What does FIVE have in common with one of America's most famous writers?
It's not the number of novels said writer published. You may have surmised as much because FIVE is capitalized.
In fact, FIVE stands for Fabbrica Italiana Veicoli Elettrici, or the association of Italian Electric Vehicle Manufacturers. (In Italian, FIVE is pronounced "fee-vay.") They have been supplying electric bikes for a project called "Tempo della Gentilezza" ("Time for Kindness"), which delivers--in a sustainable "green" way-- essential services and goods to homebound elderly and immunodeficient people.
Tempo della Gentilezza is a Red Cross project. That brings me to my connection with a famous American writer. A Farewell to Arms is based on its author's experience driving a Red Cross ambulance for the Italian Army during World War I.
We don't hear much about the vehicle Ernest Hemingway piloted. I assume, perhaps wrongly, that it was made in Italy, like the e-bikes used in the Tempo project. Now, I know Hemingway was a cyclist (and an avid bicycle racing fan), but I have to admit it's a bit of a stretch to picture him on an eBike. Or is it?
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