Wet and windy

Yesterday, we'd heard rumours of bad weather on its way to our region. We haven't quite had the tremendous storms and rain today that the reports were talking about, but it has certainly been one of the coolest, wettest and windiest days we've had since we arrived. And, at the risk of annoying everyone (at least everyone reading this in the UK), I have to say I didn't mind at all, and it made a fairly pleasant change. Of course, I can say that safe in the knowledge that our blue skies and hot sunny weather will return, even if not tomorrow then certainly in the next few days.

So, as I got up and went outside to do some exercise this morning, the air was heavy with low cloud swirling around and the sky was a deep grey colour. Surprisingly, it didn't rain on me though, and as I swung my kettlebells around, the cats watched me with looks of absolute confusion on their faces (what the heck is she doing?!!!).

After a shower and breakfast, we decided to head straight out into Pescia to crack on with our list of jobs for the day in order to get it all done before lunch and have an uninterrupted afternoon's work.

As we were driving down the road, the heavens opened and we were caught in one of those rain storms where the windscreen wipers can't keep up, you have to put the car headlights on, and you can see the enormous raindrops bouncing off the road. We opted not to stop at the bins to do our recyling on the way into town, hoping that it might be drier on our return trip.

Thankfully, the rain had eased a little by the time we reached the main square in Pescia, although it was still heavy and we had to resort to using an umbrella just to dash from the car to the bank opposite.

We found the bank empty (of customers - there were plenty of staff eagerly awaiting something to do), Mr Smiley man was on one of the desks and gave us a friendly 'ciao' and smile when we entered. However, today we were here to see Marco (the bank manager), so we headed straight for the waiting area outside his room. This morning, his door was open, and although he was busy with a phone call, he smiled at us when he saw us arrive - so it felt a little less like waiting outside the head master's office than it had done the last time.

Once he'd finished his phone call, Marco waved us in with a friendly smile and 'how are you?'. The reason we had come was that Marco had contacted Richard last week, telling him that we needed to go into the bank to sign some (more) forms - all to do with the fact that we do not (yet) have residency, and apparently that makes a difference to the mortgage. He also wanted to sign us up for something called the "socio"(?), which is something run by the Banca di Pescia - you pay a one-off fee of €276 and this enrols you into some sort of club/association/scheme whereby you get your monthly banking charges waived, you can have a free a credit card facility (no fees), and a range of other financial benefits (as well as being invited to a slap-up dinner/knees-up once a year). What's more, if you decide to leave, they return your €276! So all in all, it seemed like a good idea - Richard had spoken to us about it previously and advised that if we were offered it, we ought to take it up.

So there we were with smiley Marco and an enormous pile of forms in front of him. He gabbered away in Italian to us - happily, we actually understood some of what he was saying, but by no means all of it. Then began the now familiar signature-fest. Because the mortgage is in my name, I had more papers and pages to sign than Stuart, but there was a pile of papers for each of us. I started the process off. Halfway through, I began to wonder what Marco must be making of my deteriorating signature. I'm sure if he compared the first one with the last one they would look very different - my name turning into an illegible squiggle by the end of things. Stuart, on the other hand, managed his signatures in a much more controlled manner, with all of them looking tidy and identical. Once he'd finished signing, and Marco had finished stapling various pieces of paper together, we were done, and Marco sent us on our way with a smile.

Next stop was the tabaccheria to pay the pile of bills we'd received last week. We were somewhat taken aback to find that the one we'd been into previously had disappeared - everything inside it had been stripped out and there were shop fitters in there refitting it! We were a bit stumped by that - but soon realised that there was another tabaccheria a little further along the road, so went into that one to try our luck (not all tabaccherias are bill-paying ones, some literally do only sell tobacco/smoking paraphernalia). Thankfully, this was one where we could pay the bills, so I stood at the counter while the man punched in the details of each bill in turn and passed me the credit card machine each time to punch in my number. It was a very odd, slightly unpleasant environment in there - along with bill paying and smoking accessories, this place was also a lotto/bingo/gambling point, so there were two or three very well dressed middle-aged ladies in there watching the TV screens playing along with some sort of bingo game! The place was very stuffy and had a rather stale smell about it. I was glad to get out into the fresh air, although the man had been friendly and helpful and I was very pleased to have successfully completed a task!

Next stop was a stationery shop we'd spotted a few weeks ago. In order to finish the filing in the office, we need some more suspension files - but we had no idea where to get them. Stuart thought of this stationery shop, so we went in to try our luck. Unfortunately the man shook his head and said no. But he suggested we tried another shop and gave us directions as to how to get there. Helpfully, he also wrote the name of the shop and the street name on a piece of paper.

After that, we went back to the car and headed out of town in the direction of Chiesina Uzzanese to try to find a showroom selling all sorts of garden machinery that we've passed several times when driving back and forth along that road. We soon found it, and went inside to find the place deserted (other than the tens of ride-on mowers, quad bikes, automatic pool cleaners and rotivators, strimmers, hedge cutters, odd-looking things that we later found out were for olive harvesting... and so on). We then noticed a hand-written sign on the door that indicated that, for sales assistance, we should visit the office in the street around the corner!

Slightly odd, but it didn't take us long to walk around the corner to the next street where we found the business end of the outfit. This was clearly a family-run business, and one that seemed to be a hive of activity, with piles of paperwork, box files full of invoices, and all the signs of a busy office. A friendly-looking chap came to assist us and very patiently talked us through all the different options (did I mention that we were there to buy a new hedge trimmer, but this time one on an extendable pole so we could reach the hard-to-reach places?). Thankfully, Stuart seemed to understand enough of what the chap was saying to be able to give reasonable responses and eventually to make a decision as to what our purchase should be (I was lost!).

After a good 10 minutes or so talking us through the different options, the chap went to his computer to work out prices for us. We sat and watched as the family dog (a small white ball of fluff with a pink bow on its collar) came back in from a walk with what I assume was the chap's daughter, and then proceeded to be beaten up by a little ginger kitten half its size. There were various family photographs and drawings on the wall, one of which was clearly a child's drawing of said dog, with the caption 'Sissy'. It clearly lived up to its name!

Once prices had been worked out (big gulps), we said we'd like to go ahead with the purchase and offered to return in the afternoon to pick the purchase up (as it was going to take a while for the man to gather the bits we needed together). We opted for a multi-function extendable strimmer with rucksack-style portability, along with two different lengths of pole extensions and a hedge trimmer part. (World's worst description? Don't worry, there are photos later.) We later have the option to buy other parts for it, such as the odd-looking device that is a tool for olive harvesting. The phenomenal price of this thing should guarantee us a decent quality tool, but there is also the advantage that the place we bought it from does servicing and repairs.

After having committed to our purchase, we headed back into Pescia to try and find the other stationery shop. We found it as part of a shop that we had previously thought was a gift shop (the window is full of birthday cards/wrapping paper, trinkets and so on). They didn't have any suspension files either, but offered to order some for us, to arrive roughly by Friday. Stuart had taken one along with him to use as a visual prompt in case people didn't understand what he was for - we didn't need it for that, but the man in the stationery shop must have got his tape measure out and measured it at least seven times before finally deciding which item from the catalogue he should order! He took down Stuart's email address and promised to email us when the order has arrived.

Finally, we headed for home - but not before stopping at our nearest pharmacy (in Pietrabuona) to buy a new bottle of insect repellent, and stopping at the bins with our recycling (as hoped, it was indeed much drier than it had been on our way out!).

We finally got back home just before 12pm. I booted up the computer and set to work, having an early lunch at my desk.

I spent the afternoon getting on with my office work, while Stuart fitted two cat flaps - one in the door from the kitchen to the man cave, and one in the door from the man cave to the outside world. The cats will now have to learn that they need to enter and exit the house via the man cave, going through two cat flaps in the process. It's been a few months since they last used a cat flap, so I hope they remember how to use them!

At around 4pm, Stuart headed back out again to go and pay for (yikes) and collect his latest toy, and get some new keys cut for the apartment. He was gone about an hour and a half - apparently he was taken into the workshop at the garden machinery shop (where there were three of them all working on services and repairs) to be given a half-hour demonstration of how to assemble and use the thing!

When he got home, we did a quick postbox check - more bills (again, some for us, some - from the same suppliers - for the previous owners... argghh we thought we'd paid everything by now!)!! After that, it was time to go and give the new strimming/trimming dream machine a whirl in the garden.

Stuart let me have the first go. Hmm. As much as we paid for this new thing, I preferred the old hedge trimmers! My arms are just not strong enough to hold the weight of this thing for very long and I only managed a few minutes before swapping with Stuart and letting him get on with it while I finished mowing the lawn and strimming (with the good old-fashioned, shorter-poled strimmer) the edges.

We were eventually chased indoors by some very heavy raindrops and strong gusts of wind - but already the garden is looking hugely better, and Stuart will be able to make good headway with his new toy in our so-far-explored areas of land (the first of which may well be cutting his way through the undergrowth to reach the septic tank as we think we may need to get someone out to check on it...)

I had a go, but I need to do more kettlebells to build up more arm strength (and that was only with the short pole!).

Stuart managed with the longest extension pole.

He's already a natural at this land-management stuff.

Tidier (bar the strimmer, wheelbarrow etc.)

Enormous bank of brambles gone!

"My new favourite toy."

As I write this, the wind is really getting up, rain is splatting against the window and thunder is rumbling in the distance - I think the rough weather is finally starting to get going properly. It should at least be a slightly cooler night for sleeping tonight, I just hope the stormy weather doesn't disturb us too much!