I had perhaps a months worth of garden refuse removed this morning, when last did you see one of these?
Note the shiny new lightweight cart, our municipality replaced every single cart in the city last year with these. They are easier on the donkeys, more maneuverable, more visible and a lot cleaner. Continue reading “Refuse removal”
Some of you may remember my post on the rhino shot by poachers at a local game park and the subsequent loss of the calf to predators. a bit of good news from our Times.
Zhong Whong, 29, a security guard in his home country, was found guilty in the Kempton Park Magistrate’s Court of fraud and breaking the Biodiversity Act.
He was caught at Johannesburg’s OR Tambo International Airport with 16.1kg of rhino horn in his luggage. It would have been worth about R2.2 million in Vietnam, reports Beeld newspaper.
“Fines are clearly not a deterrent,” Magistrate Prince Manyathi was quoted as telling Whong on Wednesday.
“You came to South Africa knowing you were going to do something unlawful. Continue reading “Rhino horn smuggler gets 10 years”
Today is a public holiday in South Africa, it has been since 1995 and commemorates the first democratic elections to be held here.
Unlike other countries our public holidays are on the actual date i.e 27th April, 16th June irrespective of which day of the week upon which it falls.
With this weeks holiday falling on a Tuesday a lot of South Africans took Monday off as well and enjoyed a long weekend.
But I digress, I want to introduce you to Dan Heymann, he wrote the words and music of “Weeping” during the mid-1980’s when he ‘was an unwilling soldier Continue reading “Freedom day”
Whenever you park you car in South Africa nine times out of ten you will be approached by a car guard / parking attendant. It’s a form of begging.
As you alight your motor vehicle you’ll be asked ‘watch the car sir?’ There is no need to enter into conversation with them a simple nod of the head as you lock the car and march off to your destination will suffice.
So what function do they perform I hear you ask, the answer is many!
‘Guarding’ the car isn’t really one of them but if they know where you are (which shop) they will call you if something untoward happens, I parked up on a pavement recently and while enjoying lunch a traffic officer started to write a ticket, I was called, went and spoke to the chap and escaped a fine!
They point out empty bays in streets and car parks saves a lot of pointless driving around.
If it’s a difficult bay to get in or out of (if your vision is blocked by that 4×4 parked next to you) they offer help and directions.
They feed the meters if they see a warden, I haven’t put a cent into a Continue reading “Car Guards”
I wrote here on Monday about a female black rhinoceros being killed by poachers at Kwantu, one of our local game reserves.
I also mentioned that the slain mother was nursing a 12 month old calf and that the there were fears for the calf’s survival.
A report in today’s newspaper tells us that that a pride of lions found the calf before the rangers / trackers did.
Kwantu Wildlife Manager William Hofmeyr said “The sad thing is it shows the poachers didn’t only kill the mother, but indirectly killed the calf as well.”
Wildlife expert and Shamwari vet Dr Johan Joubert said the calf’s age would have made it very difficult to rear by hand, that may very well be the case but I would have liked the staff at Kwantu to at least have had the opportunity.
Kwantu game reserve lost another rhino to poachers over the weekend. The reserve is a short drive from my house, the report in my local newspaper tells me that the horn, which is all that they took sells for up to S.A.Rand 700,000 (£60,000) presumably in the far east.
This female was still nursing her 12 month old calf, there is now concern about the calfs well being. She had successfully produced 2 calves previously, this is not just a blow to Kwantu and eco-tourism but Continue reading “Poachers”
Good news!
Here’s the front page of today’s E.P.Herald, apparently 6 would be bank robbers walked into a bank, robbed it of an undisclosed amount of cash and attempted a getaway.
They didn’t get very far, 2 didn’t make it to the getaway vehicle, one wounded, the other surrendered.
The 4 that made it as far as the car, jumped in and they sped away. A high speed chase followed and members of our “elite Tactical Response Team” followed. (Report here.) Continue reading “Dead bank robbers”
I heard yesterday that our ball by ball commentary is also an unrestricted world wide feed via the internet. I often listen via my computer, seems only fair to allow the rest of the household access to the TV.
I would be interested if fellow members would quickly open the SABC portal and let me know if the broadcast is indeed available in your country.
20 years, not that long ago. Frederik Willem De Klerk announced the unbanning of the ANC, PAC, S.A.Communist Party and a host of other political and labour groups, also that Nelson Mandela would be released from his incarceration.
Today’s youth don’t know any different. I was with a 30 year old yesterday he has no recollections of life under the National Party.
In one way it’s mission accomplished for our children, not being the pariah of the Continue reading “20 years ago today”
Here he is in the back of my car.
On my way home this evening, there were three locals chasing this dog through the bush. Fortunately I drive a 4×4.
Off I went, after them, they scattered.
One of the layabouts had the cheek to walk up (after the dog was safely in my car) and ask me if it was my dog, I told him in no uncertain terms to piss off.
The dog fortunately had a collar and ID, he was reunited with his owner (who walked up to my house) an hour ago.
Boadicea's Chariot 
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