Awake, for morning in the bowl of night has flung the stone that puts
the stars to flight.
And, lo, has caught the sultan’s turret in a noose of light!
Spanish life is not always likeable but it is compellingly loveable – Christopher Howse: ‘A Pilgrim in Spain’
Cosas de España/Galicia
The president of the Valencia regions has sort of semi-resigned. He says he’s sorry about mistakes made but won’t resign right now. Rather, he won’t stand for re-election, if he’s still unwanted. Which is possibly good for his pension. In parliament yesterday, while exculpating himself, he neglected to mention, never mind justify, his 3 hour lunch on that fateful Tuesday with a ‘glamorous’ TV personality. Just a job interview, it seems. Nothing to see.
Reader James has asked whether the Vigo mentioned in the New York ad wasn’t Vigo County in the USA. Well, I tracked down the foto and here it is, clearly purporting to be on 5th Avenue in that city and referring to Vigo in Spain. But, in all likelihood, an AI fake.
The UK
A handy hint: For a homeowner, there are few experiences more distressing than being burgled. But what makes it even more distressing these days is that, all too often, the police show little interest in investigating. In some parts of the country, you’re lucky if they bother turning up at all. Thankfully, though, you can now ensure their attendance by following my simple tip. Next time you find you’ve been burgled, immediately call 999, and report that there’s a middle-aged woman in your house expressing conservative views. The police will rush straight round: Michael Deacon.
The USA
This columnist claims that Trump’s eldest son is behind the ‘jaw-dropping’ appointments. Effectively the head of the Cabinet? The puppet-master?
Social Media
If, like me, you’d never heard of Bluesky until this week, this article will be informative.
Quote of the Day
In ‘Howl’, his immortal poem of 1956, Allen Ginsberg lamented: “I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness.” If he were still around today, he could comfortably replace that final word with “Twitter”. Then again, it probably wouldn’t occur to him. Because his own mind would have been destroyed by Twitter, too. The sad truth is that, over the past decade and more, a dangerously unhealthy addiction to Twitter has driven millions of middle-class liberals stark staring bonkers. Spending their every waking moment on that miserable platform has radicalised these otherwise intelligent people into swallowing the most extreme, irrational, and downright silly ideas.
English
Tittle: The dot over the letter ’I’ or ’j’.
Spanish
- Rédito: Profit. Hence Sacar rédito.
- Trol/Trola: Troll
- Trola: Lie; Hoax;
Did you know?
The German word teppichfresser – carpet-chewer – was first applied to Adolf Hitler.
You Have to Laugh
Finally . . .
Modesty personified? This is Hilman Hunt’s marvellous The Finding of the Saviour in the Temple.
It was to be framed by a chap called Green. When Hunt went to see the frame, he told Green it was quite satisfactory. ‘Ah,’ said Green, ‘but you’ll see the picture will set it off amazingly.’
My thanks to those readers who take the trouble to Like my posts, either after reading on line or in my FB group Thoughts from Galicia.
The Usual Links . . .
- You can get my posts by email as soon as they’re published. With the added bonus that they’ll contain the typos I’ll discover later. I believe there’s a box for this at the bottom of each post. If you do this but don’t read the posts, I will delete your subscription. So perhaps don’t bother if you have other reasons for subscribing . . .
- For new readers: If you’ve landed here looking for info on Galicia or Pontevedra, try here. If you’re passing through Pontevedra on the Camino, you’ll find a guide to the city there.
- For those thinking of moving to Spain:– This is an extremely comprehensive and accurate guide to the challenge, written by a Brit who lives in both the North and the South and who’s very involved in helping Camino walkers. And this is something on the so-called Beckham Rule, which is beneficial – tax-wise – for folk who want to work here. Finally, some advice on getting a mortgage. And this article ‘debunks claims re wealth and residency taxes’. Probably only relevant if you’re a HNWI. In which case, you’ll surely know what that stands for.
Thoughts from Pontevedra, Galicia, Spain 
It’s not AI. The man has gone out of his blooming mind.
https://www.farodevigo.es/gran-vigo/2024/11/06/luces-navidad-vigo-nueva-york-111423743.html
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Thanks, Maria.
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Quote of the Day: “ a dangerously unhealthy addiction to Twitter has driven millions of middle-class liberals stark staring bonkers.“.
Once an individual has been corrupted with the “impure truth of the heart” Leftism virus, there is no cure nor pleasant future for them. Leftists live in constant fear of what other think of them. Such a life is a life half lived. In the same way that colostrum builds the newborn baby’s immune system, so self confidence increases a person’s general well-being & self motivation. The experiences of youth can make or mar. By age 10, in the summer of 1953, I had steamed around the world & had lived in NZ for over 4 years. That is experience. On the first day of grammar school in Wealdstone, September 1953, my NZ accent precipitated an attempt to bully me. Boxing was taught in NZ, but not in my new school. Barging, brawling & rolling on the ground were the norms for starting fights. OK for Anglo-Irish oiks, but I took pride in my new & clean school uniform. I punched twice & my wouldbe assailant had a split lip & bleeding nose. Accusations of cheating rang out, but from then, alles war süß und leicht. I left in 1959; anathema!
Before my mother, younger brother & I embarked to join my father in NZ, we lived in St. Mary’s Bay, Kent with my maternal grandmother. I attended primary school in Hythe & travelled both ways under the eye of the bus conductor. One sunny afternoon, I got off at Dymchurch to meet my mother. I was 6, it was a lie. I wanted to walk along the sea wall that was then being constructed by German PoWs. It was idyllic for me, chattering away, but by the time I wandered home, pandamonium was raging.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained! I still remember the occasion that I mentally dressed myself with the Toga Virilis. I was taking lessons in ballroom dancing, as did all genteel born youths of 13 in 1955/56. One evening, I was 5 minutes late, which meant everyone watched me walk along the path into the building. To be honest, there was just me & 25 adult women, who wanted to parade me around the floor. The door into the studio had obscured glass, so my outline was clearly visible. The eternal conundrum; they’re watching, they’re waiting………. grasped knob, turned it & wrenched it back. Vale Caesar!!! Self knowledge is excellent, but the rationale for the Foxtrot still escapes me.
In turn, self confidence increases performance & the mental resilience to deal with stress. Being self-assured correlates with other psychological variables including saving money, influencing others & being a sensible, responsible student. Self-confidence affects interests, enthusiasm & self-discipline. Such an individual is far less likely to conform to the judgments of others. There are two ways to perform a task; my way or the wrong way. Courage is not about absence of fear. It’s about being afraid, but facing the task in front. There is no freedom without responsibility. Freedom is the willingness to accept the consequences of one’s thought, word & deed.
Confidentially,
Perry
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