Hello to my old friends and to those stopping by for the first time. I am delighted to be back after a self-imposed sabbatical in which I finished Book 2 from the Savino Sisters Mystery Series, REGRETS TO DIE FOR. After practically typing the imprints off of my fingers, I’ve decided to ease into my blogging and re-introduce myself with a repeat of the first blog I wrote four years ago.

What’s in a Name?

I started out life at 40^th and Waverly in East St. Louis, Illinois. My parents named me Loretta Mary Kay, a simple name that flowed nicely and for a child, easy enough to remember. Nevertheless, it confused some people, mostly adults who thought me a bit dense. “No, honey, what’s your last name, the one that comes after Kay.” The name goes back to Wisconsin a good 140 years or so, and before that to Germany. Considering the brevity, Kay might’ve been shortened from one more complicated but this I don’t know for sure. As for me, I don’t feel the least bit German because I grew up around my mother’s side of the family, who came from Northern Italy, and eventually I married my high school sweetheart whose parents also emigrated from Italy. In fact, his family and mine lived near each other in the Piemonte region of the Italian Alps, their four homes no further apart than thirty minutes.

Now I feel as though I’ve been Loretta Giacoletto forever. It’s not the simplest of names but it does flow nicely even though the pronunciation occasionally confuses some people. For those of you among the challenged this is an easy way to remember Giacoletto:

Gee-ah-co-let-to

 Now say it aloud, in the Italian way, quickly with the accent on the third syllable and be sure to pronounce both ts:

Gee-ah-co-let′-to

Beautiful, yes? I still can hear a young man paging my name at the picturesque Hotel Lucchesi located on the River Arno in Florence, Italy:

Signora Giacoletto, Signora Giacoletto

Italy never stops calling to me—the wonderful sights and smells, the mouth-watering food and earthy people. I’ve been there a number of times but still haven’t had my fill. So, in the meantime I write about an Italy and its people that only exist in my mind although to me they seem so real I want to share them with my readers.

Rather than repeat myself any further, I’ll just say, ’Til next time …