La versión en español está después de la versión en inglés.
Oh, what a feeling. The insurance company sent someone to replace the ceiling tile that got damaged in the last leak. While we were out for coffee this morning, I received a phone call saying someone would be here at 1:00 and I thought, Here we go again! I got home at 12:30 and received a phone call from the repair guy. He wanted a photo of the ceiling so he could see if he had a replacement tile in his truck. I sent the photo and he then asked for the texture. I told him. He sent two voice messages and spoke in pure, rapid-fire Córdoban dialect. Somehow I managed to extract what I needed to understand. He had a lot to say that I didn’t need to worry about. Anyway, he followed up with one more message telling me he was going to the shop to pick up what he needed. He arrived 45 minutes later and has replaced the tile. A very pleasant guy. And kind of cute. We really were ready to get out some caulk and some paint.
Merchi has gone to Fuengirola for the summer, which is where most good people of Córdoba go for the summer. This is our first week without her, but she arranged for a friend to take her place while she’s gone. Her name is Elena and she’s equally pleasant. She just finished. Moose stared at her when she arrived and then he talked to her, but she said she had no idea what she was supposed to say in return. He left and joined Dudo under the bed. I introduced them when we got home. Moose is curious. Dudo wonders who the hell this person is and what she’s doing in his house. Kind of how we are with repair people.
The birds are busy morning and night outside our windows catching insects mid-air. I took out my Canon camera and snapped away in action mode before we went out this morning. I should have done it earlier when they were more active and the light was better. Here are the 8 photos (out of 136) containing birds. I’ll try again at dusk when they tend to fill the sky. We’re trying to identify exactly what’s out there. There could be barn swallows, common swifts, and western house martins. My photos today will not solve the mystery, but see if you can find the birds. And stay tuned.
The Kid Brother was great last night. He finished his bowling season with a 111 average. Not his best year, but he’s not as young as he used to be. His high game was 152 and his low was 84. All that matters is that he had a great time and I have a spreadsheet for him. Softball season is coming up.
¡Qué sensación! La compañía de seguros envió a alguien a cambiar la placa del techo que se dañó en la última fuga. Mientras tomábamos un café esta mañana, recibí una llamada diciendo que alguien vendría a la 1:00 y pensé: “¡Aquí vamos otra vez!”. Llegué a casa a las 12:30 y recibí una llamada del técnico. Quería una foto del techo para ver si tenía una placa de repuesto en su camioneta. Le envié la foto y luego me pidió la textura. Se lo dije. Envió dos mensajes de voz y habló en un dialecto cordobés puro y rápido. De alguna manera, logré entender lo que necesitaba. Tenía mucho que decir y no tenía que preocuparme. En fin, me envió otro mensaje diciéndome que iba al taller a recoger lo que necesitaba. Llegó 45 minutos después y ya había cambiado la placa. Un tipo muy amable. Y bastante mono. Estábamos listos para sacar masilla y pintura.
Merchi se ha ido a Fuengirola a pasar el verano, que es donde veranea la mayoría de la gente buena de Córdoba. Esta es nuestra primera semana sin ella, pero consiguió que una amiga la sustituyera mientras no está. Se llama Elena y es igual de amable. Ahora mismo está trabajando. Moose la miró fijamente al llegar y luego le habló, pero ella dijo que no tenía ni idea de qué debía decirle. Se fue y se reunió con Dudo debajo de la cama. Los presenté al llegar a casa. Moose tiene curiosidad. Dudo se pregunta quién demonios es esta persona y qué estará haciendo en su casa. Algo así como somos con los reparadores.
Los pájaros están ocupados mañana y noche fuera de nuestras ventanas atrapando insectos en el aire. Saqué mi cámara Canon y tomé fotos en modo acción antes de salir esta mañana. Debería haberlo hecho antes, cuando estaban más activos y había mejor luz. Aquí están las 8 fotos (de 136) de pájaros. Lo intentaré de nuevo al anochecer, cuando suelen llenar el cielo. Estamos intentando identificar exactamente qué hay ahí fuera. Podría haber golondrinas comunes, vencejos comunes y aviones comunes occidentales. Mis fotos de hoy no resolverán el misterio, pero a ver si pueden encontrar los pájaros. Y estén atentos.
El Hermanito estuvo genial anoche. Terminó su temporada de bolos con un promedio de 111. No fue su mejor año, pero ya no es tan joven como antes. Su mejor juego fue de 152 y el más bajo, de 84. Lo único que importa es que se lo pasó genial y tengo una hoja de cálculo para él. Se acerca la temporada de sóftbol.
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Yea! for the ceiling, something done right on the first call. Narrowing down identifying the birds, they are not penguins, dodos or puffins.
David:
Well I knew for certain they weren’t dodos. Sheesh!
Sounds like all is well with the ceiling leak……
The boys must go nuts when they see and hear all those Swifts/Martins.
Jim:
There are days where the boys are transfixed. But if they’re on the terrace and something soars too close, they’re back inside in a heartbeat. Dudo has taken to lying under a chair where he can watch the birds from a protected spot.
Elena is going to have to learn to speak Moose if she’s coming by every week.
Glad the leak wasn’t so “bureaucratic.”
Bob:
Yes, Elena will have to learn to communicate in Cat. The problem was also that I think Moose, being bilingual, was speaking English. I’m shocked the leak didn’t take 7 visits to fix.
Following up David’s bird ID analysis — nor are those birds owls, turkey vultures or Canada geese. Hope this helps!
Debra:
I did wonder about turkey vultures. And, no, this did not help!
They’re not pigeons, either. Nor ospreys. There, that narrows it down a lot.
Cordoba might be quite empty soon, while Fuengirola will be packed with people in weird shore clothes. Good about the tile and someone who really wanted to fix it.
Boud:
I did eliminate ospreys. And every so often there is a pigeon but they’re easy. This repair guy was a good one. So efficient and brought the tile with him the first time. The last time a tile was repaired, it required 4 visits. The first to look, the second to look again, the third to measure (even though he brought an entire tile and sawed it to size while here), and the fourth to cut and install it. I’m looking forward to Córdoba emptying out although a lot of businesses will be closed in August. It will be curious to see how many tourists are here who don’t do their research before hand. We are known as either the first or second (depends on what you read) hottest city in Europe. Fuengirola is already filling up!
Oh! This is all good 🙂 Makes me happy.
Judy C:
Anything helps right now.
Paperwork filed, ceiling fixed, seems the tide has turned and all’s good in the hood again. P.S. it’s always nice when those we’re forced to deal with are “kinda cute”.
Shirley:
Now to change our address with all the applicable institutions. The first attempt was par for the course! Yeah, the kinda cute repair guy with the engaging smile was a nice distraction.
Great news about the ceiling repair! A cute repairman is a bonus. 🙂
Sounds like you have good entertainment for Dudo and Moose…all those birds to watch! Poppy has been enjoying staring out the windows at the constuction guys building a deck on the house across the street. Sometimes she just stares and has a rolling, continuous low growl. Warning them not to bring their nonsense over to this side of the street, I guess! Ha.
Please say hi to the Kid Brother for me when you talk to him next. I think about him often.
Jennifer
Jennifer:
Yes, a bonus and a rare occurence! I promise to give Chuck your regards. Thanks so much!
Jumping on the helpful bird identifying bandwagon, they don’t seem to be sparrows or peafowl or yellow-bellied sapsuckers either. There may be a penguin up there in green face belting out Defying Gravity but that’s a long shot.
Deedles:
Yeah, unless someone with a really strong arm tosses the penguin, I doubt that’s it.
Don’t be silly, Scoot! That’s what slingshots are for!
Deedles:
Any time I tried to use a slingshot, I hit myself with the rock. Maybe you could do the penguins.
I’m trying to get some scale on the size of those birds. If it’s not as big as I’m thinking it is, perhaps it’s some sort of swallow. Red-rumped? If bigger, though, maybe some kind of kite. Does it look like a raptor? My daughter’s family currently has a swallow-tailed kite in residence and it’s huge – something like two feet in length with a four foot wingspan! Can you tell I like birds?
Kelly:
Oh, you shouldn’t have gone to so much trouble. I gave you three choices. I know for certain some are barn swallows; it’s sometimes easy to spot the markings. I’m pretty sure the others are common swifts which are, yes, common here. We, too, love birds. We have binoculars and bird books sitting on the terrace. These flying wonders are impossible to catch in the binoculars.
I, too, see similarities between swallow-tailed kites (which we have) and your bird but I’ve just looked up the geographic area for those beautiful birds and they are only found on this continent.
Good for the Kid Brother! I bet he does love bowling.
You should buy a lottery ticket with the kind of luck you had with that repair guy.
Ms. Moon
Ms. Moon:
I’ve been able to identify barn swallows at times and I’m certain the others are common swifts. I would just love to get a good shot on my camera. When I was a kid I had to take Chuck with me (he was 4 or 5) when I went bowling with my friends. We would always let him roll a ball down (there’s a story there I should tell). He fell in love and has been hooked every since. I’m so glad there’s a league for him every year.
Your fluency with the language is impressive, but with dialects too! Could San Geraldo manage without you?
Frank D:
I do make life easier for SG when it comes to translating. But he manages on his own. Because he does the cooking and grocery shopping, he quickly learned the foods and knew them better than me for a long time. He uses me as an excuse to not study more.
OMG the birdies!!
And thank the goddess for handsome repairmen and fixed tiles.
XOXO
Sixpence Notthewiser:
We don’t usually get those porn fantasy repairmen. He was a nice surprise.
Yay for the fixed ceiling! And Happy birthday to Dudo and Moose!
Michael:
Thanks. Can’t believe the ceiling was so easily repaired. Last time felt like a marathon.
Heavens! A day dealing with Spanish service-providers that went smoothly! We should mark this date on the calendar, my dear…
Jx
PS Those birds: if they make a distinctive whistling/screaming call as they whirl about, they’re swifts. Not penguins. Probably. 🤣 Jx
Jon:
I’ve been able to spot barn swallows when they get close. I’m sure the others are common swifts but I’d love a good photo. I’m pretty certain they’re not penguins. I don’t think those little flipper wings could get them to the 7th floor.
The birds look like a Swallow by the look of the tail.
larrymuffin:
Absolutely. I’ve been able to identify barn swallows at times. I’m pretty sure the others are common swifts, but I wish I could get a good photo.
Glad the tile job is done! What, no photos of repair guy?
I don’t know the difference between swifts and swallows and house martins, so I’m afraid I’m of no help there.
Steve:
I tried to figure out how to get a photo without asking him outright. I didn’t want to seem like a perve. I would love to get good enough photos of the birds to demonstrate the difference.
My spanish is improving! read this and thought dancing on the ceiling?? and it was correct.
Urspo:
Mine may not be perfect, but I’ve been told it’s good enough to not steer you wrong.