Freda's Place

Mrs. Piozzi requests the pleasure of your company at 5:30 PM Thursday, 14 May, for a very special literary evening at her home in Second Life.  Mrs. Piozzi will present the  chatelaine of The Haven in Bordeaux. Mlle. Lorsagne de Sade,  the notorious Marquise' notorious daughter, will present  "An Unfortunate Mother's Advice to Her Absent Daughters," penned in 1761 by Lady Sarah Pennington.  Mlle. de Sade hopes this literary work will lead to thoughtful and provocative conversation among those gathered on Mrs. Piozzi's terrace in Rocca Sorrentina.  Time allowing, Mlle. de Sade will also share selections from "The Complete Letters of Lady Mary Wortley Montagu" (1753)

Mrs. Piozzi's Soirees Thursdays at 5:30 PM PST Rocca Sorrentina, Second Life   Hester Lynch Thrale Piozzi is back from Tivoli and getting over her great loss among friends on Rocca Sorrentina in Second Life.  Being born with a stiff upper lip, Hester has decided the best way forward is, well, forward .  In order to re-establish her place in local society, Mrs. Piozzi requests the honor of your company this Thursday night at 5:30 PM PST.  At that time, her selected friends will gather for social conversation (RP).  The topic on Hester's mind is human flight.  Recently (January 1785), two gentlemen - one French, one American -- crossed the English channel in a hot air balloon.  Hester is fascinated with the notion that men and - Dare she imagine it? - women might one day fly about in balloons, traveling from place to place untethered and free!  Please come to discuss this and other topics on our minds in this very modern age, May of ...

17 January 1785  Mrs. Piozzi commiserates with the captive birds in the rotunda of the Villa Vesuvia. Dear Miss Chase, The appointed date has come and gone and it was with no remaining doubt whatsoever that I informed my husband, Mr. Piozzi, of my great news.  Gabriel was present on Rocca Sorrentina for just a few days and has now departed for work abroad.  He will be in France for some weeks which will be followed by a brief trip to England.  How I wish I could accompany him on his journey, but that seems to still be inadvisable as the symptoms of early pregnancy are still with me.  Which brings me to the point of this letter -- well one of the points.  I was wondering if you might have any recommendation for swelling in my hands and feet which seems to go beyond the normal addition to her girth any expectant mother can, well, expect.  This swelling sometimes combines with the usual indigestion  to make it quite impossible for me ...

   3 January 1785 Rocca Sorrentina     I find myself deliriously happy in the presence of the maestro of my heart, el divo Gabriel, my husband!  Always a generous and gentle man, since learning of my blessed state, Gabriel dotes.  Today he brought my tea and biscuits in bed, insisting that my feet not touch the ground until he had seen to the most basic needs of mother and child.  We spent the day in grand isolation, reading to one another from Holcroft and Chaucer, venturing out late in the afternoon when most villagers were still at their afternoon naps.  Near the harbor, we visited the island's one music store.  The instruments there were impressive and we are considering the purchase of a clavichord.  Gabriel serenaded me as we shopped.  We walked to the end of a pier and arrived in time to observe the sunset, myself folded into my husband's arms.  If I had known twenty years ago that love could be as it is with Ga...

30 December 1784 Rocca Sorrentina   My love returned Christmas Eve, tired and in great need of rest, a bath, and sustenance, not in that order.  We attended mass together and it was all I could do to stop from blurting out my great news during the walk home.  Realizing Gabriel needed rest before being asked to deal with this unexpected excitement, I held my tongue.  It was Christmas afternoon before I shared with him the happy announcement.  I was very pleased to find that the news was indeed received as happy.  Neither Gabriel nor I anticipated becoming parents at this stage in life.  For several years, I have believed myself to be beyond any age where pregnancy was likely.  Of course, married to his nibs, there was not much opportunity for testing the theory.  Gabriel is a very different spouse indeed and here we are, not even one year married, and expecting to be parents by the time we celebrate ou...

19 December 1784 Rocca Sorrentina Why is it that the fewer days remain until I am reunited with my dearest husband, the longer each day seems to be?  I have received word that Gabriel has booked passage on a boat departing Rome in just two days time.  He will be back here with me in three.  It might as well be three years or three hundred, I am that impatient to see him once again face to face.  It is not just the momentous news I have to share.  More than that, it is the deep yearning of a wife for her husband.  How will I while away the hours of waiting?  I will drink the tea and take the walks Miss Merry recommended.  I will shop in the village for a new hat, one I'll wear to Saturday's Feast of The Seven Fishes, a local festival of this season.  I will play the harpsichord, focusing particularly on the music Gabriel most likes to sing, and I shall work at my embroidery.  Mostly, I shall yearn.    You may read...

Please deliver to Xiamara Rocca Sorrentina 13 December, 1784 Dear Xiamara, I have returned early from my trip away from this island.  I traveled only as far as Genoa before succumbing to fatigue and nausea.  I was unable to see Gabriel at all as he had commitments in Milan and Rome.  As soon as I was well enough to travel, I used what little energy I could muster to return to Rocca Sorrentina, where I now find myself in need of assistance.  I remember in our last conversation you mentioned having had some experience as a healer of women.  Of course, you said you had not much training and very little experience in midwifery, but when I mentioned to the professor that I was seeking medical help, he suggested I contact you.  So it seems you have his endorsement and that is quite enough recommendation for me.  I have not yet seen my husband and it is still early, so some discretion is called for.  I hope you will come to see me at the villa...

This is me, Stephanie, the typist behind Freda and Lu, Hester and Fanny.  It's December and I find myself in the mood for Christmas this year, which is actually fairly unusual for me.  In the solid world, I live in Florida.  Yes, we do Christmas here, but it's just not the same as what can be done in virtual worlds.  The result is that this year, I'm doing Christmas up in style in Second Life.    Freda has a winter place, a cozy log cabin with a fire place and she's even decorated.  Believe it or not, Santa is there, riding his Harley!  Freda's Winter Place will be the site of several holiday events.  Freda is also re-establishing her haunted hide-away and has decided that will be a fine place for a Winter Dance Party.      Lu is also celebrating the season in Philomenaville.  In spite of her private worries, Lu is helping Miss Trolley, the lady detective, to plan a town potluck for the holiday.  This m...

Please deliver to my most beloved husband and friend, Gabriel Piozzi New Royal-Ducal Theatre alla Scala 29 November, 1784 Dearest Gabriel, I have come as far as Genoa and find myself too tired to continue the journey to Milan.  It is impossible for me to arrive in time for your Egisto.  I do apologize most grievously, Husband.  If I were more well, I would certainly be at your side and in the audience in Milan this week.  As things stand, I will take a few days here in Genoa and hope that my vigor is revived in time to join you for the trip from Milan to Rome.  I will not say more now as I wish to post this note in time for you to see it before your premier.  Just know that all is well and I shall be at your side as soon as that is possible.  In the mean time, I think of you and yearn for your embrace.  Yours, As Always and Ever, Hester Click here to read more from Hester Lynch Thrale Piozzi.

23 November, 1784 Rocca Sorrentina   My heart, soul and body yearn for my beloved husband.  At the same time, I dread the trip to Milan.  I am to leave later this day from the port of Rocca Sorrentina.  The boat trip will be blessedly short but grueling, the symptoms of my condition being worse now than a few weeks previous.   Then the boat trip will be followed by the long coach ride from Naples north to where Gabriel is rehearsing.  The few days in that city will not be restful and then we'll be traveling together to Rome.  I have always wanted to see that city but find now that I would much rather see the inside of my own rooms here at Rocca Sorrentina.    I met Professor Stern yesterday.  He was taking coffee in a public house on the waterfront.  I was so bold as to ask him and a lady also present if he could recommend a female healer, not necessarily a physician.  He seemed to think one could...