The Significance of Having Curly Hair

It's All Greek to Me

Kara Zajac

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I consider myself a food purist. When I eat grape leaves I want them to be authentic Greek, when I eat shrimp and grits I want it to be Southern home cooking not served up at a Mexican restaurant, and when I eat pizza I expect it to be Italian. For years I fussed over traditional pizzerias around the metro Boston area becoming "Greek" pizza places. The crust is thicker and a little more greasy, the sauce has a sweet flavor to it, and the cheese gives me hives (at least it did when I was in the 7th grade.) I love Greek food but I want my pizza to be Italian.

Today we were in the city for a friends birthday party and Senia Mae was starving when we left. They served tapas at the party and she would rather go hungry than try something new. Two buildings away was Il Forno NY Pizza & Pasta, a place I had frequented years ago when I was in chiropractic school. Back in the day Il Forno was an authentic New York Pizzeria meaning: thin crust, large fold-able slices, and enough oil on top to drip down your arm while you're eating it. My mouth watered at the mere thought of what was to come.

We parked the car and rounded the corner of the old familiar building. Then I looked up at the sign:

The words New Mediterranean Menu should have been clear enough for me to know I'm going to be disappointed and should just turn around. My family was now laughing at me, nudging me through the door as I spotted another sure sign of non-Italian-ness: an ad to stop by the local Serb-fest gathering next week. We went inside and of course they were playing Greek music not Frank Sinatra and not the Three Tenors.

"Aww, come on," Kim says, "What's the big deal? Pizza is pizza, right?" Wrong... pizza is not pizza. I'm sure the gyros there are awesome, the baklava looked fresh and lovely, and I bet I would have loved the stuffed eggplant but their pizza was Greek not Italian. Maybe I'll have better luck next time!



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Kara Zajac

The Significance of Having Curly Hair

Kara Zajac is a writer, chiropractor, mother, wife, & musician. She earned her B.S. from SUNY and Doctor of Chiropractic degree from Life Chiropractic College. Kara maintains a practice in Dawsonville, GA, where she helps people revitalize their lives naturally with chiropractic and Braincore Neurofeedback. Kara is an accomplished multi-instrumentalist who currently plays drums with The Jessie Albright Band. Kara’s blog has been included in Top Mommy Bloggers and her work has been in Imperfect Life Magazine, Ripped Jeans and Bifocals, and Just BE Parenting. Her bibliography includes: The Significance of Curly Hair, The Special Recipe for Making Babies, and her current novel, The Waiting is the Hardest Part. An excerpt from The Significance of Curly Hair was published in Stigma Fighters, a magazine supporting people battling mental illness. 3 chaps. of The Significance of Curly Hair were published in 2/20 edition of the Scarlet Leaf Review. An excerpt from The Special Recipe for Making Babies was a finalist in 2022’s Charlotte Lit/Lit South Award for Nonfiction. Kara resides in the North Georgia Mountains with her wife, Kim, and daughter, Senia Mae.

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