three weeks later…

07 Thursday Aug 2025

Posted by in health, hospitals, sevilla

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It’s been three weeks since I had my bonus cardiology visit and the doctor agreed to cut Apocard (flecainide) from my prescriptions, even though she said she didn’t believe it was the cause of the symptoms I described to her (inside of head feeling bruised, pressure behind eyes, occasional dizziness and blurred vision). But hey, almost immediately those symptoms disappeared and I’ve only noticed one or two slight tachycardia episodes since then. My pulse has gone back up a bit but is still below 70 and BP is stable. I meant to ask if, without the flecainide, I should be taking a full beta-blocker pill instead of half (which original cardiologist switched it to when I started taking it with the flecainide) but I guess she would have noticed and said so. Maybe? 

Anyhow, feeling better about this. And not just because I’m actually feeling better. It’s easier now to take all three meds together in the morning and I don’t have that feeling of dread that accompanied taking the flecainide. Apparently it is a very widely used treatment for atrial fibrillation in Spain, but seems to be less popular elsewhere. And since here they still prescribe Nolotil (metamizol) with reckless abandon despite it being banned in more than 20 countries, well, I think I can be forgiven for not automatically thinking that Doctor Knows Best. 

Meanwhile, I already have my cardiology revision appointment set for next February (!). This doctor may have seemed a bit brusque but at least she also seems to get things done. So fingers crossed this latest drug cocktail (bp med, blood thinner, beta blocker) works and it’s all I need. 

it’s heeeere…

05 Tuesday Aug 2025

Posted by in casa azahar, home

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That was supposed to read THEY’RE HEEEERE except they only ended up bringing one mattress today (mine). And then they broke one of the light fixtures in the stairway on the way up (Encarni is thrilled with me, as you can imagine). Well, they took photos to send to their boss, I got them to clean up the broken glass (they were just going to leave it!!??) and also took the boss’s phone number. I don’t know what happened to Peter’s, except it isn’t a standard size so perhaps it wasn’t in stock and mine was. Whatevs.

I have a new mattress! It’s way more, um, substantial than the old IKEA one. Also taller, which I think is a more standard size as the bottom sheet fits better. Anyhow, had to make it up straight away as the cats were already getting interested and I didn’t want them ripping the shit out of it. And now I can’t wait to go to bed (been awake since 5… late for me!). I hope I like it. 😬

blues shark

04 Monday Aug 2025

Posted by in friends, sevilla

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last time I saw Steve (left) in London 2019 with my friend Michael

My friend Steve Pay has died. He has had various health issues over the years and then was diagnosed with spinal melanocytoma. The other day he moved into a nursing home but, as his wife Sara told us on his Facebook page, it was still unexpected. Everyone thought he had a bit more time.

I first “met” Steve on an online forum called H2g2, originally started by Douglass Adams and, after his death, taken over by the BBC. That’s when I came in… maybe around 2002? Anyhow, the site was meant to be an online “Hitchhikers Guide” with people contributing articles about subjects they were knowledgeable on., kind of like a pre-Wikipedia. The forum was there for members to discuss… well, whatever. I had a look around before venturing in but then popped into one of the forums “GOD – FACT OR FICTION?” without realising my life was about to change.

It was there that I not only met Steve (aka Blues Shark), but also Peter and a host of other colourful characters, some colourful in a good way, others not so much. Anyhow, lots of discussion ensued on these forums, or as much as dial-up would allow, which ended up with Steve coming down to Sevilla for a week or two in the summer of (I think) 2003 and renting out one of the spare rooms in the apartment next door. I think that short holiday sealed the deal for Steve… he totally fell in love with Sevilla.

The next summer Peter also came down for a holiday and, well, never left. Several other h2g2 pals also made their way down to “Casa Az” to visit over the years. Then one day Steve met Sara, and they started coming down together. Some pics below of them on various visits. But the last time I saw them was on a trip to London a few years ago and then in 2019 I met up with Steve and my friend Michael for lunch at Darjeeling Express, and that was the last time I saw him in person. We kept up a bit on Facebook (really the worst social media platform for me, I lose touch with so many people who only use FB) so I wasn’t really aware of how serious his condition had become. And now he’s gone.

We shared a love of cats, music (esp blues), good food and wine… and chat. That guy loved to talk. Much love to Sara, perhaps one day she will make it back to Sevilla and we can go have a glass of his favourite sangría together. Hasta siempre, amigo mio. 💙 🦈

click to enlarge photo