ROOM WITH A VIEW

I beg your forbearance. My computer is in meltdown and off for repair. This is a flaky laptop with inferior colour. I have no idea how today's pic really looks.

Thanks to all who viewed my mangled rose yesterday and for their own memories of faded flowers and weddings.

Kitten update (20 September): It is now eating on its own and is doing well.

This view is from the kitchen at Casa della Volpe (Fox House) one of two houses we rented to summer tourists. This house did not require the major reconstruction the other one did although it needed a whole lot. I blipped a pic of the exterior some time ago (13th April), and wrote about its history for the N. Y. Times global edition: House of the Barking Dogs

We only ever had one set of lousy tenants out of thousands. They left the house in amazing chaos. It was very funny. The kitchen was filled with hundreds of beer, wine, whisky, vodka and brandy bottles, all of them empty. There were huge bowls of peanuts everywhere, also ground into the floors and in some in the beds. Our feet stuck to the floors. Towels were sopping wet on the floor, some were stained with red wine. You may have guessed who they were. Four men -- clearly on a booze and peanut toot. The cleaner said, "Mama mia, le donne sono migliori." Women are better.

The rest were wonderful, left the houses spotless and came from all over the world. We will miss them but the economic downturn meant that this was a disastrous year and 2011 isn't going to be any better. Breaking even is not enough, time to quit. We are only two more minor casualties of the bankers' era of terror. I can't say I'm sorry not to have to be a landlady any longer.