Xtra Savings Plus

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First off: this isn’t an ad. I tell you when I do ads.
Second off: this is a rather dull post, but I figured that it might benefit some local (SA) people, and I’m all about helping out where I can.

I signed up for the Checkers Xtra Savings Plus programme a couple of months ago. It costs R99 per month, and my first month was free. You’re not paying for nothing, obviously. There are a few benefits:

Look at the first one – essentially – R35 off every time you’re too lazy to shop. It’s a 10.6km round trip to our local store, so you’re looking at about R24 of diesel to get there and back. I’m not adding that onto the waived delivery fee, but it’s nice not to have to go out in the rain (and yes, I do tip my drivers, whether I’m paying or not).
That’s nice, but then that middle one is worth R200 alone, so if you already shop at Checkers (we do), then it’s already a no-brainer.
And then those double personalised offers: they add up. Sure, they get your shopping data (oh no!), but then you get money off the stuff you actually want, rather than a kettle, some baby food or a frisbee.

There was a little issue with my Checkers card today when I went to use my 10% extra in-store. Nothing major, sorted quickly, but what it did do was mean that everyone (cashier, lady behind me in the queue, store manager) all watched as R568.65 got taken off my bill.
R2600 to R2030 just like that. All because of my R99 per month spend.

I left once I’d paid, but I think the LBMITQ signed up on the spot. Why wouldn’t you?

And overall this month, I’ve saved R836. Take off the R99 fee and do some rudimentary maths, and I make that R737. What’s not to like?

Times are pretty tough here in SA at the moment, and I recognise that we’re lucky to be able to speculate to accumulate. But if you think that this could save you and your household some cash, well, I’m here as a neutral, unbiased, impartial, non-partisan (although somewhat tautological) individual to tell you that it does actually work.

Go for it.

RBOSS is back!

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It’s been a while since we’ve seen some RBOSS (click here if you need an explanation, and here to see other posts about RBOSS), but it’s back with an absolute classic, a stone-cold banger, a perfect example of the genre. Not least because it’s actually of Ramsey Bay, and that’s the R and the B sorted immediately.

And just look at the O and the S. Wow.

It’s dreamy.

And next up, the photographer’s disclaimer:

not done a lot to it TBH

Ja right.

Of course you haven’t, mate.

The yellow is from your pants that are on fire after that statement.

And all that orange was the early morning nuclear test in Cumbria. A bang so big, it made one end of your photo go down. The Lake District is a whole lot less hilly now, and it’s sloping downhill strongly to the left.

It’s a shame that someone took a video of the same sunrise from about 300m to your left.
And that it looked like this: Ramsey Bay No Saturation Society.

Although you can still see the black smoke from the explosion.

See, that’s how a pro works. No dehaze (see the telltale white haze around the lighthouse on the left above), no silly saturation, straight horizon.

But while it might be more accurate and a whole lot less aggressive on the eyes, it doesn’t get you as many LIKES: the true currency of the RBOSSer.

And that – sadly – is why RBOSS will continue forever.

Video: CJ Wormwell

Tent camping in Australia

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If Geoguessr was an Olympic sport, I’d be all over it. I already enjoy watching the regional qualifying for the upcoming World Cup. If you have a few minutes, take a look at some of these games. The skill level is right up there with anything it would take to be an Olympian. Incredible stuff.

But Geoguessr isn’t an Olympic sport. So I’m watching handball instead.
France 22-27 Norway. Thanks for asking.

But that doesn’t mean that I haven’t been playing Geoguessr.
And today, I got dropped here:

Easy for you to say.

Actually, easier for everyone to say when you realise that Google Maps has maybe added an extra syllable again. But why hasn’t it added anything to the second line.

I’m confused.

Anyway, it’s up in the Northern Territory of Australia, in case you were wondering. I came pretty close from the name (whatever that is), and the vegetation: just 22km away.

The two main things to do there, according to their website, are “birdwatching and croc spotting”.
And not swimming, presumably.

Crazy name. Crazy place.

Schooled (sort of)

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OK. Apparently, that wasn’t the Last Supper at the opening ceremony.

Except also, it clearly was:

The Paris 2024 organisers have apologised to Catholics and other Christian groups angered after a parody of Leonardo Da Vinci’s famous The Last Supper painting during the Olympics opening ceremony on Friday night.
A kitsch tableau parodied the iconic painting, recreating the biblical scene of Jesus Christ and his apostles sharing a last meal before crucifixion.

See?

However, this facebook post tells us (while dripping with condescending sarcasm):

It was not the Last Supper. It was a depiction of an ancient Greek Bacchanal.
Because, you know, the Olympics are ancient and Greek. Surprise!

Image link

But hang on. It was the Last Supper – the organisers foolishly apologised for that above – and Bacchanalia (the plural) were a ROMAN thing, not a Greek thing.
Bacchus was the Roman god of wine. He wasn’t Greek.

So actually, the Olympics are ancient and… er… Roman? No. Because that wasn’t a depiction of a Bacchanal. It was a depiction of the Last Supper with some added Dionysus.

Dionysian Mysteries are the Greek thing on which Bacchanalia were based: parties in honour of their god of wine-making: Dionysus.
Dionysus was also god of… just off the top of my head:

Orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, festivity, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstasy, and theatre.

And yes – if you saw that bit of the opening ceremony – that does seem to fit the bill a little more accurately.

But if you’re going to write 500 words on how stupid people were to think that was the Last Supper (which it was), then at least get your facts straight. Because, as mentioned above:

The Bacchanalia were Roman festivals of Bacchus, the Greco-Roman god of wine, freedom, intoxication and ecstasy. They were based on the Greek Dionysia and the Dionysian Mysteries, and probably arrived in Rome c. 200 BC via the Greek colonies in southern Italy.

To be fair though, both Bacchus and Dionysus (I can’t speak for Jesus) regularly had their scrota (and often a lot more) hanging out when depicted in contemporary media.

So at least that bit was right.

The Opening Ceremony

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I mean, these things aren’t meant to be for the actual sports fans, are they?

I’d wager that literally less than 1% of the football fans in the Olympic Stadium in Berlin were bothered about the kids waving the special flags before the Euros final earlier in the month. And much like that wasn’t really part of the football, this wasn’t really part of the Olympic games.

Just an add-on.

It’s simply an excuse to dance and have lasers and play music and do… stuff.
And you’re never going to please all the people, all the time.

So why not just go wild?

Especially in France.

Accurate.

I actually thought it was quite fun. Really bizarre, but also really original. I loved the river vibe: why not break ties with the traditional stadium-based setup? It was courageous and different, and most of it worked.
The driving rain only added to the drama. And the religious iconography of that Last Supper scene [UPDATE: But actually, see here] was really quite something.

That said, the third hour of the horse running up the Seine was maybe a bit over the top.

Oh, and talking of over the top…

A moment that will stay forever with all of us that watched last night.
Despite many thousands of hours of therapy too, I’d guess.