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Sapere  To be “in the know” about how the Italian language works, we must know how to use the verb sapere and be acquainted with the verb conoscere.   Let’s start with sapere. Sapere is an irregular verb that ends in -ere. It means “to know,” as in to know a fact. Since sapere is irregular, the root will be different from the infinitive verb for all forms except the voi form.  Interestingly, the root for the noi form differs by only a single letter from the regular root — with the addition of a second letter p. The irregular conjugations are given …

As I’ve sat with a number of people over the years, discussions have often turned to who the people of Kensington, Pullman and Roseland are. As a child in St. Anthony’s Parish, the answer was clear: We’re all Italian. Of course, then I became more aware of the world around me. I came to realize that some of the last names called for attendance at school weren’t Italian: Knudson, Ramirez, Mrozowski, Clark, Timmerman, Vanderwahl, and a few more. Hitting the playground gave further proof of how diverse the entire community of Roseland was. The playgrounds of summer gave us ample …

With a lockdown that seems to go on forever, it’s safe to say we’ve all spent a lot more time at home than we ever have before. As a result, we’ve all become intimately familiar with the things about our home that we love and the things we’d love to change. If you were planning on buying a new home before COVID-19, spending a lot of time in your current home will help you decide what you want by giving you the opportunity to look closely at what you have and don’t have right now with an eye toward what …

Ho bisogno di…  When we express our needs, we are also communicating our feelings, and the ability to do this in different ways makes our language skills much more rich.  In Italian, there are several verb phrases that can be chosen if one want to express a need: “ho bisogno di,” “mi serve,” and “averne voglia.”  Many times, these three verb phrases are interchangeable, but there are subtle differences that determine the choice one makes to use each one. The very popular phrase, “ho bisogno di…” means, “I need…”  The verb ho is, of course the first person conjugation of …

As we grew up in Roseland, we would meet new people and our horizons would expand. When we were little, we would go from playing around our house to playing at our friends’ houses. When we went to grade school and met new friends, we couldn’t wait to go on adventures with them in the schoolyards, parks and prairies in our community. Our horizons really expanded when we went to high school, met a whole new circle of friends and learned to drive. Along the way, we made new discoveries and learned to deal with different situations. Imagine if you …

Based on the bestselling novel by Wally Lamb, the HBO limited series “I Know This Much Is True” follows the struggles of Dominick Birdsey as he goes to great lengths to protect his identical twin brother, Thomas, who is suffering from severe mental illness. The series stars Italian-American actor Mark Ruffalo in a bravura performance as both brothers. In the fifth episode, Birdsey’s efforts lead him to a book written by his grandfather, a Sicilian immigrant. Calabrese actor Marcello Fonte, who is featured in the June issue of Fra Noi, gives an outstanding performance as Domenico Tempesta, a ruthless, violent …

Volere is an Italian verb that means “to want” or “to need.” Volere ends in -ere, which makes it a second conjugation verb.  However, it is also an irregular verb, and the stem will change for all forms except the voi form.  As you can imagine, volere is a very important verb to know in order to communicate what your needs are while in Italy, and you will find the io and tu forms are very important to commit to memory. The verb conjugation table below is presented with the visual learner in mind, and this includes color-coding for easy …

Familysearch has done it again! (If I had a nickel for every time I’ve written that, I’d have $2.85!) I have not been on Familysearch much, due to the fact that the records I need are only accessible from a Family History Center or an affiliate library, both of which are closed as of this writing. So when I got in and saw the menu, I was perplexed. The Search menu starts with Records but then says “Images.” I didn’t know what it meant so I skipped it. My curiosity finally got the better of me, and I clicked on …

There are many common misconceptions when it comes to real estate brokers and brokerages. Many people think, for example, that all brokers and brokerages are alike. Nothing could be further from the truth. Finding the right broker can make a huge difference in your buying or selling experience. If you’re looking to buy a house, be sure your broker knows the neighborhoods you’re interested in. Having a high level of knowledge and experience translates into an ability to find you the best possible house for you given your price range, needs and tastes. Your broker also needs to be surrounded …

After the pandemic hit, the federal government passed the CARES (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security) Act, which in part allowed mortgage holders to take a three-month break from making payments, since so many Americans had lost their jobs. The initial guidance from the government about the break, called forbearance, was that after the three months were up, the entire balance was due at once. The Finance Housing Federal Authority has now said that they will allow borrowers to modify these payments. What this means is that borrowers can either pay these deferred payments when they sell their property. add …