Going mobile

Folks,

It’s occurred to me that I haven’t been on time with my email since Jack got back. That’s what a change of routine does for me! Well, we’ve had a windy week, the evenings are still cool, and I got a mobile phone!

Spanish again
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I’ve started Spanish again this week. It’s my first week since the start of December. It’s good to be back, but I feel a little bit rusty. Unfortunately, though, it does mean an 8.30 start every morning. I’m now on book 9, having started on book 2 way back when. It’s a consolidation and revision book. Exactly what I need.

Mobile again
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The eagle-eyed amongst you may have noticed last week that I included a mobile telephone number. Having been here almost a year, I’ve finally managed to get one. To recap for newer readers, mobiles (or celulares as they are over here) are like gold-dust. A couple of years ago, the phone company were installing an upgraded system. But two former Presidents were found to have been involved in bribery in the awarding of the contract (I never mentioned Michael Lowry!). They are now under house arrest pending trial. So that slowed everything down.

I’ve now come to a commercial arrangement with my landlord to lease his phone from him. So that’s the upside. The downside is that I now own a Nokia brick, circa 1993. It’s on the American TDMA system, not GSM, so I can’t just swap the SIM into my Irish phone, or even receive texts from home. And I don’t have predictive text, or even vibrate! But it’s a mobile, and I feel that’s I’ve caught up a little again with civilisation! You can’t text me, but feel free to call on 00-506-386 3426 if you get the urge!

Election
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Still no result from the presidential election. I actually wonder if they’ve forgotten about it. They voted on 5th February, and the population is smaller than Ireland. What can be taking so long?

La niña
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I mentioned la niña last week. It’s a weather phenomenon of the Pacific that every few years there are cycles of hotter and colder water in the ocean. These cause climate shifts in the Americas. El niño (or the boy) is when the water heats and the weather becomes hotter. La niña (or the girl) is when the water cools, and the weather becomes cooler. It seems that the experts are concluding that la niña is now back, and the cause of our cooler summer. Still, it’s 26 to 28 degrees, and quite pleasant here in the Central Valley, so we’re not complaining.
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After this week we’ll be going to somewhere on the coast for the weekend, because I’m starting my Saturday rotation of working five Saturdays from the following week. So, until next week.

Pura Vida,

Éamon

Today’s headline in La Nación: Taxes finance social clubs for public employees