We have such sad news to record here...I never updated on Alby's hair loss, but after swapping out his litter, he improved dramatically. Hence, we figured that he was allergic to the bedding. His skin was dry and flaky, we thought as a result of the allergic reaction. However, the young woman from the rescue group wanted a bunny dermatologist to check it out. Somehow, during the vet visit our little bunny died.
In the short time we had him, we became smitten. He was such a funny little thing, with a wonderful personality. No one can imagine how much and how often he made us laugh, even (especially?) when he was demonstrating his displeasure with us.
Alby, you were a very funny bunny and we love you.
Alexandra
Thursday, December 19, 2013
Sunday, December 15, 2013
Field Trip to Buy a Sheep!
After setting up my presepe last weekend, I came to the conclusion that I wanted, nay needed, a sheep. Or more than one. Which meant, of course, a trip to Deruta -- where I had purchased the original set of figures.
I asked Roberta if she'd like to go with me to Deruta, and added blithely that I needed to stop to get a sheep while we were there. She blinked a bit, and agreed cautiously, later admitting that she was perfectly prepared to believe that I was going to put a live sheep in the back of my car, and she'd be riding back from Deruta with an animal baa-ing in her ear! The worst part? My children happily backed her up, saying that it wasn't unreasonable, given the variousness of my *ahem* activities. Really? A REAL sheep?
No matter. Off we set, and had a lovely time scouting out the shops in Deruta and visiting my buddies. As usual, there were some really lovely things.
After a few false turnings, we found my presepe shop. The man who was there last time wasn't there at the time, but his mother happily opened the door to me...standing her tallest (she had lovely posture), she came to my armpits. I explained my predicament, namely, no sheep.
Unfortunately, she only had cast sheep, but then she found the most adorable little hand-built lamb that actually looks fluffy! And this is in terra cotta! I fell in love, and demanded more. She dug around for a little while, then called her son -- who confirmed that there were none available now -- I'll have to wait until January or February for them to be back in production.
I sadly acquiesced, deciding that I'd have to have a pair of the cast sheep (and of course the lambkin!) to make my presepe satisfactory for this year. Then I consoled myself with the dromedary, which I was also missing, and a cheesemaker. Did you know that a presepe is incomplete without a cheesemaker? I didn't, but now I do. Thank goodness they were there to set me straight.
As the mamma started wrapping, in walked the son. He announced that he remembered me perfectly because of my darling car, and was quite happy to talk about presepi until ... well, whenever. But we had a convivial time until the (very) careful wrapping was completed.
Home again, home again, jiggety jog.
Love,
Alexandra
p.s. They gave me the sheep as a gift
I asked Roberta if she'd like to go with me to Deruta, and added blithely that I needed to stop to get a sheep while we were there. She blinked a bit, and agreed cautiously, later admitting that she was perfectly prepared to believe that I was going to put a live sheep in the back of my car, and she'd be riding back from Deruta with an animal baa-ing in her ear! The worst part? My children happily backed her up, saying that it wasn't unreasonable, given the variousness of my *ahem* activities. Really? A REAL sheep?
No matter. Off we set, and had a lovely time scouting out the shops in Deruta and visiting my buddies. As usual, there were some really lovely things.
After a few false turnings, we found my presepe shop. The man who was there last time wasn't there at the time, but his mother happily opened the door to me...standing her tallest (she had lovely posture), she came to my armpits. I explained my predicament, namely, no sheep.
Unfortunately, she only had cast sheep, but then she found the most adorable little hand-built lamb that actually looks fluffy! And this is in terra cotta! I fell in love, and demanded more. She dug around for a little while, then called her son -- who confirmed that there were none available now -- I'll have to wait until January or February for them to be back in production.
I sadly acquiesced, deciding that I'd have to have a pair of the cast sheep (and of course the lambkin!) to make my presepe satisfactory for this year. Then I consoled myself with the dromedary, which I was also missing, and a cheesemaker. Did you know that a presepe is incomplete without a cheesemaker? I didn't, but now I do. Thank goodness they were there to set me straight.
As the mamma started wrapping, in walked the son. He announced that he remembered me perfectly because of my darling car, and was quite happy to talk about presepi until ... well, whenever. But we had a convivial time until the (very) careful wrapping was completed.
Home again, home again, jiggety jog.
Love,
Alexandra
p.s. They gave me the sheep as a gift
Presepe ... NON vivente
I'm so excited! I have my progressive Nativity scene set up. I bought it last year as a Christmas gift from my parents (thank you again!!!), and I had the brainwave of making it progress as the season progresses.
Since Mary and Joseph aren't yet in Bethlehem, they are making progress towards the town. The stable has not yet arrived (nor has it been made, but that's a story for later), but no matter. We have townsfolk and a few animals, as well as shepherds on the hills!
These figurines were hand-built, and are really exquisite in their detail. I'm so very, very happy with them! It makes it even better that I know personally the people who made them, and can picture their faces as I look upon my little scene.
Here's how it looks now. I'll update as time goes on so that you can see the progression!
Love,
Alexandra
Since Mary and Joseph aren't yet in Bethlehem, they are making progress towards the town. The stable has not yet arrived (nor has it been made, but that's a story for later), but no matter. We have townsfolk and a few animals, as well as shepherds on the hills!
These figurines were hand-built, and are really exquisite in their detail. I'm so very, very happy with them! It makes it even better that I know personally the people who made them, and can picture their faces as I look upon my little scene.
Here's how it looks now. I'll update as time goes on so that you can see the progression!
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| Sheep and the shepherd on the hills |
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| The Holy Family, still distant from town |
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| Another view of the hills, cow included |
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| Town, including water carrier and woodcutter |
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| Ladies gossiping |
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| Bethlehem from a distance. The bare spot in the background will have the stable. |
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| The cheesemaker...with a wood stick; the pot has wooden handles! |
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| The woodcutter, up close |
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| Washerwoman and baker, having a chat |
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| A view of the water carrier to show the detail |
Love,
Alexandra
Invernalissima!
That means, roughly, "wintriest". It is the name of an annual half-marathon that starts in Bastia Umbra and runs in the valley under Assisi.
The density of runners at this point of the course has been photo-shopped in this promo photo, but this really is one of the views on the course:
They mean the name--the race is known for being cold and a couple of years ago it was cancelled on account of snow--but this year the weather was perfect for a distance event. As we drove through splatters of rain we could see the sun trying to find its way through, and after a chilly time getting ready we were rewarded with a cool, sunny race with only the lightest breeze.
This was a very important race for me. It is time to start training for the Paris Marathon, and I need to know for what pace to train. I have a three-week-old time for the marathon, but that was my first marathon and I was greatly crowd-hampered. Other races suggested I should be able to do better than the 3:30:17 I managed. I signed up for the 3:15 bracket in Paris, and today's race would dictate whether I trained for that pace or something less ambitious.
Racing math says that someone who runs a half marathon in 1:33:31 (4:26/km) is predicted to run a 3:15 marathon assuming he trains properly for the distance. Therefore, 1:33:31 was my goal time for today. It was an aggressive goal given my marathon performance and the time I turned in at Lago di Chiusi.
I smashed it! 1:31:20, 4:20/km! I started (too) strong, slowed to an acceptable pace with the help of a running buddy whose watch was not lying, then took it one kilometer at a time, aiming to be on-goal or a little below-goal pace for each. At 18 km I was confident of finishing, so I let myself accelerate with (and past) the crowd. I ended up turning in a 4:03 for km 20 and probably a 3:50 for the last km. I say probably because I forgot to stop my watch at the finish--no race is perfect.
I am very, very pleased with my race result. Of course now it means that I have to train for a 3:10 Paris marathon.
Michael
The density of runners at this point of the course has been photo-shopped in this promo photo, but this really is one of the views on the course:
They mean the name--the race is known for being cold and a couple of years ago it was cancelled on account of snow--but this year the weather was perfect for a distance event. As we drove through splatters of rain we could see the sun trying to find its way through, and after a chilly time getting ready we were rewarded with a cool, sunny race with only the lightest breeze.
This was a very important race for me. It is time to start training for the Paris Marathon, and I need to know for what pace to train. I have a three-week-old time for the marathon, but that was my first marathon and I was greatly crowd-hampered. Other races suggested I should be able to do better than the 3:30:17 I managed. I signed up for the 3:15 bracket in Paris, and today's race would dictate whether I trained for that pace or something less ambitious.
Racing math says that someone who runs a half marathon in 1:33:31 (4:26/km) is predicted to run a 3:15 marathon assuming he trains properly for the distance. Therefore, 1:33:31 was my goal time for today. It was an aggressive goal given my marathon performance and the time I turned in at Lago di Chiusi.
I smashed it! 1:31:20, 4:20/km! I started (too) strong, slowed to an acceptable pace with the help of a running buddy whose watch was not lying, then took it one kilometer at a time, aiming to be on-goal or a little below-goal pace for each. At 18 km I was confident of finishing, so I let myself accelerate with (and past) the crowd. I ended up turning in a 4:03 for km 20 and probably a 3:50 for the last km. I say probably because I forgot to stop my watch at the finish--no race is perfect.
I am very, very pleased with my race result. Of course now it means that I have to train for a 3:10 Paris marathon.
Michael
Friday, December 13, 2013
Enjoyable things
I just wanted to note a few enjoyable things about school:
- The janitors on my floor know me. By name. And not because I get into a lot of trouble. They say hi to me every morning as I walk in the door. I think that this is so sweet! But the icing on the cake is when one of the janitors (Nadia, I think her name is) saw that I had left my phone in the phone box and kept it for me (because you can never tell what might happen if it had just been left around!). She knew: who I am and what my phone looks like. How does she know what my phone looks like?!
- Students can get well-deserved whacks over the head when they need it. One boy in my class got whacked on the head for talking too much, and my teacher asked if that was allowed in the schools in the USA. I nearly burst out laughing.
- Students can get bad grades, and frequently do (but that is a double edged sword!)
- This.
Getting home at 12:10
This is a bad picture of a flower my teacher drew on my hand - Radiators in the classrooms
Looming Field Trip
Leo's dear friend Roberta is in town! I was able to twist her arm into coming along on a field trip with me to see the factory where they weave the local fabrics -- the Tessitura Pardi! It's a very high-end mill, and uses luscious cottons and linens.I called and made an appointment...I was warned that the senior technician had the flu so the looms weren't running, but we had the chance to see them, check out fabric samples, and so on.
The mill was fascinating. It's been running since 1929, and was started by our guide's grandfather. It was then passed down to her father and his brothers, and now her cousins and she are in charge of the place. And what a place it is!
They have a mill of about 20,000 square feet, and a remarkable number of looms. They use cards to create the patterns, which are then carried out in an array of colors and fibers. |
| Our tour guide |
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| The threads |
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| Warp threads being readied for insertion into the loom |
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| The stuff that looks like cream fabric on the left? a set of cards for the pattern |
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| Close-up of the cards |
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| One side of a tablecloth |
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| Finished fabric! |
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| Spools for finished fabric |
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| These machines wind the threads from cones onto spools |
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| Some of the metallic threads they're using now |
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| The tool bench for repair! |
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| Area next to the factory |
Arachne herself would be envious.
Love,
Alexandra
Good things come in small packages
And I tested that theory by going to the nursery the other day. In order to do my Nativity properly according to local sensibilities, I needed some wooden stumps, pieces of wood, etc. Orietta told me about a local nursery I'd never seen, so Jeremy and I decided it was time for a short jaunt in the car.
I gleefully chose three likely-looking pieces of wood and a bag of rocks, and then it was time to pick out some plants. Putting several lovely items aside, we had to choose the tree! The Christmas tree came with a root ball, to be placed in a terra cotta pot. Fortunately, I happen to have a pot just the right size!
Everything paid for, it was time to put stuff into the car. Our friendly helper brought the cart with the wood pieces from around the building. Put in scale with the car, all of a sudden they looked a LOT bigger. In fact, the one that was largest was almost the entire width of the car -- 1 meter!
I looked at him. He looked at me. I shrugged, declared myself to be an optimist, and we got started. In went the first (largest) piece of wood. Then the second. The third fitted handily behind the passenger's seat when it was pulled all the way forward. And now ... for the Christmas tree! I opened the sunroof, and we eased it through, resting the root ball on the wood.
Home free, practically! Bag of rocks? On Jeremy's feet, no problem. Plants? Scatter them around here and there.
And this is what I had (minus the terra cotta pots and plus one cyclamen, not shown):
I gleefully chose three likely-looking pieces of wood and a bag of rocks, and then it was time to pick out some plants. Putting several lovely items aside, we had to choose the tree! The Christmas tree came with a root ball, to be placed in a terra cotta pot. Fortunately, I happen to have a pot just the right size!
Everything paid for, it was time to put stuff into the car. Our friendly helper brought the cart with the wood pieces from around the building. Put in scale with the car, all of a sudden they looked a LOT bigger. In fact, the one that was largest was almost the entire width of the car -- 1 meter!
I looked at him. He looked at me. I shrugged, declared myself to be an optimist, and we got started. In went the first (largest) piece of wood. Then the second. The third fitted handily behind the passenger's seat when it was pulled all the way forward. And now ... for the Christmas tree! I opened the sunroof, and we eased it through, resting the root ball on the wood.
Home free, practically! Bag of rocks? On Jeremy's feet, no problem. Plants? Scatter them around here and there.
And this is what I had (minus the terra cotta pots and plus one cyclamen, not shown):
Love,
Alexandra
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