Delivering firewood at four in the morning.

Summer is going out in style - the mercury hit 39 degrees on Saturday and is likely to better that today. A cloud of mid-summer torpidity sits heavy over Italy. Thankfully,the two boyz have grown into the habit of sleeping from lunch until four in the afternoon which means they avoid the worst of the sun. Their afternoon doze didn't do them much good yesterday as the heat determinedly lingered on,searing uncomfortably out of the limestone,until late in the day . We ventured down to the pool for a couple of 'splosh' games around seven and then again at eight but faced with a wall of sweltering air the boyz enthusiasm quickly wilted and they retreated back to the cool of the house. Finally, to get comfortable we sat in the kitchen until gone ten with the aircon on full pelt while I read and the boyz crunched contentedly on ice cubes. After a day of enforced idleness the two troubadors were brimming over with energy after dinner .They entered into their late evening ball throwing session with total delight yelping and rolling on their backs on the cool grass- they may be eight years old but they can revert to playful puppyhood very quickly - we turned in at one although Wilf would have happily carried on .
This morning at four thirty Wilf was sitting bolt upright and fully alert at the side of the bed willing me silently to get up. A couple of months ago I'd ordered wood for the winter fires and then completely forgotten all about it.This morning the delivery truck turned up unannounced at the crack of dawn and dropped thirty quintales ( hundredweight) of logs at the wood shed - Wilf heard it all. By the time I'd thrown on a shirt and shorts and got out of the door to find out what was going on the driver was haring back along the track. As we were up and about the three of us walked slowly in the cool pre-dawn air up to the village at the top of the hill - even Digby with his sore hip managed the steep climb.We then sauntered gently back home again past the tired looking sunflowers and got back to the house by six for a reviving cup of coffee (for me) and a 'splosh' game for them .

I've just driven into Montefalco for the Sunday papers. I'd not noticed before the wonderful Cedar of Lebanon that stands at the old town gate.What a majestic tree and what glorious shade it provides!.