Life in the fast lane
Here in Localita Tesoro the sun rises early. How do I know this? Because my neighbors the Faveros tell me. I cannot vouch for it myself, but I have no reason to think that they lie. Some time in the wee hours of the morning, an ungodly hour, the Faveros, including Rita, are out wandering through the woods and traversing fields, guns cocked, searching for that night’s supper: pheasant or cinghiale, depending on the day. Their presence near my house only interrupt my dreams, which turn to cops and robbers, car chases and gun fights in the middle of the night.
This morning I rise after the sun is well and truly up, the Faveros’ cows have been and gone, the Faveros themselves have also been and gone, and I begin my day. There is a residue of frost on the ground, and, by Umbrian standards, it is a cold day. I understand better that it is a cold day when my old jeep refuses to part. A phonecall to Mauro Favero, who is practically at lunch, is necessary. “It’s cold,” he tells me. I think he thinks I should just give up on the idea of going to work and stay by the fire. Nonetheless, he opens the hood, tinkers around and curses quite a bit, and I decide I could do with another cup of coffee. Buddie (my faithful canine friend, who likes to go driving but doesn’t know the first thing about mechanics) and I sit on the steps off the kitchen, drinking coffee, watching Mauro try, with great Italian sympathy, coax the old jeep to at least make an effort.
Ahh, now it is lunchtime proper at the Faveros, so we decide to call it a day and just eat. Lunchtime in the Faveros’ kitchen is noisy, and the wood burning stove churns out heat, and Carmella Favero is like a magician who seems to produce item after item out of a hat, only for her it is a pot. The table is large but fails to accommodate all of the food, and we are constantly shuffling serving dishes, and still it keeps coming. By the time I leave, I need a nap. Tomorrow is another day I say to Buddie, whose philosophy follows very much along these lines, and who is always more than willing to return to bed. It can be quite exhausting living near the Faveros. This is life in the fast lane.