There are reported to
be more than 150 corruption cases meandering their way through the
Spanish courts. It's hard to believe the number will be lower by
the end of the year. In one huge case down in Andalucia, the regional
government is trying to stop the judge investigating the
role of public companies in a vast scandal of phoney redundancy
payments. One wonders why.
My neighbours, Nice but
Noisy Tony and the lovely Amparo, employ a woman who cleans the
house, drives the kids to and from school and cooks meals. She lives
nearby during the week but at weekends goes home to her village and
takes part in such activities as pig-killing and slicing. It's
impossible to imagine British families being able to get such help, except
by employing legal or illegal 'au pairs' from abroad. But such an
arrangement is common among middle class families here and helps to
explain why their quality of life is superior to that elsewhere. How long it will last is anyon'e guess.
Deaths of car drivers
may well have been down last year but those of cyclists rose from 37
to 46, an increase of 31%. This may explain why, as of very soon, the
law will oblige drivers to leave a gap of at least 2.5m when
overtaking a cyclist. Nothing about lights, though.
If you're a Brit in
Spain missing your curry, nip along to Lidl, where you might find a
few items of interest in the freezers.
Talking about eating .
. . Poor old Gordon Ramsay is incandescent about a low-quality
restaurant in Tenerife calling itself Gordon Ransay in identical
calligraphy to that of his own places. In the UK, this would be dealt
with quickly via an action for 'passing off' but I'm not sure any
equivalent exists here in Spain. But he is, of course, suing them for
something.
Talking of (in)famous
chefs . . . I see Jamie Oliver has joined my campaign against 'the
Devil's grain'. "Sugary foods", he says, "risk causing
a public health crisis similar to smoking and should be taxed in the
same way as tobacco. It's definitely the next evil”, he added, "and
should be targeted because of the burden it places on the NHS".
Hear, hear say I.
Today's quote from
Moscow's RT TV channel: The West has not yet come to terms with the
loss of its supremacy. Apparently, the US empire is in its death
throes, as evidenced by the fact that there are lots of distracting
TV programs. And sports stars, like gladiators, make millions.
Penultimately . . . .
You couldn't make it up department: A London college is offering
students a course in selfie-taking. The month-long programme of
lectures and seminars, it says, will “improve critical
understanding of the photographic self-portrait”. Even better - "As
well as critiquing their own efforts, students will also “critique
visual work from a variety of practitioners”.
Which reminds me . . .
Possibly in my sleep last night, I've invented the 'relfie'. Maybe.
This is the rear-selfie and here's mine. Aprés moi, le deluge?
Finally . . . Another
extract from the 1942 Guide for Yanks in Limeyland: BTW - You
may be amused to read that the English will be speaking English that
is 'wrong' and 'funny'.
ENGLISH VERSUS AMERICAN
LANGUAGE
ALMOST before you meet
the people you will hear them speaking "English." At
first you may not understand what they are talking about and they may
not understand what you say. The accent will be different from what
you are used to, and many of the words will be strange, or apparently
wrongly used. But you will get used to it. Remember that back in
Washington stenographers from the South are having a hard time to
understand dictation given by business executives from New England
and the other way around.
In England the "upper
crust" speak pretty much alike. You will hear the news
broadcaster for the BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation). He is a
good example, because he has been trained to talk with the
"cultured" accent. He will drop the letter "r"
(as people do in some sections of our own country) and will say
"hyah" instead of "here." He will use the
broad 'a' pronouncing all the a's in "banana" like the
'a' in "father". However funny you may think this is, you
will be able to understand people who talk this way and they will be
able to understand you. And you will soon get over thinking it is
funny.
You will have more
difficulty with some of the local dialects. It may comfort you to
know that a farmer or villager from Cornwall very often can't
understand a farmer or villager in Yorkshire or Lancashire. But you
will – and they will learn – to understand you.
Some Hints on British
Words. British slang is something you will have to pick up for
yourself. But even apart from slang there are many words which have
different meanings from the way we use them and many common objects
have different names. For instance, instead of railroads, automobiles
and radios, the British will talk about railways, motorcars, and
wireless sets. A railroad tie is a sleeper. A freight car is a goods
wagon. A man who works on the roadbed is a navvy. A streetcar is a
tram. Automobile lingo is just as different. A light truck is a
lorry. The top of the car is the hood. What we call the hood (of the
engine) is a bonnet. The fenders are wings. A wrench is a spanner.
Gas is petrol – if there is any.
Your first furlough may
find you in some small difficulties because of language difficulties.
You will have to ask for sock suspenders to get garters and for
braces instead of suspenders – if you need any. If you are standing
in line to book (buy) a railroad ticket or a seat at the movies
(cinema) you will be queuing (pronounced "cueing") up
before the booking office. If you want a beer quickly, you had better
ask for the nearest pub. You will get your drugs at a chemist's and
your tobacco at a tobacconist, hardware at an ironmonger's. If you
are asked to visit somebody's apartment, he or she will call it a
flat.
A coin which you will
sometimes see advertised in the better stores is the guinea
(pronounced "ginny" with the "g" hard as in
"go"). It is worth 21 shillings, or one pound plus one
shilling.
WEIGHTS AND MEASURES:
The measures of length and weight are almost the same as those used
in America. The British have inches, feet and yards, pints, quarts,
gallons and so forth. You should remember, however, that the English
(or "Imperial") gallon contains about one fifth more liquid
than the American gallon.
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