Tag Archives: home

my 26th sevilla anniversary!

16 Monday Sep 2019

Posted by in sevilla

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I’m never sure WHICH anniversary I should celebrate. When I first arrived in Spain (end of May 1992) or the day I arrived in Sevilla (today in 1993). Thing is, I can’t remember the exact day I arrived in Spain (that passport has gone missing), but I remember not just the date but the time (8 pm) I arrived in Sevilla. Possibly the longest day of my life, driving down from Salamanca with a friend, car packed full of boxes and two screaming cats (Lua and baby Sunny). And then having to wait in the car for three hours after arriving because the landlord was late, finally moving everything up three flights of stairs at 11 o’clock. Phew.

I had no real plans for the day (though a nice anniversary lunch and an evening concert are on tomorrow’s agenda) so I started off with a nice glass of manzanilla at Manolo Cateca and then simply wandered around Sevilla with my memories for a couple of hours. Then my friend Corinna met up with me at Casa Morales and we had a couple of penúltimas together before finishing with some early evening tapas. I was supposed to meet another friend for drinks later on, but after six bars (2 on my own, 4 with Corinna) I figured I’d had quite enough fun for one day. Good times.

brand new cat tower

11 Wednesday Sep 2019

Posted by in casa azahar, cats, home

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It was time. The previous cat tower, which I bought in March 2018, had been ripped to shreds. Mostly by Luna (Morcilla prefers to scratch my office chair, and Loki the back of the sofa). So when I saw this one already put together at El Corte Inglés yesterday I asked if they could deliver it as is.. and here it is!

I was actually a bit shocked when I checked back and saw the old tower was only a year and a half old. I mean, look at the state of it. You’d think they’d sell replacement posts, since those are really what get ruined. Well, let’s see how long this one lasts. So far all the cats are loving it and even Loki can fit into the cubby hole at the bottom (the last one was too small for him).

time to get walking!

06 Friday Sep 2019

Posted by in health & happiness, home

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I’m usually pretty good at walking every day, though during the summer heat it’s more difficult to reach that 10,000 step goal (and even then it’s mostly strolling, not WALKING). After I moved I stopped going to the gym because there isn’t one close to me here, and I’ve really been missing some sort of daily exercise. And so this morning I decided that this was the day to start serious walking again. By that I mean doing a proper fast(ish) paced uninterrupted walk for an hour each day.

To be honest, I’ve been planning to start doing this for ages, and thought that having most of August off would be a good time. But in fact I used August to learn how to sleep again, giving myself “permission” to get an extra hour or so in after feeding the cats first thing in the morning (anytime between 6-7 am). Which also means I’ve got better at falling asleep again after being woken up, so more sleep for me!

I’ve worked out a nice morning walking route along the river that is similar to what I used to do on my bike, but it finishes in the city centre so if I need to do any shopping or errands I can get that done after the walk. Perfect! Not quite the Camino de Santiago, but it’s a start.  🙂

please don’t call me

28 Wednesday Aug 2019

Posted by in casa azahar, communication, friends

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Remember when getting a phone call and having a long chat with a friend was something to cherish? Well, I do. I used to love getting calls and even remember (30-odd years ago in Toronto) staying on the phone with friends while we watched TV “together”. It was something that brought us closer.

These days a telephone call mostly feels like an intrusion. Is it just me? It could be because mobile phones are just not comfy for talking into for any length of time. But in general it’s more that our ways of communicating have changed. With social media text messaging and platforms like WhatsApp (which I LOVE) you can contact someone, share information, even have a chat, without suddenly disrupting whatever the other person happened to be doing. I know that when I see a message come in that someone wants to say something to me, but I also know that I can get to it when I have time to actually pay attention. And sometimes I have quite long WhatsApp text chats with friends lasting up to an hour, but strangely or otherwise, it wouldn’t feel as comfortable if that friend had called me.

Okay, there are times when only a direct phone call will do. Like in case of some sort of emergency. Also, I sometimes get phone calls from possible clients looking for a last minute food tour. And of course when the hospital calls to book appointments – no problem with that. But in general, most things can wait. When I am in the middle of working at home, or out in the street running errands, I really don’t want to stop and switch gears to have a “friendly chat” with someone.

For me the best use of phones these days (other than being my online office when away from home) is to connect with people, send information, make arrangements, even have a friendly text chat. But if you actually want to talk, it is far better to send a quick text message saying… “would love to talk, when would be a good time to call?”.

What do you think? Has phone call etiquette changed over the years or is it just me being a cranky old lady?