language & communication – Page 25 – don't confuse the narrator

food for thought

I went into the local agricultural supplies store to buy cat food and the guy looked up and said “¿pienso?”.

I’ll admit I was sorely tempted to reply, “lo dudo” as he’s not the brightest crayon in the box: he’s more the sort who “just sits” without much in the way of thinking going on.

(That was meant as a reference to “sometimes I sits and thinks, and then again I just sits.”, but now I’ve added a photo, I find that “I have a Gumbie Cat in mind”. Hmm. Tangents are fun things.)

Anyway, he really meant pienso as a noun – alimento para el ganado. Well, I’d never thought of our semi-ferals as livestock, but there’s certainly a small herd of them. (And, as the guy in the EDS advert says, “Herding cats? don’t let anybody tell you it’s easy.”)
Continue reading “food for thought”

of gender and generalities

There’s a general strike planned in Spain for this coming Wednesday and this advert appears in El Público today:

The call to action comes from the Izquierda Unida, the main left wing party in Spain (as opposed to the PSOE – the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party – currently in power and not half as left wing as the name might lead you to expect).

Whatever my sympathies might be for the left, and for those who intend to strike, I object to the phrase nosotras y nosotros.
Continue reading “of gender and generalities”

out of its element

I came across this monstrosity sitting in the local river this morning, and the word bulldozer wandered through my mind looking for something to connect with.

It reminded me of a transformer; a shape-shifting earth-shifter. I’m not sure what it was doing there other than looking slightly uncomfortable and as if someone had mistaken the nearly dry river bed for a parking space.
Continue reading “out of its element”

a wee warning

I went to a modern art exhibition last week and was much taken with this sign that was placed underneath one of the sculptures, a strange mixed-media contraption standing on sand.

In the same way, the first time I went to the Retiro in Madrid and saw the signs saying No pisar el cesped I did a double take. I imagined there were probably public toilets in Spanish parks, so why did they think I’d be tempted to go on the grass? It would have made more sense if it had said “don’t let your dog piss (or otherwise) on the grass”, but that seemed not to bother them in the least.
Continue reading “a wee warning”

rest & restoration

This juxtaposition of signs caught my eye:

Iglesia Cristiana Evangélica - Centro de Decanso — are you weak and heavy laden?

In fact, the Evangelical Christian Church has long gone from the building, and was replaced by the ‘Centre for Rest’ – which sells beds, mattresses etc. – but I thought of Matthew 11, 28: