Full moon, grandine and a fountain

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Monday night was incredible. The day was perfect, and the evening appropriately dramatic. A fullish moon loomed overhead and shined brightly through voluminous clouds. In just a few short minutes, the breezes came up- swishing and rustling sounds much like the winds of a hurricane. Then, lashing rain and huge raindrops. The third course of this feast brought GRANDINE - large baseball sized balls of ice which drop from the sky like hail from hell. The first time I had ever experienced Grandine, I was in a brand new car with Tiziana ( my adopted Italian sister) on the highway when the grandine started to hail down on the vehicle with huge thuds. There was nowhere to hide. Finally, we stopped under an overpass, and her vehicle looked like it had a bad case of acne. Well, that was the kind of fury in the evening. Only for an hour. No damage, but lots of fury. I had ANA OXA playing on my stereo. LOUDLY. When she sings "CARUSO', my soul is carried into the stratosphere- I am taken away. Transported.

I went to sleep with the large french doors and windows wide open to the elements and the full moon which shined through. It was glorious

I was looking outside my window and spent 10 minutes watching 4 young Italian men in front of the fountain which sits on the promenade just passed my garden. They were a bit drunk and having fun taking turns with 'dares' along that fountain- from walking the rim, to who knows? That fountain is the center of attention and pleasure for many- including these twenty somethings. In the day, it is a bit of 'joy', as little children take their shoes off and run around inside the fountain, giggling. Or, it might be a parent- just grabbing their little one before he or she dives in with their shoes. Or, an old man, cupping a handful of water to quench a thirst..... or something wanting to wash their hands. A perfect spot to watch life.

Yesterday was a day of small tasks and things accomplished. Pinuccia, my 'donna da servizio'- cleaning gal for over 17 years was here. When I had upwards of a dozen kids in the summer, Pinuccia was cleaning daily. Now, as a solo person, she comes every few weeks. I miss our conversations, as she is where I learned to speak Italian, I think. She is the town gossip, and cleaning my home over these couple of decades has been like a living soap opera for her. A film, of sorts- with all kinds of characters. The first jew she had ever met. A black man. A slew of folks who have been in my life in all kinds of ways. I have satisfied her thirst of topics!

Hoping that yours is a fabulous Mercoledi,
smiles,
Judy