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Ten-minute break

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I need to take a deep breath at least once a week.  Let’s all do that.

“I thought it was love, but instead it was Saturday.”
Cats are always cool with “sheltering in place.”  As for self-isolating, they invented it.
Our neighborhood boating/fishing supply store manages to cram everything anyone could ever rationally need into a fairly small space. Among everything else, this display contains one exceptionally important piece of nautical equipment.
A corkscrew. “You’d be amazed how many people ask me if we’ve got one,” Mattia told me.  I doubt that they ask for “Red Wine Opener,” as it says on the label; I understand specialization, but if by some wild chance I were to want to drink some Soave, or Bianco di Custoza, or Verduzzo or Malvasia, would I be forced to buy a corkscrew somewhere else? “Red Wine Opener” — what the heck kind of category is that?
Via Garibaldi at 7:30 this morning.  There is NOBODY, and yet: A dog has pooped, and somebody has rolled right through it.  (My brilliant powers of deduction lead me to suppose this is a relic from yesterday afternoon — the width of the wheels implies a shopping trolley, as does the direction of the tracks, toward the Coop supermarket.  But that still means that with scarcely anybody on the street, the person still went straight through it.)  It’s enough to make you believe in fate.
Henry James said that the two most beautiful words in the English language are “summer afternoon,” but I’m going with “morning sunshine.”
The only thing that could make these pansies more wonderful is the thing they’re hanging from: The old bell-pull attachment (see the handle amid the petals) that once served some upstairs apartment.  You still see some of these bits around, and very occasionally one that still works, like this one in our neighborhood.
I have actually heard little old ladies complain about this cat; they say it’s dirty and shouldn’t be permitted to do this.  All I know is that the cat is obviously the owner — as all cats are — so you can see that there would be no point in lodging a complaint.
Mariska and Luca had just re-affirmed their wedding vows and half the neighborhood showed up to surprise them when they came out.
The streets may be empty, but we’re still here.

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11 Comments

  1. Dear Erla,

    We mostly use screwtops here, but we have a few corkscrews somewhere at home, and could send them to Via Garibaldi express delivery.

    Reply

  2. Erla, Thank you! Keep posting. Love it – such a different experience from being sequestered in rural mountains!

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  6. Love your posts!!!! Thank you so much for your continued insights on Venetian culture and beauty! And dog poop! ????????

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  7. Oh, Erla, you provide my only smiles. Your photographs and cat commentary are wonderful. And I want one of those t-shirts!

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    1. I’m so glad! How are you — and where are you? Did you leave Venice early before the airports closed?

      Reply

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