See I've got to supervise the mutt's favourite indoor pass-time because she tends jump madly onto whatever may be closest to where the fly flits and would not hesitate to take down a lamp (as she once did in Tokyo), plant, bookcase, curtains, etc. After 10 minutes, I'm afraid I had to intervene and, having failed at shooing the damn thing out a window, hit it with a rolled periodico (newspaper) and let her finish it off. Normally I'm a "why kill a nice little insect" type but hey, when it comes to houseflies, it's survival of the fittest I'd say.
However, when it comes to the dullness of my routine days, two things speak to an upcoming change in policy. Yesterday, in needing to go the the historical centre area south of our place for an appointment, I got another taste of the more interesting bits of Madrid (our neighbourhood is quite residential and doesn't possess much of historical/cultural interest unless you count the soccer stadium) and resolved to get (the hell!) out more often!
[I just remembered that the second most exciting thing about yesterday was my invention of some delicious calabacín (a type of squash) pancakes for dinner. Grated up my squash, added some curry powder, salt, pepper, then fried it up in olive oil until it was soft. Next I removed it to a bowl and mixed in two eggs. Fried dollops of it, spread out in a hot pan briefly in some more olive oil. Presto. So good! Postscipt: I've now modified this recipe by frying the curry/Garam Masala/cuminpowder in hot oil first, and by adding a tablespoon or two of flour.]What's more is that this week marks "Vuelta al cole" (short for colegio, so "back to school") and boy what a difference the end of the summer vacation period (whole month of August, as I've mentioned) makes! There is actually life (and traffic) in our neighbourhood. The shops are all reopening and parks are full of kids in the evenings. Welcome back, Madrileños. Let's see how we get along.
Finally, our palace (the more time passes, the less I can believe we actually live in this apartment!) life if very close to being completely settled. Tomorrow we get our last bits of missing furniture and can unpack the final boxes of books and CDs onto bookshelves. Pictures will eventually follow.
I am going to reinstall skype this weekend, i promise!!!!!!!!!!!!1 and yeah piccies of your palacial new digs :D
ReplyDeleteOh man, I tried using butternut squash to make chili once, and I had a totally bizarre allergic reaction called contact dermatitis! You skin gets orange and cracked and feels tight and weird! Has that ever happened to you?
ReplyDeleteOur cat Bronx was going after a fly earlier this week, but when I saw him flinch after pawing at it I noticed it was much bigger than a fly. Turns out it was a giant wasp - yikes!
Can't wait to see muchas fotos del palacio! :)
Hiya JJ. Nope, never had contact dermatitis but have eczema and am prone to other unexplained skin reactions. Once for a period of a few months, showering would make my face turn bright pink and burn/itch. Alain took to calling me his "Petite crevette"! But are you allergic to all squash? If so, how sad! North America has so many yummy ones (spaghetti being my fav).
ReplyDeleteStrange that Bronx got stung recently - the G got stung (for the first time ever) last week while she was amusing herself under our table at a sidewalk tapas bar.
Pix soon.
It's weird - I'm not actually allergic to *eating* the squash, I just can't touch it while I'm preparing it. I have to wear gloves! (Glad I can still eat it though - yum!)
ReplyDeleteI don't know if Bronxy actually got stung or just realized he wasn't dealing with a typical housefly and got nervous! He didn't cry or lick his paw or anything. I wish I knew how it got in the house though! This summer has been all about earwigs here in O-town - yuck!
Well that is weird, but yes, lucky! Oh damn, I had forgotten about earwigs - the are disgusting, aren't they. Japan had lots of cool insects but none of those. Spain is so dry though, widows here don't even have screens and nada - just houseflies! Though I think G has fleas from the sandy parks. She's getting a bath today and now it's time to look for a natural solution (vet recommends a flea collar but... chemicals just ain't our thing!). Does your pack ever get fleas?
ReplyDeleteEarwigs are tooooootally gross, and really hard to kill, like cockroaches!
ReplyDeleteNope, no fleas (thankfully) in our furry crew! It's weird though, because Alberta's also very dry, and there are hardly ever any cases of fleas there, so I would've though Spain would be the same! Maybe it depends on the region you're in...