T is for ...

Tuscany

Two hour train ride from Venice to Florence.  A one hour car ride from Florence to Tuscany.
Most of the trip was through a tunnel.  Had a fellow next to Hunter who took selfies, in all kinds of positions, the entire trip.  He also had his friends take pictures of him.  So annoying.

Very Beautiful.  I understand the allure.

We stayed at Borgo San Felice.  They had just opened for the season the week before.  They hosted the Maserati Club.  Then we came and everything slowed down.  Maybe three or four other couples.  They were gearing up to host the Canadians and their Olympic staff/athletes (some fund raiser) for two weeks.  Beautiful place.

They make their own wine.  Our delivery arrived Wednesday.  Yay!

Visited a winery in Montepulciano.  Their wine hasn't been delivered yet.

The cyprus line road is the road to Rome...from back in the day.

Podere Il Casale

Visited a working farm.  They make their own charcuterie, cheese, wine, everything.

Didn't realize my sleeves showed so bad.

The farm is owned by a Swedish fellow who purchased the property twenty five years ago.

He had a pet sheep.  It ran up to us, just like a puppy would, baahed, romped, nuzzled, ate grass, stayed with us.  If I only could figure out how to take videos with my phone.  You guys would have loved it.  So cute!

Cheese!

Hunter and I did a cooking class at Osteria di Passignano.  Just us and the chef.

***
Pecorino Flan on Balsamic Reduction

"Pappa al Pomodoro" Ravioli and Basil Pesto

Roast Cornish Hen with Thyme, Lemon, and Sable Potatoes

Molten Chocolate Cake and Orange Sauce

***


We then toured the old monastery that they store wine in.

Then we ate at the restaurant, with all kinds of wine pairings, the meal we made.  Well....

The chefs prepared for us.  Terrific!  Oooh, and I have more wine coming!!!!

Visited Sienna

They run the Palio de Sienna twice a year.

Below is the Piazza del Campo.  They ride bareback, three times around.  Whichever horse, rider does NOT have to be on it, finishes first wins.

Ciao Tuscany.  Time for the Big F...

(and a celebrity spotting)

V is for...

VENICE

What did you think I was going to say?

Of course later I'll have 

T is for...

and

F is for...

But for now,  V is for Venice.

Eat your heart out, Amal.

We actually made it to Venice, Italy.  Looked just like the Venetian in Vegas.  Just kidding.

I just can not figure out these bidet things they have in the bathrooms.  Frontward or backward?  What's with the "special" towels?  They also had a sprayer between the toilet and the bidet.  This, I found out the hard way, is to clean the toilet.  I now know what it feels like to have your butt hole pressure washed.  Just saying.

I brought the wrong clothes.  I needed a coat, boots, hat and mittens.  I had a jacket and socks.

I have never been around such history.  Everything is old, old, old.

Speaking of that...I was amazed how many grandfathers were vacationing with their granddaughters. Lot of hotties with old guys.

I did get assaulted by one big ass sea gull.  

Hit me in the head while scooping up Hunter's bacon at breakfast.  He had left to get a croissant. 

Saturday was a half day tour and then a wine lesson/tasting.  It was also the University graduation.

Sunday was a fun day.  Walked to the Peggy Gugggenheim Mueum.  Our wine lady is married to the curator.  Then walked along the water into a throng of people.  Initially thought it was the cruise boats letting off.  No, it was Venice's annual Walk the Bridges.  The people were everywhere.  Did Murano and Burano later in the day.  

Okay.  Next up T is for....

(not a body part)

Let's Get Packing for Italy

Okay, so what to bring to Italy?

Now time for all the fun stuff.






Not sure if I am bringing the white coat.  I may do my leather jacket instead.  I do not own "walking" shoes...it's Nike's or nothing.  Hopefully my scarf will detract from my feet.






This is going to be REALLY fun.  Not sure what we will do on our off day...foot rubs and sleep?  The weather should be warmer so out come the sandals.








Do not worry, if the tootsie's are not aching I will wear the loafers.  The sneakers are just in case.

Okay, what am I missing????

Barn Doors for Bebe

I thought it would just be easier to show Bebe, and anyone else interested, how we did the barn doors for our master bath remodel.  

***

First, decide what size door you want/need for your opening and also what side of the wall you will be placing it on.  A standard bathroom door opening is 2'4 X 6'8.  In order to cover the opening, always add at least 4" to dimensions ...we used a 2'8 x 7'0 door.  We purchased our doors premade stain grade pine.  They see you coming and really jack up the price for the 7'0 door.

From the bedroom side.  It fills the opening.

This is looking at closet door closed with light on in closet, lights off everywhere else.  Just a small gap but not a lot of light intrusion.

Looking into the closet from the bathroom.

***

Now, what kind of doors do you want?

We decided on a solid door from the bath to the closet.

Because, I wanted a mirror on the closet side.

I wanted a glass door from the bedroom to the bathroom.  I wanted some light filtered through.  I would have preferred something a bit more opaque but those doors were super expensive.

We still need to sand... ONE MORE TIME...and poly.  I'm going to live with them for a while and then decide if I still want to treat the glass.

***

Next, decide if you want molding around your doors.  We did.

Open

Closed

You will need to run casing across the top, double the size of the door, and then plus a bit (this is a bit tricky).  

Closet Barn Door

We used a premade track system from Rustica Hardware.  The vertical piece hits the stop on the horizontal piece.  The stop pieces were not adjustable which was a bit of a bitch.

Bathroom Barn Door

We had to drill a hole and finagle the pieces a bit to get it to work in the bathroom.  Ideally the end of the rail would line up with the casing but, well, it's off just a smidgen and that's okay.

***

If you do not want the casing, you will attach the track directly to the wall.  You will need to attach to the studs!

***

Bathroom Barn Door

At the bottom is a very small track for the door so it isn't swinging...maybe 2" - 3" long.  You will need to cut a groove the length of you door at the bottom.  You only get one chance.

Closet Barn Door

***

Our closet door comes very close to the wall so we decided to put a rubber door stop at the bottom to protect the baseboards.

*** 

Back

I am not real happy with seeing the bolt on the back side.  I shall look for black plugs at Lowe's to cap these. 

Front

***

This really took some studying on Hunter's part and then our two employees, both trim carpenters, studied on it and installed both doors in seven hours including a lunch break.  Now that they have done it twice, they could probably cut their time at least in half.

I am delighted with the outcome.  The majority of the time they will be left open but now the swing and the door itself will no longer be in the way.

Any and all questions will be answered to the best of my ability or I'll ask Hunter.

Here Comes the Honeymoon

Mr. H and I will be celebrating our 25th anniversary in a few short weeks.  Yay!

We were living in Miami, FL but actually married in Fort Walton Beach, FL (both went to high school and his folks were still living there).

At that time, there was no internet.  So Frommers guide books were required for proper planning.  Something quick to get to and relatively cheap for two twenty three year olds...yep, we were babies.  Hunter picked Palm Island St. Vincent & the Grenadines.  

So in love.

It was perfect.

Packing for this trip was easy.  Two bikinis, two shorts, t-shirts, and flip flops.

*****

Twenty five years later...Let the honeymoon begin again!

This time we are headed to ITALY.  Yay!

Venice

Tuscany



Florence




What the hell do I pack?

She Did It!

She and her run buddy did it!

For those who want to know:

She finished 13.1 miles in 2 hours 6 minutes.

She did not win.

Her underwear also survived.

She has two blood blisters.  Ouch.

She is officially on spring break!

Job well done.