{Canto 7}

    Don Vito's Epiphany
under the full moon - all bets are off.

Don Vito was born under the Sign of the Crab
making him both a Moon Child
and subject to moodiness.

Depending upon one's point of view:
this may or may not be a good thing
for a Goodfella.

Having spent all morning
and
a good part of the afternoon
sitting in a huge plaza in front of the Savoy Hotel
in Florence, Italy

and while imbibing both bottled fizzy water and cappuccino

- not at the same time...

(at a famous outdoor cafe' which cannot be named)

Don Vito sat in quietly under the Mediterranean sunshine
without a hat

his mind slowly baking
ideas.

It is true that in this part of the world
a smile on your face goes a very long way -

and with the onset of his delirium

by virtue of being surrounded by so much
beauty and art
Don Vito was racking up a lot of mileage.

Don Vito had had a conversation with Dante
(the original)
at his tomb

and the dead Poet Laureate of The Inferno
had wished Don Vito "... lot's of luck.."
when the topic of what was formulating in the slightly sodded mind
of Don Vito had come up.

Dante
didn't seem afraid his popularity would be outstripped by Don Vito's efforts
and besides, he already has his monument
here in the city of Florence.

What had transpired was this:

Having reached a certain age
the Don had decided earlier that month
that he would travel to Italy to join several other like-minded men of respect
in a writing seminar
being conducted in the seclusion
of the foothills of Tuscany

at a villa owned by a Contessa
who was
famous/infamous in her own right.

The purpose of this gathering
was to sharpen his skills in the art of literature
subdivision: autobiography.

More often than not many such gatherings
were interrupted by various law enforcement officials
but this time the Don and his peers had lucked out.

Everything had gone smoothly.

    -the Don brought tears to the eyes of his listeners
     several times
     as he read his words aloud at the dinner table
     over several bottles
     of Chianti.
 
    Receiving encouragement from his peers
    to continue his efforts
    (and thereby staying out of America a bit longer...)
    The Don had decided to extend his holiday
    and continue his musings
    in the City of Florence

    only a few short hours from the aforementioned
    but not revealed
    location

    of the Contessa's Villa of some Repute.

    NOW

    Sufficiently sun tanned and water logged
    Don Vito felt inspired to get up from his seat at the outdoor cafe'
    pay his tab
    and make his way through the wandering
    streets of Florence to find
    his favorite internet shoppe

    where for a price

    he could sit before a computer terminal
    to check his e mail and news groups.

    There are several such places
    and Don Vito knew them all...

    One cannot be too careful ...
    and changing his routine to avoid being noticed
    was a "thing" he had learned.

    But Lo and Behold as Fate would have it
    (and as was the case with Italia Telecom with annoying frequency)
    the Internet Service Provider was down.

    Sitting before a blank terminal in his beautiful
    raincoat
    and wearing his favorite sunglasses
    the mind of the Don turned to things ethereal.

    This is what he came up with:

        A Prayer to my COMPUTER ANGEL:
        Guide my keystrokes,
        Keep my programs alive,
        Protect me from viruses,
        Back up my drive.
               Amen.

    Then Don Vito swiveled upon the rollers of his chair
    to face the window that looked out upon the street
    and removed his favorite sunglasses.

    The afternoon sunshine obliged him
    by pouring it's light right into his eyeballs

    effectively blinding him for a few moments.

    The Don
    empty headed and drowning in light
    stared straight ahead

    without blinking.

    And then
    he smiled.
 
    Message - Downloaded.

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