Too late for Tuscany?

You know my name

With only 5 days of this month to go, and also the same for our deadline, it seems that even the weather is against us, resulting in any easy equation, no septic tank = no move in, although I have set a date (of 7th May) to go and supervise hole digging and landscaping.  

The continued program allows me more time to dwell on ideas for making Chicken House a home, today was detailed plans of the country kitchen, and surprise surprise, it doesn't quite fit as my first non-scaled drawings show it, definitely a case for back to the drawing board, or modern e-equivalent.

There is one more thing I have been turning over from time to time, and that is what to call our house, as Chicken House is only our working title, I think Casa del Pollo would lose something in translation.  A recent comment from Alaine (http://coccinella-ladybug.blogspot.com/) reminded me again of the need to do something, soon, and meaningful.  Now la nostra casa has a number, not No 6, but 57, I grant you it's not sexy or romantic , but a very nice plaque, I presume provided by the local Commune, and kept safe by our neighbour waiting for the day when somebody would come and breathe life back into her old family home, and handed over to us when we signed the contract back in June year.

Today, this blog got its 5,000 hit, so I throw down the gauntlet to any reader from Quebec, to Kazakhstan, via Brisbane and Prague to come up with, as Alaine says 'a romantic Italian name', for Chicken House.  Grazie Tutti

On the Tiles

Alberto and I haven't had a chat since we last met at the house, as my every attempt to pin him down has failed, with even last night's long planned hook up thwarted by our interlocutor 'phoning in sick.  But I will give Alberto credit, he did send through latest photo's, and an update (a response to my written questions last Friday).  The pictures show some, but limited progress (I'll put that down to the photographer), with shots of all the landing cotto now complete, these have been done using the only remaining original tiles in the house.  Perhaps more significantly the tiling in the main bathroom has been completed, which for once makes the place look like a real home, and not the lovely wreck we once bought and are more used to seeing, it also makes the room seem smaller, if that's possible.  One last change is that our very own priest hole (the dark place under the stairs), has finally been bricked up, even though the builders said it was crazy, as it was somewhere to put the wife when she was unruly, Mrs J had a few things to say about that.

Our chat has now been postponed until Friday, and by then a few things will really be coming to the boil, we are within a week of finishing (allegedly), and I still don't think Chiasserini has deployed his machinery, as Tuscan weather is still not any better.  Also, I need to fix a date for my next trip to supervise the digger doing the landscaping, fitting in with not only the weather but my day job too.

In this recent quiet period, and with an end date looming, my thoughts have once again turned to fitting out the house.  As I said once before I thought the kitchen construction will need supervision, and so it was proved, not only does Alberto want me there, they also want the oven, dishwasher, fridge etc, 'so they can get the sizes right', silly me, I thought all white goods were built to standards these days.  Whilst we can live with a microwave and a kettle for some time, we can't do without a bed.  Mrs J and I have long been of the opinion that we should have cast iron beds for Chicken House, as not only do they look pretty, they also don't block out some of the expensive features we have built in (eg walls, floors etc).  Where we are in Central Europe cast iron for beds is not a big seller, with the natives preferring some overstuffed faux-leather sleigh bed type thing, and the nearest we have seen is a poor copy in IKEA.  So what to do? back to the trusty e-bay, in UK and also Italy, and then what? more crazy cross-continent driving? in desperation I mailed a UK supplier and they gave me a very good price for shipping, so although its against my religion to buy new, I think the logistics may just force my hand on this occasion, or else we will be getting up close and personal with the new cotto pretty soon.  Ciao 

Buona Pasqua

No, I'm not too late for Easter wishes, as although most religions enjoyed their eggs last weekend, this week its Orthodox Easter, later than everybody else due to the change-over between the Gregorian and Julian calendars many years ago.

Our first Easter in Tuscany continued to be hectic, (I even squeezed in an hours gardening).  It wasn't all thankfully centred around Chicken house, but spent as I guess it should be in Italy, sitting around the table with friends, eating and drinking.  Once again Karin pushed the boat out for a great dinner on Saturday night, with the table groaning under local delicacies.  The grand finale was La Colomba (an easter cake) washed down by digestif or two from Stefano's home made collection that looked and tasted like the stuff fire-eaters imbibe, and could have stripped paint at twenty paces.  Whilst most of the gathering could'nt believe what they had just drunk, Stefano put the bottle back in its hidey hole saying it wasn't quite mature yet and needed at least another year!  That's one anniversary not to put in the diary. 

Our gastro-experience continued (later) the next day, when we enjoyed a lazy but no less extensive brunch, with all kinds of Salumi, breads and cheeses, I even volunteered to do my world famous scrambled eggs, closely watched by Stefano who was obviously hoping to steal my recipe, and only after that blow-out did we venture to the house, to show K&S nostra casa for their first time, with approving nods all round. 

If that wasn't enough for an Easter Sunday we went for a passeggiare in Perugia, and were amazed at both the numbers of people who had the same idea and the wind up on the hill by the Duomo, then early to bed for our long trip home the next day.  Buona Pasqua

Mamma Mia! Magalotti

We pulled up to the house, bathed in Good Fridays afternoon sunshine, ecstatic that we had actually caught the builders working, and not just 1 or 2 of them but a whole cohort of Chiasserini's men toiling away, on what is a holiday in most other parts of Europe.  We were early for our planned site meeting and keen to get updated with the developments as we hadn't heard from Alberto in 10 days.  As we rounded the corner of our neighbours house our hearts sunk, why did we have doors, when there should be windows??? When, how, why did this happen?, this isn't what we discussed, argued, chivvied about for so long with all and sundry.  As they say in football circles, I was gutted!

Unfortunately no time to dwell on that for the moment, we had (as usual) a carload to empty, this time the new Stufa, one big radiator and 4 very large rolls of loft insulation, time to press gang a few helping hands to save my aching back, and in double quick time the Stufa was sitting in pride of place amongst the builders detritus in the kitchen, and the rear suspension breathed a sigh of relief.  The troops then started to muster, first Chiasserini, followed by Alberto & Virna, Tizzi (the Plumber), and eventually, the man we were all talking about Magalotti (Carpenter). I must say that even though I was in full flow with the site meeting I was so pissed with him it took me more than 10 minutes to even say hello, and what Mrs J had to about it say made Alberto's eyes water.

The site meeting flowed well from room-to-room, admiring the work done in the 10 day communication blackout, such as:- second coat of plaster, ALL the floors down (and with 4 guys busily grouting them in), front & rear doors fitted, and also those doors we didn't want also fitted.  We did have a few sticking points along the way, most noticeably concerning the loft insulation, which I threatened to do myself, but I eventually capitulated as my back was killing me after the drive down, but making Chiasserini swear that he would do in a lot less than the 12 hours he had quoted for, I mean, get a life, 12 hours to fit 4 rolls of insulation, my Granny could do it quicker than that.

We also had a lengthy debate with the tiler (who was presently doing the floor), about how not to waste the precious tiles that were only just enough to do the job.  This would have been a doddle, if it wasn't for Alberto chipping in with seemingly random ideas to how to save tiles, do it this way and that, and generally making a nuisance of himself.  I even asked VP for the Italian for 'the customer is always right', to be told (by Alberto) that it didn't work like that in Tuscany, I should have known!

After all other points were finished, and Chiasserini & Tizzi had left, it was down to Magalotti, me and the doors.  And do you know what, apparently it was my fault, another thing I should have known, he misunderstood my instructions, therefore it was my fault QED, but........ he could rectify the error, for a very special price.  To put this discussion in context, we had just arrived after a very long drive, the site meeting had already taken 3 hours, my back was killing me, and we still had to go to Alberto's office to choose colour schemes. I really wasn't in the mood for Magalotti, also the things I wanted to say to him, I couldn't say through my lady translator, so I asked him to mail me his ideas and costs, and he went. 

Uff, all this writing about the doors has got me going again, but enough negativity, what about those floors? I know Tuscany is full of them, Umbria too, but these are ours, laid by our boys, and will be walked upon by our kids. Hurrah! 

Pause For Thought

Although we had no telephone chat this week, Alberto was true to his word and sent thro' a group of new photo's of this weeks limited progress.  But its a bit difficult to bleat about this and that when there is so much grief in L'Aquila, with the death toll still rising and the rescue services toiling around the clock to find any remaining survivors.

It's ironic that a lot of the work we have done in Chicken House is to repair damage caused by the 1997 earthquake which struck Toscana/Umbria and devastated Assisi.  The damage done to our place was minor, but we were so far from the epicentre of that quake, it defies the imagination what it must have been like to be in the middle of it.

Goin' Down Slow

Well, I spoke too soon in my last post, looks like we are going to need all of April just to complete the major building works. I must say that the builder did as good as his word, he upped the work by 100%, he even doubled the men on the job, from 1 to 2!  Alberto said that I had not to worry, that the plastering would all be done for my next visit, ie in 10 days! I said I could do the work in that time.  He tried a second time, it wouldn't cost me more as we were on a fixed price, what about schedule was my reply, silence.....

Even the weather has conspired against us, with rain in Toscana not allowing them to get the machines deployed for septic-tanking, other things not done as we hoped are ground-floor windows and doors fitted (builders don't want to damage them with plastering), stone repair to front door portico (don't want to damage them with bags of plaster) and so it goes on, it seems that not only is the plaster going down slow, but its holding up everything else too.  So, lets rejoice in what we have, and show 2 marvellous pics of that precious plaster, and the love with which it's being applied.

I priced up  materials to do the roof insulation myself, 41 euro per roll (100mm thick), and it should need 4 rolls exactly.  That's not the problem, this next trip we have to take the last remaining radiator and new corner stufa, where will I put 4 rolls of insulation at 1.2m long each in the car, could be a cosy trip. 

We even had some update from Alberto on the land next door that we are interested in buying (some day), it seems it will be soon, as it is under contract to a local farmer, and either the owner won't sell, or can't sell until this contract lapses, well that just mean Mrs J doesn't get her Kitchen extension just yet.

In the expectation that we are to be amazed with progress at Easter,  I have shelved the next telephone call, until we see it all first hand, I am still willing to be gobsmacked. Ciao