"It's All Happening...!"
Buongiorno, everybody! (does anyone realize that's a Simpsons joke...paraphrased?)
This note is a looooong one! You've been warned... And here are some little notations that might come in handy:
Bunnya - is a reference to an old Bugs Bunny cartoon, where the Slobbovian Rabbit is trying to force Bugs into "Making Marry-age" with her...
Piciock! is the sound of a noisy kiss - from an old Donald Duck comic book in Alle's youth...just so you know...
TVB - means Ti Voglio Bene - which basically means a gentle "I love you", or "I want you well" or "I want good things for you", etc.
Here we go...
Saturday -
This was a rough one. Alle got up early to be sure he had everything ready for his trip to Russia, and we had breakfast together. Rob came by so their dad could take her to her hair appointment (it was raining, after all), and Alle asked her to "look after the baby" for him while he was gone. "Hold her hand in the supermarket," he warned, "or she might go lost in the toys or candy." "Mmmm, chocolate," I said, making a greedy face, and Rob laughed. She left with Dad and I finished breakfast, then went to talk to Alle while he shaved. I kept after him a little to be sure that he had everything he needed, and he laughed and said "Further proof that I need a wife," when I reminded him to actually pack his razor. The time for his departure came too soon, and we kissed goodbye at the front door before he went to meet Andrew downstairs to drive to the office. I got the camera and went to the bathroom window, so I could snap a couple of pics of Alle while he put his suitcase in the car. He noticed after I took the second shot, then waved and smiled to me before Andrew joined him and they left. Once they'd gone, I took a quick shower and got dressed in anticipation of meeting Rob and Andrew to go grocery shopping that afternoon. Alle left the car in their care, and so Rob appeared just after Noon to pick me up. She walked in just as Alle called me to let me know he'd reached Bologna airport just fine. We took our time in the crowded IperCoop at the mall, and came home around 2.30. I ate a light lunch and read the text message Alle had sent me from Germany: "Ti amo tantissimo gattina! Piciock!" I read a little, studied a little, napped a little. That evening, around 8.20, came another text: "I've arrived safe and sound! Ti amo tantissimo! Your boy ;-)" He called me around 11.30 that night to let me know he was settling in at the hotel. Relieved, I went on to sleep - or tried to, anyway. It's funny how you get used to someone being there, and how disturbed you can be when they aren't, any more. It was a rough night, really. I tossed and turned, the room seemed too hot and stuffy, and when I'd finally doze and then wake again, I kept wondering where he was.
Needless to say, I missed my boy... :(
Sunday -
At 7.10 a.m. I awoke to the sound of my phone getting a new text message. "Good morning kitten! (Dobry den!) Your boy has well slept and duly eaten and now he's sending you all his love! TVB! I'm calling you tonight! Piciock! Poka!" Smiling I reminded myself that St. Petersburg Russia is two hours ahead, and I went back to sleep for a while. I had breakfast at 9.30, stretched out to read around 10.15, and promptly dozed off! Rob called me around 11.45 to ask me down for dinner (Andy was making chicken korma -curry- yum!) at 6.00. Sure! I said, and I offered to bring a PULP video to watch afterward too. Once off the phone, I promptly fell asleep again! AAAargh!! Dad came home and made dinner, unbeknownst to me, and set a place for me at the table. I didn't know this until after I woke up at 2.30 in the afternoon and he'd gone to take a nap for himself. I felt just awful... I then opted to go for a walk, being in desperate need of fresh air and afraid I'd fall asleep again if I stayed home. So, off I went... It was a cool, grey day, and I had no destination in mind, really - just a vague plan to walk for an hour or so. I went past the old stadium, down to where Rob works and along the road where the McDonald's is, then along the street where the community pool is. Along the way I found myself smiling at people to see how they'd react. Some smiled back, most just looked away. Someone - I've no idea who - passed in a car, honked, and waved. Mistaken Identity? I was almost home when I spied a middle-aged gent poking a big pile of snow with his umbrella. No reason, apparently. I couldn't help grinning at this, and when he passed me, he grinned sheepishly, too. A nice little moment. Shortly after I got back to the flat, Alle's dad woke up and left. I went to my room and resumed reading until it was time to go to Rob and Andrew's. The curry was delicious, as was the cake we had afterwards. We watched a comedy vid, and then put on my PULP one. Andrew and I tried to identify most of the performances on it, but soon it was just Rob and myself watching and talking, instead. At ten I went upstairs to call home - my longest call home, yet! - and Alle called at 11.45 to tell me of his adventures so far - misdirected luggage, 2 day old clothes and a walk in the snow all played a part. I told him about my boo-boo with Dad and he said not to worry - he'd told him not to go to any trouble, and Dad had told Rob to look out for me, too! LOL! So, no problem... We talked for a little while before Alle conceded that he needed to get to sleep - work in the morning, after all. So we said goodnight (me with some difficulty...sniff...) and I went on to bed, this time on his side, to see if I would sleep any better.
Monday -
I did sleep a bit better, actually... until 7.08, and the arrival of a new text message: "Good morning kitten! Your baby's well fed and well rested and is now beginning his first day of work! Ti amo tantissimo! Piciock!" Again, I turned over and went back to sleep for about an hour, then got up for breakfast. Rob came by with the bread and the paper, and to invite me down to the computer, if I wished. I told her I'd definitely be down soon and she went on to run her errands. By 11.00 I was done with the computer and back upstairs to read for a while. Then from 12 - 2 I studied and then translated (or tried to) a song by Samuele Bersani. I had lunch around 2.30 and watched Rob's DVD of the Britpop documentary Live Forever (cool...), which needed more Jarvis and PULP, I thought. Then, more reading until Rob dropped by... apparently she had gotten a call from Alle, asking her to search his desk in a quest for a credit card pin number - he'd forgotten it! The one she found was an old one - oh, no! - so he had to figure something else out. Hmmm... While she was there we made our plans for the next day. A trip to the city offices to get parking permissions for the "wedding party" came first, and then a little shopping somewhere. Beyond that, who knew? We chatted a little and she was off, and I opted to get a quick shower and retire for good for the evening. One shower (followed by a light dinner) later, I was curled up in bed listening to the radio, drawing and reading a bit, and waiting for Alle's next call or text...
Tuesday -
Just before 7.00 came my morning call from Alle... He asked if I'd gotten the text message from the night before and I told him no. He sounded disappointed while he told me that his phone had died when he'd hit 'send', but he'd hoped it had gone through anyway. He got in quite late from work and didn't want to wake me with a call. Little did he realize that I hadn't slept anyway... Anyway, after our chat - wherein he told me he was having a great time and missed me, too - I tried for some sleep for another hour or so. No go. So I got up at 8.30 and dressed and had breakfast. I had just wrapped up when Rob arrived and we headed out. It was cold, damp, and occasionally snowy, and we debated the best way to go about the shopping after getting the parking permission. We eventually parked the car in a pay lot and walked to the town center. We strolled about, browsed a bookshop and then went to a ladies' shop for the camisole I needed to wear under my white shirt for the wedding. We walked a bit more afterward, the rain turned more decisively to snow, and we made our way back to the car. She invited me to lunch, and we sat and chatted and watched the British news feed on the satellite with Andrew. I went upstairs around 2.00, tried on my wedding outfit, and then relaxed for the afternoon. Dinner was a grilled cheese sandwich - perfect! - and then around 8, 8.30, Alle called, pleasantly exhausted and glad to be at his hotel after a full day at work. We talked for a while and I returned to my room until Rob and Andrew came up to visit Dad. We all sat together and talked in the kitchen until 11.00pm, and Rob and I planned another day of shopping for Wednesday. Then we said goodnight and went our separate ways for the evening.
cont'd...