Being in my twilight years, I must search each night, with only limited success, for a decent sleep. So many things can go wrong: from the owl hooting outside my window, a sudden cramp or an irritating mosquito-bite; but I suppose being uncomfortably hot (or cold, depending), is the most common.
Followed by waking up to take a leak halfway through the night.
I’ve switched on the ‘no phone calls after 10pm’ button on the mobile phone so at least I won’t be roused by some nitwit…
Once I awaken, it’s the very devil trying to get back to sleep and that enjoyable dream I was probably having – which I’ve since forgotten.
So, I decided on an early night on Wednesday (my book is a bit boring).
You know, it wasn’t five minutes after I fell asleep when an alarum went off on my phone Waddoo, Waddoo, Wadd- the fuck? 
Yes, those fine people at Civil Protection had put out an Es-Alert warning in red capital letters regarding a most terrible storm that was approaching, man the lifeboats and sleep upstairs; and please, Take Care because we love you!
I put something rude about them on Facebook and tried to go back to sleep.
Then it was a message, Bleep, click, click, from WhatsApp. I was by then just about nodding off. Three o’clock in the morning in Spain, 9.00pm in Canada. A friend has just crossed the pond and wants me to know that she made it safely to Ontario.
No rain I see, peering out on the terrace. Grumpily I try and get to sleep again. I’ve had about four hours by this time, so I’m not going to pass out again for a while. After a bit, and grouchy because of my interrupted night, I switch on the bedside lamp and check my e-mails. Maybe have anogther go at my book.
At six on the dot, a single clap of thunder teases me.
I stagger from bed at nine this morning, go and feed the cats, and check once again for the terrible storm.
So far, as I open a can of pet food, it appears to have drizzled slightly.
I consider having an early siesta.
Last night’s alarm was apparently something to do with Valencia, 356 kilometres to the north, where it’s been raining heavily.
It reminded me (and no doubt them) that the last flooding up there, almost two years ago, was greeted by silence from the authorities, and in consequence 230 people drowned.
They also failed to warn us down here with their noisy and effective siren when the hills around next-door Bédar caught fire with fifteen victims back in July. A horrible event that I could see clearly for three nights from my bed-room window.
So now, they are using an alarm to wake the dead. Better safe than sorry, eh?
I am once again on the Internet as I sip a coffee – no rain for my area, it says, until Saturday!
Remind me on Friday night to leave the phone under the seat in the car.
…and later: Saturday started out overcast, then it cleared up again. There's never any rain where I’m living!