A MISSED POST FROM DECEMBER 10, 2003!

Looks like I forgot to post this one, and it seems unfinished, but here it is anyway.... remember, it's out of order!

Well, the electricians didn’t return after lunch. Fabio stopped by to say they will be here tomorrow. Hopefully once the power is restored in the blue bathroom, that will be the end of him for a while. Oh, except that the electricity in the garage isn’t working yet either. We’ll hope for the best.

The water softener technician did arrive this afternoon. Although this machine is much smaller than the one we had in the states, it seems to operate in exactly the same way. The technician told us that the man who started the company that made our water softener used to work for Culligan, and that he was from Wisconsin. It has a clock just like we were used to, so when we go on vacation, all we have to do is unplug is, then when we return, plug it in at the same time of day…that way you don’t have to re-set the clock.

We asked him about the various levels of softness, and he told us that we shouldn’t drink anything below 15 grains of hardness, due to the sodium in the water. He said this is a problem in Italy, but not in the United States. We asked him to set the water as soft as he could…zero grains, and decided that it was worth it to drink bottled water. Maybe we should have asked about a water purification system too?

And Mauro was unable to get a hold of Rolando, so there won’t be any painting until tomorrow. And of course, the baseboard and stair railing won’t get installed until the painter is finished. It seems doubtful that everything will be completed by the time we leave.

Art did ask Mauro about a new garage door. The one we have now is two doors that are hung from vertical hinges. Because we are on a hill, the left door doesn’t open all the way, and this prevents us from getting the car into the garage. Mauro will install and door that lifts UP for us while we are gone. Mauro asked if we wanted an electric door opener, but Art said no, he had me! Since the garage is small, I will have to get out of the car before he pulls in, so I may as well open the door while I’m standing there!