February - the month that was...

Ever had one of those days where everything seems to go wrong? How about a month of that? That's what February felt like for me. Yup - its been a month of endless problems and disappointments.

Lets be honest - moving into a new place sounds fantastic at first. Bigger rooms, bigger garden, loads of ideas on how you are going to fill the new spaces. This was tee'd up to be the month of painting, decorating and settling into a cozy new environment. It was destined to be month where it all came together and we could kick back, soak it all up, and get back onto the golf course.

Instead, what we ended up with was one (i would refer to them as 'earth-shattering', but for fear of being labeled a dramatist by the readers of this blog, i'll settle for 'major') disaster after another.

In no particular order of importance, lets start with the alarm. I had an alarm put into the house during the last week of Jan, and after surviving two days of installation and having my paving ripped up to make way for the outdoor beams, I was told that all was in working order. "Here's the technical manual sir - you'll have to program the LCD keypads yourself - its after 5pm on a Friday, and we're out of here". In retrospect, it was probably a good thing they did leave the manual with me, as I bet you that I could now program that system better than any of their technicians could. Anyway, that's not the point. The point is that the system wasn't working properly. After a bit of testing, I discovered that none of the 'panic' buttons placed throughout the house actually worked. Two aggressive phone calls to the alarm company later, and a technician rocks up at the door. He proceeds to cut through a bunch a wire in the roof, and reconnect some new ones, and promptly leaves. Then we discover that the door mag and passive in the lounge don't work. Another phone call threatening cancellation of the contract, and two days later, another technician pitches up to fix this latest problem. So far so good, but I have to say that along with tow truck drivers, I now consider alarm company salespeople to be absolute bottom feeders.

Following the alarm theatrics, I wake up last Saturday morning ready to take on all the action and excitement that the kick-off of the Super 14 has to throw at me. Its been a while since the world cup, and I'm having rugga withdrawal. Proceed to tv room with cup of milo in hand, ready to take my seat, and get my weekly dose of Rugby Build Up. Switch on the tv - no signal. Reboot the decoder - no signal. Get onto the roof to check the LNB - no signal. Spent half the morning dismantling the dish and reassembling - no signal. Eventually I get into my car and drive to the nearest audio shop to get them to do a Saturday call out (which they at first refuse to do). After another 2 hour wait, a new LNB and R550 later I have a signal. Rugby is all over for the morning, and but that time, it was the last thing I felt like.

Incident number three is a real treat though. Last Tuesday morning I drive down the driveway and off i got to work. I get about 1km down the road and my power steering goes. K calls me to say that there is hydraulic fluid all over the garage floor. I pull into the nearest garage to top up - no stock. I go to the next garage, and I kid you not - no stock. THIRD garage later - I buy 2 bottles of hydraulic fluid, thinking that this will sort it out. I get another 1 km down the road and run out of fluid. Anyway, regardless to say, I limp the car to the nearest Audi dealership, and dump it there. 2 days later I get a call from the workshop manager - advising me that the damage amounts to around R40k! Not exactly what I'm going to do to solve this little dilemma.

Oh yeah - its been a fun month and I haven't even mentioned the countless other issues - trenches being dug up for sewerage pipes, irrigation pipes that have had garden forks put through them, water pumps that stopped working, the electric fencing that I had to have repaired, and the disappointment of not having K's folks come and stay with us.

Let's look on the bright side though - only 3 days left in Feb. Then we're into March...the month where things come together, we get to kick back, relax, and take up golf again :-)

We're in...

Its Sunday evening, and the end to what has been a long four days. K and I are physically exhausted. We've moved boxes, carted pots plants, unpacked boxes, cleaned cupboards, washed glasses, washed cars, sorted out cupboards, moved furniture, changed globes, fixed fountains, hung pictures, hooked up TV's, cleaned floors, painted cupboards, swept driveways and connected washing machines.
Yup, its been a long four days. But its over now. We're in! We have a CD playing in the background, a glass of wine in hand, and a nice cooked meal to look forward to.
Thanks to all our friends and family for offers of help and well wishes. We soon hope to have you all over for a celebratory drink and a meal.

Johnny Be Good

So, we're sitting in a cosy little pub in Edinburgh one evening, sampling some of the excellent single malt on offer, when the topic of the Johnny Walker range of whisky's comes up (admittedly, more than a couple had been sampled by this stage):

Dad: I've decided, I'm not going to drink any more Bells when I get home. I'm splashing out on quality stuff.
Stuart: Well, I personally enjoy a little JW Black Label every now and then. The range isn't as expensive as you may think.
Dad: Oh, I'm not so sure about that. The Blue Label comes with a hefty price tag. I reckon you'll pay more than 4k for the range.
Stuart: Never dad.
Dad: Of course. The Blue is probably 2k on its own.
Stuart: Never dad.
Dad: I'm telling you.
Stuart: OK. Put your money where your mouth is dad. When we get home, you go and price the range. That's Red, Black, Green, Gold and Blue. If its more than 4k, I'll buy the range for your pub. If its less, you buy the range for my pub.
Dad: Deal. You'll cry when you see the price. I can't wait.

Listening to all of this, and spotting an opportunity as it gets presented:

G: Great deal guys. However, when the official handover takes place, in celebration of winning the range, the winner will open at least the Green Label for all present to sample.
Dad: Suits me. I've got nothing to lose - that range is coming my way.
Stuart: Fine by me too. I don't mind opening a free bottle of Green Label.
G: Lets all shake on it.

A few weeks after that great evening in Edinburgh, I attended the official "handover" ceremony. Needless to say, it was Stuart's pub that was stocked with the JW range of whisky. The Green label wasn't bad either :-)

London, Scotland and Spain

Well its been just over three weeks since my last post, and not without good readon. K and I have been on the road, doing what we love most - experiencing the sites, sounds and tastes of new destinations. Here's a quick summary of the August 2007 tour of London, Scotland and Spain:

- Alan and Samantha's wedding, set in a quaint little church just outside Milton Keynes, with reception at Whittlebury Park (next door to Silverstone).

- Middlesex Sevens at Twickers (where Newcastle pipped Worcester 20-19 in the final).

- Fringe Festival at Edinburgh castle and surrounds. Went to see a few stand up comedian acts in the Underbelly, or catacombs of Edinburgh. Great setting for these types of acts, as you walk through a series of interconnected rooms, and then all of a sudden find yourself underground in what can only be described as a humid, musky tunnel. Watched a comedian called Martha Mcbrie, in a show called "So you think you think you can heckle?". Wasn't overly impressed with her, but we were blown away by the talent of a stand up comedian/musician called Rob Deering in his show called "Charmageddon". Worth a watch if you ever come across him.

- Tour of the Edinburgh castle, and views from the top.

- Gardens around Edinburgh castle.

- Boat trip out to Loch Lomond.

- Scottish Highlands.

- Tour to Stirling Castle (with William Wallace monument in the distance).

- Seeing our good mates Neil and Mandy again.

- Windsor Castle and surrounds.

- Cabopino Beach just outside Calahonda, Malaga.

- The ancient city of Antequera.

- The El Torcal mountain range, and limestone rock formations.

- The beautiful village of Mijas.

- On our way to the Picasso Museum in Malaga. Incidentally, although Picasso painted most of his work in France, he was actually born in Malaga Spain. We were also treated to works on temporary display by artists such as Matisse, Balthus and Dubuffet.

All in all a great trip with lots of good memories.

Bit of this and that...

Here's a quick update on the happenings of the week:

Squash league has started, and although I have not won a game yet (two matches played), I captained the side last week, and the team managed a victory, despite my lack of contribution. I played a really strong (new to league) player from Wendywood. The guy was worse than a Jack Russel - just would not let anything go. Anyway, we have a team practice on Monday night, and a bye on Wednesday, so I have a good 10 days to get my game right.

As for K, she's been working quite hard getting her budgets ready for the upcoming year. Her team went away last weekend for a management conference to discuss the budgets and plans for the upcoming year. With the planning now finished, she can get back into her routine and hopefully a little less stress. She flies up to Nigeria and Ghana in May to meet the teams there and share the plans for the upcoming year with them - not a trip I'd like her to be doing, but there is a small group of her management team going, so it should be quite safe.
Went out for a couple of drinks and something to eat with Kerryn, Liam and Lauren last night. Kerryn and Liam are out for the UK for a couple of weeks - was good catching up with her again, and meeting Liam for the first time.

Am currently listening to Derek the Bandit's latest podcast - some wicked trance sounds permeating the air at the moment - awesome.

Oh, on the book front, have just finished a Dean Koontz fictional drama - Brother Odd. Was a pretty, I hate to say it - odd book. Basically about a guy who can see the dead, who moves to a monastery to save a group of monks and disabled children from impending death. He meets the ghost of Elvis and a ghost dog named Boo along the way, and helps them to cross over from this world to the next. Out of ten - i'd give it no more than about a four-and-a-half. Am about to start a new one titled The Family by Kitty Kelley. Its about the Bush Family - the story of their dynasty and its power. I hope its not another Michael Moore wannabee. Will keep you posted.

That's about it for the time being - other tnan to note that the winter seems to have arrived. Wind chill is down to about 8 degrees Celcius. Plenty of sunshine, but a (very) fresh breeze outside.

POTD: 21 March 2007

K and I had my family around today, to celebrate her birthday. This is a leftover piece of Pavlova that K made - delicious.

POTD: 20 March 2007

The flowers that K received from her folks for her 30th b'day.

POTD: 12 Feb 2007

Went out to enjoy The Last Supper, last night, at Pigalle Restaurant in Bedfordview.

POTD: 11 Feb 2007

Had my folks around for a braai today, with K's folks. Food was really good (if we say so ourselves :-).

The Dullstroom Highlands

Just arrived back from a great weekend away in Dullstroom. We left on Friday afternoon, and 2 and a bit hours later, checked into Critchley Hackle. On the outer edge of town, it is built around a beautiful trout dam, overlooking a valley and gentle rolling hills out towards the Lydenburg in the East. Didn't take us long to settle in, and settle down with a glass of red wine and the burning log fires in the pub (log fires in the middle of summer? I know...but yes, there were log fires. It gets pretty cold in the Dullstroom region, and the log fires not only add to the ambiance, but are necessary in the freezing winters, and chilly summer evenings).
I woke up early on Saturday morning to try my hand at some fly fishing. After 2 hours of nothing, my luck eventually changed, and I seized 3 trout within about 45 minutes. The dam is stocked every 2 months or so, so the trout are all pretty much the same size - around a kilo each. I decided that a "catch and release" policy was best, as there was plenty of trout on the menu each night.
We had a great breakfast, a walk around town, and then went on a drive out towards Lydenburg. Came back just in time to cast a few more lines (no success this time) before watching the rugby and settling down for another superb meal.
Here are a couple of pics from the weekend:

This is a shot from outside our room, with full moon in the background.

Early morning mist on the dam.


Early morning fly fishing action.


K and her dad Roy.


The Wilsons - K with Roy and Sharon.

All in all a good weekend away. My personal highlights:
- Catching 4 trout
- Waking up at 5am to watch the sun rise
- Scottish Oats (with whisky) for breakfast
- A night sky full of stars
- Two fine dinners with K's folks at the table, over a good bottle of wine.

Weekend update

Its been a good weekend. We got back from Clarens on Friday afternoon, and then went through to Sandton for some dinner with K's folks. There has been quite a bit of development since they left SA, so its been quite nice to show them all the new shopping centres, housing complexes etc. We had a good dinner on the Nelson Mandela Square.
Saturday was spent trying to find an aircon for our place. The heat has been unbearable over the past few days, to the point where K and I are battling to sleep properly at night. We found some nice looking LG units - something that I'll have to follow up on this week. We then had a quiet afternoon at home, watching South Africa turn the tables in the third test match against Pakistan (which they won today). Spent the evening at the movies - saw The Queen, which turned out to be better than I expected.
Today, we spent the morning at the Serbian Orthodox Church in Sunninghill for Nicholas Kort's christening (Nicholas is Tsvet and Graham's little guy). The service was all in Serbian, so we didn't quite get what was being said, but I guess the dunking of little Nicholas in a bath of water kind of gave it away. Then rushed back home to collect K's folks and made our way through to my folks for lunch - which consisted of roast lamb, roast potatoes and veg, some fruit salad and ice cream, and some red wine. Very good indeed.
Right now, its watching Carte Blanche, whilst listening to the rain falling on the tin roof outside.

Clarens

Arrived back from a great couple of days away in Clarens. We left on Monday morning, and wound our way down to Kiara Lodge just outside of Clarens in the Free State. Set amongst the Maluti mountains, we had wonderful views from the Chalet that we stayed in. We went down with K's folks, cousin, uncle and gran.
Spent quite a bit of time driving around and taking in the scenery - we did a couple of loops through the Golden Gate National Park, and then took a drive into Lesotho to go and have a look at the Katse Dam. We discovered that the Katse Dam was about 200km from the border, so decided to go and check out a smaller dam, the Muela dam and reservoir - which forms part of the Lesotho Highlands Water Scheme - instead. Also managed to see some amazing bushmen painting at a cultural village and heritage site just outside Muela.
K and I did a bit of cycling, I did a bit of a walk up the hill behind our chalet, and also managed to squeeze in nine holes of golf at the Bethlehem Golf Club - although I think that playing on the adjoining farm would have provided better fairways.
All in all a good week out in the country.

The Wilsons

Well, K's folks arrived safely from Perth yesterday afternoon. Both K and I went to the airport to collect them, in the event that there was more luggage than could be put into one boot - but it wasn't necessary, as Roy and Sharon had packed very conservatively. Had a couple of welcome drinks at our place with K's gran and cousin Rory. We then went out for a quick dinner up the road at Adega.
Its good to see Roy and Sharon again - they are both looking well - a little tired after the 11 odd hours of daylight flying time, but both seem quite happy to be on a well deserved holiday.
We also spotted Mcnaught again last night, but there was quite a bit of pollution in the air, so a photo was not really an option. Hopefully it will still be around this evening.

Visitors from Down Under

K and I spent this past weekend preparing our spare bedroom for the arrival of her folks in two days time. Yup, we've managed to pretty much fill our little townhouse in the 5 years that we have been here, to the point where there is just no more space. So...in order to make the spare room as comfortable as possible, we've stored some of the excess linen at my folks place. We also managed to offload some of the 'not so essential' household items in the process :-).
The long and the short of it, is that Roy and Sharon now have a full cupboard, with hanging space, and a clean and clutter free room. I never thought it possible when we attempted the task on Saturday morning.
They arrive on Friday evening, and will be with us for just over three weeks. Its been about 3 years since they left, and I'm interested to see how they view SA since they left. Either way, we're looking forward to spending lots of quality time with them whilst they are here.

POTD: 27 Dec 2006

Enjoying a hot chocolate outside a restaurant on the slopes of Lech.

POTD: 26 Dec 2006

The gang (K, G, Kezia, Grant and Stuart) at the top of the Galzig lift.

POTD: 24 Dec 2006

Christmas Eve dinner at the Pfeffermuehle Hotel in St Jakob. Whilst Christmas day is the holiday in Austria, its Christmas Eve that is celebrated.

POTD: 23 Dec 2006

The family, waiting at Innsbruck Main Station for the "Maria Teresia" - our train to St Anton.

30th Birthday memories...

So here we sit...its Sunday evening and K and I are sitting on our balcony, enjoying the sights and sounds of the early evening. Its been a pretty relaxing day - and to be honest, we're both very grateful for the public holiday tomorrow.
As for "the gathering" - turned out to be a fantastic evening. We decided about 5 weeks ago, that if we were going to have a 30th birthday bash at our place, there was no way we would be able to cater for 30 people without losing our sense of humour somewhere along the way. Enter "By Word of Mouth" catering. These people were fantastic - they send all the food with two very competant chef's - setup their production line in your kitchen, and then serve delicious snacks all night long. Along with the chef's come two waiters and a barman - so its pretty much a case of sit back, relax, mingle with your friends and family whilst all the food and drinks are taken care of...in the comfort of you own home. Money well spent.
I think that people had a good time - our fears of where everyone would fit were unfounded, as everyone managed to space themselves out quite nicely on the balcony. Ok, it probably was a little cramped at times - we like to think that it had a warm, intimate atmosphere about it.
Anyway - what follows are a couple of pics that were taken during the course of the evening...

Kitchen that looks like a bomb has hit it.

Rich, Frank and Grant

Friends: Jo, Trevor, Gail, Mandy, Neil, Richard and Simona

Gillian, K, Chris and G

Leigh, Dave, Brett and Grant

Battle of the baldies

The oldies...

And their wives...

Brett, Neil, Stuart, Mr A, Pat, G.

G and K

Some of the wedding pics

Here are some of the pics from the wedding yesterday.