I am a smart girl... I keep telling myself this, but in spite of my self-encouragement it still took me over an hour to figure out how to get the email subscription box to appear to the right of your screen. So "stupid is as stupid does", or shall we blame the internet connection and feedburner's not-so-easy-to-navigate site?

I finally did it though, and now the correct little widget appears on my blog, and I promise this time you can subscribe and you'll receive an email whenever I post something new.

Now, to figure out how to get rid of the previous and incorrect subscription button... my computer and/or blogger is ignoring me.

Ah well, I'll think about that tomorrow. As I sit with my laptop by the glass wall (where the internet connection is the strongest) I have a nice view of my garden (fence goes in today or tomorrow if all goes as planned) and the new addition to the wall. You can see the new Florentine stones at the top. My hydrangeas are just about to bloom too, and you can see a tiny bit of pink on some of the bud clusters (how thoughtful of them to bloom in pink instead of blue, since blue would just NOT go with the raspberry wall and pink roses!).

Had a nasty visit from the landlord's wife today. Wow, now I know why he looks a little hen-pecked! Landlords and land-duchesses are the one downside of renting here in Florence. I thought this time I was going to go a year without wishing I was going to be in one place long enough to buy my own home. No such luck. She seemed unhappy with life in general, I, unfortunately, am part of that unhappy life and so she was unhappy with me too.

I've been told she will not extend my lease after this year and so, a little (okay, A LOT) sad we all went on a walk to the park.




Dave, as you can see, now walks very well off the leash. Puccini, has found a spot he likes too.



Walks outside put things back in perspective, and heck, maybe something good will come of having to leave my little Eden...

Meanwhile I'm off to sing La Rondine and Turandot...

Musical Menagerie

Today has been a long, eventful day. I'm finally back on a reasonable practice schedule and am furiously learning two new arias before my lesson tomorrow. She told me last week that I am to sing in a competition at the end of the month... BUT I had to have two Puccini arias to qualify. I have no Puccini arias. Not one. This does not deter Taskova, oh no, she says, "no problem, pick from these four, and learn them before your next lesson (in three days)". Well, that isn't EXACTLY how she says it since she says it in Italian and with much more diva flourish, but that was the gist.

So here I am, reviewing and perfecting the four other arias for the competition, picking and learning two brand new ones -- and as if that weren't enough I've been asked to learn a few Neapolitan songs for an upcoming concert a local opera company wants to give me (what the heck Neapolitan songs are, and were I'm to find them I haven't a clue, though unfortunately something tells me it has nothing to do with vanilla, strawberry and chocolate ice cream) -- the same opera company also has me memorizing Rigoletto in its entirety "as soon as possible". And La Traviata "if it isn't too much trouble".

That's my morning: singing. Then it's off to run a few errands which somehow come to include the citywide search for a bunny. Eight miles and a very tired Dave later, we find the perfect one. Puccini. He's two months old and about the cutest things I've every seen. Unfortunately he's also the cutest thing Teo has ever seen, and so I have yet to hold him...

We introduced him to Dave, and while the bunny didn't seem that interested, Dave was mezmorized. Puccini is now a very slobbery bunny.

Sorry, sorry, sorry! I kept all of you hanging as to the results of the audition and the performance beforehand at the Angels Academy of Art Exhibit. Both were so much fun. For me, singing creates the biggest high, so I was flying from about 8pm until after midnight when my final audition was over (more on that later). This is a link to my friend's blog, Kelly Borseim. She took photos and video of the performance and has them posted on her blog under "May 26". Have a look and I'll see what I can do to get some other photos from her to post myself.

GELATO!!

We have quite an evening routine going. First dinner and then...



Dave has me trained: he gets first spoonfull and then he sits nicely under the table until I'm done - so long as I order at least half my coppetta filled with vanilla -- he doesn't like fruit flavors.

A Sunday afternoon picnic in the garden behind our house. The view certainly can't be beat. We could have climbed into the park using the scaffolding in our backyard that the Florentines are using to rebuild the top of our Etruscan/Roman wall, but carrying Dave up the ladder would have been difficult, so we walked around. Dave ran and rolled and jumped and had a generally wonderful time, and we sat on our sheet and ate and drew and read and had a generally wonderful time too.

I might be able to match the color but...

Try as I might, I just can't
seem to have hair as cool as his.

Making lasagna for the dinner party last night. 7 people and two dogs. I had such a good time. Dave too. Today he's so exhausted from all the playing in the backyard that he hasn't wanted to leave the apartment.

Teo made me a cake and Lia made a birthday flan. I'm so glad she lives downstairs -- I forgot until it was time to serve cake that I didn't have enough cake plates for everyone, so she just ran down and brought some up from her house.

The silver rain boots got their first outing on my birthday. It was a very wet morning but dried up into a sunny day perfect for picking flowers and playing in the river.




I picked lots of the pink flowers and some greenery too for a bouquet that matches my house. I've got to start carrying my knife with me, though, as that pearl handled one would have made it so I didn't have to carry the roots around with me too!




















It was a lovely afternoon

Birthday breakfast with Teo and Dana and Dave

The boys with their backpacks ready to walk to the supermarket for birthday cake. It's the first time I tried Dave's backpack on him. He didn't seem too bothered...








...until we put the groceries in it!