First off I want to apologize as this was supposed to have been written and posted yesterday but....................The God's of the internets intervened and I woke up to a non-performing server somewhere down the line that lasted the whole day.  Felt something like a junkie that couldn't get his fix for certain but then, late last evening they got the thing up and running again so I made the mistake of checking my email first thing.  To find some 200 emails awaiting my attention.  Fortunately a great deal of it was spam so I could get rid of that in a hurry but it still left a lot of reading to wade through.  And before I could finish that the electricity went off in the whole pueblo.  Which I took as a sure sign that the Gods were seriously taking the piss so I fumbled my way into the bedroom and hit the sack.  But before I could fall asleep the electricity came back from where ever it had gone to hide so then I had to go round and turn out all the lights that I had forgotten were still "ON" in the darkness.  So I said fuck it and stayed up and more or less finished sorting and deleating the email gaggle. 

But now, it is the following morning and upon arising SWMBO kindly informed me that were getting to be a couple of "Stay at home old farts" so to combat this tendency she had, in her wisdom, decided that we were going to take the bus into Malaga and attend the Malaga fair.  Which is something we used to do every year but have not done for the past three  since the last time we were there I got my pocket picked for the first and only time in my life and it was also the last time we were together with my brother-in-law who dropped dead from a heart attack exactly one year later.

Now I believe I should explain to you what the Malaga Fair actually is as in fact, it is difficult to understand what takes place without a book of instructions and seeing as how the bus leaves shortly I shall only give you a very short rundown.  First off, try to imagine say, for example, what it would be like if they moved the Washington State fair to the center of Seattle.  But, unlike Seattle and the Washington state fair, the Malaga Fair is a truely international event, (Rita Hayworth, Ernest Hemmingay and George Orwell used to attend regularly.  Rita to screw the bullfighters and Ernie and George to drink brandy, snoke cigars and urge her on.  Or so I'm told.)  Plus it is vacation time in old Spain so all the Malagueños who live all over Europe come home for the bash.  And bash is the word for certain.  Which means loads and loads of people.  And loads of horses in the streets.  And believe me, drink is also taken! (This may come as a surprise.) And maidenheads are burst by the bushel full.  Or at least this is what I have been told by some of my younger friends.  So when you hear of young Spanish girls praying to the Virgin whatever it may not mean exactly what you might think.

And the traditional sardines are eaten.  By the ton!  The best of course are to be found on the beach, (In Malaga the beach is right in front of the city hall so the poor old mayor doesn't have far to walk.  Same as the bull ring which is right next door.) which are done on a wooden spit stuck into the sand and leaned over an open fire.  An art in itself and only performed by specialists after a long and arduous apprenticeship.  The tradition goes back to the times when the fishermen used to land their catches on the beach and people would come down to buy their daily ration of fish and have a snack at the same time.  Now the fishermen no longer land their catch here, in fact Malaga no longer has a fishing port at all, which is due to the fact that there ar no longer any fish in Malaga bay.  I suppose swollowing all those used condoms finally did for them.  So where the sardines come from I have no idea but they are very, very fresh which pretty well precludes their coming from China like most all else around here.

Then there is also the obligitory visit to all the old tabernas which the old town is full of.  And as you might guess, this is my favorite part of the whole show.  But I have learned long, long ago; leave the local muscatel alone!  As it has a very strange effect on the knees and the main balance nerve.  No, this, along with St. Patricks day, is one of the two days of the year where the Grumpy old fart drinks beer.  By the gallon!  Nothing finer on a hot August day in the midst of thousands of happy people.  Much to the dismay of SWMBO of course but she is the one who says we have to go after all.

So, I am away and while I thought I would give that semi-senile old fart "I'm a war hero" John McLame a break today I just couldn't leave this out which I discovered in the middle of the night. 

Here you have Rudy, 9/11, Guilanni dressed to the 9 1/2s for his upcoming gig as the keynote speaker at the Rethuglican convention and steal what's left bash.

AIN'T HE PRECIOUS?

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COMMENTS

Hey!  Nice to see another bit of local color described.  I only wish you had
some photos to show.
Mio dios.  Don't you just love McLame's fuck up over how many houses he and
his rich bitch wifey own?!  But you know how his admirers simply worship him
even more for this conspicuous consumption.  It's the American Dream!
So things are okay here in Seattle, some cool rainy times and now back to
summer, the usual tease of climate.
Hope you guys are well.
Isabelita

Sorry about the photos but didn't take my own camera but took SWMBO's old fashioned box which means the pics have to go to the shop to be developed.  As soon as we get them back I'll put them up.

GOM