Now that it is cooler, the undertable heaters are coming out, blankets being put over tables and people gathering round table in bars. We really don’t know what the etiquette is and when we are at Pepe’s, do we just go and snuggle up with a group of old men sat round one of the tables, do we sit on our own – or stand at the bar shivering forlornly?
This is a problem that we haven’t had to face before as we haven’t been to Pepe’s much in the autumn or winter before, however we try to go a couple of times a week now, so we will have to decide what our strategy is going to be.
We are going to Pepe’s once or twice a week for two reasons, firstly, it is good to get out and see people over the age of 12 and secondly we are currently on a drive to spend money in the village. So we are doing the majority of our shopping in the village and frequenting Pepe’s. The aim is to spend at least what I earn from classes back in the village. It is pretty much acknowledged that the crisis is passing us by, and the reason for this is that the village is very much self-sufficient with it’s own micro economy – what’s earnt here is spent here. We realise that in order to support this, we shouldn’t be going to Llerena to buy things we can buy here. We’re considering a new stove and found that we can get one in the village for the same price that we could buy one for online, so hopefully we’ll find we can get most of what we need.
It’s the general election soon and this is being treated with absolutely remarkable apathy. The national parties don’t get much support here, nor does it appear that they bother canvassing. There’s no posters, leaflets or anything else that even vaguely suggests that there is an election pending. This is completely different to the fervor and excitement that surrounded the local elections.