Before I gave up wondering why everythingwas a lot of nothing worth losing or getting back,I took out a jar of olives, a bottle of capers,a container of leftover tomato sauce with onions,put a generous portion of each in olive oiljust hot enough but not too hot,along with some minced garlic and a whole can of anchovies,until the mixture smelled like a streetwalker's sweat,then emptied it onto a half pound of penne, beautifully al dente,under a heap of grated pecorino romanoin a wide bowl sprinkled with fresh chopped parsley.If you had been there, I would have given you half,and asked you whether its heavenly bitternessmade you remember anything you had once loved.
Michael Hefferman