Reflections of a 24-Hour Hermit

I did not receive visitors yesterday. 

On Saturday night, my son's elementary school held its annual fundraiser and I was one of the many foot soldiers who, over the past four months, helped bring the night to fruition. It was a success. But I woke up Sunday morning absolutely shattered. So I decided I needed to spend Monday on a self-imposed retreat.

After Luca left for school, the front gate was locked, the phone ringer was turned down and I put a temporary moratorium on the computer. The camera was allowed, for verification purposes only.

Here's what I did:

1. Sat in the refuge of my garden with with a Gulliver-sized teapot of Earl Grey beside me and sipped at leisure.

2. Finally finished Alan Bennett's The Uncommon Reader, In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan, Down the Garden Path by Beverley Nichols and Looking Back by Shusha Guppy.  (I had only a chapter or so to go on each.)

3. Flirted with beginning Julia Strachey's Cheerful Weather for the Wedding, Leonard Woolf's The Wise Virgins, Francoise Sagan's Bonjour Tristesse, and Green Grows the City by Beverley Nichols.

4. Toppled into bed at noon. 

5. Woke from a deep sleep at 1:30pm to the chirping of birds.

6. Made myself a great simple sandwich.  Roast turkey, Jarlsberg cheese, sprouted pea shoots and baby arugula on a buttered crown roll.

7. Discovered some forgotten chocolate in the kitchen pantry. Ate it.

8. Went on a trip through my bookshelves. Lost track of time.

9. Concocted an afternoon cocktail: iced Campari mixed with San Pellegrino Aranciata and a sprig of mint. For some reason, those ingredients brought Gore Vidal's home in Italy to mind, so I hereby dub it a "Ravello Restorative."

10. Cobbled together this post.