Tales from a Spanish Village: Two Old Fools and Cats

Until the Spanish begin to neuter their cats, there will always be a huge feral population. When we moved to El Hoyo in 2004, we were surprised at how many cats roamed the village, but I guess we’re used to it now. Although not domesticated, they all seem healthy and manage to exist on a … Read more

Tales from a Spanish Village: Two Old Fools and Queuing

Nobody enjoys queuing although most of us accept it as a necessary evil. Queuing and Joe are like cats and water; he hates it. He grumbles and heckles loudly which makes me shrivel with embarrassment as people turn to stare. It amazes me that no shops have banned him from entering their premises. “Why don’t … Read more

Tales from a Spanish Village: Two Old Fools and Spanish Dogs

“I can’t concentrate! Why don’t the Spanish stop their dogs barking?” I was trying to write the next chapter for my latest Old Fools book, but the constant background noise was spoiling my concentration. There are plenty of dogs in our village, all shapes and sizes. There’s a Jack Russell that never stops yapping, a … Read more

Two Old Fools And Bottled Gas

It began with a polite knock on the door. Joe answered it and found two smiling men in uniform waiting on the doorstep. “Good morning,” said the one with the clipboard, “we are sorry for disturbing you, we’ve come to check your gas fittings.” “Really? I don’t think we’ve ever had them checked before,” said … Read more

Tales From A Spanish Village: Two Old Fools And Expat TV

One could almost hear the howls of anguish from expats across Europe this month, and Joe’s was probably the loudest. We’d been warned, although I don’t think anybody really believed it was going to happen. But it did. One day all the BBC channels simply vanished from our screens. “No BBC1 or BBC2?” asked Joe, … Read more