Ciao to all my lovely Loyal and New Followers
On the first day of April, and right on cue, we heard the first Cuckoo of the year. Then, on the way back from coffee a swallow swooped over us and out across the valley. So we are now certain that spring has arrived. Later, I was delighted to see two wood pigeons building a nest in one of the fir trees surrounding the villa. I just love that sound; doo-do0 doo doo-doo, doo-doo doo doo-doo. I rushed into the kitchen and found my man, “We are going to have babies!” I announced. “I bloody well hope not, not at our age…! He groaned. “No, no, baby wood pigeons silly!” “Oh, of course, how did I not guess the first time, baby wood pigeons…” he sighed.
Despite the weather warnings from the farmers, we have bought more plants for the garden pots at the market in Certaldo. Our lovely plant lady popped in some freebies as well, as we are such good customers. By next weekend we will be very ship-shape and ready to show off the garden in all its potted glory.
Meanwhile, I mentioned to my man that Farty Barty the cat was due for his first jab in April, and he had a swollen front knee. He is very good at sensing when this is about to happen, will disappear for up to five days, and then come in starving in the evening when the vet is closed. But this time we managed to fool him and got him off for the jab and some antibiotics on Friday morning! The
vet said, oh, but he’s not due for a jab until May. “You’ve got your Marzo’s and Maggio’s confused again,” my man groaned on the way home. “And that swelling is no worse than ones he’s had before and we just got charged 30 euros for the visit!” Then we went to the farmacia (chemist) for the antibiotics and they cost another 13,50 euros. Meanwhile, Barty has disappeared without trace. If you spot a grey tiger cat, who swaggers like John Wayne, let me know.
Back in our local village of Fiano, Paolo from ‘C’era una Volta restaurant’ waltzed in to the bar (yes he has a funny sort of dancing walk) to buy his bread, looking very bronzatta after ten days lying on a beach somewhere in the Indian Ocean. We are glad to see him back, as we have taken to having Sunday lunch there of late. On Wednesday the Sister and Niece returned to England and were disappointed to have found him closed when they were here.
Last week I promised to let you have a snippet from my current novel ‘The Bolivian Connection’, which is in progress. So, here it is:
Chapter two; Joanna, our heroine, is relaxing in her farmhouse garden in Devonshire with a glass of Pinot Grigio and her black Labrador Dippy…..
‘I do not know how long he had been standing there. I sensed him before I saw him. There had been no sound of a car or footsteps on the gravel drive. The air had become very still, just like the lull before a storm. The birds had stopped singing and the gentle breeze had gone. He moved then, reaching inside the gate to untie the string, his face breaking into a crooked smile. Dippy had not moved and neither did I. My half-brother raised his hand in greeting and started walking slowly across the lawn towards me. I had no idea who he was. A youngish man, perhaps in his twenties, smart dark suit, black shirt, and matching tie. Shiny expensive black shoes, black hair greased flat to his head and curling at his neck. His crooked smile revealed a gold tooth and he looked foreign, possibly Spanish.’
Maybe a little tweaking, but hopefully that’s wetted your appetite and it also reminds me that its gone two o’clock and I’ve missed lunch……
So I’m off to have an aperitivo in the little bit of sunshine that is peaking through the heavy clouds.
Have a great week and I’ll update you on the continuing adventures of Silvio B, next time.
Amore June xx
PS Here is the link to my Amazon author page:
https://www.amazon.com/author/junefinnigan
I think we have a wood pigeon in the field across from us as I heard it thudding the other morning, I love the sound.
I wish Barty a safe journey homeward in the not to distant future and the yellow flowers look fabulous! The weather is glorious at the moment, enjoy x
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Thank you for your reply BI, it’s always nice to hear from you. Yes, the doo, doo of the wood pidgeon is one of my favourite sounds, you just can imagine the conversation they are having. Barty is his own man and lives the life of a gypsy, knowing he can drop in on us whenever he chooses; eat, sleep in a comfy chair and go off for long visits to his other friends.
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That sounds like a perfect life for a cat, he is living the dream!
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