Gredos – Page 20 – don't confuse the narrator

a knotty solution

Well, the problem with my phone and internet connection was finally identified: apparently you can’t hope for a telephone to work when the cable is totally unattached.

I have my suspicions about which of the ‘technical’ guys was responsible, as there have been no more high winds since last week when it was fixed temporarily, and I don’t think the eagles that the village is proud to claim have started frequenting the area have been trying to perch in my orchard, so I can’t blame them.

Perhaps the most worrying thing is that the photo shows what is considered to be a solution. Just what do they think is going to happen to those exposed wires the next time we have a storm?

be careful what you wish for

telephone cables — not exactly a wireless connection

Where British Telecom users often say ‘Telecon’, Spanish customers of Telefónica refer to the company as ‘Timofónica’, and I suppose most other national telecommunications companies have similar nicknames.

Currently, I’m debating whether the situation is best described as tele-non-communication or being tele-incomunicada.

A fortnight ago, the router was destroyed by a mains glitch during a storm. Well, we weren’t actually here when it happened, but that seems the likely explanation as some hundred routers round the village needed replacing.

Then we had high winds and the internet connection kept waxing and waning and eventually the phone line died completely.
Continue reading “be careful what you wish for”

images

There are times I can see the appeal of Twitter for a writer, particularly for poets. I often ‘find’ an image that I know will probably one day find its way into a poem, but that I don’t have time to think through and connect to other things right away.

So, in 140 characters – or less, to make it easily re-tweetable – I could capture that image in a kind of tweet’ku.

There again, I already spend enough time updating the blog, so perhaps I’m better off posting such things here, particularly as I can include the photo directly. Like this:

Cob nuts in mob caps

cultural activities

Back in Spain after what seems to have been a long absence, I find the village half in fiestas.

Miss Camiseta Mojada & Mister Paquete Mojado contest — cultural equality?

I’m not sure if this is actually the annual Fiestas del Veraneante, which end each August in a mess of seaside tat, fairground rides and firecrackers, or if it’s a special weekend of music. Certainly live music has blared through till 5am this weekend, presumably to ensure that no one looks too refreshed when they return to work after their summer holiday.

There appear to be other ‘cultural activities’, too, such as those advertised on the poster in the photo: Miss Camiseta Mojada – ‘Miss Wet Tee-shirt’ – is about the level of finesse I would expect for village fiestas, but I can’t decide whether Mister Paquete Mojado strikes a new low for culture or a new high for equality.

I guess it would probably be better if I don’t start wondering too deeply about the chupitos eróticos or the invitation to “come and ride our mechanical bull”.

the leisure business

The local piscina natural is now active for the summer and new signs have been painted and displayed. This is one that has escaped the graffiti artists so far: