Hola,
Last week, I was out on the balcony hanging up some clothes (dryers are muy uncommon) when a strange noise caught my attention.
It was dusk, about 7 p.m. and holy crap, there were actual, real-life kids laughing and playing below in the community playground. It was such a nice sound to hear, and something I haven't heard for donkey's years. Searching the benches I couldn't tell (curse you, becoming-old eyes) if there was a parent present, but if there was, there weren't many. And yet, the kids were having a blast being kids, like a lot of us glass-wearing folks remember our childhood.
A couple of days later, I walked by the front of my apartment building and there were more of them, and like Gremlins they were! Boys and girls of +/- elementary age, hanging out and playing some sort of hide-and-seek game -- again with no visible adult supervision. Another smile hit me. I hadn't seen kids playing that in ages, and they were having a blast, so I watched for a few minutes from my vantage point about 50 feet above. I thought about yelling in my best Spanglish, "Se esta escondiendo theeerrrrreeeeee!!" but knew that wouldn't go down well with the hide-ee.
Yesterday, I worked near the town center, and three boys, with no bother or guilt, happily played football between facing apartment entrances. They used two sets of trees about 20 yards apart as goals, so it obviously wasn't the first game of the season. The lads played their game, interrupting (a lot) as people wandered onto and off the "pitch." Again, not one parent leaning on a tree or on their phone whilst "keeping an eye" on them.
And then I realized, no one specifically needed to watch them because the community was doing its own thing in its own way.
At my apartment building, I'm sure random people looked down at the kids playing and they did stay within the community grounds, which are abundantly huge. The soccer-playing boys were next to two cafes filled with people and they would get such a bollicking if they -- or the ball -- strayed too far.
My point is I love it over here, partially because of the "it takes a village" mentality that is so normal and built-in, so hooray for a country that lets its kids be kids and where family is still such a community thing.
(My boys are scheduled to come over in June-July for a month. They have nooooooo idea of the culture shock they're going to experience.)
Hee hee :)
Hola,
Midweek moments always make me smile, except when I frown 'cos I've missed posting one:)
So, here's some random pics from this week (and one from last week.)
Midweek moments always make me smile, except when I frown 'cos I've missed posting one:)
So, here's some random pics from this week (and one from last week.)
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| I heard a motorbike sounding thing behind me, looked and saw this! |
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| *Somebody* loves baseball over here. PTL :) |
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| Countdown to Semana Santa (Took this 13 days ago :) |
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| In this bar, when you ask for a glass of wine, you *get* a glass of wine!! |
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| ... and now I know why :) |
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| Opening day for our new office was this Monday! |
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| Bloody hell, birds... Can't *one* of you guys *please* fly "in" the sun. #NoMoneyShot |
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| An apartment, a cafe, a palm tree and a sea. What more do you need? |
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| Seagull landing on a skinny Martian? Anyone? |
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| Shadows of a demo job well done. |
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| Obviously, all new IKEA-built chairs must first be test-driven/pushed :) |
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| This old lady is awesome; taking care of these communal plants in a public alley. |
Hola,
I'm pulling the curtain back, but not looking for Facebook sympathy as my 7-year-old blog is the most honest writing I've ever done, and those who know me know me.
I'm a hot mess right now for several reasons, and all my ongoing issues have bubbled over a la Kilauea.
Naturally, in pure, unadulterated desperation, I fled to my safety zone, and what's keeping me sane is writing, not drinking.
Writing is the only thing I trust at this precise moment.
But yet, come on now, you dipshit... it's the one thing I haven't trusted for years, so riddle me that one, Batman???
How silly am I, really?
If only you could have seen me these last couple of days, especially as I'm busting out 2,000 words and editing 10+ pages consistently.
I step away from the computer and I'm at peace - rather than my usual manner of going to bed unsatisfied because I'd talked myself out of writing again.
I've even started a WIP #2 to complement the cook book I'm editing and WIP #1, which is the memoir I'm struggling to write.
Imagine that. I'm doing the one thing that truly makes me happy.
Pheeww... I've got some issues to deal with (which I obviously know :)
Which closes the loop and brings me back to being a hot mess. For those who do know me, it's basically the usual problem with me with a fresh twist. I've fucked things up, and angled myself perfectly into the narliest of corners.
I am, however, doing the very best I can to fix things and look in the mirror without shame or embarrassment, but maybe a shake of the head and a, "Bloody hell, Koopmans..."
And yet, when I finish my daily writing/editing, I also look up and out and think what's the worst that can happen?
Watch this space! (With me, you never know :)
In the meantime, I'm going back to WIP myself some more. I need it!
I'm pulling the curtain back, but not looking for Facebook sympathy as my 7-year-old blog is the most honest writing I've ever done, and those who know me know me.
I'm a hot mess right now for several reasons, and all my ongoing issues have bubbled over a la Kilauea.
Naturally, in pure, unadulterated desperation, I fled to my safety zone, and what's keeping me sane is writing, not drinking.
Writing is the only thing I trust at this precise moment.
But yet, come on now, you dipshit... it's the one thing I haven't trusted for years, so riddle me that one, Batman???
How silly am I, really?
If only you could have seen me these last couple of days, especially as I'm busting out 2,000 words and editing 10+ pages consistently.
I step away from the computer and I'm at peace - rather than my usual manner of going to bed unsatisfied because I'd talked myself out of writing again.
I've even started a WIP #2 to complement the cook book I'm editing and WIP #1, which is the memoir I'm struggling to write.
Imagine that. I'm doing the one thing that truly makes me happy.
Pheeww... I've got some issues to deal with (which I obviously know :)
Which closes the loop and brings me back to being a hot mess. For those who do know me, it's basically the usual problem with me with a fresh twist. I've fucked things up, and angled myself perfectly into the narliest of corners.
I am, however, doing the very best I can to fix things and look in the mirror without shame or embarrassment, but maybe a shake of the head and a, "Bloody hell, Koopmans..."
And yet, when I finish my daily writing/editing, I also look up and out and think what's the worst that can happen?
Watch this space! (With me, you never know :)
In the meantime, I'm going back to WIP myself some more. I need it!
Hola,
Hands up anyone who's had a "Bleeecchhh" moment in the last week or so.
Ugh, I'm with you and part of it is because I've sucked wind at keeping up with my goal of three posts a week, but here I am, as I don't want the spiral to corkscrew out of control.
For the last few months, Mirjam, my much, much better half, and I, have hovered around a cottage that she's renovating - with the help of a local contractor.
The work at the 300+ year-old finca was scheduled to be completed in August, yes six months ago, but life and work over here is a wee bit slower than anywhere else I've ever lived. Sometimes, it's bureaucracy, sometimes it's weather conditions, and in this part of Andalusia, sometimes it's olives.
The contractor informed Mirjam in October that he wouldn't be working for the next couple of months (ah yeah, the weather is freezing, makes sense I said,) but nope. It's olive-picking season in our neck of the woods, he said, and so off he went to pick olives for the next eight weeks!
Now that most of the olives are off the trees, Alonso is back at work. Over the last four weeks, he's worked like a possessed man with a one-week deadline, and we may even have water at the finca by June 29th!
The good news is that Mirjam and I could start removing small stuff from boxes and large furniture from the garage. Within a bunch of hours, we semi-decorated the upstairs bedroom and a living room downstairs. We had a brilliant day getting down and dirty and enjoyed our first lunch out on the terraza.
Now that we've broken the seal, we're heading back for another "moving-in-slowly" day soon. There'll be more dust to sweep, more awkward couch seats to maneuver through small doors - and more sun to soak up at the end of a well-worked day.
Can't wait.
Hands up anyone who's had a "Bleeecchhh" moment in the last week or so.
Ugh, I'm with you and part of it is because I've sucked wind at keeping up with my goal of three posts a week, but here I am, as I don't want the spiral to corkscrew out of control.
For the last few months, Mirjam, my much, much better half, and I, have hovered around a cottage that she's renovating - with the help of a local contractor.
The work at the 300+ year-old finca was scheduled to be completed in August, yes six months ago, but life and work over here is a wee bit slower than anywhere else I've ever lived. Sometimes, it's bureaucracy, sometimes it's weather conditions, and in this part of Andalusia, sometimes it's olives.
The contractor informed Mirjam in October that he wouldn't be working for the next couple of months (ah yeah, the weather is freezing, makes sense I said,) but nope. It's olive-picking season in our neck of the woods, he said, and so off he went to pick olives for the next eight weeks!
Now that most of the olives are off the trees, Alonso is back at work. Over the last four weeks, he's worked like a possessed man with a one-week deadline, and we may even have water at the finca by June 29th!
The good news is that Mirjam and I could start removing small stuff from boxes and large furniture from the garage. Within a bunch of hours, we semi-decorated the upstairs bedroom and a living room downstairs. We had a brilliant day getting down and dirty and enjoyed our first lunch out on the terraza.
Now that we've broken the seal, we're heading back for another "moving-in-slowly" day soon. There'll be more dust to sweep, more awkward couch seats to maneuver through small doors - and more sun to soak up at the end of a well-worked day.
Can't wait.
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| Saving the candle holders while being attacked by the olive tree |
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| Hungry work |
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| I'll be finished in a minute, honest. |
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| Lunch on a cardboard box. Can't beat it with a stick! |
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| Colorful is as colorful does :) |
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| Mattress topper may be a wee bit big, but the beams are perfect |
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| Dust? What dust!! |
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| Colorful wallpaper meet shy blue door in the corner... |
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| 300 years ago, the locals were a bit smaller. |
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| Awesome heater under the window for winter |
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