Quiet weekend, and a relief

The man and I had planned to go away this weekend, his rowing team is up in the Basque region at a big regatta.  Then youngest got sick.  So, the man is up with the rowing team and I am at home nursing a flu victim, who is very much on the mend now thankfully.

In fact the race got cancelled due to remarkably high winds and rain and a river that is swollen to ridiculous proportions.  The valiant rowers continued on anyway, knowing that there would be a good party, if not a race. 

I have had a very quiet day at home, which has occasionally rankled, and occasionally been great.  I remind myself of the number of times I wish I could just stay home.  I just didn't want to stay home THIS weekend.  Anywho....not a big deal.


On another note, the Master's has started up again, I am only doing one course this term, which will rather drastically lengthen the time it takes me to finish (gnashing of teeth) but last term was an unmitigated hell, and I do not want to repeat that.  I was working too hard, and too many hours, and had the full two courses at the masters and the Man was away almost all day.

Fortunately all is getting better, I have actually managed to back off some hours of teaching (which is making me fuss about money, but I think that is habit) and have only one course to take.  Plus the man has passed all his driving test nightmares, which makes his hours more sane as well.


The real relief though - well, the real relief is that youngest is getting better so fast - but the relief at the top of the paper is that I am finally feeling some enthusiasm for the Masters rather than a dragging sense of obligation and disinterest.  Only hit this evening, but I am studying the damned thing cause I want to learn, not just pass the courses, but last term, that wasn't what was happening, nor so far this term, but this evening, a spark, a wee spark of gleeful interest shot up. 

I am glad.

Still more structures from the mountains,

Some are quite sophisticated.....

Then there are structures that have been here rather longer, like these old concrete sofas.....

And this old font to source water from a spring....I'll bring a light and go in further another day, and someone with me.....

Never ever dull......

The hills are alive

With little boys building forts!!!!

Is this not the best!?"?!?!???

Everyone is complaining that kids spend all their lives in front of video games, that they cannot leave the house....

and there are packs of them, of varying ages building all over the hills near town....

see:

Fantastic, no?

Dunking cookies

One of the things I have learned to love living here in Catalunya is dunking cookies in my tea.

My understanding of the etiquette on this topic is that it is really something of a no-no, at least in my family, and it was not something I ever really did.  In fact even after many years here I didn't do it ever.  Then a couple of my students were talking about how delicious it is, and I started dunking.

O my goodness.  Love it.

Everyone here does it, especially at breakfast, it is polite and accepted.  You can dunk into coffee, tea or hot chocolate, and you can dunk just about anything sweet and bread-like from cookies, to croissants to special finger like cakes made specifically for dunking, and then there are xurros!!!

I may have trouble when I go back to Canada this summer resisting the temptation!!!!

Mmmmmmmm