saved!

28 Friday Jul 2017

Posted by in change, sevilla

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About ten days ago  I posted a photo of La Campana with a huge banner across the front, asking people to sign a Change.org petition in order to get the city council to reinstate its terrace permit. Well, I was walking past La Campana yesterday and saw the banner was gone, so I went inside and asked – “Did you win??” – and there were big smiles all around. Yay!

I was told that due to the usual government red tape the terraza won’t actually be back for another month or two, but it’s something to look forward to.

my first dishwasher!

27 Thursday Jul 2017

Posted by in casa azahar, home, sevilla

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Okay, there was a dishwasher at my previous Casa Azahar, but apparently it never worked so the landlords were fine with me tossing it so I could put in a bit more shelf space. And anyhow (or so I always thought) who the hell needs a dish washer? Especially when there are just two people in the place.

But when I found a fully-functioning dishwasher at the new Casa Azahar I decided to give it a go, especially for washing all the packed dishes before putting them away in their freshly cleaned cupboards. Before using the machine I ran it through first with just very hot water, then a second time with detergent, and let it dry out well. And today I’ve been trying it out with the dishes as I unpack them. I think I need a Dishwasher Loading 101 course, but other than that I can see why people use these things. Maybe not every day, but now and then. And defo for after moving, when the dishes aren’t so much dirty as just a bit dusty from being in a box. What’s you opinion about dish washers? Any tips?

reconnected… and it feels so good…

26 Wednesday Jul 2017

Posted by in computers, internet

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I had put in my request at Movistar for a new internet hook-up last week, once I found out that Moving Day would be the following Monday, but I didn’t expect that they would cut off my present service on Friday night (!!!). So I popped back over to the Movistar store on Saturday to find out what was going on and they said I would get my new connection within 14 days (!!!!!). Two weeks without internet at home?? Just getting through the weekend only using my iPhone was hard enough. I mean, it’s fine for just browsing and tweeting and instagramming, but not really ideal for answering emails and, well, running my business. So I was thrilled when Movistar called me yesterday morning and said they would be over the next day (today!) to hook me up.

Luckily there was an existing fibre-optic line so it wasn’t too complicated. And the technician even did a nice job of trying to hide the fine cords from Morcilla’s view. Time to fill up those shelves!

nervous making…

25 Tuesday Jul 2017

Posted by in cats, home, sevilla

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As you may recall, I’ve had many issues with “balcony cat protection” over the years, resulting in various methods of attempting to keep the beasts from plummeting to their deaths. When I moved to my previous house with Azar and Loki in 2011 it seemed like those days were over since the balconies had enough of a barrier (like the one in this photo) to keep them from accidentally falling, and so my balconies were blissfully “protection free” until Luna and Morcilla came along. Turned out those two chicas just loved to climb, and actually used the curly metal design bits up the railings as pawholds. So then I had to do this…

… once again making my balconies off-limits for humans. As you can see in the top photo, the balconies at the new Casa Azahar also have a small protective barrier at the bottom but NO pawhold design features, so I thought I’d let the cats have a look out this morning. Loki was the first to check it out but quickly decided he wasn’t interested. Then the girls came over, both looking quite nervous. Luna stuck her head over the barrier, then Morcilla actually put her front paws up on it to get a better look, at which point I got nervous and shut the door again.

Meanwhile, neighbours directly across from me have a cat and they have no sort of balcony protection up at all. They have even put a little footstool-bed thing in front of the balcony for the cat to lie on and enjoy the fresh air. I WISH I could trust my cats that much. Anyhow, it’s not really a question of trust. All that needs to happen is for something to fly by and then instinct would take over. My friend Fourat’s cat has fallen/jumped out her window a few times now, breaking a leg and (I think) a collar bone, so I’m not being a hysterical cat-woman. According to my vet, cats fall all the time, since real life is not a Disney film. And so… off in search of a new kind of cat protection as the mesh is not only useless (it’s actually perfect for little climbing ninja cats like my girls). Fourat has suggested a light plexiglass. Stay tuned…

moving day

24 Monday Jul 2017

Posted by in change, home, sevilla

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It took 6 men 6 hours to pack up my entire house and move it to my new house, something that probably would have taken me 6 weeks and would have involved a LOT more stress. I couldn’t believe how fast these guys worked… by 1.30 pm I was left at the new Casa Azahar surrounded by a sea of carefully packed boxes. It’s the first time I’ve used professional movers, and that packing service is worth every penny. This company didn’t offer to unpack, which I actually prefer, though no doubt I will still have things in boxes 6 weeks from now.

The only stressful part was the cats. I had them all cosy in my bedroom and naively thought I could ask the movers to clear another room first so I could then swap them over… but they moved so fast! And they were also very loud. And suddenly I was told the cats should probably “wait in the bathroom until it’s all over”. Well, okay, I probably should have thought of this initially, but trying to move three terrified cats one-by-one into my (now ex) horrid tiny under-the-stairs bathroom not only proved almost impossible – when I slipped one cat in, another ran out – but it ended up with me throwing my back out when I got into a twisty position trying to catch Loki… SERIOUS PAIN. And that’s really what you want, to throw out your back while moving house. Grrrrr… In the end we got them all in the bathroom, and then switched them back to my (empty) bedroom once the movers had left. Boy, they were not happy bunnies. But they actually were keen on sniffing out every corner of their new home once we brought them over.

I just hope it won’t take me 6 months to unpack.