Find it very stressful to get a new cell phone, while others are going yippee and pouring over its new functions I have to force myself to not throw the phone through the nearest window while I am trying to figure out how to use it. I have just started to use a new cell phone and while cell phones are becoming more technologically advanced they are also getting much smaller which does not bode well for people that are getting the long arm syndrome, it takes me twice the amount of time to send an SMS because I keep pressing the wrong buttons or two at the same time. I have joined mixit and seem to have got that under my belt, but if you hear the sound of smashing glass don’t get too worried.
What I see a lot of in Port Elizabeth that you never see in Clarens are cars with a red L on the back window……learner Driver, I have learnt that if you see a car with the 12th letter of the alphabet on the back window you look for escape routes. Learner drivers usually fall into 2 categories they are either very fast or very slow…there is no in between and both the above speeds are as dangerous. The L season seems to get worse at year end with Matric students looking to drive to school with their moms or getting lessons (in peak hour traffic nogal)
News this week from Clarens is that Jeanelle is becoming a Smurf….moving to Hairysmith…..So good luck with that “friend of Spad”. Other news is that two ex residents ……not well liked by many I may add where found dead in their home in Natal…….2 stories (surprise surprise for Clarens) one is that the gent shot his wife then himself or they where murdered. Either way liked or not it’s never nice to hear that ex-Clarenites have died.
On Saturday (15/1/2011 this headline was also on the web (Fouriesburg is 35 kms from Clarens. “Nineteen people, including a two-year-old boy, were killed and 19 others were seriously injured when their bus ploughed into a shallow stream just outside Fouriesburg on Saturday, Free State police said. “One of the surviving passengers said one of the tyres of the bus burst before it lost control,"
Monday was first day at work after 3 and a bit weeks of holiday, basically got items in order and on Tuesday evening we (Ryan, Vusi and myself) flew to Gauteng for a Trainers conference, got there late but just in time for some crappy pasta and a few drinks
Stayed at a really nice guest house (Natanja) the owner was great and if you’re ever in the area (Centurion) and you need accommodation then do yourself a favour and book there. Contact info is http://www.natanja.co.za/ or 012 664 6601
Wednesday saw my folks, sister, niece, brother in law and niece’s husband, that was great, always nice to see them and it’s not often that I do, so if in Gauteng I make the effort to pay them a visit. Thursday evening we had a lekker Braai at the guesthouse with Ryan, Vusi, Leon, Xavier, Andre, Mike and Xolani and the spread was awesome. I was in the hospitality industry for many a year and have to say have seldom been to a guest house with the level of hospitality than at Natanja.
On Friday after the conference had finished we had a few hours to kill so Ryan, Vusi and myself decoded to take a trip on the Gautrain. What a great experience. In fact I think all government officials should be forced to take a trip on this awesome mode of transport……….”they already get enough free stuff” I hear you say so why let them ride the train? The answer is easy, the Gautrain and the way its run and controlled could …..No “should” be the model on which this country is run………………….confused? Ok let me explain.
Well first off the first thing you notice as you approached the parking area is that it’s neat and tidy and it’s well patrol
led by metro police officers. The area is well signposted, the ticketing area is clean and tidy (not a piece of paper lying anywhere) the person selling you the ticket is competent and well mannered. Again the station has very visible policing as well as signs advising if you litter or smoke you get a R700 fine, on the platform there are metro police and if you accidentally stand over the yellow line you are firmly but politely asked to step back. The train runs on time according to the schedule and you could eat off the floor of the train itself, again there is visible policing on the train. All in all a pleasant, safe and enjoyable experience and one that you come away from feeling really proud to be a South African.
We walked around Sandton for an hour to see how the other half live……….”the verdict is that they live well”, Sandton city and Nelson Mandela square has to be the home of the Skinny African lady, In fact when I used to visit Sandton in the 80’s the rich ladies where called Kugels (Jewish ladies with the bling) well now we need to call the ladies walking around Sandton “bugels”…………Black Kugels.
The big man like most South Africans obviously has a dislike for the Aussies, as he has made it rain and then he made it rain some more flooding a part of Australia that is bigger than ?? Australians have become refugees in their own countries (suppose now they know what the boat people felt like). Fires, floods, pestilence……what’s next? Brazil have also been hit with floods and landslides……..as has a number of provinces in South Africa trains to PE from Gauteng have been affected due to the collapse of a bridge in The Eastern Cape because of flood waters. The weather patterns are changing and information out there indicates that in SA the North east of the country will get wetter over the years and the Cape areas will become drier. And they say there is no such thing as Global warning.
Tania did some work on the vegetable garden this weekend and when she was thinning out the spinach she pulled out one of the biggest beetroots I have ever seen.
The Proteas have played 2 and the series is level 1 all this due to them not being able to reach a paltry 191 runs and losing the game by 1 run, while this upsets me greatly in cricket like in rugby where we have a fair chunk of the coloured population supporting the All Blacks it seems that many South African Indians also seem to forget their loyalty when it comes to the Protea’s playing India. I mean if you want to support Sachin, Doni and the boys, then why don’t you go live in India with a population of 1.2 Billion and a life expectancy of 58.5…………pisses me off royally “n all n all n all”
Rioters burnt the Tunisian capital's main train station to the ground and sacked and looted shops in a wave of unrest after the North African nation's president was forced from power by protesters. So there is trouble that part of Africa. In our part of the world it would seem that PE has lost Blue flag status on all 3 of its beaches………….due to inadequate lifeguards, dirty ablutions as well as unacceptable behaviour on the beaches etc etc. This is not good as the city has positioned itself as a centre of water sports and relies on tourism (mainly local) to fill up its coffers over holiday periods. Let’s hope that we can get those beaches back to Blue flag status, but to be honest with the present municipality running the metropolis I feel this is not going to happen. However we cannot just blame the municipality as we the residents of PE also need to help ensure our city is kept clean and unacceptable behaviour is not tolerated. (perhaps our municipality management should take a trip on the Gautrain). I have just read that a 16 year old surfer was attacked by a shark in East London and died this weekend……..that’s the 5th shark attack at the same beach in 3 years………Condolences to the family
34 days to go (February 19) before the start of the ICC world cup cricket , lets hope SA can show us that we are not chokers when it comes to big competitions…..Any predictions ?? I don’t care who wins as long as it’s not The Aussies or the Pom’s, but if the final was to between the Pom’s and the Aussies I would be shouting for the sheep shaggers.
Well that’s about it, Gabby goes back to school on Tuesday after nearly 2 months of holiday. My two nieces Rebecca and Michaela are also going back to a normal school after a year of home schooling, Becky will be going to grade 4, std 2 (I think) and Michaela to grade 2 (not sure). Sure they will both adapt well to having school discipline and set classes and playtimes. Michaela will for the first time in her short school career be attending a school that her mom does not work at or was not teaching her, but know she will not be that daunted by this new challenge. Daniel my nephew is to young for school but sure he will be going to a playschool in the near future, like his cousin Amber on the island, I am sure that he would enjoy that immensely as he is such a gregarious kid. I can just see him now playing cricket and soccer with the other boys.
Well that’s it for this week, for me week 2 at work will hopefully see me doing some training, otherwise I need to start going out on audits and attend other training so I can increase my knowledge to be able to do better for my students and then eventually earn a better salary……….”Now that would be nice”
Ciao
SPAD
Monday was first day at work after 3 and a bit weeks of holiday, basically got items in order and on Tuesday evening we (Ryan, Vusi and myself) flew to Gauteng for a Trainers conference, got there late but just in time for some crappy pasta and a few drinks
Stayed at a really nice guest house (Natanja) the owner was great and if you’re ever in the area (Centurion) and you need accommodation then do yourself a favour and book there. Contact info is http://www.natanja.co.za/ or 012 664 6601
Wednesday saw my folks, sister, niece, brother in law and niece’s husband, that was great, always nice to see them and it’s not often that I do, so if in Gauteng I make the effort to pay them a visit. Thursday evening we had a lekker Braai at the guesthouse with Ryan, Vusi, Leon, Xavier, Andre, Mike and Xolani and the spread was awesome. I was in the hospitality industry for many a year and have to say have seldom been to a guest house with the level of hospitality than at Natanja.
On Friday after the conference had finished we had a few hours to kill so Ryan, Vusi and myself decoded to take a trip on the Gautrain. What a great experience. In fact I think all government officials should be forced to take a trip on this awesome mode of transport……….”they already get enough free stuff” I hear you say so why let them ride the train? The answer is easy, the Gautrain and the way its run and controlled could …..No “should” be the model on which this country is run………………….confused? Ok let me explain.
Well first off the first thing you notice as you approached the parking area is that it’s neat and tidy and it’s well patrol
led by metro police officers. The area is well signposted, the ticketing area is clean and tidy (not a piece of paper lying anywhere) the person selling you the ticket is competent and well mannered. Again the station has very visible policing as well as signs advising if you litter or smoke you get a R700 fine, on the platform there are metro police and if you accidentally stand over the yellow line you are firmly but politely asked to step back. The train runs on time according to the schedule and you could eat off the floor of the train itself, again there is visible policing on the train. All in all a pleasant, safe and enjoyable experience and one that you come away from feeling really proud to be a South African.We walked around Sandton for an hour to see how the other half live……….”the verdict is that they live well”, Sandton city and Nelson Mandela square has to be the home of the Skinny African lady, In fact when I used to visit Sandton in the 80’s the rich ladies where called Kugels (Jewish ladies with the bling) well now we need to call the ladies walking around Sandton “bugels”…………Black Kugels.
The big man like most South Africans obviously has a dislike for the Aussies, as he has made it rain and then he made it rain some more flooding a part of Australia that is bigger than ?? Australians have become refugees in their own countries (suppose now they know what the boat people felt like). Fires, floods, pestilence……what’s next? Brazil have also been hit with floods and landslides……..as has a number of provinces in South Africa trains to PE from Gauteng have been affected due to the collapse of a bridge in The Eastern Cape because of flood waters. The weather patterns are changing and information out there indicates that in SA the North east of the country will get wetter over the years and the Cape areas will become drier. And they say there is no such thing as Global warning.
Tania did some work on the vegetable garden this weekend and when she was thinning out the spinach she pulled out one of the biggest beetroots I have ever seen.
The Proteas have played 2 and the series is level 1 all this due to them not being able to reach a paltry 191 runs and losing the game by 1 run, while this upsets me greatly in cricket like in rugby where we have a fair chunk of the coloured population supporting the All Blacks it seems that many South African Indians also seem to forget their loyalty when it comes to the Protea’s playing India. I mean if you want to support Sachin, Doni and the boys, then why don’t you go live in India with a population of 1.2 Billion and a life expectancy of 58.5…………pisses me off royally “n all n all n all”
Rioters burnt the Tunisian capital's main train station to the ground and sacked and looted shops in a wave of unrest after the North African nation's president was forced from power by protesters. So there is trouble that part of Africa. In our part of the world it would seem that PE has lost Blue flag status on all 3 of its beaches………….due to inadequate lifeguards, dirty ablutions as well as unacceptable behaviour on the beaches etc etc. This is not good as the city has positioned itself as a centre of water sports and relies on tourism (mainly local) to fill up its coffers over holiday periods. Let’s hope that we can get those beaches back to Blue flag status, but to be honest with the present municipality running the metropolis I feel this is not going to happen. However we cannot just blame the municipality as we the residents of PE also need to help ensure our city is kept clean and unacceptable behaviour is not tolerated. (perhaps our municipality management should take a trip on the Gautrain). I have just read that a 16 year old surfer was attacked by a shark in East London and died this weekend……..that’s the 5th shark attack at the same beach in 3 years………Condolences to the family
34 days to go (February 19) before the start of the ICC world cup cricket , lets hope SA can show us that we are not chokers when it comes to big competitions…..Any predictions ?? I don’t care who wins as long as it’s not The Aussies or the Pom’s, but if the final was to between the Pom’s and the Aussies I would be shouting for the sheep shaggers.
Well that’s about it, Gabby goes back to school on Tuesday after nearly 2 months of holiday. My two nieces Rebecca and Michaela are also going back to a normal school after a year of home schooling, Becky will be going to grade 4, std 2 (I think) and Michaela to grade 2 (not sure). Sure they will both adapt well to having school discipline and set classes and playtimes. Michaela will for the first time in her short school career be attending a school that her mom does not work at or was not teaching her, but know she will not be that daunted by this new challenge. Daniel my nephew is to young for school but sure he will be going to a playschool in the near future, like his cousin Amber on the island, I am sure that he would enjoy that immensely as he is such a gregarious kid. I can just see him now playing cricket and soccer with the other boys.
Well that’s it for this week, for me week 2 at work will hopefully see me doing some training, otherwise I need to start going out on audits and attend other training so I can increase my knowledge to be able to do better for my students and then eventually earn a better salary……….”Now that would be nice”
Ciao
SPAD
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