#1: Introduction.
I've been thinking lately about many things. And that got me thinking about how it would be nice to be able to put all of those things on a page. As such, here it is. Probably a lot of different stuff will end up here, mostly related to whatever I'm insane about at the time (the ominous cave on the sea shore just whispered 'ancora una volta sto a guarda le MotoGP...' about 17 times).
#2: On Brothers.
I've been thinking a lot about Luca Marini today. I don't know. I just wonder a lot. What is it like, to know that the blood of a titan runs through your veins? To know that you could never surpass him? Never even get close? I wonder how much of Luca is nature, and how much of it is nurture. Has Valentino tried to mould him into the perfect soldier? Or, when it became clear that the cloth he was cut from was the same fabric, but a different pattern, did he focus less on him in order to work on moulding that malleable clay of Pecco into the sharp, smooth lines he now holds? Does Valentino try to protect him from the media? It doesn't particularly seem so. A shark does not flee when it smells blood. Wolves do not avoid rabbits.
As always, when I think of anything Valentino, I inevitably think of something Marc. The red string may be slick with blood, but it has never been cut. And as such, while I think about Valentino and Luca, I also think about Marc and Alex. How...Valentino was perhaps harsh, perhaps less eager to see his brother reach the top step when more worthy candidates were there in Pecco and Marco. And how Marc was the opposite - celebrating Alex's wins even when he has issues with his own race, making a point to protect him from the media even to his own detriment. I think of how Valentino tried to destroy Marc, and how he refuses to let even a hint of that reach Alex. How Alex moved in with him after his accident.
I wonder how Luca feels, how he thinks. I met him recently, and he was lovely. Polite, with eyes even more startlingly blue than they are in photos. He doesn't really look like Valentino, and I think some of that is on purpose - the hair, the facial hair, the styling and the way he presents himself. Part of me wonders whether, even if the cloth was the same pattern, whether he wouldn't take paint to it anyway. I think it helps that he doesn't share the "Rossi" name. I think Alex sharing the "Marquez" title likely does not help him. I don't know - do I ever?
#3: I want.
I want. I want so badly. A little house, in the Tuscan countryside with a beaded door leading to the kitchen. Wind chimes, spring rain, a cup of tea, the thrifted sofa I'll never replace even when I can afford it. An Aprilia RS125 that I call "my girl" fondly when people compliment her. Warm-toned fairy lights in my living room and mismatched cushions. A little cat (orange). Companionship. I want my father back, I want my mother to act like a mother, I want so desperately for my grandmother to live forever and ever. I want to hop on a 600cc and tear down the motorway at 2am with my plates blacked out. I want to go on a walk at 8am and hear the birdsong and feel the sunlight on my face. I want, right now, more than all of this, to smoke a cigarette. I want a hug. A bed that doesn't squeak quite so loudly when I move. Legs and wrists that don't hurt. To be healthier, to be more in shape. I could go on. I just want.