Night’s candles are burnt out, and jocund day stands tiptoe on the misty mountain tops.
Spanish life is not always likeable but it is compellingly loveable.
- Christopher Howse: 'A Pilgrim in Spain'*
Covid
This pandemic has served to expose not only the incompetence and dishonesty of politicians almost everywhere but also the dysfunctional nature of some models of government. Nowhere more so than in the USA, where we wait to see if the election result brings closer the forecasted civil war. Or at least uncivil violence. Whatever happens, can this country ever again lecture the rest of the world on democracy and good government?
Living La Vida Loca in Galicia/Spain
Talking of civil unrest. These reports - here and here - are disturbing.
The owner of my regular bar was yesterday preparing posters protesting against the death of the hostelería (hospitality) sector. I think there might be a street demonstration/parade today. If this fails, there'll be a cacerolazo/cacerolada, which is the mass banging of metal pans on balconies which I think became fashionable here during the late Franco era. To me this smacks of frustration born of impotence. 'We can't actually do anything, so we'll just make a lot of noise'. Dare I say, very Spanish in this regard . . . ?
Lenox Napier of Business Over Tapas recently wrote of the (literal) disappearance of his bank branch. Last night, I discovered that the one whose ATM I use on the way into town had gone. Though not quite spectacularly as Lenox's . . .
This is the 2nd of the 2 ATMs on my route to disappear. What a contrast with the crazy (phoney-boom/carpetbagger) years of 2002-08, when banks went berserk opening (employee-heavy, expensive) branches as fast as they could. And competed by offering free gifts of bed-linen, crockery, kitchen appliances and the like. Indeed, one bank - the Andalucian CAM - opened 2 branches within 50m of each other in Pontevedra city. Like most - if not all - of Spain's local (and usually corrupt) 'savings banks, it's since ceased to exist. Gobbled up by a real bank, Banco Sabadell.
Here’s Day 49 of María’s Falling Back Chronicle, giving us more details of the Galician/Celtic celebrations of Samhain.
The USA
Donald Trump claimed yesterday he wasn't/couldn't be a 'second place finisher'. What he meant was 'loser', his biggest insult for others. Anyway, we should soon know how successful was his pitch of 'Yes, I'm a monster but vote for me in you own economic interests.'
Finally
In the last few days, I've had 2 leaks in the water pipe running between the edge of the path and my lawn. Said pipe is surrounded by small granite stones which I laid on the surface many years ago. When I asked the plumber if vibration against these was the cause of the leaks, meaning I should remove them, he said it wasn't and I needn't. It later dawned on me that it was perhaps too much to ask a plumber to endorse something that would reduce his income prospects.
Incidentally 1: I was telling my Madrid-based daughter and her Spanish partner about this yesterday. They thought my (alleged) Galician pronunciation of fontanero (plumber) was hilarious.
Incidentally 2: The Galician word is fontaneiro, displaying the frequent one-letter difference between Castellano and Galego. It's the diphthong which Castellano speakers find funny.
Here's something which appeared on my lawn yesterday.:-
It's the first time this has happened in 19 years, leaving me wondering if it's a result of the water leaks. Or just normal levels of Galician 'precipitation'.
* A terrible book, by the way. Don't be tempted to buy it, unless you're a very religious Protestant.