one more month... (warning, rant to follow)

until Big Jim gets a paycheck. And what a happy day that will be. Getting Big Jim this job has hemorrhaged our bank account to the tune of 3000 euros. He can claim back the costs for most of it thankfully (turns out we've also had to front the hotel charges), but before he can do that he first needs to open a bank account in Holland, and before he can do that he needs to get the equivalent of an American social security number. He has an appointment to get the SSN tomorrow and will go the bank Friday, so it will be sorted soon. But UGH. It's times like these when I truly appreciate living in this village. Here when the money machine mysteriously snatches your card, the bank manager Luis will instruct you to enter the back of the ATM, "The door's not locked," he assures you, to collect it yourself. You do as you're told, although baffled that this man is permitting you access to loose trays containing thousands of euros. Or like the first weekend of July, when all the bankcard authorization centers in Madrid closed, disallowing every debit or credit card transaction (Man, you should have seen the tourists freak out...recently arrived from the airport with just a few English pounds in the pocket and no way to get dinero to feed the kiddies for 4 days...). Unable to withdraw the money for the rent, Luis advances you the money and tells you to just pay it back when the machines come back to life on Monday. No one here would ever ask you to pay for nights in a hotel room that have yet come to pass. I seriously doubt that most of our neighbors even have a credit card. How would they survive elsewhere. For most of the locals here, life is still a hand-to-mouth existence. Antonio raises the chickens and rabbits his family eats. They collect and dry fresh camomile and other herbs. For the past week, after siesta, Antonio and his son Pepe have sat outside my office window with huge burlap bags full of almonds, using a hammer to crack the shells. After two days back in "civilization," Big Jim already sounds relaxed and comfortable in his new surroundings. I wonder if I would be.... hasta manana, mylifeinspain