Recuerdos de un Italiano en Londres - 18

 

 

https://www.amazon.fr/Solo-como-una-piedra-Recuerdos-ebook/dp/B09Z6C5LKC/

The Evening News era en realidad solo una imitación del Evening Standard más famoso. Este último venìa publicado en múltiples ediciones desde las siete de la mañana. hasta altas horas de la noche, con una frecuencia entre las dos y las tres horas. De una edicion a otra, solo cambiaba la primera página para atraer a los lectores a noticias brillantes. Se distribuyìa con una red de distribución realmente fantástica.

Las entregas llegaban en una camioneta negra y amarilla, y desde allí, con el motor encendido, sin descender de la furgoneta, volaban los paquetes de periódicos.

The Evening Standard no tenía una fisonomía política precisa (al menos no en el sentido que los italianos le damos a esta expresión) y tal vez alternó su afinidad ideológica con los partidos políticos al gobierno en el cuerpo administrativo más grande de Londres: "The Great London Council" .

Todos esos vendedores me daban una impresión extraña: que siempre habían hecho ese trabajo. No solo por la voz sibilante que los caracterizaba, sino también por su ropa muy sucia. La piel de su cara se veía oscura, casi sucia, debido a la exposición al aire insalubre.

También me parecia que siempre tenìan fríos, incluso en verano, como si en sus huesos hubiera penetrado la humedad y el escalofriante aliento de las corrientes de aire heladas procedentes del Metro.

Usaban guantos que dejaban los dedos expuestos para agarrar fácilmente dinero y periódicos y se calentaban con una taza de té con leche que compraban en el bar más cercano.

A pesar de su aspecto, que en los días de intensa niebla se mezclaba con el paisaje circundante, convirtiéndose en un elemento característico, como las columnas rojas del Royal Mail, las cabinas telefónicas y los taxis negros, las sensaciones que transmitían eran muy positivas.

No digo que fueran alegres, pero puede ser joviales. Una serena y resignada jovialidad, como si la difusión de los acontecimientos londineses y del mundo entero, contenidos en sus periódicos, los hiciera impermeables a las emociones, colocándolos por encima de los acontecimientos humanos, como mensajeros imparciales de los dioses del subsuelo.

Cuando pasaba por allí, donde estaba trabajando, nunca faltaban de asentirme con simpatía, al mismo tiempo emitiendo un sonido que quería ser un "¿estás bien?", Pero uno solo podía escuchar un silbido, como el viento que había entrado en sus cuerpos, consistiendo en tres, tal vez solo dos sílabas, veladas en la garganta.

The long trip of knowledge

 

Since long time past manhood has wondered about the most inner significance of our presence on the earth.

I imagine our primitives ancestors, still wrapped in their beast’s furs, asking themselves the meaning of the stars in  the sky, some brighter , some farer, some fading away, like falling down; or  they might be thinking why the rising and the setting down of the sun, the pouring rain, the flashing of the lightening, preceding the boasting thunder; and the mystery of flying , the fascination of dreams, the secrets in the silence, the magic of a new life coming out from feminine bodies.

They started worshipping the sun, the waters, the eagle, or the great mother because of these unanswered questions. May be the first spark of this craving of knowledge has started around the fire, old men telling stories to be remembered by the young of the tribe.

The quintessence of hundred thousand years of this human research can be found now in the great religious books of humanity: the Indian Vedas and Upanishads; the Tibetan Book of Death; the Wisdom Books of the Holy Bible; or even in the mysterious books of esotericism.

You might believe or not believe in God (I personally do); and we can discuss for thousands of years  Which One is the Only God (but I know there is only One God, anyway); some can call God the Cosmic Essence of the Universe and some others can crush the Unity of God in to a Pantheon of Gods (like ancient roman and Greek did and like Indians still do); you can even keep on worshipping idles and totems (as matter of fact money and lust are not  but the modern gods of contemporary times); but if have spent your life without searching a reason to be born, then your life has passed you by uselessly.

Through  centuries and millennia men have even abused of the power of knowledge, misusing magic formulas for cheating poor people, frightening them with the shadows of God (God Himself cannot scare anyone, because He can only love); the Books themselves were instruments of power: those capable to read them on them the sacred truths could exercise a great power on those ignoring the meaning of the signs traced on their lines.

This special issue of Arspoeticamagazine deals with the matter of knowledge in the beginning of the seventeenth century.

 Angelo Ruggeri shows in a selection of works, how Milton, Giordano Bruno, Galileo Galilei, Torquato Tasso and other great minds of this century, have handle and dealt with such a sensitive subject and  why the established power counteracted their thoughts.

In the same century,  I set my novel “The Perfect Watchmaker's Handbook” (at the momento available on Amazon's stores in Italian language with the title  of "Il Manuale del perfetto orologiaio"), where four main writers and their friends of the Academia of Lamole, in Tuscany, are compelled to hide away from Holy Inquisition because they have decided to translate in to vulgar language the Sacred Scripture against the Pope Clemente VIII’s 1596 Decree, who wanted the Holy Bible still to be published only in Latin ancient language (incomprehensible to most  people).

Still remains a great question: up to where can manhood  push his thirst of knowledge? Is it right to go beyond anyway? Is it correct to restraint the longing of manhood to break all the frontiers of knowledge? And who is titled to check scientist, poets and all the men who feel free to research the truth anyway and anywhere? Such questions are still of topical actuality and is not in the intentions of our magazine to dare to give any answers to them. I can personally only say that when I was much younger than today, my answer would be simply aimed to deny any chance of control or censorship.

But now I’m not so sure anymore.

https://www.amazon.it/Manuale-del-perfetto-orologiaio-Romanzo/dp/1677714697

Traveling in space-time with Virgil

A drama in a prologue and three acts

Characters

Virgil:  a Latin dead poet

Dante: an   Italian poet still alive

Men from  Hell

Ealk : Great Beast, guardian of the Ante Hell

Waitress

Men from Purgatory

Angels from Paradise

Beatrice: a beautiful celestial lady

Prologue

Somewhere in the space  the Latin poet Virgil and the Italian poet Dante meet again, after almost seven hundred years, for starting a new journey on the universe of human vices and virtues.

Virgil will lead Dante Alighieri, as a guide, across the space-time, through as many different  levels of the human vices, as many centuries have passed by from their first journey.

They will travel  together  through the hell of  desperation up to the hope of repentance of purgatory. At the third level Dante eventually meets Beatrice who will lead him to the true love shore of Paradise.

  

Scene 1 of the Prologue

Dante and Virgil

An aseptic room. On the left a door communicates outside. On the right a spiral staircase leads upside where the spaceship awaits for Virgil and Dante to go. In a total darkness the creak of an opening door. Dante will desperately call for his master Virgil.

Dante (a frightened voice in the darkness): May I come in? Is anyone there…? Schoolmaster!!! Are you there? Please answer me… for God’s sake…

(After a short but heavy silence’s time, a scrubbing sound of a lighting match will be heard in the darkness. Then a candle will light an old man sit down at a table covered by piles of books, papers and maps.

Virgil (after reawakening,  he lights the candle ): I must have fallen asleep…Who is in there???

Dante (still trembling): Is it you, master?

Virgil: (going to meet Dante, hardly recognizes his friend, lighting his face) Dante…? My son!!! Why are you so shattered and distraught??? What happened to you???

Dante (getting closer to his master, almost crying in a mixture  of joy and relief ) Oh, Virgil, masterly teacher of my trembling soul… if you only knew what I have gone through…

Virgil (placing his candle on the table, embracing him with protective affection): It’s all right now, my son…

Dante (falling on his arms, starts crying and sobbing): It has been really very hard outside there, in the darkness… I saw death in the face…

Virgil (l.b.): Please, take a sit, my son… It’s all over now…

Dante(reacquiring some trust): Thanks to God I’m with you now…

Virgil (l.b. pouring a glass of water from a jar on the table) Of course… It will be all right now… Please have some water…

Dante (drinking with desire the water): I have escaped three horrible beasts…

Virgil: Have you?

Dante (trembling again and looking afraid at the door): Yes… A tiger, a serpent and a monkey persecuted me up to here…

Virgil: Be calm now… they can’t surely get inside here…

Dante (reassured he looks gratefully at Virgil): I know they can’t my sweet master…

Virgil (with a gesture of affection): Forget about everything now…Are you still determined to take over our journey?

Dante (with a sigh of relief): More than ever master! With you by my side I can face anything fearless!!!

Virgil: (pointing out the spiral staircase)  Don’t you fear to face a long and risky journey  through the Universe with that spaceship?

Dante: Not at all, master!!! I told you: I’m ready to go anywhere with you by my side!!!

Virgil (taking a map on his hands): Let’s talk about it then! Everything is ready… I’ll show you…Do you know what is this?

Dante (bending on the map): Well … I see two cones turned upside down …

Virgil: Come on! It’s an astronomic figure!!!

Dante: I’m sorry…It might be a double cone diagram …

Virgil: That’s better. The bottom cone  represents the past and the  light cone, instead, is future! The point where the apices meet is the present; so we are here now , can you see it?

Dante (pointing the map): Yes master, I surely can! But what is this kind of spiral down here ?

Virgil: The Great Spiral contains all the human’s history, since our brain can retain trace of it…Every concentric circle corresponds to a century time… the inner you go to the center, the nearer you get closer to our ancestral roots, do you get me?

Dante (with a thrill of excitement): That’s makes me feel a bit lost…It’s all so stately… so magnificent…

Virgil: Of course it is! We are talking about the space-time…That’s what the spiral really represents…

Dante (like lost in the clouds): That’s would be fantastic…

Virgil (preventing and reassuring him ): It’s out of our route to travel the warped direction… we’ll walk  the expanding  direction instead…  with our spaceship we’ll intersect the space time right here (he points up with a finger the map)… at the beginning of the fourteenth century and from there we’ll continue towards the present;

Dante (surprised and excited): But that’s the anniversary of my exile  from Florence!!!

Virgil (with an accomplishing smile): Of course! Right the 1302… Don’t you want to know what happened after your left the town???

Dante (enthusiastically): So I’ll be able to see my beloved wife???

Virgil (beating him dear on his head): Have you forgotten we are going to visit the Hell??? You’ll see her in Paradise!!! Or at least in the Purgatory realms…

Dante (disappointed but thoughtful): I’m sorry master… I didn’t forget it but for a while  I thought it might me a sort of passageway in the way to hell… ‘you know?

Virgil: Not at all, my son. Look! All along the spiral’s arms we’ll find the different circles of Hell; in its last part we’ll be in the so called Ante Hell; but here (he points  the map again), where the final part of the spiral almost touches the present’s point we’ll aim the peaks of Purgatory…

Dante (with lively curiosity): so I may argue that the Hell is in the same dimension of past life?

Virgil (complying with satisfaction): That’s right my dear learner. As a matter of fact the right established punishment for the sinners is to stay in the unhappy condition of human life forever, without evolving in a better life like we’ll see for the Purgatory and, above all, for the praised of Paradise!!!

Dante: I see…

Virgil: Don’t be disappointed. Can’t  you imagine a worse punishment than sharing your own time only with the evil without any good at all???

Dante (positively thoughtful): Of course you’re right…

Virgil: Put it this way: you’ll be able to see your enemies… those who exiled you… lost forever in their thirst of power, in the vacuity of  their nothingness… and those who betrayed you…

Dante: I’m not sure to want such a revenge…

Virgil: That goes to your praise and merit…Aren’t you curious about the destiny of the big priest Boniface? Charles landless Valois? And what about Raniero Zaccaria?

Dante: (sadly) I would prefer to forget them!

Virgil: You don’t have to stop forcedly with them…We can decide the first stop   in advance by the on board controls…

Dante: Do you mean we can land anywhere in the spiral lines of space-time?

Virgil: That’s exactly what I mean!!!

Dante: I fear to face events too close to my own story…

Virgil: There’s no problem, my son. We can go straight way to any of the circles of any century!!!

Dante : As far as I know something about some good guys I could really go further..Can I know only a few names before we go?

Virgil: Go ahead with the names please!!!

Dante: (thirstily) Giovanni Boccaccio,  Cino da Pistoia, Pieraccio Tebaldi, Bosone da Gubbio, Geoffrey Chaucer, Johannes Gutenberg  and his  pupil  Johann Numeister!

Virgil: You’ll find them all in the Purgatory or maybe  in the eternal joy of Paradise!

Dante (with a sigh of relief): I think they deserve it, don’t you master?

Virgil: It’s not up to me to decide, not even to discuss such matters…

Dante: I’m sorry master…

Virgil (overflying any argument): Have you got any other name?

Dante: Can you just tell me something about a certain Francesco, the son of my friend, the notary Ser Petracco?

Virgil: Despite everything he has deserved to play another chance to reach Paradise..at least for literary merits… Don’t you think so?

Dante (bewildered, pedantly listing ): Well, I surely prefer  Rinaldo Cavalchini, Menghino Mezzani, Manuello Romano, Giovanni Quirini, Angelo Poliziano, Luigi Pulci, Lorenzo di Pietro, Giovanni di Paolo, Cristoforo Landino, Franco Sacchetti, Leonardo Bruni, Francesco da Barberino and …

Virgil: (cutting him straight) That’s ok, my son!!! I have got your point of view!!! May be you would like to make our first  stop further in the fifteenth or in the sixteenth century…

Dante (changing attitude, almost apologizing): Oh, the sixteenth  is my favorite one..so full of art…discoveries…new ideas…

Virgil: I’m with you… you can start from there our journey… if you want to…

Dante: Well, it depends from the people we might find over there…in the lines of the infernal spiral I mean…

Virgil: You can make some names, if you want…

Dante: I have a great number in mind…

Virgil: Make ten of them… just to start…

Dante: Let me see… I would start with… Martin Luther,  Nicolaus Copernicus, Leonardo Da Vinci, Niccolò Machiavelli, Michelangelo Buonarroti, William Barker, John Calvin, Sandro Botticcelli, Tintoretto, Luca Marenzio…

Virgil: All in Paradise!!!

Dante: That’s good!!!

Virgil: Any more names?

Dante: Oh, I’ve a great copy… Why don’t you tell me,  master, some names worth to be heard? I would be so grateful…

Virgil: (surprised): Well, there are really plenty. What do you think of Hernan Cortes?

Dante: Do you mean the Spanish conquistador???

Virgil: That’s him, my son…

Dante (a bit upset): Speaking  about Spanish people I would prefer to talk with Diego Guillén de Avila,  Pedro Fernandes de Villegas or with Pedro de Padilla, ‘you see?

Virgil: Well, of course I see, but they are all guys of Paradise…

Dante (quite mortified): I’m really sorry, master…

Virgil (with resolution): Never mind! Do you have any  other names?

Dante: if I were assured about some other figures I would ask you to start straight to the beginning of the seventeenth century…

Virgil: Whom would you like to know of?

Dante: Raffaello Sanzio, Giorgio Vasari, Sir Francis Drake, Amerigo Vespucci,Giovanni Bellini,Adriano Bancheri, Anne Boleyn, John Calvin, Catherine de Medici, Mary Queen of Scots, Charles the Fifth, Nostradamus, Ivan the Terrible, GianPierLuigi da Palestrina, Michel de Montaigne…

Virgil: All of them out of the Great Spiral except for Francis Drake, Nostradamus  and Ivan the Terrible!!!

Dante: (very thoughtful) I’m in two minds… I’m not sure I want to stop just for three names…May I ask for any others?

Virgil: Come on with your last names then!!!

Dante (in one breath): Oliver Cromwell, Johannes Keplero, William Shakespeare,  Cervantes, John Donne, Francis Bacon, Renè Descartes, Thomas Hobbes, Walter Releigh, Mazarino and Richelieu…

Virgil: Only Richelieu and Mazarino have got trapped on the Infernal spiral! But all these names lead us straight to the seventeenth century!!!!

Dante: Very well! I’m ready for the 17^th century now!!!

Virgil: Let’s go then!!!

(while they go towards to the staircase which leads to the spaceship the lights will be off)

...to be continued...

London for ever - 20

Unlike Oxford Street, it was the evening the most intense time in Leicester Square. And if during the day the streets were simply trafficked, at night, at certain times, the human crowd proceeded like a sea tide, moving from one point to another of London by night, and  passing through the square, seemed for a moment to sway, in front of me, as uncertain whether to proceed or to go back. Then it resumed its unstoppable flow, like a river of lava that exceeds the elbow of a steep ridge, finally aiming at the valley.

These real human traffic jams occurred especially in coincidence with the conclusion of the performances of the numerous theaters that are located in the square, mainly from Friday to Sunday. Another topical moment, in which the streets were animated dramatically, was that between 23.00 and 23.45, that is at the time when, depending on the days, close the countless pubs in London.

Of that immense crowd, while I waited patiently close to the machines to fulfill any requests, I was amused to imagine the origin, the wealth, the cultural level, the reason why they were in London and in that square, at that time.

If they spoke to me, to ask for an ice-cream, a drink or even for some  information, then it was even possible to identify their exact nationality: each people, according to its mother tongue, has a particular vocal conformation that manifests its peculiar traits in the emission of sounds of the English language.

 Even the clothing and the way of handling money were elements  from which to derive, if nothing else in general, the origin of my patrons. For example, it was usual for an Englishman to pay you the amount of ice cream (which cost thirty pence at the time) by remarking the payment of the coins, while some Arabs preferred to pay with the bills, sometimes without waiting the rest. And if Westerners, in general, preferred to satisfy their thirst by buying a can of Coca-Cola inside the store that housed our machines, the Orientals chose to quench their thirst with the orange juice that I prepared daily, of which they could observe the contained since before the mix in transparent plastic cups, in plexiglass containers of the refrigerating machine.

The North Europeans consumed more, where the Mediterranean, a bit 'for the climate (however, and increasingly stiffer than theirs), a bit' for the unfavorable exchange, consume less, with the necessary exceptions, of course.

From my ice cream station I was surprised to observe, not without some admiration, the discipline with which the English stood in line at the box office to buy tickets for the various shows. Two other things struck me in that context: the trust and impassivity that, even very advanced people of age, showed in the booking for events that would take place in a few years and the immovable determination with which the girls refused to get the ticket paid by their boyfriends.

20. to be continued...

My Mother Earth

My Mother Earth

Who knows where I've been in the last twenty centuries?

May be I was a roman soldier

guarding the Adrian Wall

where I met a pale blue eyes blonde love

to warm my winters

to show me love is anywhere

anyhow.

and I was scattered back

on some Mediterranean  coast

groping with the Normans

a new life, which is also

and again an old life;

like that I had as Greek's slave

before my manumission

when I captured those

I had been conquered by.

And when  I'll be searching

for other worlds

far in the skies

will I remember

 my Mother Earth?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0165T61NE

Memoirs of London - 1

1.

The first time I went to London it was in 1977. A long time ago. I still remember the day I landed at Heathrow airport. It was the day Elvis Presley died. I remember from my bus, in the endless one which was to lead me to Victoria Station (according to my ticket bus), the supporter’s march in honor of the great song singer from Memphis. They held in their hands signs of their idol: “Elvis will never die” or “Elvis forever”, “You still live in our hearts” and things like that.

I was a young man full of hope and sorrow, at that time. I was going to London to forget an unrequited  love; or maybe I was just searching for something I had not found yet.

I had at present left my university’s studies, with no money, no job, no love at all. Lonely as a stone can be.

I had not been really very fond of Elvis; surely much more of Jimy Hendrix; Elvis was a too controversial myth at my eyes; a great singer of course, I wouldn’t say he was not; but sometimes I felt like he had been exploited by the American industry of success; that kind of business able to create (and also destroy, if they wanted) any kind of myth, any kind of star; ‘you know? That sort of star’s system victim like Marylin Monroe or James Dean. I was quite a critic of capitalism at that time.

But indeed I had already too many problems by my own to be a critic of anything.

I only had an address on my pocket, of a friend of mines who had previous gone to London and I was in contact with. Through this friend I was introduced in an Italian Grocery, in King’s Cross Road. I’ve recently there. Where the shop was there’s now only an insignia, covered by dust, left. I found good help in there. A friend of the owner, a good marchigian guy who sold Italian hams, cheese and other special Italian food, found me a job in a pizza’s factory, somewhere in Farringdon Rd. And George himself, I mean the marchigian shopper, found me a place to sleep in: a room in Keystone Crescent, just around the corner his shop, where I was charged with 5 pound fee per week while in the factory my first wage was a good 40 weekly wage’s pounds .

Not too bad for a beginner.

1.     To be continued…

After seven centuries

I take a part to an international competition: the storytelleruk2017 with Amazon.

I feel so   excited! It's the first time I participate in such a contest.

I entered the competition with a drama: "Travelling in the space-time with Virgil".

In my story Virgil and Dante meet again, somewhere in the space, after almost 700 hundreds years.

Virgil will lead Dante in the spacetime with his spaceship, from the Hell's damnation till the delight of Paradise.

I must say that in the competiton there are so many great books. Most of them are thrillers, spystories, historical romances, fictions and novels.Very few are the dramas and the poem's books.

Next time, maybe,  I will participate with an historical romance.

The present work is the first I have straightly  indited in English. I've published in English before, but mostly of my previous books had been translated from italian language into English (apart for some poems which have been composed directly in English).

I hope you'll find the time to take a look to my book, expressing you personal review through the link showed below.

I thank you all so much for the time you'll be spending on my literary efforts.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Travelling-space-time-Virgil-drama-prologue-ebook/dp/B071FB9SGV/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1495951931&sr=1-1&keywords=travelling+in+the+space+time+with+virgil

London for ever - 3

Despite of  its high cost rating of life, London free time can be considered cheaper than other great europeans capitals like Rome, Madrid and Paris on regard of spending your free time.

First of all let's mention  newspapers and magazines. Well they mihgt be considered the first step of employing your free time. Not only because reading is leisure time par excellence, but also because in papers and magazines you can find how to spend better your leisure time.

If you have follow me in the previous articles on London, you have already acquired the great importance that the underground transports (the famous Tube) have in London. Well, in all the Tube's stations you can find daily free papers as good level such as Evening Standard, Metro and CityAM.

Furthermore, now, you can even found the topic enjoying magazine for free: I'm talking about TimeOut, the historical, most ancient and best magazine for shows, events, rendez-vous and anythingelse going on in London.

We must also say that all the biggest museums in London are free: we quote one for all: "the British Museum". Do I need to say more about?

And now Theaters. In London there a lot of theaters for all tastes and any kind of shows: prose and classical  dramas, opera houses, musicals, movies, ethnical and anything else. And some of them are even free.

Personally I remember  a Hamlet representation in the late seventies.

My first love in theatre has been Shakespeare, though the first drama I have read of his, is The Tempest.

But Hamlet has made me think about the real importance of life.

I wanted to attend a school drama in London, when the odd events of life took me far away from there.

But there is  still time to dream over in London!

5 Things to Teach Your Child About Riding the Bus

When the time comes for your little one to begin attending school, it can be heart-wrenching to watch his tiny little form clamber up the steps of the massive school bus, knowing that he’s growing up no matter how much you may not want him to. Even though you can’t stop him from getting older, you can help him prepare for this transitional age in his life, starting with what to expect when riding the school bus. There are a wide variety of things that your little scholar should know before he takes his first school bus ride, but these five are among the most important.

1. What to Do if the Bus Is Late – While the system governing school transportation is usually an efficient and effective one, it’s important for parents and kids to understand that the system is run by human beings, who are not infallible. Buses can be late, delayed by inclement weather or other situations out of the drivers’ control. A late bus can cause children who are eagerly waiting to return home from school to panic. To prepare your children for this situation, be sure that they know what they should do and who they should contact to notify them of the situation.  Instill in them the notion that the most important thing to do is follow the instructions of their teachers and school administrators until the bus arrives. Almost all schools will have a contingency plan in place for just such an event, but your child needs to know that he will be taken care of and that the event, while new and scary to him, is one that the school staff is trained to handle.
2. Pay Attention At All Stops – Very few experiences that your child has on the bus are as disconcerting as realizing that their stop has been passed and that they’re now in unfamiliar territory. While many drivers will keep in mind that a very young, inexperienced rider could be distracted by socializing and the novelty of riding a school bus, most will only wait so long to see if a child is present for their stop before heading to the next. Sleeping children are particularly difficult for a driver to see, so your child should be taught the importance of paying attention, staying awake, and getting off at the right stop.
3. How to Follow the Rules – Though some rules can seem unnecessarily strict to young children, your child should understand that those rules are in place to protect him and ensure his safety, as well as the safety of others. Shouting, standing up, roughhousing, or otherwise misbehaving can cause him to be subjected to disciplinary action up to and including suspension of bus privileges. Your child’s school will inform you about the rules governing bus behavior and will usually include a dedicated section in the school handbook. Taking the time to go over these rules and ensuring that your child is well-versed in what is and is not allowed when riding the bus can help him avoid any disciplinary problems and ensure a safe riding experience.
4. General School Bus Safety – Kids should know general bus safety guidelines before their first bus trip to ensure that they don’t inadvertently engage in unsafe behavior. It’s important to teach your child that he should always step away from the curb as the bus is approaching, and should only walk towards it after the bus has come to a complete stop. He should also know that he should never stoop to pick up objects that have fallen under the bus, and that he should only cross the street in front of the bus and at a distance of at least ten feet to ensure that the driver can see him. The small stature and quick movements of younger children make it difficult for drivers to spot them, and also makes it harder for a child to spot oncoming vehicles and other obstacles.
5. The Dangers of Bullying – Bullying is a very serious problem, and it’s one that often occurs in the raucous environment of the school bus. Because bus drivers can have difficulty hearing everything that’s being said to an individual child over the collective din of many little voices, you simply cannot rely on the bus driver’s ability to detect and prevent bullying. Your child should understand the dangers of being a bully themselves, and know what to do if they’re the victim of bullying from other children on the bus. Letting him know that he can always tell an adult about any problems that he’s having or difficulties he’s forced to endure on the school bus is very important, because he may feel as if he has nowhere to turn if he becomes a target of school bus bullies.

To get children prepared for their first trip on the school bus, role play various scenarios and talk about what to expect from the trip. Be sure to include everything from boarding the bus, to paying attention at each stop, to exiting the bus safely, and everything that could happen in between.

 

P.S. This post was  proposed to me for publication by  Molly Cunningham.  I'm therefore publishing it by her invitation and under her permission. See also the link below fore more information:

 

 http://www.liveinnanny.com/blog/5-things-to-teach-your-child-about-riding-the-bus/

10 Ways Moms Can Pamper Themselves at Home

Being a mom is a 24/7 job, and it should come as no surprise that moms are a pretty hardworking bunch that spend most of their days trying to ensure that their children and family are well taken care of and happy. It’s easy for mom’s personal well-being to get lost in the shuffle of taking care of everyone else; however you have to keep in mind that if you don’t take care of yourself it can be hard to take care of others.  Instead of taking the time out of your busy schedule and spending a bunch of money to pamper yourself outside of the house, check out these 10 ways to pamper yourself in the comfort of your own home:

1. Pedicures at home save big bucks.  If you’ve ever had a salon pedicure you know they start by putting your feet in a warm bubbly bath.  If you have a foot bath pull it out of the closet and fire it up with some warm water, ¼ cup of baking soda, and a few drops of peppermint essential oil.  The soda will soften the water, the oil will soften your feet, and the peppermint promotes relaxation.  Follow the foot bath by cleaning and trimming your toe nails.  Apply some cuticle remover and push back the cuticles on your toes.  Put your feet back into the bath to give your toes a quick scrub.  Now apply lotion to your feet and legs and give yourself a quick massage.  Use a cotton ball and nail polish remover to clean any lotion or leftover nail polish from your toe nails.  Paint your toe nails with your favorite nail polish and finish with a good top coat.
2. Make your own facial mask.  Start by mixing 2 tablespoons of super fine sugar with ¼ cup of olive oil.  Apply scrub to face and rub gently in a circular motion to slough off dead skin cells, and then rinse the scrub off with warm water. Now apply a mask made from 1 really ripe banana, 1 tablespoon of honey, and a few drops of orange or lemon juice.  After applying the mask cover your eyes with slices of cucumber to refresh tired eyes and lay back for 15 minutes.  Rinse off the mask with a steaming wash cloth.  This mask is appropriate for oily skin.
3. Take a break.  One of the best ways to pamper yourself is to know when you need a break.  Being around kids can sometimes take a toll on your patience, and it’s better to grab a few minutes for yourself than to be harsh with the kids.  When the kids go down for a nap take your music player, headphones, and a cup of hot chocolate and find a comfy spot to sit.  Play some relaxing music through the headphones while you enjoy your hot chocolate.  If you find yourself getting drowsy you probably need a quick nap.  Set your timer for 15 minutes and close your eyes.  This power nap will refresh you and you will get your calm back so that you can be a better mom.
4. Give yourself a manicure.  One thing that busy moms rarely do is paint their fingernails.  You’re in and out of the water so much that it seems like a waste of time.  Start by soaking your nails in some warm soapy water.  Dry off your hands and apply a good quality cuticle remover and allow it to sit for a few minutes.  Put your hands back in the warm soapy water and give your cuticles a brush with a soft nail brush.  Apply some hand lotion to your hands and arms.  After it has soaked in take a cotton ball that has been moistened with nail polish remover and run it over your nails to remove any lotion or old nail polish remnants.  Now apply a base coat to your nails and allow it to dry.  Then apply two coats of a good quality nail polish.  Finish with a quick drying top coat.  Watch some TV and allow your nails to dry completely.  Remember to use rubber gloves when doing household chores so that your nails stay looking fresh for a longer period of time.
5. Order dinner in every once in a while.  After you put the kids to bed enjoy a quiet romantic meal with your spouse or significant other.  Bring out the candles and order in some nice Italian food or other type that you like.  Turn on some romantic music and enjoy having some down time to chat with your spouse.
6. Have a glass of wine.  Dr. Oz will tell you that having a glass of red wine every day is great for your health.  Take time after the kids have gone to bed to put your feet up and enjoy a glass of wine and a good movie.  If you don’t drink you can enjoy a nice hot cup of tea to achieve the same effect.  You need to recharge your batteries too.
7. Read a good book.  Moms say all the time that they are so busy with the house and the kids that they can’t remember the last time they read a good book.  It’s important to take time for yourself.  Put the kids to bed earlier if you don’t feel like you have any time to get stuff done.  Reading helps keep your mind sharp and lets you feel connected to the outside world. 
8. Take a walk after supper.  Leave the kids with your spouse and take a nice walk after supper.  Let your worries drift away as you enjoy the world around you.  The exercise will help you digest your meal and feel better about yourself.
9. Enjoy a bubble bath.  Light some candles and turn on some spa music.  You can buy spa CD’s or download songs from the Internet to your MP3 player.  While the water is running add in some bubble bath and essential oil.  If you want to relax add in lavender oil.  If you need to feel invigorated add in grapefruit oil.  Before getting into the tub grab your fluffiest towel and your robe and set them close by.  If you’d like, you can bring in a glass of wine as well.  Climb into the tub and lean back and relax.  Let the stresses of the day flow out of your body.
10. Meditating can bring back your calm and be the ultimate in pampering yourself.  Sit or lay comfortably in a dark room.  Concentrate on your breathing.  After your breathing has slowed allow your mind to clear. If things that you need to do pop into your mind just gently push them aside and go back to clearing your mind.  Those things will still be there when you are done.

 P.S. This post was  proposed to me for publication by Maureen  Denard;   I'm therefore publishing it by her invitation and under her permission. See also the link below fore more information:

 http://www.findananny.net/blog/10-ways-moms-can-pamper-themselves-at-home/