Last weeks of skiing

So without Jayne most weekends, the boys and l have been going to Cortina. The weather has just got better and better, though with no new snow it was becoming a bit icy in the morning and slushy in the afternoon. Hunter and l had a great long weekend together, and his skiing is very very good, and the other weeks Ewan came and also skis very well, very fast, and likes to flick the snow over you. We had some more lessons with Gian Luca, which was well worth it, and he is such a terrific person, and so good with the kids. I learn quickly not to try to do what they did, powder snow and me are not friends, and the moguls can just be too exhausting, but the black runs in general l love, especially when the runs are empty, and the sun is out.
So we finished last weekend after a day of fresh snow earlier in the week, a perfect weekend with Stephane from Paris , who was in Bologna for the book fair, he is a good skier, very natural, we had some lovely meals, beers on the balcony, bombadino's in the rifugio's .
The boys are doing ok at school, Hunter is improving, and tries hard, though he can be slow, but he worries about everything, Ewan does well, hates homework, rush's through it, and does not really care what happens. But he is very good with electronic things, much as that is not me, l would prefer him to do more of his drawings which he is so good at.
The street (Via Cesare Battisti) is still closed since last June from the fire in the palazzo next door. But there are signs as they put scaffolding around it that they may open the road, but we have been fooled in to this thought before, and you wonder why Italy is were it is, imagine a road in the CBD of melb being closed for a year!
It was Jaynes 48th birthday last week, and l was able amazingly to organize a surprise party for her here in the apartment, we had about 40 people. After sending out an email to everyone, saying please reply to me by phone, as Jayne uses the computer, l had 5 people email me back, thankfully Ewan was able to delete them before she saw. Then one person , who will remain nameless, after l especially emailed her saying please , please do not email me, she emails me back with the original email titled JAYNES SURPRISE PARTY, saying  ok! ( you have to wonder).Thankfully Jayne had booked a massage that evening and was not home till 7.30, so l was able to get everyone in, the food out and prepared the daiquiris . So l sent the boys out at 7.15 to see when the car arrived home with Jayne, they sped up at 7.30, she is here!!!, so all the guests hide in the living room, with the lights out, and windows closed. I waited at the front entrance , pretending to be getting the camera to take a photo of the boys in the living room. I waited, l waited, 10 minutes passed, and l thought she must have got up the stairs by now, so l creep down, the car is not there. I go into the room which has increased by 10 degrees in temperature, and say it's a false alarm, then Jen who helps with the cooking and cleaning, says she will go down. 15 minutes later she rushes up , she is here, the same procedure occurs and l wait, and wait, finally going down again, no car!!!
So this time l tell everyone, who are starting to get tipsy from the daiquiris, that l will do the lookout, 10 minutes later she arrives, l run up, and we prepare, she gets to the stop of the stairs as l look through the security hole, and then starts talking to the neighbour, for 5 minutes, we still have 3 guests who are running late, and l am sure they will come running up the stairs soon, yapping, and Jayne will here, what to do!!
Luckily she stops talking and walks in, l act as relaxed as l can, and quickly tell her to come in and see the boys. Meanwhile in my mind l am imagining, people collapsing from the heat that is building up in the room, and the daiquiris. She enters to a dark room, surprise!
So the night went on till 2 am, when our Colombian friends and an Australian singer who lives here (Costa ) and his friend leave, a quick clean up, so it ain't too hard in the morning, as the daiquiris were quite yummy.
So now we begin to prepare for the summer break, which is 3 months long, so far we have a week in Alicante with Stephane at his holiday house, which is wonderful, 2 weeks in Puglia near Lecce  with mikey and Kate Frayne, then a week in Malta in late may, 2 weeks minding Mikey Frayne's house in London. At the end of June we go to Basel, to the art fair, and Easter we intend to do a few day trips to local towns that we still have not visited, and even trips to Florence and Milan, that we have only been to once. As well as a trip to Maserati, Lamborghini and Ferrari factories, l don't know, it just sounds better than Ford, Holden and Toyota.
On the art side, l have been rather productive, as usual, and have just finished a small three part series , of three wood cuts from Cortina, and a series of large charcoal drawings titled Tower.
Next week l have a small show in my studio to show the drawings and recent sculptures.
So thats that, the boys are playing soccer still, though Ewan has a desire to possibly stop and do aths or basketball. At the moment, along with Jaynes damaged knee, Ewan has a sore ankle from basketball, Hunter a sore hip from skiing, and me a twinge in the hamstring from running, otherwise we are all well, happy and smiling.

With Antonio and Sabrina at Rasiglio

Ewan as Roger in Grease

The boys in the school musical Grease

The hot guests, who were a bit tipsy

Surprise