Of cabbages and kings

There have been several milestones in the 10 months since we arrived in downtown MSP, and this week saw a personally monumental one when I actually had to survive on my own for almost four whole days. It may spoil the narrative tension of the blog, but in the interest of your peace of mine I can say at the outset that I managed splendidly and am a better man for it.

The reason for my solitary confinement to LCDDB began early last Saturday morning when Stephen took the train to Milan for MICAM, the international biannual show fair, where his mission was to get his face seen and reconnect with various colleagues and shoe acquaintances. From what I can gather, he appears to have fulfilled his brief; we will just have to wait and see what happens over the coming months.

This is why started the weekend by driving, bleary-eyed, to Civitanova station while Stephen was advising me how to get back home and telling me what to do on Tuesday when I went to pick him up. ‘Just come to the car park’, he said, ‘you’ll see it when we get to the station.’ Well, yes and no, as when we arrived, for some reason known to those powers that be, fencing had been erected all round the car park and there were vague signs of some sort of construction work being considered. Needless to say, this being Italy, no alternative parking arrangements had been put in place for travellers, commuters or collectors of passengers, so roll on Tuesday to see what sort of a bun fight might ensue.

The rest of Saturday was busy with lessons, but a quiet Sunday was made brighter by a box of fondentissimo Baci that Stephen had secreted away for me in the glove compartment of the Panda to mark St Valentine’s Day. His morning message told me where to find them; who needs a man in black polo when you’ve got a set of car keys.

As befitted my temporary solitary status, the weather went grey and wet on Monday and continued so on Tuesday. Not that we can complain, as it was the first spell of extended miserableness that has hit us. Whilst we have had our share of rain and wind most days have seen at least a smidgeon of sun breaking through. The early part of the week, though, was grey in a way that reminded me of Britain, for whilst we didn’t have a lot of very heavy rain there were long periods of drizzle.

The rain, however, didn’t stop Alessandro the electrician from keeping to his promise and appearing promptly on Monday morning to sort out the electricity for my office. He reconnected the supply to the workroom, installed plug sockets and fitted a ceiling light, all encased in metal tubing. It took him three days in total but the finished product is well worth all that time and care. Stephen (who returned safe and sound on Tuesday night, the problem of where to pick him up being solved by him standing at the side of the main road for me to pull in and let him hop on board) is very pleased with it all, especially as it has the industrial look he was after.

And so to the end of the week, and for a change the world of shoes was focused on me when, following a message from Massimo, my student, Stephen and I headed off this afternoon to Dino Bigioni’s outlet. This is where having friends in high places as well as living in the shoe hub of Italy pays dividends: Dino Bigioni’s sale is due to start next week, but Massimo said that if we went today and mentioned his name we would get the pick of the crop at next week’s prices. Hence, having browsed the shelves and been helped by a very charming lady, I left the shop with a remarkably fine pair of burgundy boots at 70% off the outlet price. And if that wasn’t enough, following another couple of stop-offs at other outlets, I added a pair of green washed-look leather Bikkemberg trainers to my haul. It would seem, then, that that’s my spring footwear sorted… well, for the moment at least.