the lost week

Well at least the fever has passed and I can now breathe again through my nose. I am still eagerly anticipating the day when my diet consists of more than toast and Fanta limon, but hey, at least I am no longer in bed wrapped up like a mummy when it is 90 degrees and sunny outside! Sparing you the intimate details, this has been one of the nastiest bugs I have had in ages, and apparently a bit of an epidemic has spread through the village. Before I had a chance to call Miguel to let him know I couldn't make Spanish class last week, he beat me to the punch---poor guy has it as well. It's hard to believe that the summer will soon draw to its close, but all the signs are the there. The grapes are beginning to arrive at the winemaker's facility at the top of our street, and the youngest children went to school this week for their orientation. And the days are noticably shorter; by 9:30 now the streets are almost dark. Despite the dry, still heat of the day, the cooler breezes kick in at night, curtain flapping in the wind. And all the last-minute football (soccer) wheeling and dealing and player trades---must remember to unsubscribe to CNN's e-mail news updates for Spain; I reckon 90% at least are just football updates. It was wonderful to have Big Jim around for at least a couple weeks of the summer. The season is by far the most social in the village, and for this reason the most difficult for me to manage his absence. When he's not here, one of the things I miss the most after an evening out is the whole chit-chatty analysis of the evening that we (and I suspect all couples) do. You know the whole "Aren't soandso such nice people?" and "God, what was wrong with soandso? They were miserable all night." I think I enjoy this part of the evening sometimes more than the actual social event in question. Although after almost a week in bed, I do look forward to seeing more faces than just Mary, Lou, Murray, and Rhoda (from the classic Mary Tyler Moore Show, for those of you too young or not sufficiently indoctrinated in American TV culture). :-) Hasta pronto, mylifeinspain