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

Spain continues to be slow in spending EU funds. There could be a number of reasons this, of course.

What the government’s property plan means for foreign buyers.

A couple of odd Spanish claims:-

• The town of Mojácar in Almería, Andalucía, promotes a legend that Walt Disney was born there as José Guirao Zamora. This is an urban myth, as official records confirm his Chicago birth.
• A distillery in Valencia claims its “Kola-coca” syrup, created around 1885 was the original recipe for Coca-Cola in 1886. Coca-Cola refutes it as a recurring unsubstantiated story.

Another change in Pv city . . . In recent years, cocktail culture has experienced remarkable growth in Pontevedra. What was once associated with special occasions or a more specific clientele is now a regular part of the city’s leisure offerings. The trend points towards greater variety on the menus, a mix of classic cocktails and innovative creations, and a consumer increasingly open to trying new flavours.

Yet another (un-cabbed) tractor death this week. These happen so frequently, I wonder if one can get life insurance as a farmer in Galicia.

The Middle East War

So, what next? The bottom line:- We could be seeing the shooting war breaking out again as early as tonight or at any time in the next few days. On the other hand, the US could be talking to Iran via undisclosed back channels, and we could all be in for a surprise. There is no means of knowing.

The latest update from Naked Capitalism.

The United States of Trump America

A bit more TDS:-

• Most Americans think Trump mentally unfit for office, a Fox News poll says.
• Trump believes everyone he tries to deal with must has monetary motives and can, therefore, be bribed. Not the way things are done in the Middle East.
• Trump: The king’s US visit can absolutely repair relations. [I think not].

More regression . . . The firing squad is to be restored as an execution method.

Relevant podcasts/YouTube videos

• The Daily Beast Podcast/Video
• Inside Trump’s Head Podcast/Video
• The Daily Blast with Greg Sargent Podcast
• The Rest is Politics US Podcast/Video
• The DSR Network Podcast
• The Politics Girl Video. Amusing
• The Daily Show Video. Very amusing

Russia v Ukraine

• Some good news from the forgotten war . . . Ukraine says it is in the ‘strongest frontline position in a year’ as the Russian advance grinds to a halt. According to expert reports, Russia has lost miles of land in Ukraine since 1 March
• Kyiv says it has killed 12 FSB officers in a drone swarm attack on a Russian command centre.

The Way of the World

The Fashion world is an endless source of amusement. Anoraks are now in vogue. Once the jacket of choice for trainspotters and hillwalkers, now the humble windbreaker has been deemed a ‘designer hero’ buy, and was a star piece during Paris Fashion Week.

Rather more seriously . . . We live in an age when the most successful revolutionaries are not the peasants but the Silicon Valley billionaires. They are the true disrupters, the victorious radicals and the people who have successfully ripped up legacy systems and replaced them with themselves.

Spanish

• Familiar: Family friendly.
• Ineludible: Unmissable.
• Rinder homenaje: To pay homage.

English

• Does anyone know why US folk pronounce Macron as ‘Macrone’. The French don’t. And neither do the Brits.
• Cynical US]Americans are starting to sound British. Only 45% believe that if they “work hard and play by the rules”, they can make the Dream a reality. Some 59% believe it is less attainable than it was when they were growing up, while only 17% think today’s children will be better off than their parents — a clear break from previous decades. 

Did you know?

How gills became face muscles . . . In early fish, several bony or cartilaginous “gill arches” supported the gills and carried blood vessels and muscles. As vertebrates moved onto land, the front gill‑arch machinery was repurposed: the first arch gave rise to jaw and chewing muscles, while the second arch gave rise to constrictor‑like neck muscles that later radiated into the face as mimetic muscles. In mammals, the second‑arch muscles became the facial expression muscles innervated by the facial nerve (CN VII), even though they no longer touch gills at all. So when people say “facial muscles used to be gills,” they mean that the same embryonic and evolutionary building blocks that once moved gills in fish now move your skin when you grimace, grin, or raise your eyebrows. It’s a classic example of evolution recycling old structures for new functions.

You Have to Laugh

Finally . . .

Some decades ago, I taught in the Seychelles. Back then it was dirt poor. Thanks to tourism and ‘financial services’, it now has the highest GDP in Africa. I’m very glad that I never went back

My thanks to those readers who take the trouble to Like my posts.

The Usual Links . . .

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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.