My Very Exciting day

As distinct from my many other quite exciting days.........
Got up this morning quite anxious and a little excited as a new grandchild was due to be born today.  I rushed up to my studio as I have the internet, a "real" phone and better mobile reception here and I didnt want to miss hearing about the great event. I didnt have long to wait until I got the phone call and I have a new granddaughter called Mila sofia. That means my son is a father - it doesnt  seem that long ago that he was my little boy and now he has a daughter!
Moving swiftly on before I get maudlin and feel very very old.
That was only the beginning of my very exciting day.
I had arranged to go for lunch at a friends house near Bernalda so set off in a great mood and was soon whizzing along- then slowing down as I reached 60kph - and then whizzing along again,  up and down the hills, windy roads, blind corners when all of a sudden WHAM  - a wasp hit me in the throat and stung me. I slowed down and stopped as, I was on a straight bit of road  , and by looking in the mirror I could see where I had been stung - right on the middle of my throat. It hurt quite a bit. I have been stung by a wasp on my scooter before but never there. I started to imagine it swelling up and not being able to swallow and then not being able to breathe. Naturally I was quite calm while all this was crossing my mind!!
I was in the middle of the countryside on my own - and memories of a friend who had not previously been allergic to wasp stings but had swollen up all over and spent 4 days in hospital after being stung - were bothering me.
So I decided to take my self to Casualty  (Pronto soccorso) at the local hospital which was only 15 minutes away. I reasoned that however unlikely, it would be very selfish of me to swell up and die on my granddaughters birthday. So I sped off in the direction of the hospital trying not to imagine that my throat was swelling more by the minute and wondering if I would be found in time if I fell off my scooter cause I couldnt breathe. There was very little traffic on that particular road. But I reached the hospital, parked my scooter and sidled into the hospital. The sting hurt and my throat felt a bit numb but I was definitely still breathing and swallowing. I didnt have to wait long and I figured if I stopped breathing they would see me straight away.
I think they were reasonably entertained and very pleasant . I did mention my friend who had spent 4 days in the same hospital and I think I explained myself as well as possible especially when I mimed gasping for air.
I thanked  the staff very much departed in slightly embarassed fashion, and hope that I brightened up their day
Relieved that it didnt look as if I was going to swell up I set off again feeling quite proud of myself  for having been reasonably sensible. If I had been allergic and swollen up in the middle of the countryside with no one around I would have felt pretty silly.
So I zoomed off, thinking, "must wear scarf on scooter".
As I reached Bernalda  I thought I was wobbling about a bit going round corners, but put it down to too much excitement. However in the middle of town I went round a corner and nearly came off the scooter as the back wheel started to slide out from under me. I pulled into the side slightly shaken and sure enough  I had a puncture.
I don't know Bernalda that well. I don't know the word for puncture either. But since I came to Italy I have almost always found people very helpful. So I went into the nearest open gate which led into a DIY  yard and asked if they could help. I was not completely successful as they explained where I could get my tyre repaired but seemed to be at the other side of town and I wasnt sure that I could ride my scooter with a completely flat tyre. So I thanked them and walked back out. I decided I would need to phone my friend again (was already late after being at the hospital ) and see if she could help. Just as I was saying "Guess what happened now....." a young man came out of the yard on a scooter and said follow me. I decided that I could at least try to see if I could move and managed to follow him very slowly and scarily to the other side of town. That was almost as frightening as thinking I was going to swell up. My scooter wobbled like crazy at the back and I kept it upright more by luck than anything else.
It didn't take long to replace both tyre and inner tube. (And cost less than I expected) And I set off again. Just as I was turning into my friend's drive way a car coming out stopped, a man rolled down his window and stuck his hand out to shake , saying he was  ....... ...... and was one of my friends on facebook. He then wished me a good day and drove off. I found that very funny for no particular reason.
I arrived only one and a half hours late , but in a very good mood.
After having a gorgeous lunch, a serious coffee and a totally inspiring chat about life and art I left and had a very uneventful trip back to Pisticci.
Now I am planning to hang a large mirror which I bought at the antiques market yesterday and then I may go home for a peaceful evening.