happy friday

It has been a good week. :-) For starters, I am actually ahead on my work schedule; the heavier construction next door seems to have shifted to the far side of the house (at least for now), leaving me high as a kite on paint fumes, the sounds of whirring electric saws now only in the distance; and I made my first solo journey to the coast since the eye op in January, reclaiming a tiny bit more of my independence. Ever since Big Jim and I decided that we would begin to explore other areas of Spain as possible settling spots, I feel as though that proverbial weight has been lifted from my shoulders, allowing me to see the village in a new, more attractive, light. Also, since starting my language class, I find every meeting with a local an opportunity to try out a Spanish phrase or two I learned that week (my current favorite, dejar de fumar, to quit smoking, which on day 25 is still going well). And Tuesday, a chance encounter on the goat track with life-long village inhabitant (who was walking not one but two [!] three-month-old puppies, a German shepherd and a boxer) led to my first real substantial conversation with anyone from this village in more than three years. No talk of the weather, the best cleaning product for tile floors, the latest scandal in the family. It was incredibly refreshing. ******************************************* I decided not to buy any air conditioning unit, portable or not. I figured the cost just for the AC, not including the electricity, of which I would need copious amounts to run the damn thing, would be the same as a daily pass to the hotel swimming pool, which is a two-minute walk from the house. After doing the math, the decision was a no-brainer: the pool wins. Last Sunday, I paid my 6 euros, which is the daily entrance fee and includes sunbed and pillow and one of those grass umbrella-y things, and spent the entire afternoon there, alternating between reading, swimming, and just resting my eyes and letting the mind wander. There was one Spanish family from the village there, but other than us, all the others were guests of the hotel, and thus gave me the feeling of being on a mini-vacation as well. Yes, the pool definitely wins. ******************************************* While shopping yesterday, I found caftan-type tunics for sale at Zara. Okay, I admit most times I am not the biggest fan of globalization, but as I have started pricing tickets for my trip to Pakistan in September, this find seemed most fortuitous. Big Jim has advised I can pretty much get around the unofficial dress code by wearing one of these long billowy shirts over my jeans. I picked up two, a white and a pink one, so now at least my travel and arrival outfits are sorted. ******************************************* Anyone know where I can get some of this fake dirt stuff that yuppies are spraying on their SUVs in US cities, to make them look as though they have been offroading instead of zipping around urban centers? Yes, I realize I will probably go to hell for making such a ridiculous purchase, but I have my reasons. You see, here, where my car wouldn't be my car without sufficient dust for the kids to scrawl "Pepe + Pilar" inside a lopsided heart and the ubiquitous "lavame" (wash me) all over the boot, the status symbol, among those who even have time to think about these things, is a pristine car, a sign that someone has sufficient money to have a garage. These are the same people who insist on driving their SUVs into the village, taking up two parking spaces in the aparcamiento, and blocking my Peugeot so that I can't out of my spot until they return from the post office and a cerveza or two at the bodega. Think of the fun I could have with this spray-on dirt while I wait.... ;-) Have a nice weekend! mylifeinspain