Let the rumpus begin!

Someone's BIG Tuscan wedding day

OK, this is probably going to be a short entry, and there may not be another for a while. We have a big wedding here next week...well, big-ish...OK, not that big really, but we're still 'brickin' it' (as they say back in ol'Blighteh) a little. It's not that we're not well, organised, or that we're not on control, or that we're worried much about the practicalities. There will be a wedding (at which I will act as official translator, and despite years of doing large stressful business presentations to many big important people, I will probably be extremely nervous and sweat buckets), there will be a reception banquet here on the Terrace for 30 (and V will cook some amazing food, and they will drink not indecent quantities of good Tuscan vino, and everyone will be happy), and there will be a rave in the woods (OK, this isn't usual, but each to their own and I'm thinking it might be great fun so I'm definitely going). All pretty normal, not especially risky, nothing to get too worried about.

And yet there is the knowledge that this is probably one of the most important days in this young couple's lives thus far, and its success is largely down to us. If we screw up, we ruin their big day, and possibly their entire lives. One slip from us and they probably get divorced in three weeks, she looses her job and ends up working in a supermarket, he gets a serious alcohol habit and a gambling habit to boot and ends up penniless and destitute.

That's a lot of responsibility. A lot. Of responsibility. It's a BIG deal. And this is what is making us nervous with less than a week to go (err...actually 3 days now - yikes!). So we have had two project management meetings in two days, have several charts and tables, and many many lists. And if one small thing slips through the crack, someone is going to pay.

Anyway, if you don't hear from me for another 10 days or more, it's either because it all went really well and we had a few days down-time (ha!) after the wedding to recover, or it's because I cracked under the strain, went to the rave in the woods, and have not been seen since (though I'll let everyone know I'm OK by howling from the woods every now and then...I wouldn't want V to worry, that would be inconsiderate.) (PS So far so good! All paperwork for the couple is in order and they love it here. The rest of the party arrives tomorrow...should be fun!)

Other news?

I did say this is going to be a short entry, and I meant it. So here's a brief summery of other stuff that's happened:

• Just shipped my first small shipment of oil to a deli opening in Vancouver. There was a tear in my eye as the courier took the tins away...make be proud boys, make me proud. [By the way, the tins are male, the bottles female...is this wrong?] Also packed another 10 tins off to Kathleen today - those East Coasters are hooked good and proper. I bet they've started smoking it, or even main-lining it maybe...they are HARD-CORE.
  
• Big winds last Friday night ruined my planned quiet Saturday by pulling down a huge chunk of the lovely wisteria on the corner of the Villa, which also took down the drain pipe it happened to be tightly coiled around. So I spent my Saturday (with the help of Kimbers) hacking the felled wisteria and replacing the drain pipe. Both are now doing fine.
• As is V. According to the Beeb the alien parasite is 25cm long. It's still rather quiet, and this is leading V to mistakenly believe it's a sweet quiet girl. Fat chance. The women in my family aren't a meek and quiet lot. So it's a boy, bound to be, just maybe the quiet thoughtful type?...naa, they don't run in the family either. We'll find out soon enough.
• V ran her first Tuscan cookery class a couple of weeks back and all went swimmingly, though I can't say I was a huge fan of the grappa panna cotta. Definitely had a certain kick to it.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
• Our two lots of nesting swallows are both not keeping eggs warm. Cat hasn't shown much interest yet, but maybe she's waiting for the nest to produce something more filling?

OK, forgot to press 'publish' when I wrote this [idiot - Ed] so sorry it's a bit late!



Oh, and here's that interesting paragraph again. Thank you for all those who took the time and considerable effort to comment on how it was, by far, the most interesting part of last week's blog. This one [wink, wink] is for you...

Your Villa in Chianti

Are you looking for a villa in Tuscany, an apartment in Tuscany, or maybe a villa in Chianti? Are you looking for somewhere with amazing sunset views, a nice pool, surrounded by unbelievable scenery, run by interesting and intelligent young people? Are you perhaps thinking of getting married in Tuscany? Or are you mindlessly surfing the web when you should be working? If any, none or all of these things are true, and you have read this far, then we have it. In fact, whatever it is you want? We have the solution. 100% guaranteed. www.patrignone.com