This is serious rain. Oh, no, stop, not just rain, thunder (far away, but thunder) and lightning too. The weather is mad. I woke up to clouds, but it was very warm and it didn’t rain until the late afternoon. Then it rained hard, then the sun came out and now it is raining hard again…

My two guests did not show up. I tried to call them at five in the afternoon to see if they were coming or not, but - no answer. I do not know who is going to eat the caponata, quiche and the cake I baked today and am glad that I didn’t start cooking the other stuff I had planned.

It was a busy day today. I slept until nine and after doing the usual things – drinking ovomaltine, cleaning the fire place, airing the hut etc.- I baked an apricot cake and then went into Terminator mode on the grass. Let’s see if you see a difference between the two pictures:

Before...

After...

To be honest, I think it looked nicer before that after, but I was told that cutting the grass and nettles, especially now that the kids are arriving, was very important. So, no arguing, but mowing. I spent four hours cutting grass and I must say I enjoyed myself. I had to get used to the equipment and how to use it, but had a good time. It is again the kind of work that agrees with my sense of order and I tend to do it thoroughly. But I was terrified that I might kill something after I first stirred a frog (a frog? At 1500m in the heat?) and then a viper. Yes, a real and quite long viper. I hope I did not end the lives of too many small or very small creatures. Anyway, this is the Terminator’s weapon:

In between attacking the grass and other green stuff I had to check on the cake and also on some passers-by. First a lone man, whom I had already seen from a distance passing by in the morning, had beer, coffee and cake and then two, rather stressed, Germans came, gulped down two big beers and hurried off again towards Prato Sornico. After putting away the equipment and massaging my now sore shoulders and neck I set out with a small bucket and scissors to collect flowers for the small vases that we put on the tables in the dining room and I did not only cut flowers, but also my finger. I have never cut myself with scissors before. Idiotic. Now I have various blisters and a fresh, rather deep, cut on my hands. Sigh.

Tomorrow is my last day here at Soveltra and my feelings are mixed. On the one hand I can’t wait to get going, despite doubts about my ankle and my general condition, and I am excited about all the things that are going to happen, on the other hand I am almost a bit sad and envious of the next guardianos, who will have lots of guests to take care of. I have been taking some reservations, but all of them for July. I will really miss the open fire.

I have finished my list for Fiorenzo, which will reach him somehow. Arturo will take care of that, but, most probably, neither Arturo nor Fiorenzo will be able to read my handwriting. I’ll see what has come of it when I arrive at Piano delle Creste at the end of July. I have also made reservations for the first three places I plan to stay and have been told that the weather forecast for the weekend is good.

Today is the longest day of the year, but it is almost dark at not even quite ten o’clock here. I imagine that in Germany now, if the weather is good, it will be light until almost eleven. Well, we’re south from Germany here. I wonder what all my friends and family are doing. But, wait, isn’t Germany playing today? I haven’t had any news from my Bernd-hotline yet.

Tomorrow morning I will do some more washing (clothes) and then Claudio is coming up (he just sent an SMS) to finally repair the wheel barrel’s wheel. I’m glad I will see him once more before I leave. I have no idea if I have guests in the evening, the ones that didn’t come today apparently said they may stay two nights. A misunderstanding maybe. But I will be busy. I have agreed to bake four cakes for Walter. And there is a lot of other work to do. And my washing, and, and, and.