Hi everybody! I am really sorry I let so much time pass since my last post, but my solitude is so busy that I have not found the time, or better was exhausted at the end of the day and collapsed in front of a movie rather than sit and write. I should get more disciplined and write in the morning, but there is fierce competition from the treadmill which is now placed bang in front of my bed and close to the small tv set, so that I do not have any excuse in the morning.
This morning I learned about the minoic civilisation and what the archeologists understood from the 2004 tsunami experience as regards the connection between Atlantis and Santorini. Then we moved on to dangerous explosions and what chemicals used in refineries can do to you if they explode. In particular I now know everything you do not want to know about hydrogen fluoride and what it does to living things. So at the end of my 70 minute gym session I decided one should live far away from the sea (that overrated sea view…) and steer very clear of refineries. I will update you on which other locations to avoid in the next few days.
On the first day of my blog I wrote something about ‘maybe I’ll be here so long that I will be able to see my clematis bloom’. Let me introduce you to my favourite clematis, first one to show off.
Yesterday my morning went on a complex engineering project which I managed to solve. The floor in front of my front door is slightly raised and the front door was opening only by one third because of a draft excluder that was screwed onto the door too low. I removed the anti-draft brush which was screwed on at the bottom of the door. Sawed it in two. Screwed one half back to the section that wasn’t affected by the raised floor. Then repaired an old Xmas themed textile draft excluder, attached three straps to it and screwed it to the door instead of the old brush which was blocking the door. Mission accomplished. I managed to have all my tools, sewing kit, and various bits and bobs out on the floor, but emerged triumphant from this experience. My friend Bruz, master of DIY, would be proud of me. Although I will need to cover this with some different material, once they let us all out in the open.
In the afternoon I baked my unforgettable Francesca’s cake, which leaves everybody speechless (in a good sense), for my elderly neighbours. Maybe it doesn’t look that great but I guarantee it is one of those you always want one more slice of. So now I have converted even one neighbour who started this lockdown declaring that she didnt’t like desserts.
Then, I had some technical advice sessions with my neighbours who had forgotten their email addresses but knew their passwords. Very entertaining. And then I had video calls with friends, really lovely. One had just bought a farm on the eastern shore of the US, on a peninsula. She failed to grasp when she bought it that she was buying a hunting lodge, and she is vegetarian and animal lover. So she is now planning to repopulate her many acres with all sorts of animals. I am amused by all this mostly because I am sure she does not know what she is getting into, but also because she is one of the few persons I know who understands that our future is bound to be away from big cities and back into rural areas.
The reason why I think so is not just because after lockdown we will see a huge move of jobs away from the expensive cities both through relocation to less expensive sites and through increased use of remote working, but also because we will all be poorer and life in the countryside is much more affordable than life in the city (and has fewer expensive temptations too). Having land of one’s own can also be a way to become relatively more independent than others, by cultivating one’s own fruit and vegeetables, raising chickens, etc. (I do not want to venture into cows business because cows scare me and apparently their output is bad for the environment.) So thumbs up to my friend Elizabeth and her non hunting lodge.
The second video call was also a lot of fun. A couple of good friends called from their home in Iowa. This call had been scheduled (unlike the previous one, where my friend complained I did not give her warning, otherwise she would have put make up on). We were all prepared. They were nicely dressed and combed, me less so, but we all were having our aperitivo together. Guys, this really works. I don’t know whether this is due to the alcohol, or thanks to whatsapp video technology, or our smartphones with cameras everywhere, but it really feels as if we are in the same room. I miss their hugs though. These two are great huggers. I hope soon… Anyway, what was fun is that they took me for an art tour of their beautiful home. They have a fantastic art collection, Bonnard, Rembrandt, Dali prints and drawings and some exciting sculptures by Nigel Hall. All very attractive works of art, except for one depicting a cow (here we go again). They also showed me their outdoors, a large garden with a view of the river. Next week I think we will do art in other rooms, to keep some suspense on. It was lovely.
Tonight I have two more video calls booked. So exciting.
Today after exercising I decided to dress a bit better than usual. I realised I was getting sloppier and did not like that, so I found an old black Zara t-shirt with rhinestones on the white collar. The neighbours noticed. I think they were about to ask me where I was going to go, but then refrained from it. Even lovely Ugo their vegetarian dog liked me wearing better clothes and promptly sat comfortably on my lap leaving all sort of dog hair on it… I know, my hair is horrible, but I couldnt be bother today, so I left it a bit wild.
Oh yeah, news of BoJo been tested positive landed on my iphone. Let us not all be mean at once please. There is one video though that I would like to share with you. Please watch in silence.
