The strongest things on earth? tractors

7 Maggio
I am here in bed trying to recover from a little bout of food poisoning which Raffa and I contracted from marinated pork (it was wonderful). We eat a lot of things here which are not allowed in the states, but this was more along the lines of pig carpaccio, so it didin't seem too risky, but...
I finished the "mowing" of the vineyard this morning, cramping the whole time and with a headache and dehydration sx, and am just not up to hoeing today.
We have had an exciting tractor week here. Earlier in the week a man arrived and said he was from D'Amico who sold us our interplant hoe which goes behind the tractor and cleans out the weeds right up to the grapevine where a sensor hits the metal guide pole adjacent to each vine and the blade retracts. He said ours was set up all wrong and adjusted it according to his great wisdom, breaking one of my wrenches in the process. Did I mention he reaked of alcohol? I took off with the interfilare and at day's end, I think I wiped out close to 60 if not more vines. We haven't discovered all the broken ones yet. It turns out the guy was not a representative of D'Amico, but a friend of our tractor salesman who just decided to show up. It was an expensive lesson.
On to tractors and their power. I, being the principiante or beginner that I am, have thus far broken about 8 cable holding our poles in place, climbed a pole with my left front wheel, and generally left disaster in my wake in the last 2 months. The neighbors hide when they hear the Claas fired up. The tractor, it turns out, is stronger than anything we have here, be it metal, wood, grapevines, etc. I hope to pass out of this beginner phase shortly and am proud to say, I didn't break anything today.
We continue to hoe, but not fast enough and are afraid to use the interfilare now, so we have hired 3 workers for a few days to help us catch up. A sign of the difficult economic times, this, as last year you couldn't find anyone willing to hoe for any money.
We are expecting our fancy sprayer soon which we will use to spread sulfur and copper onto the growing vines to counter various maladies. Speaking of maladies, like clockwork, the mean bugs which eat my rose blooms returned just in time to eat the 1st ones opeining up. I am in need of an organic fix! Please send suggestions.
Other than that news, we are offering a discount of 15% off all nights at Nascondiglio di Bacco after the 1st, so come on over. This lasts until May 24. We will be busy again the last weekend of May, but now is a slow time for guests and is beautiful in terms of weather.
Bacco is doing fine and gets his exercise walking up and down the rows following my tractor and chasing lizards which are flushed out. He is sensitive to the heat, so he finds a shady spot during the hotter hours and chills.
Like me today.
Ciao for now. d