OK, where was I? Oh yeah, Vlady and the massage ... he had to go! Outta here, go on, Beat it! However, that did get me thinking ... what if I were to go to massage school? So I did, I went to learn the fine art of touch. Loved it! I searched the net and found an accelerated program in California. Best thing I've ever done for myself. Everyday Tai chi, meditation, lots of studying, massage (both giving and getting) , sharing and lots of group hugs! Even if you have no intention of becoming a massage therapists, it's a great experience and I HIGHLY recommend it for everyone. I learned with Dr. Thomas Ahern, great guy. So, for all you folks heading this way or thinking about heading this way, make time for a couple of hours of complete relaxation, it's so beneficial for all of us.

Apart from that, let's see, we had lots of snow in December, a beautiful white Christmas (and New Years ) frickin' freezing though. Feb and March were quite nice. Now is a bit chilly, but lovely. All the tulips are trying to open, the Lilacs are budding and should open in about three weeks or so, the daffodils are peaking now and my 90 apple trees are flowering. Spectacular, I just LOVE the apple tree. My radish seeds and spinach are sprouting. The garlic I planted last fall is coming up nicely and the strawberry plants are looming large, should be a banner year.

Animal news ... Years ago, a bunch of us were sitting around the table talking turkey (literally) and someone asked Alessandro if we had geese, Al turned to me and asked "Brent are we gonna get gooses?". "Well!" I retorted," I don't care what you do in your free time buster, but I'm not about to ... ", then I realized he was talking about a bird. Anyway, we finally got gooses. I have four of them, I have gone thru the recipe books and cooking mags to find out how to prep the bird ... however, I have fallen for the goose. There is now way I am going to let the ax fall on these babies. I love them.

Today I let them out of their house for the first time so they could get some grass, and the damn chickens (on whom the ax shall surely fall) are trying to eat their feet. The follow them around and peck at their web feet every step. I have chicken with feet fetishes. Special needs farm, indeed.

What else, Remember Mr. Bunny? He has been alone running around the farm in bunny freedom for the last couple of years enjoying retirement. Well, last week, Al and I bought some female rabbits to start the summer rabbit crop. , Mr, Bunny ran right over, jumped on top of Lady Bunny did his thing quick like bunny and fell over on the ground like he was dead! Like he passed out from over-excersion. He finally gained his breath and got up slowly, but I think he REALLY needed that. This was all preformed under the voyeur eye and squealing delight of Alessandro and myself. Well shall have baby bunny in the not too distant future.

I tried to fill the vacancy left by Vlady with a lovely young couple from Slovakia. They claimed to be cooks and I dreamed of being served scrumptous meals on the balcony surrounded by my admiring guests wondering "Brent, how DO you do it?"

On the day of their arrival, anxious to impress, they set up camp in the kitchen and went straight to work. "These two shall work out fine" I thought, just what I needed. Dinner was presented on the table ... WAY over boiled pasta, mixed with watery mashed potato, served with butter ... the beverage of choice to enhance the meal? Tap water. I could barely get it down my throat (and the only reason I did, was to not discourage them on day one) Easily the worst meal I have ever had in my life (and let's not forget I spent a couple of weeks begging for food on the sidewalks of Cairo). Day two, I finished my animal chores about 7:15 that evening, walked in the house and saw dinner on the table! Oh, how efficient, I thought. Well, It came to be known that dinner was actually on the table at six and had been sitting there ever since. The meal, was again WAY over boiled pasta with grated cheese, and slabs of butter. By then the butter had melted and re-solidified in greasy puddles at the side of my plate. There was a bottle of tomato paste on the table "In case anyone wants some" she suggested.

The beverage for this evenings feast?, coffee ... which had also been poured at 6 and was as dead as the butter. I kid you not. All summed up, we are still looking for a cook. If any of you would like to come and experience the life at Priello for embarrassingly low wages and feel the lash of my whip, please call immediately at bz@priello.com

It's going to be a great year, please try to come see us. Looking forward to it!
BZ

So, where was I?

First off, I must absolutely tell you this story.... I am officially on vacation as we speak, I finally have a helper so I am spending three days away from my beloved farm and doing some touring things which I will now tell you about.

So, day one of my hard earned vacation time, I went down to the sea at Sperlonga where Alessandro has a beach house with some friends from Rome. The house is actually in a little town named Itri which is kind of poor and abandoned and the beach crowd is moving in for the summer and amongst this summer beach crowd there is also the gay crowd which (now here is the story) the locals call, are you ready? Tra-la-la's! I love that. It's like code, for example you can say "Oh, he's tra-la-la".

Anyway, as luck would have it, I had a tremendous ear ache and was only worsening it by swimming so Alessandro and I drove off in a search and destroy of other quick touristy things. We did a beautiful cave tour, and then hit a ski mountain in Abruzzo (no snow obviously) so I can plan this winters outings, now we are back in Rome, which by the way, is fantastic in August. The city is completely deserted. No traffic, no pollution, no people, I love it. My advice for you for next summer is to do Rome the middle three weeks of August when the people flee to the seaside.

I have a new helper (he arrived about 10 days ago, I trained him quick quick like so I could have a day away). His name is Vladimir, from Ukraine. He speaks neither English nor Italian so our communication is down to pointing and nodding and grunting. Well, I hired a translator for a day so I could leave a few instructions and it turns out that our Vladimir is a licensed massuese! His suggestion was that he give me a massage and if I like it, I could suggest to the guests to have a massage and he could earn some extra money. So, last Sunday while we were waiting for the new arrivals, Vlad starts saying "Blent, Blent, massage, massage". I say "Okay" he preps a table and makes the motion for me to lay down. I whip off my shirt and lay down. I still have my short pants on and he grabbed the waistband and said "Blent, no, no". Um, okay, up I stand take off my shorts and flop back down on the table and Vlade sticks his thumb in my undies and starts pulling them over my butt saying "Blent, no no". I mean, I'm alone on a mountain with this man, so I'm like "Vlady (tra la la), let's not even go there" Anyway, the massage (complete with undies) was okay. It was my first massage ever, maybe I thought it would be different (as in maybe I would enjoy it) but he tried.

Other interesting things this summer? It's been busy busy busy! I've met some great people, there was one lady from Florida I could have done without, but it keeps things lively. My sheeps and horses and rare and exotic chickens are all fine.

My veggie garden is my best ever, my tomatoes are just coming ripe now and I need to get home tomorrow and start the sun drieds, otherwise it's going to get chilly and they won't dry fast enough. We are getting lots of inquiries for the fall so do come visit us.

If you are thinking of the Christmas week, come on over we are doing a nice Christmas things at the farm and it's going to be fun crowd and fun time so call quick. Our construction on the other house is going great. The farm is looking better than ever, so clean and tied together and flowing and beautiful. I've been gone three days and I miss it.

Have you looked at my photo's? Someone wrote and asked which one I am in the photo of the three men raking hay. Well, I am the one on the left holding the pitchfork. The other two are Jim and Steve from NYC whom you may have met last year. The other photo's are my personal experiments about focus and blur. A technique I stumbled upon by accident because I don't focus very well. I have had two people write and tell me to take the photos off there! HOW RUDE! They are supposed to be blurry.

Have good things and do good things to good people. One last thing, I am going to the States at the end of November and looking for things to do, so if you have a suggestion.....bz@priello.com

Ciao, Brent

January already? Seems like I was just writing this LAST January! If I remember correctly I was going to try to be a little more precise about my getting this out every month. Oh well.

So on to more important things, trauma of the afternoon was…I bought new horse pellets, measured them out for my girls, gave them all a small taste and two of them started choking immediately! I mean CHOKING choking. Laying on the floor and half gagging sort of choking. The vet had to come flush out their stomachs with water and fill them with drugs, very traumatic. Anyway, all are fine. I just gained a couple of gray hairs and spent a hundred bucks for the pleasure.
First a weather update, have had quite a few snows, some heavy, all welcome. Today was freezing in the morning and warmed up quite nicely by afternoon. I usually have the fire going but today haven’t bothered. Could be I’m still heated up from the horse treats gone askew episode.

Many have written and asked if I still had that bull that tried to hump me every time I entered the barn? The answer is no, Bobby Brown Swiss (his name) was sold back in the spring. Disappointed? The sad news is that I sold Consuela, Cow Patty and the all girl cow group this autumn. I just have too much work to do to try to keep up with all these animals and milking and cheese and barn cleaning, and riding, and house cleaning, and cooking and canning and gardening and laying by the pool, er, I mean CLEANING the pool. So, cows had to go. But cows or no, not to worry there will be fresh milk on the table this year provided by the all girl goat group. As yet to arrive. We’ve already had the disastrous goat experience years ago with Babi and Ludi for those of you who may have met them, the ones who made rather short work of my ninety tulip bulbs, planted “just so…” I sold them out of frustration and hate. Water under the bridge and a failing memory for bad experiences has brought about this want for a new goat adventure. I know I’m asking for trouble, but what the hell, the cheese is good.

As you know by now, we put in a pool last year. It changes EVERYTHING! There is no better way to spend a summer afternoon than lounging in and by the pool over looking the Tuscan peaks and valleys. The problem with it is, now I’m too embarrassed to do the nudie thing. There are so many in-shape, fitness-crazed Americans stopping by that when they are here sunbathing in their sculpted “bodies by Jake” I am forced to wear a sweat shirt with long sleeves to cover my “body by butter and cheese daily” Anyway, pool is fantastic.

We are FINALLY renovating that falling down barn this spring. We are hoping to start in February so we should be well under way by the time the summer comes along. We are adding another independent apartment with two bedrooms and two bathrooms, living-kitchen room with fireplace and a great terrace overlooking the valley and the lake! Wine anyone?

We’re hoping to add a room with bathroom and a summer kitchen as well. It will all be finished off with terraces and stonewalls (probably NOT this summer but in time). We have also re-done the road!!!!!!!! For those of you who lost a muffler or popped holes in your oil tanks, thank you for your patience! The top part here by the house is done and it looks and works great! Feels like a highway without a bump! The lower part with “the climb” still needs some work, but it is SSSOOOooooooo much better than it was.

The baby horses (two) born this spring are growing nicely (apart from the choke scare this afternoon), their names are Lily (after her mother) and Whinny.

Weeks are booking up for the summer, so if you had the idea to come over and visit…..call or email soon!
Until the next update,
Brent

Ps…..just in case you’re wondering…..life in Tuscany is good, REALLY really good.