This blog series, #30DaysofGratitude, hopes to share bits of gratitude and create an awareness of how gratitude can change our mindset.
Every day this month, I, along with other writers, teachers and friends, will post about all things gratitude. Come along for the ride and let me know what you are most grateful for every day – I know we can inspire one another.
Written By: Natale Caputo
Following is my contribution to #30DaysofGratitude. It’s a light and easy list of what I am grateful for, today. Some are obvious, some serious and some just… well… just the Italian in me.
- My Italian heritage.
- Humboldt Fog Goat Cheese from Cypress Grove Creamery.
- Making gravy on Sundays. For you Americans that don’t know, “gravy” is marinara sauce, not brown gravy. I mean, seriously…
- Being named Natale Caputo. But, wake up people! There’s no fucking letter “I” in my name and by the way I’m a man.
- Osso Buco. Gimme that bone marrow.
- Not having a middle name.
- Growing up in the small town of Highwood, IL.
- Mrs. Ferrari, my 8th grade teacher who made a lasting impression.
- Jordan Cabernet, specifically the vintages of ’99, ’01, ’05, ’07 and ’10.
- Driving that maroon piece of shit Chevy Caprice Classic Wagon in my high school years.
- 1985 Bears.
- Leaving Loyola Academy for Highland Park High School in the middle of my junior year without my parent’s knowing. Truth.
- Wifey and the barely 30 minutes a day we get to see each other.
- The coveted “15 minutes” wifey actually gives me on some of those days. Oh relax honey, it’s just a joke…
- The fact that God gave this stereotypical, carry-the-name-on Italian, a beautiful girl first before the 3 boys.
- White Sox winning a World Series in my lifetime. Yeah, what? Because it’s the White Sox, I can’t I say it? Wouldn’t a Cub fan say it? Whatever…
- Anything Truffle.
- The community of Lake Forest.
- My sister.
- Bud Break on the vines in my yard even after sub-zero temps all winter.
- Not Walmart. Not Costco.
- That first sip of my Diet Coke.
- Prosciutto di Parma. DI PARMA! Not di Canada.
- My education in Life from Loyola University
- The stretch of a good mozzarella on a pizza.
- The 24 hours I once spent at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich, Germany.
- Pearl Jam, Michael Jackson and every boy band you can think of.
- Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Say Anything and American Psycho
- Smarties
- Cows, sheep, goats, yaks and buffalo.
- The few followers that I actually have on social media.
- The Italian Sub sandwich at Bari Foods in Chicago
- Ted Baker, John Varvatos and The North Face.
- Lipitor
- My employees and my management team. They are hard workers and they have tough bosses.
- Rene’ and Pasquale Caputo, my parents and my two risk takers. They started this business from nothing. My only real job is to not screw it up.
Natale Caputo was born into the cheese business. From cutting and wrapping cheese at 12 to delivering cheese to local grocery stores at 18 to his current position as president of Caputo Cheese Market. Besides being responsible for the entire operation, he has dedicated himself to promoting cheese 24 hours a day. Nat truly believes, “Cheese is a powerful tool. In the worst times, cheese can bring comfort. In good times, it’s the life of the party. Cheese brings a smile to any occasion.” He is proud of Caputo’s dedication to the craft and the organization’s ability to think outside the box to provide a service like none other.
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