Friday, May 10, 2013

The Sweetest Slushie

Our breakfast haunt is a place just down the paseo from us. It's called Cafe Manila. It's run by Brits who have lived here for years, and it's staffed by people from all over. Some grew up right here in Fuengirola. Some are raising families here. And they all have a love and respect for Spain and Andalucía. Although none of the staff speak American, they are fluent in Spanish as well as British English (which is a very peculiar-sounding language much more difficult to understand than Spanish).

There'll be loads of stories to come I'm sure about the gang at Cafe Manila, but this is a basic introduction to Ann. Ann likes to do creative things with her hair. She's got a tuft (bangs, fringe) in front that she regularly dyes in shades not found in nature (well, not found in the nature of human hair).

A couple of weeks ago, Ann arrived at work with a bold purple fringe. She then made the mistake of telling me that Cafe Manila used to serve "slushees" in oddly unnatural fruity colors. One day a long time back, Ann arrived at work having just had her hair done. Richard took one look and said, "What did you do, get your head stuck in the slushie machine?"

I began calling Ann "Slushee" — after of course asking her permission. She said she didn't mind at all. "Anything for attention." But now, apparently, the nickname has begun to appear in comments on her Facebook page (i.e., "Nice photo, Slushee!"). I'm pleased to know I have such influence.

This post isn't supposed to be entirely about Slushee. (I'm thinking of doing a future post called "Fifty Shades of Slushee." I can already hear her laugh.) This is instead to share a photo of Ann's son's latest sailing session just off the coast. At the ripe old age of 11, he's already so skilled that he's taken the boat beyond the harbor and out to sea.

FROM THIS DISTANCE, IT'S NOT EASY TO TELL WHICH SAILBOAT BELONGS TO ANN'S SON.
I JUST LOOKED FOR THE FAST ONE BEING SKILLFULLY HANDLED.
THEN I FOUND OUT IT WASN'T EVEN HIS CLASS.
ANN'S OWN SHOT OF HER SON SAILING FREE.
I'M SURE THAT WAS SLUSHIE HERSELF OUT ON THE WATER LATER IN THE DAY.

19 comments:

  1. If it wasn't her then someone surely wove a sail from her 'tuft'!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jacquelineand....
      Ah, is that a reference to the truffula trees of "The Lorax"? You just made my "heart grow three sizes"!

      (But I have to admit ... it's Photoshop.)

      Delete
  2. That pink hair looks so eatable (rather like candy-floss) Ann must have to be shooing the gulls away non-stop.

    Btw: I won't fall for your leg-pull that British-English is more difficult to comprehend than Spanish. Ha ha. Nice one!
    Oh, you WERE joking weren't you? :-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Raybeard:
      One of the waiters at Cafe Manila is originally from Chesterfield. YOU wouldn't understand him.

      Delete
  3. Next time we come to Spain we're heading down your way... your photos of the sea, the boats (yeah... and the sand art) have me day dreaming already.

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    Replies
    1. Sharon:
      It continues to grow on me. Or maybe I'm just starting to understand that this really is home and not just a temporary escape to the beach.

      Delete
  4. I'm thinking cotton candy instead of Slushie. Always love the pictures.

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    Replies
    1. Stephen:
      I can't remember the last time I had cotton candy. Slushie had better keep her distance!

      Delete
  5. Slushie sounds like a character! Love the hair! Funny about British English! I do know what you mean Mitch! Have the hardest time concentrating on what is being said!! Old age maybe?

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  6. the colour is the exact same colour as prickly pear products !

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  7. (Posted here 'cos I can't get the 'reply' facility under your response to my comment above to operate - though some days it does.)

    I think what you call 'cotton candy' = what we Brits call 'candy-floss' - as that waiter from Chesterfield would confirm - at least if you could understand him. :-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Raybeard:
      Oh, the inconsistencies of Blogspot. Glad you're at least still able to comment. But, what can I say when it's free?!

      We saw Tynan (from Chesterfield) this morning. I'm sure he would confirm candy- floss. I do understand him... mostly. Sometimes I have to translate for San Geraldo.

      Delete
  8. ('Reply' still not working today, but never mind as I'm next in line anyway.)

    Next time you see Tynan get him to tell you about the Chesterfield church with the bent steeple. It's probably the town's most famous feature. Used to see it from the train whenever I travelled from where I used to live in Oxford to my mum's in north-east England.
    Still don't know why the Chesterfield area accent should be particularly difficult - but then I dare say you might well have problems deciphering my own!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Dear Mitchell,
    In Australia they call Cotton Candy 'Fairy floss'. I like that.

    I well recall trying to make my British-English Surrey accent understood in a New York diner... I felt so delightfully foreign! Everyone seemed to understand AGA's posh version of Australian-English though.

    And as the reply button doesn't work:
    Raybeard: I once lived for a short while at Shakespeare Villas in Chesterfield, just down the road from that church with the twisted steeple.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kirk:
      Curse that REPLY button. It didn't work for me either when I was in this specific post, but if I went back to my main blog page and scrolled through the posts to this one, REPLY did work. However, I'm sure that will all change again tomorrow!

      My 17-year-old (now 30) English nephew was incensed when he visited us in San Francisco and saw that one of the TV stations had English subtitles for a British film. As he put it, "Well, it's already bloody English, isn't it!?!?"

      Delete
  10. I love that pink sailboat out on the blue blue blue water!

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  11. Knatolee:
    ("Reply" not working for me at this moment either!)
    Confession... I Photoshopped the pink sail. Took a sampling of the color from the Slushie machine! Artistic license.

    ReplyDelete

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