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

The government has announced a multi-million emergency package of aid for Ceuta.

Not really surprising news . . . The OCU estimates a 35% increase in food prices over 3 years here in Spain.

This article claims that Spain’s average social security pension is now higher than the country’s most frequent salary. Certainly, on the face of it, Spain’s pensions are generous, far more so that British pensions. Though Brits have access to more claims to additional benefit payments, so direct comparisons can be misleading.

A bit more here on Fy2Galicia’s plans for Galicia, which don’t seem to include departures from the UK.

The aggressive orcas have come north and are now attacking boats in the estuaries of Vigo and Pontevedra. See a relevant video here.

The Middle East War

The latest update from Naked Capitalism. Iranian retaliation.

The United States of Trump America

• Let’s hope this is wrong . . . Trump Won’t Cancel Elections. There’s a Far More Dangerous Plan in Motion. If you are waiting for elections to save this country, you are dangerously wrong. A criminal organization has captured the electoral system, the courts, and the Justice Department itself.
• Robert Reich: The real reason Trump won again —and why his power is waning.
• Trump has been humiliated in Iran – and shown how America will lose its next war. He seems to think words alone will be enough to keep China and Russia in check – but this week has shown the true cost of his profligate war of waste.

Relevant Books

• To be published in October. Can be pre-ordered now: Wtf America?!: The Way Out of This Hell and Back to Democracy. On Amazon or here.
• The final pages of Kurt Andersen’s fascinating run through the USA’s history – Fantasyland: How America went haywire. A 500 year history.

Spanish

• Fiesta rave: Rave (pronounced rabé )
• El front end: Guess
• El Back end: Ditto
• Tanto en propia puerta: Own goal

German

After ‘sushi’, here’s the German for ‘No’.

This, of course, is another spoof, as it really means: Association for subordinate officials of the head‑office management of the Danube steamboat electrical services.

Did you know?

For every single person in the world, this year of 2026 is the sum of their age this year and the date of their birth. Works for everyone in my family, anyway. Said to happen every thousand years.

You Have to Laugh

Finally . . .

There are more than 10,000 species of grass. Sometimes I think I have most of them in my lawn. The most troublesome are these buggers, which I am forced to eradicate by hand. Thank god for the recent week of rain . . .

Common crab grass

and Smut grass

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

The Usual Links .

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I can also be read on X at Thoughts from Galicia. And on Substack here. I no longer post on Facebook.

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. And this, on the annual costs of owning property here.