Proper Rock, Done Proper

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I was a bit late to the party on Royal Blood, but while I was over in the UK earlier this month, an inadvertent press of a button left me straying dangerously close to Radio 1 and there they were, banging out the raw, riff-addled rock and roll perfection that is Little Monster:

It’s a bit heavy for certain members of our family, but thankfully, my 7-year-old daughter shares my excellent taste and we spend quite some time yesterday evening listening to this on repeat.

Proper Parenting, Done Proper.

The News by Des’ree

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Those of you who were fortunate enough to have lived through the 90s (my favourite decade, and, coincidentally, also my favourite range of bath temerpatures), may remember British pop and soul sensation Des’ree. She had a couple of hits towards the turn of the century, including You Gotta Be (which got to number 10 in the UK in 1999 as a re-re-release) and Life – a 1998 top 8 hit, by which I mean it got to number 8.

Let me jog your memory:

If you managed to sit through that, you’ll have noted that amongst other dubious wordage, (“rabbit’s tail”?!?) Life features this lyrical miracle:

I don’t want to see a ghost
It’s a sight that I fear most
I’d rather have a piece of toast
And watch the evening news

And it’s that verse which has prompted Des’ree to launch a twitter account commenting on recent news stories.
(It’s not actually Des’ree, you know? It’s a parody.)
(Shh.)

Here’s the link you need: The News By Des’ree.

And here are a couple of recent examples:

On the Super Blood Moon:

 

And on Facebook’s recent tribulations:

I think you get the idea.
Wonderful.

Dey see me weavin’…

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We’ve seen Cape Weavers on this blog before. Here, to be exact. That one was at Houw Hoek Inn, where we had stopped off for some brunch. This one is rebuilding for Summer 2015/16 down in Suiderstrand:

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This guy was a whole lot less photogenic, but he was a whole lot busier, having just started on his new-build, which will take him about a week to complete. And when you’re a male Cape Weaver, quality is everything. How else are you to attract one of your UP TO SEVEN mates, if you don’t show off your beautifully constructed nest?

“Back to mine then? For a… coffee?
Yeah. Built this all myself, love.
And if you like the kidney-shaped, fully waterproof structure made of woven broad strips of grass, you’re going to love the mood lighting I’ve put in.”
*Barry White starts to play*

I’d imagine that things happen pretty much like that, anyway.

This one is just up the road from us (in fact, many of those woven broad strips of grass came from my back garden), so I’ll let you know how he gets on this season.

Traffique

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Back in Cape Town. The traffic heading back into the city after the long weekend, together with the rain sweeping across the Western Cape made for a long, miserable and taxing journey home.

Which idiot decided on that 500m of single carriageway between the bottom of Sir Lowry’s Pass and Somerset West? Who thought that would be a good idea?
Tosser.

I’m tired, and so I’ll sort out a few photos and some more words for you tomorrow.

Ok?
Ok.

Not monochrome

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Altogether now…

“What a difference a day makes; Twenty-four little hours.
Brought the sun and the flowers,
Where there used to be rain.”

Except not.

Sadly, it seems that we’re doing things backwards down here in Cape Agulhas. Yesterday gave us this scene of the boy ‘togging whales (more of that when we’re back in Cape Town):

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But today, I found myself walking the beagle and gazing out over an ocean that looked like this:

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It was almost as if all the colour had been sucked away.

The snakes and the tortoises that we saw wandering around here yesterday have been replaced by snails and happily chattering frogs. Annoyingly chattering. Puff adders may be venomous and nasty, but at least they are quiet.

And then the recollection that I’ve promised to take the boy up the local hill on his bike in this grey mizzle. That is, once I’ve dried out from this morning’s exertions…