La versión en español está después de la versión en inglés.
BECAUSE WE HAVE A CORNER apartment, the only views we do not have are in northerly directions. The sun comes up over the Mediterranean Seas and shines on us all day (since this is the Costa del Sol [suncoast], it shines most days).
We see the sunset over the city and mountains. If I want a less obstructed view of the sunset, I can climb the stairs (or take the elevator) to the 11th floor. Last night, I didn’t bother, because it would have meant putting some clothes on, and I was quite comfortable in my underwear. Still, the views were fine and I got to visit with Dudo once I headed around the corner on the terrace.
Before sunset, Dudo and I hung out in the front hall where those northerly views can be seen. Our neighbours from England, Jean and Ray, who visit for months at a time a few times during the year, rushed home early at the start of lockdown in February, and haven’t been able to return. Their latest plan is to come back after the new year. Here’s hoping. Dudo misses them. Jean gives him treats and lets him explore their apartment.
Unbeknowst to us, Dudo used to visit by way of the terrace wall (click here to see what the little shit did) and peer in Jean and Ray’s bedroom window. The first thing he does when he’s out in the hall is peek under their door. Next he tries to see through the open brick of their laundry room.
Dudo often looks petite to us. Then he stretches and becomes what My Mother the Dowager Duchess would have called a long noodle. In the first photo, you can see the stretch. The bottom line of bricks begins at a height of 29 inches (74 cm).
I’m trying to get past what my wonderful friend Susan calls a “meh” mood. San Geraldo just served me a slice of apple cake (filled with cinnamon and spices). I’ve told him just the aroma of those spices is enough to improve my mood. Unfortunately, the uplift doesn’t last long. He might have to bake multiple cakes so I have enough to graze on throughout the day (and so the house always smells like cinnamon and other spices). I wonder if a bowl of fresh cinnamon sticks would do the trick. Nah, cake is required.
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PORQUE TENEMOS UN PISO EN esquina en la playa, as únicas vistas que no tenemos están en dirección norte. El sol sale sobre los mares mediterráneos y nos brilla todo el día (ya que esta es la Costa del Sol, brilla la mayoría de los días).
Vemos el atardecer sobre la ciudad y las montañas. Si quiero una vista menos obstruida de la puesta de sol, puedo subir las escaleras (o tomar el ascensor) hasta el piso 11. Anoche no me molesté, porque hubiera significado ponerme algo de ropa y estaba bastante cómoda en ropa interior. Aún así, las vistas estaban bien y pude visitar a Dudo una vez que di la vuelta a la esquina de la terraza.
Antes de la puesta del sol, Dudo y yo pasamos el rato en el vestíbulo, donde se pueden ver esas vistas del norte. Nuestros vecinos de Inglaterra, Jean y Ray, que nos visitan durante meses a la vez en algunas ocasiones durante el año, se apresuraron a regresar a casa temprano al comienzo del cierre en febrero y no han podido regresar. Su último plan es volver después del año nuevo. Aquí está la esperanza. Dudo los extraña. Jean le da golosinas y le permite explorar su piso.
Sin que nosotros lo supiéramos, Dudo solía visitar a través de la pared de la terraza (haz clic aquí para ver qué hizo la mierdita) y mirar por la ventana del dormitorio de Jean y Ray. Lo primero que hace cuando está en el pasillo es mirar por debajo de la puerta. A continuación, intenta ver a través del ladrillo abierto de su cuarto de lavado.
Dudo a menudo nos parece pequeño. Luego se estira y se convierte en lo que Mi Madre la Duquesa Viuda hubiera llamado un fideo largo. En la primera foto, puedes ver el tramo. La línea inferior de ladrillos comienza a una altura de 74 cm (29 pulgadas).
Estoy tratando de superar lo que mi maravillosa amiga Susan llama un estado de ánimo “meh”. San Geraldo me acaba de servir un trozo de tarta de manzana (relleno de canela y especias). Le he dicho que solo el aroma de esas especias es suficiente para mejorar mi estado de ánimo. Desafortunadamente, la elevación no dura mucho. Es posible que tenga que hornear varios pasteles para que tenga suficiente para pastar durante el día (y así la casa siempre huele a canela y otras especias). Me pregunto si un tazón de ramitas de canela frescas serviría. No, se requiere pastel.
Dudo looks like Puss in Boots (white go-go ones–so 60s) in that long, tall stretch. Love the languid pose on the shelf, too, basking in the salmon sunset.
Mary:
Yes, I often call Dudo “Puss in Boots” and Moose “Puss in Bossy Pants.”
In my scientific opinion, cake is essential to delivering the cinnamon. Saigon cinnamon if you can find it. Pretty kitty, he couldn’t do anything bad if he tried.
David:
Thank you for confirmation. SG needs to get to work on those apple cakes. SG buys fresh cinnamon and grinds it himself in our mortar and pestle. What a difference. Will have to look for Saigon cinnamon.
Dudo is one long kitty! I am sure he has missed his neighbours.
Guess you guys don’t have to take vitamin D3 with all that sun.
Jim:
Would probably OD if I supplemented with D3.
wow, dudo IS one long kitty! yeah, cake is a part of life, like coffee and bread.
anne marie:
I’m not a huge bread eater… although I do like it. But coffee… and cake. Staples!
As I once radon Twitter it’s against the law to watch a cat stretch like that and NOT say, “Such a big stretch!”
Cuz it is.
Bob:
I think you had written about the stretch in a post once. It made me laugh. The pictured reach is not actually a stretch, it’s being nosy, so no reflexive comment came. But when either cat actually stretches, like you said, we both proclaim, “Oh what a big stretch!” I thought it was just us.
I prescribe cinnamon buns too.
Debra:
SG would be in heaven. He adores cinnamon buns (“with extra sauce” as he puts it). I don’t.
Dudo is a brave “long noodle”! That ledge walk looks pretty scary. His length reminds me of “longcat” from the Internet meme of 15 years ago or so — have you ever seen it? (Google “longcat meme” — and I just learned that apparently longcat recently died at a ripe old age.)
Steve:
I can’t believe I’d never even heard of longcat. You learn something new every day (or in my case, every so often).
Dudo was probably hoping there would be a little bird in each of those holes on that wall insert.
And I say go up in your unders…who cares, let it all hang out!
Mistress Maddie:
No, Dudo knows where the birds might be found. He’s hoping to find Jean when he pears through those holes.
Yes, Dudo DOES look like Puss in Go-Go Boots! And those hot pink skies! All that plus the cinnamon-spiced cake should blast the meh away.
Wilma:
We’re getting into that time of year of breathtaking sunrises and sunsets. I need to be hooked up to an apple spice cake IV.
I do believe the smell of cinnamon is one of the best smells in the world.
mcpersonalspace54:
I completely agree. And SG grinds fresh cinnamon by hand in a mortar and pestle. He should do THAT every day, whether he’s baking or not.
How about cinnamon rolls with icing? A cinnamon coffee cake? I can think of all sorts of good food that’s made with cinnamon. Yummy treats cheer me up.
Love,
Janie
janiejunebug:
Cinnamon coffee cake? A definite yes. But I’m not big on cinnamon rolls with icing. Too sweet (if you can believe I’m saying that). SG LOVES cinnamon rolls. When he walks into shopping malls in the States, he immediately sniffs out Cinnabon. And he always asks for “an extra vial of sauce.” (Yes that’s what he asks for.)
I remember that it was at one time trendy for real estate agents to let a cinnamon stick boil on the stove in the house they were showing to give it a homey, familiar, and comforting smell. I really hate ruses like that. Cake was not required, and that was always disappointing.
Walt the Fourth:
I liked the home owners and realtors that put out snacks — although I never took any myself because who knew who had been there before. When we sold our houses, I would put a dab of vanilla on a light bulb here and there. Cinnamon would have smelled better.
I think cats bodies are composed of unstable molecules or something.
Kirk:
Sometimes their brains, as well!
I hear that cinnamon is good for lowering blood sugar. Unfortunately, when mixed into a delicious cake, or cinnamon rolls (yes, I love cinnamon rolls with “sauce” too, or cream cheese icing) defeats the purpose.
Deedles:
Maybe we should just suck cinnamon sticks (dipped in frosting).
when a drug is only partially efficacious rather than upping the dose one can try an adjunct Rx.
Next time when you have cinnamon, supplement it with chocolate to better the outcome.
I read this in JAMA; do not dare to question this.
Urspo:
When ANYONE, I don’t even need an M.D., tells me to supplement cinnamon with chocolate or just about anything with chocolate, I will follow orders!