Francesco
has been in Italy for a month and I am eagerly awaiting his return next
Wednesday. (Is it ironic that it will be the 68th anniversary of the
D-Day landings in Normandy?)
I
am anxious not only because I miss his grace, intelligence, and wit, but also
because La Placette Haute is just too big a property for one person to handle.
When he is here, Francesco and I fairly divide the household chores - he does
the laundry, I wash the dishes; he makes the beds in the morning while I take
care of things like emptying the cat litter box, putting out the trash, etc. He
tidies the upstairs and I clean down below; we take turns cooking, and we share
mowing the lawn – probably because we both enjoy roaring around on Grindel, the
riding mower.
We
also divvy up tasks associated with refurbishing the place. For example, while
I have painted nearly every wall and ceiling in both houses, Francesco has
taken care of sanding, cleaning, and staining wooden features such as the
‘eyebrow’ beams above the windows and doors, and other exposed timbering. I
have painted all the shutters, doors, and windows but he has gotten down on his
hands and knees and patiently sanded and stained the new parquet flooring, as
well as treating the terra cotta tiles we’ve installed in the big kitchen in
the other house.
His
absence, thus, is a major interruption - but is necessary to honor his teaching
contract at the university of Perugia. And alas, we have just learned that his
return here will be limited to one short week, as he has been asked to teach an
additional French course that will last into July.
Drat!
For
me that means a delay in our anticipated move to the other house, continuing to
conduct the renovation tasks alone, dealing in my limited French with various
workmen, and trying to balance household chores, gardening, and all the rest by
myself. An additional five weeks
of endless weeding, watering, and waiting.
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