Festa della Donna

Today the world (ideally) celebrates women and how they affect our various cultures, lives, traditions, families and world. I am particularly fond of "La Festa Della Donna" in Italy, or The Festival of Women. Here in Italy the tradition is for men to give women little yellow flowers called Mimosas, like the drink. The flowers are cute and fluffy. We got fluffy yellow pastries that were covered in yellow sugar and filled with sweet cream. My mom-in-law and I were treated to a special lunch by an exclusive chef. He made my favorite: Pasta with good tomato sauce and ricotta cheese. We then had a second course of sausages with a side salad with a delicate lettuce, dried tomatoes and fennel slices. Oh lunch was pure bliss!

La Festa della Donna is celebrated with everything sweet in sunshiney yellow.

Right after lunch I slid on my slippers, walked into the the living room and felt something very squishy under my right shoe. I knew my Dr. Scholls gel insole couldn't possibly be that squishy. Looking down I focused on the cut dark marble floor (called minestrone marble in Italy because it is made of lots of little parts) and saw nothing but the shiny little squares of marble. Then, camouflaged by the floor, I spotted it: a huge hacked hairball. Of course, what would Women's Day be without a trick in it somewhere. I pulled on plastic gloves and cleaned the floor. Sighing I went to the kitchen and told the chef that it was time we called the professional cat groomer to come help us shave our fury friends.
Along came a lovely American lady with international cat hair grooming experience. She  arrived with her handsome partner who is known across Italy, France and even Japan for giving kitties high fashion coiffures. They set to snipping, shaving and primping with our two little darlings and here is their lovely work:

Transporting Fatty

Preparing the beauty salon Sassy Cats du Jour

The pink gloves are not only protective but part of the exquisite salon experience.

Fatty, hacked up a la mode. He is now known as Scrawny.

Bentley, regretting the hairball he hacked. He will be in contemplation for a few days.

The lovely American cat-grooming lady is terribly exhausted and would love nothing more than to go to the spa for a full day of pampering. Manicuring the two giant cats was more like wrestling small lions. Since she can't go to the spa and there are no shots of tequila to be served she will be consoled with some hot chocolate and reading Anne of Green Gables on the couch for the evening. (I have a mental list of what books not to read during this period and it rules out almost everything except Anne)

The End

Ps. I have to say, I am deeply in awe and proud of the cat manicurist. Not only has he never had a pet but he did such a great job at handling my two giant Maine Coon cats. He never complained once and was way more patient that I would have been with two wiggling, kicking furballs.