Greeting from Lecchi in Chianti

I began house-sitting last Wednesday.  I met Charles and Addison at the Florence airport and took the car back to their home in the countryside near Lecchi in Chianti.  I spent the week reading for research and pleasure.  I gave myself a haircut and slept a lot.  I feel like a new man.  The house is beautiful, its gardens consummate.  I read on the terrace overlooking the horizon that is full of green hills and empty of people.  When the day cools and shadows fall, I walk through the garden with a glass of Chianti and water the plants.  At night, I work on my thesis and listen to Nancy's LPs.

Friends visited this weekend.  We hiked through the hills and vineyards behind the house and went swimming in the pools near Lecchi.  For dinner we made Bellinis, pureed white peaches and prosecco, and grilled steaks and sword fish.  We drank wine into the night, sitting out on the terrace and watching the night sky rotate above us.  Past midnight, the wild boar bark to each other in the woods and run through the garden.  The dog goes nuts when they're on the property.

There is a bush full of hot peppers that are red and ripe.  I am going to pick and dry them and try to make hot sauce.  I have always wanted to start a hot sauce company.