Back in España

Friday, September 25, 2009
Sorry to have virtually abandoned blogging while in the USA. Things were so ordinary that I didn't feel like writing about them. That said, it was wonderful to see so many family members and friends and to share time with them. Our big thanks to the many who provided spare bedrooms for us while we were there.
I came away a few impressions that I will share.
1) The pace of life in the US is pretty intense. Here in Andalucia, we have grown accustomed to a more leisurely pace and, being retired, we take full advantage of it. We found many Americans to be super-busy and had to carefully plan get-togethers around their hectic schedules.
2) Prices have gone up since we left. Three and four dollar beers (or more)!!! Yikes! And it was hard to find a burrito and a drink for lunch for less than $10.
3) Ideology seems to dominate political conversations - folks seem to have their minds made up and are not asking the important questions of the day. (I will list some of those on the other blog one of these days).

But now we are back in Spain. We visited the family in Madrid for a few days and then drove down to Rota where we relaunched the boat the same day. We are back in the same slip we had last year and started into massive cleaning and repairing of things. I brought back a new inverter/battery charger and replaced the one that died. Then our refrigerator/freezer wouldn't get cold because all the refrigerant had leaked out. This happens when the box is turned off because when the compressor doesn't turn, the seals dry out and the freon leaks. (This is why you should run your car AC every few weeks). But I had new refrigerant stored away and so was able to recharge the system and voila, ice cubes! The worst part was the dirt and grime. We continue to work on it.

But tonight, we are off for some social life at last. More later. And don't be afraid to write. We love to hear from y'all.