I’ve received our latest electricity bill. When I looked at it I was a little taken aback since the 43€ amount related to two months when the property would have been completely empty with the mains power turned off. The thought of entering into a discussion with the Spanish supplier to get to the bottom of what I thought might be an error was too much. We printed off the bill and tried examining it. Sure enough, at the bottom, we spotted a line that stated, “Consumption: 0 Kwh”. Francine scanned the rest of the bill and we came to the conclusion that this effectively constitutes a standing charge for the 2-month period. Oh well, que sera, sera.
Before the bill examination, though, I tromped around the bottom of our block intent on gaining access to the meter cabinet wondering if I might learn something. I did – I learned that the meter cabinet is not locked but is nonetheless an absolutely bitch to open, a screwdriver being required to jemmy it. Having jemmied my way in, I stared at an array of electricity meters, the labels for which seemed largely hidden by the meters themselves. I remained none the wiser.
Francine did however, spot a critter clinging to the outside wall of our neighbour’s property. We’d seen one of thee little curiosities once before only, in France. Our previous encounter meant, however, that we recognized it straight away. This was an Ant-lion. The French campsite owner when we spotted our first one, muttered “libelule” [dragonfly] which, of course, I now know that it wasn’t. Ant-lions get their name form their grubs, which have a habit of digging a sand pitfall trap for ants. The grub sits at the bottom and waits for lunch to slip down the sides of the trap towards its waiting jaws. Charming. The winged adult looks much less deadly.
Our new temporary neighbour was a different species, possibly Myrmeleon inconspicuus but don’t quote me. It’s certainly different from my French one ‘cos it has completely clear wings, other than the venation.
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