my blog


Jean de Florette + the search for H2O

I'm feeling like the Italian Jean de Florette but without the hunchback. I have an issue that farmers have had for centuries – lack of water. We need a new well to water our raspberries. In the height of summer, with temperatures over 40°C (104°F), the old well is bone dry after an hour of watering and we have to wait until the evening before it's full again. There simply won't...

broken knees + ticks

If you're squeamish, don't read on! After settling the kids on the sofa, I decided to take a relaxing bath. My InStyle was open at What's Hot for S/S '11, when my small son raced into the bathroom: “I hate my sister, she won't let me watch It's Me or the Dog!"  I soon realized we were on the brink of a full-blown tantrum. With one eye on my precious magazine, I yanked my leg...

facebook + unleashing the diva

Being the other Kate Middleton can be challenging and yet, strangely invigorating. Recently, facebook disabled my account because they accused me of being a fake! How dare they accuse me of not being who I really am? I am Kate Middleton and I have been for the past 42 years! I offered them my birth certificate, my passport, even my DNA. I just wanted my identity and my friends back....

unexpected guests + trampolines

Just when you think the festivities are over in Italy, along comes La Befana. Older than Santa Claus, she is a knobbly, and frankly frightening, old witch who brings children socks stuffed full of sweets and chocolates. Of course, responsible Mummies have to dip into the sock and free their children from the temptation to gorge themselves silly. However, all that diligent mothering has left me...

bad hair + resolutions

It's New Years Day. A time of contemplation and reflection. I could muse on the vicissitudes of 2010, I could reflect on all that I have accomplished last year, I could ponder the future, but no...all I can do, rather narcissistically, is lament my recent hair disaster. About two weeks ago, I was sitting on a train going to Florence stuck in a compartment with two young women. The train was...

the raspberry queen in waiting

It's been three weeks of compromises and coincidences... Claudio, our farming consultant, delivered the good news that we have been awarded subsidies from the Comunità Montana to plant 200 more olive trees and 1,671 raspberry seedlings. It has taken six months of lobbying and I feel as satisfied as I do after a steaming hot bowl of Ribollita! I felt so elated that I even forgot what the inspector...