The continuing adventures of June Finnigan, her Man, and Farty Barty the cat.
Benvenuto to all my Loyal and New Followers
I have to say that June is my most favourite month of the year. It is my birthday month, I know, my mother couldn’t think of anything else to call me, and the countryside and the garden are at their most luscious and, most importantly, it is the month of my annual Rock Concert!
In Laura’s Bar/Alimentare in our local village of Fiano, things were ever changing.Newcomers included a Japanese student who was staying with our local Pizza maker, where he was learning how to make the genuine article so that he could open a pizzeria in Japan! (The mind boggles…) A big muscley blond guy wearing a sleeveless T-shirt blew in on a huge gust of wind, “Gosh did you see that?” my man whispered. “His knuckles weren’t exactly scraping the floor, but nigh on!” I clenched my lips and tried to look normal. Signor Rotund has taken to exposing his generous belly to clean his glasses on the bottom of his T-shirt, and Laura’s other half continues to stack the shelves at the speed of a striking slug.
Back at the villa, I was visited by two Frenchmen who had overslept in the villa next door and needed an internet line to move their flight to the next day. (I helped them out just to hear their sexy French accent – see Laurent Dupont in my novel ‘My Father, The Assassin’). They left a good quality bottle of wine hung on my gate the following morning! My man’s sister arrived a few days later and potted up masses of new summer flowers in the garden, so everything looked beautiful for the concert garden party. Earlier in the month, Farty Barty the cat brought home a little female cat to share his food, but he may be starting to regret it as she is getting very bossy! We have called her Farty Bartina.
Meanwhile, we made several visits to local restaurants in June, mainly to keep our energy levels up and to more easily cater for the visitors that were gathering for our Rock Concert Garden Party. We met some interesting people at C’era una Volta, our most frequently visited restaurant, including an English couple planning their Tuscan Wedding and two members of a famous rock band from Belgium/Holland called ‘Drive Like Maria’ with their sound recordist. The latter has a recording studio not far from us, so we must pay a visit.
June 15th was Father’s Day so we met up with our beautiful daughter and grandchildren, all looking wonderful with their olive oil skins. We enjoyed coffee then aperitivi as it was late morning, and we were given a lovely surprise. Our daughter had booked my man and I for lunch at one of the most beautiful Tuscan five star hotels. The following Thursday, we indulged in a five course a la carte meal and the wonderful sommelier served a different wine with every course. The setting on the terrace was to die for and we can only say, you must visit, as they are open to the public for lunch and dinner. We are planning a return visit for a lovely long weekend.
Then as the month drew to a close, we were all getting busy and very excited about my fourth annual Rock Concert with The Rock Chick Band. It was a great evening. The weather was dry and sunny, and the band did a brilliant performance as always. I am so lucky to be backed by such fantastic musicians, and all younger gorgeous Italians! We had lots of new people leaping around to the music including some Americans doing the Zombie and other dance moves that defied gravity!
Meanwhile, the lovely Silvio Berlusconi, who sadly did not make it to my concert, is losing some media interest, but not his fan’s support. His main claim to fame during the month was his interview with Jeremy Paxman who was about to retire. Jeremy asked SB if he had a particular problem with Angela Merkel and was it true that he had called her a un…….lard-ass? No, SB responded, he had never had any problems with AM and in twenty years of politics, he had never insulted anyone…….mmmm!
Well, enough of that, back to the real world and a nice aperitivo on our upper terrace. Have a great month and see you again in August.
Salute June x
Don’t forget to visit my author page and do drop me a line.
June Finnigan is an English expat who lives with husband Paul and Barty the cat in their lovely villa overlooking the Chianti Hills, in Tuscany.
June is a published Author and her first book 'My Father, The Assassin' is available on Amazon.