Romance and The Stone

Dinner parties, in most cases, bring the classic conversation topics: current events, culinary tips, and recently streamed shows. As of late, when we host socially distanced micro dinner parties in our backyard, the tale of “Neda & The Stone” comes up. 

Let me explain:   

A few months ago we moved into a new house where we had the fortune of selecting the stone we wanted for our kitchen countertops. I knew nothing about stones, but everything about the look I wanted: French meets Roman chic. 

Over the course of 3 months I dedicated myself to finding that perfect “very Parisian-Roman effortlessly chic” stone. Naturally, I found myself drawn to marble. Why marble? Because it is majestic. They also have names like Calacatta Michelangelo, Luce Bianco, and Gioia Extra. There I was, a girl in love with a metamorphic rock with an exotic name.

What I learned about marble?

Pro: Marble is ravishing

Con: Expensive

Pro: Marble is magnificent

Con: Stains easily & High Maintenance

Pro: Looks great in photos

This is in sharp contrast to my parents' philosophy to picking out literally anything.  Their principles generally revolve around research, reliability and long term potential, not by seductive names and suave dispositions. So, it did not surprise me when they rejected all 3 of my marble suitors. Their takeaway, although stunning, these high maintenance porous rocks would eventually drive me to insanity. All three of them? Yes, all three.  

Granite key takeaways:

Con: Very 1990’s (in my opinion)

Pro: Sturdy

Con: Rarely has that French-Italian woman cooking marinara sauce in her high heels while thumbing through a Vogue look

Pro: Stains wipe away easily & lower maintenance

Con: Not marble

They suggested I open up to the idea of other rocks - such as Granite or Quartzite - a reliable and forgiving stone that I will learn to love. I looked them up, they had names like: Belvedere, Shakespear, and Narcarado. They looked exactly like their names: Annoying, dramatic, and leery. I hated them. 

Time was ticking, I needed to pick a slab for the kitchen. Knowing my parents were right, I enlisted the help of a “stone specialist” who worked at the local stone yard: Maricella. In retrospect the term “matchmaker” is a more appropriate moniker.  Like a good matchmaker she got to know me, learned what I was looking for and stood by me through my split with marble. In the end, she found a perfect match - I was paired with a unique and “reliable” stone with a pretentious Swiss name. My invoice read: Neda H. & Mont Blanc. Like a wedding invitation.

Fast forward to today, we are moved in and our kitchen countertops are securely wrapped in a beautiful and dependable felsic intrusive igneous rock. Not going to lie, the first few weeks were very tough -  I was very attentive and strict about our new stone. It was far too expensive to leave ANY room for enjoyment. My obsession about keeping it clean made me feel unmoored and uncool. I knew it but could not help it. Even when my husband semi-kindly alluded to the fact that my obsessive behavior was starting to border on that of a semi-deranged predatory bird: scanning the countertops in search of a stain and then going on a hunt to locate, track and pursue my prey - my husband! 

After a few weeks I started to chill out. Why this sudden shift? My increased confidence in the durability and reliability of our new stone coupled with my husband's growing terror of me.  

I often think about those marble slabs and what our lives would have been like with the maintenance demands of the beautiful Calcutta, Luce, or Gioia. My husband and I laugh about it and both agree - our marriage may not have survived marble.

It is important to understand your limits. 

Xx,

 Neda