Today is Friday. That has been going through my mind all day. As has the fact that I am not in school and that today, today is the first day of the holidays!
As is traditional on the First Day, I attempted to get at least one of my tasks done. I deliberately chose one of the easier ones: replacing the fetid cushion covers for the sun beds.
This is not quite as simple as it sounds as, unsurprisingly, this country boasts a whole range of covers at variously unattractive prices. We eventually settled for a local supermarket own-make affair of seductive thickness and reasonable cost. The proof now is in the lazing!
The second task was getting the car serviced. The local dealership is characterised by arrogance and demanding vast sums of money for everything that they do so I was tempted by a colleague’s recommendation of a garage that did the manufacturer’s service at a fraction of the cost.
As time is limited until I go to Britain I was confidently expecting to be offered a date some time when I wasn’t in Spain – I was certainly not expecting to be asked if I wanted the thing done at once! However, when I had recovered from my shock, I agreed with alacrity and then contemplated the few hours that we would be stranded in a shopping centre.
There is nothing, absolutely nothing half so much worth doing as simply messing around in shops. Buying things has a greater high-octane rush than going from 0-60 in two seconds!
My purchases ranged from the aforementioned lounger cushions, through CDs and outside lights to a book on posters from the Spanish Civil War and wheel trims. I may be a spendthrift, but at least I inject variety into my obsession!
The CDs reflect nothing on my musical pretentions. Driving to work requires music to get me there, the more hummable the better. As if in answer to a prayer a whole series of CDs under the inspiring title of “Best 50 . . .” have appeared in supermarkets with 3 CD sets at a cost of about €2 a disc. I have bought ballet, Baroque, Chopin, Romantic, Opera, Beethoven, Cello, Violin, Puccini, Bach – and anything else that gleamed through its plastic case! I now have enough music to last for years.
To be fair the selections are not as banal as the title might have you believe and there are some inspiriting tracks – which means there are some things that I have never heard of! Some of the music is recognizable, even if I couldn’t easily put a name to it. So, some learning and a lot of complacency in store on my daily journey to Barcelona!
This evening a meal with Irene and a chance to chat.
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