Discoveries and Inventions

Is anyone else always thinking about things you'd like to see invented like me? A lot of my wishes have to do with technology. One of the big grips about the so-called smartphones is that they come with all these apps that I'm never going to use, and any app that I'd like to add I can't for lack of space. Okay I shouldn't complain too much as I didn't have to buy the phone. I sure do get sick and tired of freeing up space though! How about having to charge the darn thing just about every day? I can only imagine that someone who uses theirs more than I do mine must have to charge the phone more often. I have made a useful discovery though and that is the charger for my Kindle and my phone are compatible, so one less cable I'll have to take on trips. Wouldn't it be fantastic if everything else were compatible?  And can't someone please invent a dust deleter so as not to waste my finger checking for dust?

If I had to choose a household chore that I abhor, it would be dusting, because I dust today and see more the next day. I remember my mother used to complain about the dust from coal trucks that used to come barreling through their small town. Since they've built a road around the town, heavy vehicles are no longer a problem unless it's a tractor or other vehicle from a surrounding farm. The last time we went through the town we didn't pass a single car.

My photo for this week is a show and tell. Terri in her 'Hodgepodge Wednesday' was talking about chevron patterns. Of course, I had no idea what that meant until I looked on the internet and realised I had a chevron rug. It's not large because in Spain we don't go in for wall-to-wall carpeting (I've never seen a carpeted room here), and it's in the kitchen in front of the sinks. I got it from a Dollar Store the last time I was in the US. It goes in the washing machine easily and comes out perfectly and it came at an affordable price . Maybe a bigger rug or a bigger design would be too much, but it goes well with the floor and also the kitchen tiles. The mop is just a mop that when the head starts falling apart, I can replace it. Did you know that the mop was invented by a Spaniard? It's called a 'fregona' (from the word for scrub) as a 'mopa' is a dustmop or, as we tell our students, a 'false friend'. There are lots of words like this which can lead to confusion or most likely a lot of laughter. I'm sure you've seen lots of examples about the differences in language. I recently learnt that 'lumia' (the Nokia phone) was slang in Spanish for prostitutes. I've never heard anyone call them that in all the years I've lived here, so perhaps it's old-fashioned. I'm almost forgetting to let you know wrapping the stems in transparent film didn't stop my bananas from getting mushy in a few days - another trick that doesn't work.

I'll be taking a short break from blogging as I commented last week. I can't take the weather with me everywhere like I'm always wishing we could, but I can take the internet with me to be able to see what you're up to. I'll pop in to facebook too. Nobody blogs there, so it's easy to leave an update.

Some of you know that I've requested you keep my friend Chris and her family in your prayers. Her father passed away yesterday afternoon. I pray that they find comfort in their faith and know that he is no longer suffering.

Have a blessed week.