But somehow the transformation Jack witnessed in Linda, as she stepped onto the tarmac at Rome’s Leonardo da Vinci airport did defy logic. Gone was the former “conch-fritter queen’ in daisy dukes and a tank top. Within a few hours upon arrival, she found a chic boutique on the Via Veneto… she selected the perfect dress, shoes, and complimentary scarf. Had her hair styled next door: she was ready. Linda’s very close friend, Millie, from Upstate, NY was on a first-class European excursion. Millie loved to party and to spend money…she threw a reception for Jack & Linda at her suite in Rome’s Excelsior. All eyes followed Linda’s entrance to the soiree…her new, Italian look did not go unnoticed by anyone in the room. And so began a month’s sojourn from Scilily’s enchanting Taormina, Jack rented a Fiat and traversed the southern ‘boot’ to Bari on the west coast.

They crossed the Adriatic so as not to miss Dubrovnik, then north to Trieste, down through Pisa, and wound up in Florence. “Come on, get up,” Jack coaxed on their first morning in Tuscany’s romantic city. “What’s the big hurry? We’re still on vacation…aren’t we?” Linda questioned. “Do you wanna get married?” Jack barked back. Navigating Italy’s system wasn’t easy but they got all the necessary paperwork signed and authorized. The 18K gold bands purchased on the Ponte Vecchio were simple but elegant. Five days later on Friday the 13th in June, within eyeshot of the Statue of David…they were wed.