Awake, for morning in the bowl of night has flung the stone that puts
the stars to flight

And, lo, the hunter of the east 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/Galiza

It probably won’t surprise many to read that the proposed tax of 100% of property purchases by foreigners is struggling to get parliamentary approval.

Seasonal Spanish foods for spring.

Life has certainly changed here in Pv city. Last night I found myself sitting next to not just one US family with 2 kids in a local school uniform and a dog, but two US families. I wonder how many foreign families now have kids at that school.

The Middle East War

See my earlier post.

The United States of Trump USA

The insider dealing is off the chart.

Trump explodes in angry panic over the midterms as a brutal Fox poll hits.

An eminent political strategist says that Trump is in much bigger trouble than even the terrible polls but warns that Trump will do anything and everything to avoid or void the November elections.

A very small light at the end of the tunnel . . . Trump v. Vance and Gabbard – from min 4.50. And possible evidence of an Article 25 plot.

The Way of the World/Social Media

Should we start rejoicing? . . . ‘The era of invincibility is over’: the week that brought big tech to heel. The ruling that Meta and YouTube deliberately designed addictive products marks a possible watershed moment for social media.

You’d think a president in trouble – see the dreadful polls – would lie low and only emerge to make an occasional serious and credible statement. In contrast, Trump talks/ramble endlessly to reporters, calls journalists and even phones Fox News to repeat his lies and to attack one of their reporters.

Spanish

• Vaiven: Swing, sway, swaying.
• Echar humo: Usually means to do something at full pelt but can mean ‘To blow a fuse/gasket’. The RAE: Estar muy enfadado o furioso.
• Silex: Flint.

AI

I asked Gemini – by voice – on my phone what ‘granivorous’ meant. It gave me an explanation centred on the words ‘granny virus’. I then wrote my request and it came back with an apology for confusing itself and giving me the right definition. Quite impressive.

English

I heard someone use the word ‘henchwoman’ and this sent me searching for the origin of ‘henchman’. Which is: This comes from Old English ‘hengestmann’, literally “horse-man,” or a groom or horse-attendant. In late medieval and early modern usage it developed into “high-ranking servant or page to a noble or king,” often riding or walking beside the master in processions. The modern pejorative sense of “unscrupulous follower or thug” is first recorded in the 19th century and seems to come from a (mis)reading of Scottish/litterary usage

Did you know?

There once was a nuclear-powered car.

Finally . . .

Don’t forget to put your clocks back tonight. Especially if you are my younger daughter . . .

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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.

If you´re thinking of moving to Spain, this link should be useful to you.