Michael came home from Southern California with a bad cough. Breathing that smoke for over a week was really bad for him. He saw a doctor and is on medication. Marc was drinking coffee, sitting on a rail when a strong wind came up and blew him off. He came home with a huge lump on his head and a cracked tooth. He refused to go to the hospital, but he was checked out by our own EMT, Michael. I made him stay up all night and when he fell asleep, I became hysterical and had a hard time waking him up. He was just tired from staying up all night. Even our cat, Max, was jumping on him! He seems more like himself today, but I’ve been better…The bump is going down and he is back to his old antics.

On Halloween Eve we had a fairly big earthquake. Our strongest since Loma Prieta in 1989. No damage, this time, just a lot of frayed nerves. That morning, Marc took me to a large consignment store so I could look at the vintage jewelry. I spent some time looking and before leaving asked the saleswoman if she had any vintage Tiffany. She informed me that the only Tiffany worth buying would be something made by LC Tiffany. Anything else was “common.” I was so stunned by her stupid remark! I have trained and fired hundreds of salespeople. If she worked for me, I would have shown her the door. To imply to a customer that they have anything less then superb taste is the height of stupidity. I won’t be going back and I’m a pretty good customer for jewelry. I don’t buy just once in a while. Its my passion…

I bought some wonderful jewelry from a lady who has done a lot of traveling and has excellent taste. I am researching Roberto Coin and Hidalgo. I am fascinated with the enamel work on the Hidalgo and have found some interesting websites about European hallmarks. Each piece is like a little mystery and I am learning so much  I’m lucky to have Marc here to read all of the tiny letters and numbers. Plus, he is an excellent researcher.

The jewelers in Italy take so much well deserved pride in their craftsmanship. When Vito took me to Capri, I saw jewelry that would make you weep. I could tell he was not thrilled at the prospect of spending hours looking at some of the most expensive jewelry in world. He gets nervous just walking past Tiffany with me! He told me he would take me to every jeweler on Capri and take my picture outside each glorious shop. We did a lot of walking and had a wonderful adventure. I saw pearls as big as golf balls and diamonds in colors I never dreamed of. It was a holiday I will remember forever. Its an exciting 45 minute boat ride from Ischia, but feels like a different world. The villas belong to the most famous Italian movie stars and designers. I would be very happy living there.