La versión en español está después de la versión en inglés.
THE FIRST FOUR PHOTOS, INCLUDING the one above, are from yesterday’s walk on the beach. You can see how the weather changed while I walked. The next two photos were taken today, the first on my walk to the gym and the second a little while ago from the terrace. We’ve had some very nice rain, with some equally nice breaks. And there appears to be a lot more rain to come (and snow in the mountains). We and the reservoirs are happy. Before the rain returned, we had powerful winds that created sand dunes and blew onto the Paseo, as well. It’s always something. Click the thumbnails at the end of the post to take in the views.
Sunday, we met Tynan and Elena, and daughter Paula, who was home from university for the weekend, at Hotel Ilunion for coffee, beer, and soda. Sunday morning is not quite so pleasant there unfortunately. There’s a piano man who plays at only one volume. Loud. Whether, it’s a waltz, a hymn, or a show tune. He’s the Ethel Merman of pianists. Even in that large space, it’s difficult to have a conversation. And we were as far away as we could get. Added to that, there was a large group of people nearby. Six people were loud. By the time we left, they were 17 — including four small children. We had to shout to be heard. I guess we’ll avoid Ilunion on Sundays. Still, it was great to see T, E, and P. Tynan even bought San Geraldo’s book and I know he’ll read it cover to cover. He’s been a tremendous supporter of SG’s efforts over the years and has been interested, and encouraging, all along the way.
Sunday evening, we had a long FaceTime chat with Alyson and Nick in Colchester, England. They make us so happy, and they’ll finally be back in Fuengirola together in June. Something great to look forward to. They live very near Colchester Zoo. So close in fact that they can hear the lions at night. The zoo is going through some difficult times with their aging lions (click here), and Nick is having a hard time dealing with his pal, Bailey, having to possibly move. Alyson sent me a video of Nick expressing his distress to Bailey. I’ve shared it below.
The gym today was excellent. I worked chest, back, and even a bit of legs (I do what the sciatica permits). My stretches were excellent again. I promise to soon have someone take a photo of me in my pretzel position. I no longer wince when I do it (well, maybe a little).
Remember those 15 books we paid twice to ship via the post office? And the wonderful director here and a staff person in Madrid who took all the information last week? Well, some postal official in Madrid wrote to San Geraldo Friday asking for proof of payment. San Geraldo wrote a 2-page email, attached all seven receipts, and made it clear how he felt about being questioned any further. He emailed it this morning. And, five minutes later, we had a full refund. Nearly 900 euros! What should I buy?
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LAS PRIMERAS CUATRO FOTOS, INCLUIDA la de arriba, son del paseo de ayer por la playa. Puedes ver cómo cambió el clima mientras caminaba. Las siguientes dos fotos fueron tomadas hoy, la primera en mi camino al gimnasio y la segunda hace un ratito desde la terraza. Hemos tenido una lluvia muy agradable, con algunos descansos igualmente agradables. Y parece que vendrá mucha más lluvia (y nieve en las montañas). Nosotros y los embalses estamos felices. Antes de que volviera la lluvia, tuvimos fuertes vientos que crearon dunas de arena y también soplaron sobre el Paseo. Siempre es algo. Haga clic en las miniaturas al final de la publicación para disfrutar de las vistas.
El domingo nos encontramos con Tynan y Elena, y su hija Paula, que estaba en casa de la universidad el fin de semana, en Ilunion para tomar café, cerveza y refrescos. Desafortunadamente, el domingo por la mañana no es tan agradable allí. Hay un pianista que toca a un solo volumen. Ruidoso. Ya sea un vals, un himno o una melodía de espectáculo. Él es el Ethel Merman de los pianistas. Incluso en ese gran espacio, es difícil tener una conversación. Y estuvimos lo más lejos que pudimos. Sumado a eso, había un gran grupo de personas cerca. Seis personas eran ruidosas. Cuando nos fuimos, tenían 17 años, incluidos cuatro niños pequeños. Tuvimos que gritar para ser escuchados. Supongo que evitaremos Ilunion los domingos. Aún así, fue genial ver a T, E y P. Tynan incluso compró el libro de San Geraldo y sé que lo leerá de cabo a rabo. Ha sido un tremendo partidario de los esfuerzos de SG a lo largo de los años y ha estado interesado todo el tiempo.
El domingo por la noche, tuvimos una conversación FaceTime con Alyson y Nick en Colchester, Inglaterra. Nos hacen muy felices y por fin en junio volverán a estar juntos en Fuengirola. Algo grandioso que esperar. Viven muy cerca del zoológico de Colchester. Tan cerca, de hecho, que pueden escuchar a los leones por la noche. El zoológico está pasando por momentos difíciles con sus leones que envejecen (haz clic aquí), y Nick está teniendo dificultades para lidiar con su amigo, Bailey, posiblemente por no estar en Colchester por mucho más tiempo. Alyson me envió un video de Nick expresando su angustia a Bailey. Lo he compartido a continuación.
El gimnasio de hoy estuvo excelente. Trabajé pecho, espalda, y un poco de piernas (hago lo que me permite la ciática). Mis estiramientos fueron excelentes nuevamente. Prometo que pronto alguien me tomará una foto en mi posición de pretzel. Ya no me estremezco cuando lo hago (bueno, tal vez un poco).
¿Recuerdas esos 15 libros que pagamos dos veces para enviarlos a través de la oficina de correos? ¿Y el maravilloso directora aquí y un miembro del personal en Madrid que tomó toda la información la semana pasada? Pues bien, un funcionario de correos de Madrid escribió el viernes a San Geraldo pidiendo comprobante de pago. San Geraldo escribió un correo electrónico de dos páginas, adjuntó los siete recibos y dejó en claro cómo se sentía al ser interrogado más. Lo envió por correo electrónico esta mañana. Y, cinco minutos después, recibimos un reembolso completo. ¡Casi 900 euros! ¿Que deberia comprar?
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How very strange – you have a friend who “speaks Lion”! I hear Doctor Doolittle ringing in my ears. 🙂
Jx
Jon:
I thought he did a good job. San Geraldo gives really good Cow.
So glad you got that shipping refund! Nearly 900 euros — holy moly! Had a good LOL at your description of the “Ethel Merman of pianists” too.
Debra:
I probably should have shared an Ethel Merman video. Some of my readers have no idea who she was.
Flashes of the ‘Ed Sullivan Show’ and Ethel Merman screaming her head off!! lol
Now I know what lions at night sound like…….
Our spring weather is something like yours……very unpredictable and all over the map. (with the exception of the temperature difference of course.)
Jim:
It’s sometimes amazes me what a huge success Ethel Merman was. But, despite the fact that her voice/volume pains me, I DID like her. We’re supposed to have more muddy rain this week!
Maybe she was hard of hearing?
Jim,
Maybe her fans were, too?
Such an energetic sea – very exciting!
Wilma:
And the sound! My favorite sound in the world.
I may hire SG to handle all my disputes from now on!! Good on him!!
I see those pictures of the sea, and I am reminded of George Constanza on Seinfeld, describing bad seaside weather in saying,
“The sea was angry that day, Like an old man trying to send back soup in a deli.”
Bob:
SG is great handling disputes in written form. But you have to get me for face-to-face confrontations.
I love being reminded of that George Constanza line. Thanks.
Fabulous ocean and cloud photos. I miss living by the ocean.
cheers
Parsnip:
I am happiest living by the ocean and this is the best I’ve ever had.
Mitchell!!!!. Que preciosas son las fotos. Como envidio esos paseos a la orilla del mar y las maravillosas vistas desde la terraza….
Teneis mucha suerte.
O no será suerte. Serán decisiones bien tomadas
Guadalupe:
Es increíble. Pero, sí, decisiones Y suerte… y gratitud.
Such a wonderful view. 900E, and NYC coming up soon, Could be fun.
David:
WILL be fun!
That is some thunderous surf! I laughed at your “Ethel Merman of piano players,” though I’m sure it wasn’t funny at the time. Live music in a restaurant is often problematic, I’ve found. Too bad about the lions — I also had a “Doctor Dolittle” moment watching the video. (That’s a Newbery book!)
Steve:
You know, I’ve never read Doctor Dolittle. Maybe it’s time. For me, restaurant music should stay in the background. Unless its a dinner theatre or a nightclub. But this guy’s piano playing leaves much to be desired. And Paula is a gifted musician, so it pained her at times. But there were people sitting near him and applauding. Go figure. (Anyway, tourists!)
I should’ve borrowed SG when I was dealing with the Medicare/Kaiser people! Oy, what a mess! From your post title, I thought I was going to be reading about a new alcoholic beverage to pour over ice cream. Oh, well, I still enjoyed it. That roar took me back to summer evenings spent at the San Diego Zoo. Nice!
Deedles:
I tend to be better when it comes to fighting (hire a New Yorker), but SG did a great job with his indignant and overly thorough emails. We lived first on Upas Street right by the zoo and could hear the lions at night. Magical. I’ll just play Nick’s vidoe for the same effect now. And, oh, Bailey’s over ice cream!
Yeah, I was just pretending that I took on Medicare/Kaiser. Balder Half did it. I suck at person-to-person confrontations. I remember Upas Street! How nice to hear the lions almost up close and personal! It always tickled me that the zoo was right next to a school.
Balder Half caught a sale. We now have three humongous bottles of Bailey’s that expire in November. They will be gone long before then 🙂
Deedles:
In 2014, my mother offered me some Bailey’s. I just had to get it myself from the liquor cabinet. I asked, “Why do YOU have a bottle of Bailey’s? She said, “Your father bought it. The bottle is almost full.” My father died in 1987. Not only was the opened bottle around 30 years old, it hadn’t been refrigerated. You should have seen THAT when I tried to pour it out… into the trash!
Well that gives Bert Lahr a run for his money.
Kirk:
Although I don’t think Nick can sing.
Your life may not be 100% idyllic, but it sure looks like it with the pictures you post. So glad you guys finally got the refund you were entitled to
Sassybear:
There’s no doubt we’re lucky to live a good life. We usually appreciate it.