In the beginning, Saipua was a basement operation involving a bottle of Bertolli olive oil and a shoebox. My mother, Susan, a lifelong teacher, is the type of woman who is constantly creating and in her retirement from the school system her talents flourished with olive oil soaps. They were simple, earthy, lovely on the skin and … I ignored them. Every once in a while I would get a box of soap in the mail and use them without giving them any thought.

What made me come around, I can’t really say. There are many things my mother has taught me that have taken a long time to sink in; patience…learning to let things go…how to make Lazy Daisy Oatmeal Cake..a deep appreciation of Annie Lennox.

So it is soap for now that brings us together twice a month for business conversations over lengthy dinners (from her, also my love of cooking). She mixes and pours the soap, my father cuts the bars and provides deep insight into the life and work of Ralph Nader. In the year since I left my job to work with Saipua I have felt at times overwhelmed by the lack of separation between my personal life and work…they are inextricably intertwined. Recently I have learned to accept the juncture as a great gift and a good reason to head upstate for a cocktail.