I like the big, round pear butt and the diminishing line of oils and vinegar bottles. I keep a bowl in the kitchen with garlic, tomatoes, fruit of the moment and usually a little, white paper bag with the remnant of the last bakery purchase.

I have been searching the city for a nice loaf of dense, multi-grain bread. The only thing I’ve found so far was a half loaf of very good grain-and-seed bread at Peck, downtown by the duomo. It was 3,50 euro for half a loaf, about 4 inches square! That’s about $5.25! No way will that become my staple. But of course, at Peck, everything is for show and it’s NOT where the locals shop! No photos allowed there, but absolutely everything is photo-worthy. The place is a work of art. I’m sure the tourists go in to buy and have gifts shipped home for family and friends.

This is a white-flour world with the pastas, pastries and breads. That’s fine, but I want something with some texture, fiber, flavor, density and keeping power. The lovely white breads last a day and are stale the next. (And I want more nutritive value.) (Does that make me a party-pooper?)