Never a dull moment
It's 6 in the evening here. My phone just rang.
I answer with the standard Italian greeting:
"Pronto?" (literally, 'I am ready'. It makes me giggle to say it.)
A woman, in very measured/formal English politely introduces herself: "Good Evening. I am so-and-so, a member of the German Parliament..."
(for a split second I thought it was a practical joke or one of those bad recorded-message political calls, you know when Arnold Schwarzenegger leaves a voicemail on your answering machine to remind you to vote Republican on election day.)
But nope, she was real. And it turns out she dialed a wrong number: my next door neighbor is a retired Italian ambassador and she was looking for him. All our phone numbers are identical, except the last two digits. I gave her his number, which is only one digit off from mine, and she apologized profusely for disturbing me.
Disturbing me? Heck, it's not every day I get to talk to a member of the German parliament! Even though the ambassador and I share the same little patch of woods on a hilltop in Tuscany, I'd venture to say my life is a far sight duller by comparison: the most exciting thing I did today was buy more fuel-mix for the weed whacker.
I answer with the standard Italian greeting:
"Pronto?" (literally, 'I am ready'. It makes me giggle to say it.)
A woman, in very measured/formal English politely introduces herself: "Good Evening. I am so-and-so, a member of the German Parliament..."
(for a split second I thought it was a practical joke or one of those bad recorded-message political calls, you know when Arnold Schwarzenegger leaves a voicemail on your answering machine to remind you to vote Republican on election day.)
But nope, she was real. And it turns out she dialed a wrong number: my next door neighbor is a retired Italian ambassador and she was looking for him. All our phone numbers are identical, except the last two digits. I gave her his number, which is only one digit off from mine, and she apologized profusely for disturbing me.
Disturbing me? Heck, it's not every day I get to talk to a member of the German parliament! Even though the ambassador and I share the same little patch of woods on a hilltop in Tuscany, I'd venture to say my life is a far sight duller by comparison: the most exciting thing I did today was buy more fuel-mix for the weed whacker.
posted by Viaggiatore | 5/11/2006
3 Comments:
Don't get too jealous, perhaps your retired neighbor has been giving out the wrong number to German Parlimentarians in a effort to not be disturbed in his retirement. He may like nothing more than to have the most important thing to do today be caring for his weed whacker. I imagine the grass is always greener...(pun intended).
Fingers too quick. Not fair to comment without identifying myself.
Daisy Boy
DB: funny, I knew exactly who it was. Something about your writing style is familiar to me, as always.
You're right - of course. I hadn't thought about the 'greener grass' (bad pun but good concept) angle!
Funny, for as much of a people-person as people claim me to be, there are days here when I resent the phone ringing and disturbing the peaceful "aloneness" of it all.
I know people who say that retirement is such a shame because you save up for a life that some end up too old to really appreciate (youth wasted on the young) ... my neighbor has early onset parkinsons and I bet you're right - he probably wishes he would have done a little more rose smelling (daisy picking, more apropos) and/or weed whacking a few years ago. He dreads it now when he has to go into Rome for an official function.
The german parliamentarian still sounded awfully glam to little ole' me, though! ;>
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