Had more rain here in a week than Barraba has had in two years. Thunder rolls off the mountain in really long thunderstorms.
Getting a bit of work done each day between the rain.
Lea took me around to a sculptor’s studio, an Englishman from Liverpool , Martin Foot. Martin has lived here in Pietrasanta for the last twenty years and before that lived in Australia. We got talking and it turns out that he used to work with George Proudman on Public Works in Sydney. I happened to start my interest in carving with George, he teaching a bit of carving in return for me helping him in his garden when I was a teenager. We reminisced on what a funny old bastard George was.
The ‘isn’t it a small word?’ thing goes a bit deeper because one of my avid blog readers, about this trip to Italy, is the daughter of the very same abovementioned old bastard, George. We both agreed that he was a font of knowledge about stone and carving; and a generous and funny man when you got over his gruffness, helping both Martin and myself get jobs back in the 80’s.
Jean, we meant old bastard in the most nicest way possible. No offence, please.
Speaking of offending people. It has slowly dawned on me that not everyone will share my enthusiasm for publishing events and photos of events and people and places and things, on the internet. That I should perhaps ask permission of people before I post photos of them or their work or their house on the internet.
My photos now have a clever signature with a copyright symbol in the corner. That is supposed to stop other people from using those images.
There is a thing about internet etiquette that I was blissfully ignorant about. Anyway I am making amends, and asking belatedly some people for permission and in the future will ask others before I go splashing their dial and their privacy out in the cloud for all the world to see. This is small time anyway, just for family and a few friends.
Why didn’t someone tell me?
Lea took me to dinner to Marco and Sabrina’s house on Thursday night. There was little English spoken that night. I'm trying to learn fast.
Friday night we fired up the oven and Lea had people over for dinner. Even though three of the five guests were English, they all spoke Italian, so I was kept busy trying to understand anything. I cooked some bread and my staple Portuguese chicken dish that everyone loved. So my solitude has turned successful socialite overnight.
Picture of oven and food should go here, but was too busy to take picture.
Today I went out to get more mesh in the rain on the pushbike. Someone said I looked like Harrison Ford. Ha ha, Indiana Jones (with a beard?). Isn’t he one of the sexiest men on earth? Maybe that was thirty years ago.
Today Lea’s Dad and his wife, her sister and her husband arrived from America. We did the oven thing again- roast veal, potatoes and my bread that was quite impressive according to all that ate it. What a great oven. Definitely building a new one when I get home.
Hi,
ReplyDeleteI added a hitcounter. Bit late but it took me this long to figure out how to do it. It seems that at least one reader can't open the web page now.
If you can open it and you read this could you leave a comment or tick one of those silly boxes so I know someone has got through. this is just another ploy to try to get people to leave some mark that they've been here.
I thought that comparing myself to a sex symbol would raise a couple comments at least. It seems you all agree.
Jean wrote this:
"Hi Cliff, So glad you sent this to email as I can't load your clifftripper any more - it gets stuck loading market counter or some such, from the fountain onwards (I did get to the fountain the other day though...I'll keep trying)
Proud and pleased that my father is alive and well in conversations on the Continent, he was a really great guy, (though I could be a bit biased).
I think there's something rabbinical about your Harrison Ford, or maybe its more Amish.
xx jean"
A rabbi, or Amish, mmm I'd better work a bit harder on my image.
Well I'm back. It takes a long time to get the counter, then it takes even longer waiting for "amitjain" to load. That would be about 45minutes (with NSW Regionably Narrow Broadband)to load the page now, but I see that patience pays off.
ReplyDeleteHarrison Ford was Amish once I think. With a beard.
Nothing at all wrong with the look, I think, fashionista such that I am.
Wish there were more photos of characters, and works,difficult as you say.
You can't come home yet, I'm enjoying your holiday too much!
xx jean
hi cliff, wrote a long post, posted it, it says it was published, but its not there.Try this one, jean
ReplyDeletewas it something I said?
ReplyDeletejean