Time unfinished

Time is a rush
Also stands still
Make the most of it
Take your fill

Smile you can
Brightness found
In step
Come around

Sleepless, yet again.

I awoke to the sound of the dog snoring loudly and wondered what the time was. Surely near dawn? Wide awake I glanced at the curtained window and convinced myself that it was a shade lighter outside, but curiously no birdsong. The sound of the snoring dog seemed  louder now. Sleep was remote so I steeled myself to rise in order to check the time.

One in the morning. I prepared a banana snack together with a slice of buttered bread, to be followed by a cup of tea and a cigarette. Fortunately this wakefulness only occurs once in a blue moon. The only regret I may have is the dead tired feeling tomorrow, which I will try and control with supplements, tea and coffee.

Am I tired? Is my brain functioning? Is that the cold I feel? Should I be here when I have to try and think of ways to fluff out this piece? No, I do not think so.

I am off to bed.

Departmental efficiency

Main road , Walmer, Port Elizabeth runs to a dead end about half a kilometer or less from the road sign, a sign that warns of a bumpy surface that endures for twenty kilometers. The surface of the road is slighly bumpy, and I can walk the distance in five minutes.

Makes one wonder, does'nt it!!

Ever hopeful.

Whenever there is something I think I have but cannot find, there is a mess in a room at the back that I climb into with the idea of tidying up, hoping to find the elusive object. In this way there is the prospect of finding what I want, as well as finally achieving a tidy area. I enter the room with a large empty paper bag, hoping to fill it with junk for the scrapheap. This objective is never achieved. I tend consider things at length before putting them in the bag, and plenty of stuff remains out of the bag.

The result is the mess as seen above. Will this state of affairs ever improve?

Malema supporters rioting.

This is typical of the have-nots being stirred in order to satisfy one man's lust for power. It may begin as a fair game but results in the carnage of riotous crowds, rubber bullets and teargas. And what for?

To drag all down to that level where immediate desires may be fulfilled but ultimately many suffer when investment and confidence leave the country, potential development evaporating into thin air. Surely common sense confirms this

The fine line between youth and children is proved by these actions to be very fine indeed. Children need discipline. The point though is that  traditional circumcision and the later 21st birthday promotes to adulthood. In this case these protesters are not youths, but should be conducting themselves in an adult manner. It can be concluded that these 'youths' are being held back by the likes of Malema, to his own ends.

Considering the above in no way can the youth league be referred to as such, seemingly populated by adults. Malema himself left his youth behind more than a decade ago. He is off the pace in more ways than one.

Joe Rotheray

Joe Rotheray

The use of such a facility is outdated and painfully slow, especially when SARS, in spite of having our user friendly email address, use it.

What the wife said:

Block the hole

Why?

I do not want the bird coming in.

What if I want the bird?

No, leaves stuff behind.

What stuff?

Baby bird, and what a mess.

Oh!

Lice as well.

I tell you what, if it is a starling, she goes, but if it is a hoopoe, we keep it.

Whatever you say, just get on with it.

Our friend Malema!!!

Malema's tender bonanza: News24: South Africa: News

Malema's tender bonanza: News24: South Africa: News

Sounds like a true capitalist to me, but without fairness thrown in
for good measure. The backward drag is such a pity.

On occasion some children seem to refuse to learn.

BBC News - Are you being served?

BBC News - Are you being served?

I must admit that when you walk into some shops you are met with complete disinterest by staff concerned, and that does not encourage you to make your purchase at that particular shop. The problem is especially exasperating when staff are employed on the basis of colour and not of skill. It is the willingness to assist, not forgetting the smile, that achieves the desired result.

The above applies to all sectors of economic activity from top to bottom. The tendency is evident in South Africa, and doubtlessly elsewhere, where services both public and private have taken a dive. It is akin to a child who has a favourite colour, he will take the green one because the colour is right, in spite of the fact that he knows that the blue one will work better.

I guess it is up to what the employer wants. If he wants his business or public service to thrive, he will employ the correct tools to maximize efficiency.

joe_rotheray's photostream

joe_rotheray's photostream on Flickr.

My collection of images on Flickr.

Settlers Park in Port Elizabeth

Port Elizabeth’s Settlers Park in 1984 when there seemed to be some hope of beautifying the area as a place to indulge in some of the wonders and pleasures of nature.

 Follow this path anticipating what may be seen around the next bend.

Occasional flooding adds excitement and nature's subtle changes to the area.

Down there it was a forest of fun.

Pleasure for the family.

And then our Parks department decided to renovate with the wholesale removal of many of the trees. At the final stages of this removal, it was decided that ring barking was a good method to use for the killing of the trees. Unfortunately, this is a slow process. Furthermore, the remains are not removed when life is gone, but left standing, not exactly adding to the attraction of the area. How long term is this project?

 I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.

Night

I am not used to being struck with the inability  to sleep. It is 11.45 pm and just had two slices of bread slathered with butter and home- made tomato jam. Following that a cup of Yorkshire tea. I dreamed of very large meat pies, not sure I ate them though.

I am told the temperature reached 38 degrees centigrade today, extremely hot. I think it has been raining solidly for the past 3 hours, high humidity at the moment.. We have been waiting for the rain for a fair while. Maybe at last the drought is to be broken. The rain can be heard coming down at a rate, an almost forgotten sound, the swishing of passing cars through the water in the street.. Seemingly the humidity refuses to abate. We may have another flood on the way, in spite of what the forecasts say, an average of 30 degrees over the 6 forthcoming days.

Well, cannot sit here all night. I have finished my snack and the tea. I am off to bed and hopefully sleep as well.

Spam on Facebook.

There is a continuing problem with spam on Facebook and this pic is an example. One needs to watch for the contents of the sharp section in the accompanying screenshot within this note.  The red x's mark the entry. If you click it you are led to a black screen which invites you to prove that you are human. This thing first appeared on my page about six weeks ago and I was almost tripped up. I had to change all my passwords. The original post was bogus, that was confirmed by the friend who was supposed to have posted it.

I came across the same posting on two friends FB pages and managed to delete the one. The other is said to be deleted but I still pick it up on my pc. To me this can be serious.

Unfortunately, and this is most annoying, it is difficult to report the problem to Facebook admin. Searching for a 'contact us' facility sends one around in frustrating circles. I now know how to climb a wall with no movement whatsoever. 

If anyone knows how to get the message through to Admin, please copy and paste this note and send it on.

Lastly, if you come across a post that you are unsure of, delete it.

Save that Bra

All is peaceful. My wife is relaxing in front of the television and I am in my favorite spot, in front of my computer, engrossed. Suddenly a black face is peering at me in the doorway, Baxter, with a flesh coloured bra clenched between his teeth. Damn the dog.

It is normally a frustrating procedure to persuade the dog to relinquish 'his' possession. He retrieves, but on his own terms. If I put my hand out, he'll pull back. If I chase him I'll be left for dust. On the other hand my wife does not want any holey modification to her underwear. I suddenly have a bright idea.

Jumping up I yell, "bra alert," and make a dash for the garage, Baxter hammering after me, still clenching his prize. I grab the mower and wheel it quickly onto the grass. He wheels around, dropping the bra. More fun to be had chasing me pushing the mower. I grab the opportunity and run to pick up the garment. There, no holes, just dust and dirt.

Baxter's adrenalin is pumping now, circling the mower at a pace, trying to out-bark the noise he thinks will be made when I start the engine. I push the mower back into the garage and the dog loses interest.

Thank goodness, another bra saved.