September stormy weather. Ash over Etna. Rubble over Gaza. Homelessness. The selfishness of the world.

 It’s one of those windy Sunday September mornings. I woke up to the sound of rain and turned over and had a bit more snoozing time but I hadn’t realised how blustery it was. When I went out later, taking advantage of one of the periods of sunshine between the rain showers, I realised how windy it was and how blustery it mist have been overnight. There were snapped-off small branches all over the paths. 

The blustery night did for my sunflower too, decapitating the poor thing completely. I had been hoping to continue to document its decline photographically and then into an art project I have got underway. The windy weather has put paid to that! 

Elsewhere in the world, Etna is still causing problems for Catania airport. 

• Flights at Catania’s airport will be remain suspended on Sunday due to Mount Etna ash in the region.
• The airport was closed on Saturday amid ongoing volcanic activity, and it has now been confirmed that flights will be suspended until 21:59 GMT on Sunday.

Somehow photos of plumes of ash are never so impressive as photos of lava pouring down the side of the volcano.

Then there is this:

“61m tonnes of rubble: Gaza aid workers face delicate task of clearing ruins concealing up to 10,000 bodies

Removal of war debris, in which lives, memories and unexploded Israeli bombs lie buried, is one of largest clearance operations in modern history.”

How will they ever deal with such a mess. Whole families are under there, many with nobody left to identify them or mourn for them.

“To make things more difficult, the Israeli authorities have banned the necessary equipment from entering Gaza on the grounds that almost any aid that is not food or medicine could be ‘dual use’ and could somehow benefit Hamas.”

Well, that sounds like an excuse if ever ai heard one!

i was reading about an old lady in Madrid who has been evicted from her flat, the flat where she has lived for 71 years. The flat was originally in her father’s name. On his death, the contract transferred to her mother and later to Maricarmen herself. The whole building was bought by a developer and she was offered the chance to buy the apartment for €247,000 (£212,000), not feasible for an old lady on monthly state pension of €1,350. Then they raised her rent from €500 to €1,650 per month. And lawyers found a way of saying the contract in her name was not truly valid! You can see where that was going! 

Lots of people have protested, including the actor Carlos Bardem, brother of the more internationally famous Javier Bardem, and the singer and actor Ana Belén. But it doesn’t seem to have made any difference. 

And now I find myself wondering what the rent would be nowadays for the flat we used to rent in Vigo for €550 a month, if my memory serves me well. No doubt our departure allowed the owner to raise that rent.

Finally, here’s a cartoon reflecting on the selfishness of the modern world.

Life goes on. Stay safe and well, everyone!