On Christmas Eve we went up to the little center plaza in our burb. They did a fabulous light show on the surrounding buildings. It was quite impressive. But there was NO ONE around! This flippin' Covid is keeping everyone inside yet again. Christmas was here with MIL and an American friend of mine trapped here for the holidays. If I must say so myself it was a mighty fine dinner. The 26th the three of us took the train up to Aosta, a city of about 35,000 under Mont Blanc. Cross those mountains and you find yourself in France. Chamonix to be exact. We were hoping for more snow but alas times they are a changing. There is a small Christmas market near the Roman ruins and a lovely old pedestrian shopping center. When the sun dropped behing the mountains, the lights came on. It was charming.

Last night we went into Torino to see the Christmas lights with Grace. Again it was very pretty and finally we saw people. But then we felt paranoid and started walking the smaller side streets to avoid the crowds. Geesh.

Next on the list of artery blocking meals is New Years Eve. We'll be going to our friend Riccardo's place in the wine region. I'm stuffing my pjs in my bag just in case. We are together and healthy. No complaints. Happy New Year all! xxoo me

Check out this guy! We took MIL out for lunch last Sunday to celebrate her Saint's Day. This cheery gentleman was playing out front of the restaurant. The food and drink were superior but I can no longer imbibe during the day. Went to bed at 5pm and stayed there until the next morning.... xxoo me

Once upon a time there were 3 old friends. They had know each other for more than 30 years and had matured together from bright young lasses to retired gals. Many jokes about aging were made along the way with the exchange of funny greeting cards at every birthday and silly videos on group chats. One evening the 3 gals got together to celebrate yet another birthday. There was much cheer and all went well until the hour of dessert. The hostess of this particular evening had made a lovely seasonal spice cake in honor of the occasion. She presented the cake, generously covered with a layer of white as snow powered sugar. Or so she thought. After the first mouthful all 3 gals stopped and 2 looked at the hostess with a question in their, now watering, eyes. WTF? An investigation was made and revealed that the cook had erroneously used powered yeast instead of powered sugar to ice her lovely cake. Much hilarity ensued. The 2 guests stepped out onto the terrace to have a smoke while the hostess picked up the pieces of her broken heart and tried unsuccessfully to remover the top layer of the cake for future consumption. An hour or so later, the evening came to an end and the guests prepared to leave. Guest #1 said, "where did I leave my cigarettes? ", Guest #2 said "where is my other tupperware?". All 3 wandered in and out and around for some time until the cigarettes were discovered on the terrace where #1 had checked and rechecked and the tupperware was found inside the bag that #2 had held in her hand the whole time. A sad but true story. The Italian government has just extended the "State of Emergency" that we have been under since Covid hit. They have now taken it past the constitutionally permitted 2 years. Many Italians, the hubby included, are up in arms and saying we are heading into a dictatorship. There are many elderly still alive who lived through Mussolini's realm. But those were other times when Italy was a country of impoverished and uneducated people. I think the likelihood of the folks I know putting up with too much enforcement on the goverment's part is slim to nil. They already forge fake test results, fake Green Passes, many don't wear masks. Who hasn't read about the guy with the fake arm trying to get his vaccine? Italians are not rule followers. But it's a scary thought none the less. It's almost Christmas and another lockdown is looming but at least we are all together here this year. On Christmas Eve we're taking the train up to Aosta at the base of Mont Blanc to visit it's famous Christmas market and to see some snow. (Our once a year snowfall is now a mere frozen lump conveniently right outside the terrace door, well places for slipping and sliding whilst trying to feed the GD birds). xxoo me

The 200 pound mass of palid teenaged flesh that lives above us is clomping around in cleats as he prepares to go play rugby. For some strange reason, his mother tells him put on his shoes at home as opposed to the field. Consequently every time he has practice we hear him upstairs, coming down the stairs, going back up the stairs because he forgot something, coming back down the stairs, possibly going back up the stairs because he likes the sound the cleats make on the marble floors, back down the stairs and into the underground garages. Then a few hours later we hear him clop back up again. It sounds like a well shod horse going up and down. Speaking of our wacko neighbors, the other day when he was heading out his mother made this comment about his outfit. "Why do you continue to perpetrate these chromatic errors in your dressing style?" They are the most well spoken weirdos. I'm on a diet to control my acid reflux. The no-nos are basically my weekly shopping list. Wine, tomatoes, spice, chocolate, cheese... Does my body not realise that it lives in ITALY for chrissakes? I'm supposed to keep this up for a couple weeks and then slowly reintroduce stuff one at a time to see what really gives me problems. A couple weeks! AHAHAHAHAHAHA! Looking into meds. More cheery news. We had booked a few days in the Alto Adige for after Christmas. We wanted to visit the famous Christmas markets, drink some mulled wine, eat a lot. The Alto Adige is the German speaking region of Italy that borders Austria. Well Austria just went into lockdown and the Alto Adige is on high alert. We cancelled our plans. Weeks later... I never finished this nor posted it. Oh well. We are having our first snow! It's very pretty but won't last long. The flakes are already the size of quarters and will soon be rain. Italy is in pandemic mood. We've already been obliged to have a green pass (proff of vaccine or negative tests) to enter in a multitude of places. Masks are required indoors and many shops are limiting the number of customers at one time. Now that numbers are climbing in other parts of Europe, tho here not, the government is inforcing a "Super Green Pass". Now the pass is only for the vaccinated, (no more negative tests), and the vaccines are valid for only 9 months. I recieved notification this morning that my Green Pass will expire February 11th. This is getting ridiculous. Boosters are out there and available but I'm going to wait til after the holidays. Maybe they'll have discovered a cure by then... I went to a Steve McCurry show called "Animals" on Sunday with friends. He is amazing. It was doubly wonderful because it was located in one of the royal palaces outside of the city called Stupinigi. It was one a "hunting lodge". The enitre population of Boothbay Harbour could easily be housed in there. It's massive.

Here I am with me Santy mask. Life goes plodding on in these "on-hold" times. Dinner tonight with MIL. Always a good excuse to eat!!! xxoo me