Category: this is south africa

Arderne wander

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When I got those new tyres for the Yosh, they came with a complimentary Tyre Care/Insurance package.
Free balancing and rotation for life, big discounts on alignment. And the tyre place emailed me last week to tell me that I was due for my first appointment.

These things take about an hour, so I popped across the road for a wander around the Arderne Gardens. Given that I was almost first into the tyre place, I was also almost first into the Gardens, and I had the place pretty much to myself. I didn’t bring the camera along (maybe next time), but with some decent morning light and some pretty trees, flowers and ponds, I think that the phone did an OK job.

My next phone will have a much better camera, though. Believe.

As for the work on the car: obviously, it didn’t need doing, but it’s just good practice to get it done.
Except: when I got back in and headed off, it was like driving on thin air. Like a different car. Woo.

Great service, too: quick and friendly. Hi-Q Claremont get a big thumbs up from me.

Anyway, if you were looking for a sign to sort out your tyres out (possible) or to head to Arderne Gardens (less likely), then maybe this is it.

Boing!

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It does finally feel like Spring is beginning to… well… spring. The sun is out, the flowers are budding, the birds are singing. And – if ever there was a sign that the better weather is on its way – I have chosen today to varnish all the garden furniture, ready for the outdoor season ahead.

Well, all the wooden stuff, anyway.

This is the garden furniture equivalent of turning your central heating off in the UK or ordering braai wood instead of firewood down here in Cape Town.

It should be a day for optimism, happiness and positivity. Sadly though, it’s all up against a soundtrack provided by Edwin Knobhead and his Power Drill Orchestra, because the inept builder next door is now running over a month and a half over his already rather lax schedule.
We’re heading towards 6 months now. What joy.

I’m not saying that it’s loud out there, but even my fancy ANC headphones – that’s Active Noise Cancelling, not the dodgy political party – were being overwhelmed. And they are literally meant to actively cancel out noise.

Which is what there is outside.

And so, job done, and tables and chairs actually looking pretty good, I have legged it back inside. Not that the walls of our house are enough to find peace, but it’s more bearable when you try to overcome it with some loud Nemone on 6 Music while banging out a blog post.

In fact, buoyed by the stuff I have achieved in the garden over the past 24 hours, despite facing such aural adversity, I might even bang out tomorrow’s post while I’m at it.

You can read that tomorrow.

A rather decent afternoon out

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We were lucky enough to get box tickets to see the Boks play the All Blacks. And we had a really great afternoon out. And what a view the box had. This was during the warmups.

The atmosphere, the gees, the actual match second half of the actual match, the winning try scored right underneath us. The excellent service and free-flowing drinks. A very cool day, all in all.

And with that winning try, South Africa won the Freedom Cup, and all but sealed the The Rugby Championship 2024.

And a lovely touch as we left the well-planned, well-executed event at the Stadium – nice work, City of Cape Town – the biggest national flag I’ve ever seen. (It’s generally not something that I keep a record of, but I can’t think of a time I’ve seen a bigger one.)

It’s certainly reignited my appetite for live sport, and for going along to the stadium again. I was there for the first and second ever events they held there, and several – or more – since, but it’s been a while.

Not so long again.

Still parenting

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Parenting continues. It just changes with time. With our daughter, we’re now at that age where almost everything is ok to do on her own, but sometimes there’s still a need (often mutual) to be present for backup and reassurance.

And so there are limits and negotiations and compromises. To be fair, the discussions are all very civil and understanding.

I’ve really matured.

More seriously, Obs on a sunny Saturday lunchtime is a good case in point. Probably completely cool and safe, but just that bit of lingering doubt. And so it was decided that we are hands off, but nearby.

And you think you’re overreacting until you wander down Lower Main Road and get approached by two dodgy types in as many minutes. And then you return to your car to find someone looking through the rear window for stuff to steal.

Lovely.

So while I’ve definitely had better Saturdays, I’m also very willing to be here. Just in case.

High hopes of being home for at least some of the football later, though.