mould age

last year i went to barcelona.
grid streets.
gritty.
sun.
yadda yadda.

i would not be surprised to find out that gaudi colluded
to ensure that the fancy church was never completed
as a punchline or as a guarantee of tourism.

love that they gave the middle finger to short term rentals
and are pushing back on tourism
and stay up late to eat snacks
and talk
and look at each other.
real faces.
not lenses.

great transport network too.

best croissant i ever ate.
france pales.
if you are offended then make better croissants.

who else can i insult.
the german language sounds like speaking while chewing cardboard.

back to barcelona.
the language sounds like speaking while chewing yogurt.

lived there for a month many years ago.
terrible mould in the apartment.
literally thought i was being attacked by an invasive species.
was told to take it or leave it.
so i left.

anyway
the city is huge.
spread out like a dude on the subway.

i needed new shoes.
found a pair i had been eyeing up for a good year.
saye.
something about sustainability
and simplicity.
but couldn't really justify the price.

your mindset changes when you travel.
so here i was plonking down way too much money for a pair of shoes.
they fit great.
no bloody tendon for two weeks like the vejas.

interestingly someone stole that pair.
right outside my door.
top floor.
number four.
who would have thought.
if you need them that badly they are yours bud.

anyway
they were sustainable.
so they said.
and they were not made by nike or adidas or puma
nor any of the other horrible companies with horrible morals.
an oxymoron if there was one.
i thought i was making a better choice.

fast forward six months later.
the shoes begin to fall apart.
fast forward three months after that.
there are now multiple holes.

perhaps they really are sustainable.
literally breaking down in front of my eyes.
but six to nine months is a little early.
i was hoping to wear them a bit longer.

nature has plans.

i contacted the company.
multiple channels.
email.
social media.

they wanted pictures.
and the bottoms of the soles.

both said to contact the store.
asked me to shake the memory barrel
to find that barcelona coloured grain of rice from last year.
retrace my steps.
even gaudi could not figure it out.

and then what.
i contact the store.
hey you sold me these shoes.
they are falling apart.
the company does not want to take responsibility.
they say you deal with it.

i have been on this roundabout.

we are in the mould age.
it creeps in.
slowly.
surely.
who is at fault.
the wall.
the ceiling.
the roof.

nobody.