Latest Moan From You and Me 2025

I don't think it is rejection of people per se. It is the need to have the basics to live - housing, a steady income, enough water, etc. It's rejection of resources being stock-piled in the hands of a few.

 

I don't see how Spain's plans will work. The kinds of places where ex-pats buy homes are not usually hotspots for people needing to earn a living, bring up a family, have access to transport, medical facilities and education infrastructure.

Ex-pats are also more inclined to buy an older property and do it up whereas locals buying a home want new builds, mod cons, small gardens. That's certainly the case here. Lots of older properties for sale but people prefer to buy a plot and build.

 

The use of the word "hack" instead of tip/advice - eg "5 hacks to cut your bills". As far as I knew, the use of Hack/Hacking always implied some sort of suspicious activity ???

 

You sound hacked off, Philippa.

 

OH and I used to go to riding lessons twice a week when we lived in Harrow and two of the best things for waking up the system every winter were the Boxing Day hack and the NY day hack. The horses had no exercise the day before and little the day before that so loved nothing better than a good gallop out in the countryside.

These then were proper hacks. I prefer knacks and tips for the "handy to know" variety.

 

You could say that @Tidemark

Yes of course @Obelix-Vendée Despite being a former horse rider I'd completely forgotten that usage - I'll blame it on old age

 

Remember Hacking Jackets? When I was a teenager they became inexplicably fashionable for a summer. The same summer that floaty floral tiered skirts were in fashion. So of course you saw lots of girls wearing the two items together.

 

Fed up with people in cafes just sitting there yapping or fiddling with their i-thingies, instead of letting people who need a cup of coffee have a place to sit !! Total inconsideration and selfishness

 

Yes @Escarpment! Mid 70s. I still have the fabric I bought to make myself one. They went out before I found a pattern.

 

If you are on your own I always find places like that difficult, most tables are for four, a very small amount for two.

Last time I went for fish and chips down Dungy I sat at a table for two, just got my food and suddenly about 5 people descended on me, not sure why, there was lots of other space, probably wanted the view, my quiet meal was ruined.

 

That depends on the area you are referring to. In the Canary Islands in particular, non-residents are purchasing property in residential blocks and then using them as holiday lets. Apparently it's been going on for years and the authorities have turned a blind eye despite it being illegal. Now the locals are revolting. The same problem affects areas of the UK too, with locals being totally priced out of the housing market in holiday hotspots such as Devon and Cornwall.

 

I think people are making up for lost time during covid lockdowns. Not only are the cafes busier but the traffic is worse too, the roads are much busier than they were about 2 yrs ago, and even las year. You'd think the Chrismas rush was sill on
and the drivers are more careless and impatient and think they own the road ...

 

And here.

 

@KT53 I am aware of the holiday cottage/second home/holiday let situation pricing locals out of the housing market in the UK.

I was simply commenting that round here - not a million miles from Spain - French people seeking a permanent home in this area prefer new builds to renovation and restauration. They don't want stone walls, beams, leaky old plumbing, lack of insulation etc and they have busy working and family lives and don't want loads of DIY or big gardens to maintain but want some outdoor space for al fresco eating and children and dogs to play. They can't afford villas with pools.

Our house was built in 1930, has seen lots of "renovation" but needed more and it took the previous owners 3 years to sell it to a pair of mad Brits nearly 9 years ago. 250 metres down the road is a former paddock smaller than our 1.4 hectare plot that now has 8 new builds on it, all French, babies to teenage kids and permanent residents. People with less income buy in town to be nearer facilities and local transport..