Famous Town makes Headlines

With the keys in my pocket I am surfing the net and ended up at the National Geographic website that has a feature on Seborga ! The little town is still pushing for independance and this attracts a lot of publicity. Underneath you can find the link to the web video and please pay special attention to Mr Ferrari, if you are a frequent reader of my blog you will recognize him from an earlier article AND he is the previous owner of the piece of land my house is built on.

A town of around 350 people making world news is something to watch for :

The link - click here

The Keys to The Casa

Friday morning was the moment during which I would become the proud owner of a new key (and a complete house attached to it) After some delays the moment was finally there. The weather had been rather bad again so I slided down with my Bikkembergs covered in mud ending up in the arms of the constructors. Men in casual chique but wearing big Wellington boots and still managed to look cool. Why didn’t I got some boots? Well, in all honestly I have no idea where you can purchase them and I think I prefer not knowing.

Anyway, the important thing was the key. After a quick tour showing an almost finished bathroom and a working fireplace I got one key and 5 spare ones! Was this a subtle hit that they knew I would be loosing them quickly ? Even better, the keys given were only of the ground floor, the upper level had a set too. So, within 5 minutes I added 2 kilo of key fat to the pocket of my muddy pair of jeans. It didn’t feel bad at all!

I am used to surprises (good or bad) with the house, so I just waited patiently to hear something and I was not disappointed. Good news, within 2 weeks the inside will be finished, Bad news, not sure if the hot water will work. Good news, there are two private parkings for me, Bad news, the inside needs to be painted by moi. Well, I have become sort of immune for these surprise and I guess there are all part of the HOE (House Owning Experience) and it means just that I need a little bit more patience and paint 130m2 of walls.

But the light at the end of the tunnel can now be spotted and although it will be a sort of camping experience for the coming weeks, I soon can call it my house and open the door with my key ! Time is irrelevant …

Kids' Rock

Could this be the CD we all need if we want our kids to rock ? I am sure :) Rock on !

Yes key No Key

Today I was supposed to get the key to mi casa and although I was not expecting any changes to the program, they still surprised me this morning. First a short, face lifted man with heels got elected for a third time as president of Italy (the 65 government since the end of the war!!!) and secondly, an email that explained that I wont get my key today. Damn! Why not, well no reason, c'est comme ca, as the say in good Italian. The builders are advancing but not finished anyway so it is not a big deal but I do like to get my furniture delivered and stored savely.

Well, the constructor understood and offered to do this for 9.00 o'clock on Friday morning. Sounds good to be. Ah just by the way Mr Bos, dont forgot to send us 100.000euro on our account before Friday, that will be handier. Handier? For what ? The weekend?

It seems that money talks and bullshit walks but I guess that this has become a bit Mafia like. After a quick call with the real estate agent it turns out that this is normal and I shouldnt worry ( a phrase I seem to hear rather often lately) and all will be ok for Friday. Well, see about that mister! You dont know my bank ...

Anyway, time is going really fast now and soon the furniture and electronic appliances will be delivered and I need to get it installed and start thinking about how to organise it inside the place. Those are the luxury problems and therefore quiet fun ! I even got excited when I ordered a new lave linge. An aide that is very useful but very boring, so I decided to order one that has a screen that tells me all the info I need to know (and tons I dont) and offers plenty of stupid buttons to keep me busy during the weekend. Ah gadgets ;)

The weather is off...

Its rains and it rains and than there is the sunshine and than the rain again. The weather seems to changing quicker than the Italian government. While working this is not a problem but I am thinking of the those. The builders are awaiting the time when things are dry to lay the parquet floor.

Otherwise I will have the flooring soon on the ceiling if the humidity is too high. However since I spend so much time thinking and writing about gardens it seems that there is a postive effect on my desk. Since a short number of weeks my keyboard has become green and offered its keyboard space to my greens to grow. It is a bit of a hassle to type but so much more environmental friendly and when I feel hungry I just take a bite.

The only thing I dont need to forget is to close Windows because the plants don't like the wind and rain...
It seems that I am never too old to learn new things !

To finish some unfinished business

Tonight at around 19.00 I felt the urge to go and see the construction progress, it was already over a week ago since the last visit. The last couple of days have been rather poor and the rain makes the South look like a grey steam bath. On arrival I walked through the little hole in the fence and got stuck straight away in a mixture of mud and clay. Fantastic to make pots of not really good when you are walking in trainers. I decided to slide down and at the bottom of the little hill, I managed to jump on a bunch of stones to get to the neighbouring house. Via the back door I arrived at mine, where I could admire the beautiful blinds colour Kermit the Frog.

At least when there is a moment in life that I get drunk I will always be able to find back home. I opened the blind and proper doors with locks were smiling towards me. While entering the house I discovered that the door inside have been placed too, light wood colour and the bathroom is progressing too. Downstairs the floor is done too and they even managed to create an extra electricity point for the new kitchen. But when you are 4 days away from getting the key it is clear that living in it is not possible for a little while.

This is a minor set back and I therefore decided to take fate in my own hands and climbed in the little digger machine. At that stage my shoes were already close to 4 kilo each, thanks to the mud and I sat down to take control… Well, I have noticed that it rained the last couple of days but I didn’t noticed that the chair was completely soaked hence my happy face on the picture. I guess its better to leave these things to the experts and just be a little patient. It is progressing and it will be great soon !

Angry Old Grannies

Parkings are places that have no surprises to me anymore. From meeting to meeting, a parking is an essential place and I some are more car friendly than others.
Clearly it is better to have a small car and those newly painted areas are great but not when it rains and you slide down. The most difficult thing is to find a parking spot that is big enough cos the majority of people seem to have difficulties parking.
Today however I was amazed to witness two grannies creating terror in aisle 3B.

My attention was drawn to them when they arrived, shouting and cursing about the parking space size and the big BMW that was almost touching their little Suzuki. The circled around the BMW and kicked his tires! Than one of them tried to reverse and get the car out (she had about 2 meters of space) with the engine growling and the car creeping back and forward, she stopped the engine and continued cursing the BMW.
The second lady agreed with the first that the BMW was guilty of a serious parking crime and she got out the key ...and put her signature on the back of the car. My eyes were popping out !

Did I really witness this. Even worse, the old lady noticed that I saw it and when I passed by she shouted that he deserved it and gave me a mean look. I was confused, should I laugh or say something? Well, I decided to move on, to scared to get beating up by these Hells Angels Grannies.

They might have hidden walking sticks or rollators to beat the holy Moses out of me.
Parkings will never be the same again...