Virus

Got home Monday afternoon not feeling too great. Maria, my housekeeper, did not make me feel any better by say that the flu that one gets in August is far, far worse than the flu you might get earlier in the winter. Any way I dosed myself with anything and everything that looked like it might help and got into bed. Maria brought me some nice hot tea which did help.


Woke up Tuesday morning with my throat feeling like I'd swallowed a whole roll of razor wire. I phoned in sick, scarcely being able to talk. As soon as the doctors rooms opened I phoned for an appointment. Receptionist said that if I came straight away, Dr would see me before the rush. After peering down my throat and muttering something about raw liver gone very bad, said it was not the flu, but some virus that's doing the rounds. Gave me a sick note and prescription to cope with the pain and fever, and told me to get into bed and stay warm.


The dogs are fed up with the bed, can't make out why we can't go for a walk. Only Tombi is faithful, lying curled up behind my knees all day. Sissie jumps on the bed now and again, shoves her snout under my cheek and gives me a shove, as if to say get up now. Lady pops in now and again to have a look and then wonders off again. Cat? Well Cat doesn't seem to care much for sick people.


It seems that the average persons immune system functions very well up to about 70 years of age then starts to weaken. As someone on another blog said, "three score years and ten," then the manufactures warranty expires. Fortunately my warranty has a few more years to run.

Fly Fishing Books

It is said that more has been written about fly fishing than about any other sport. Literature about fly fishing goes back many centuries. Being a bibliophile, this is something I really enjoy about the sport. 


On Friday I had a book show at school. Twice a year Shaun of Books 2 You brings his great collection of books for the learners to browse through and buy. His books are very reasonably priced, starting at R20, about $7. He sources his books in England and the US, travelling overseas 2 or 3 times a year to buy books. While he is overseas he always looks for books on fly fishing and fly tying. So every time he comes he brings me 2 or 3 books, his prices are about 1/3 of the normal retail price. This visit was no different and the latest addition to my collection, "John Bailey's Fishing Encyclopedia," has now joined my collection.


Sales at this book show exceeded R15,000, more than two thirds of this being purchased by the learners.


Click on photos to enlarge.

Big beautiful book with big beautiful photos.

Contents page.

This book is not just about fly fishing but about all aspects of the sport, bait fishing, lure fishing, fresh water and sea fishing. 

Some of my fly fishing and fly tying books, the book on the far right is an 1897(?) reprint, on hand made paper, of the 1676, 5th edition of Izaak Walton's "The Compleat Angler," edited by, Richard Le Gallienne. This edition also includes the piece by Charles Cotton, "Being directions how to angle for trout or grayling in a clear stream." Cotton even gives direction on how to tie certain flies. 

Title page of "The Compleat Angler."

Cover of "The Compleat Angler". Good books, on any subject, never date or age, like good red wine they just improve.

Another shelf of fly fishing and fly tying books, this one is next to my fly tying desk. The shelve below has fly tying material stored on it.

Thando

This Thando (Th pronounced T), Maria my housekeepers granddaughter. Thando lives with her grandmother while her mother is studying in Johannesburg. When grandmother comes to work Thando comes to. 

Thando has been coming with her grandmother since she was about 6 months old, she is almost 2 years old now.

Thando in her favourite spot to watch the world outside.


When I get home in the afternoons Thando and the three dogs are waiting at the gate. Thando follows me into the house clapping her little hands, for she knows that nKhulu, (isiZulu for grandfather) has brought her something nice to eat. 


Little children have no idea of race, to her I'm just another familiar adult in her life.

Return to normal

Woke up this morning and the cold front was a thing of the past. Still cold but not as bad as the previous two days. The mountains around Estcourt, in an arc of about 250 degrees, were covered with snow, and with the crisp clear air they seemed so close you felt you just had to reach out and you could touch them.  A stunning sight. The Drakensberg range for about 800km, from Berkley East, in the south to Newcastle in the north, was covered in heavy snow.


The N3 highway which was closed for 24 hours, opened at 10am this morning, after the ice on the road had melted. Yesterday there were trucks and cars backed up for 30km at both ends. Today it's traffic as usual, actually more than usual, as all the transport backlog has to be caught up.


Click on photos to enlarge.

Took this photo on my way to work this morning at 06h50, of just a small section of the Drakensberg. The sun is coming up behind me and the suns rays are just lighting up the snow covered slopes of the Drakensberg. My cottage is just a couple of hundred metres to the right of the mobile phone tower seen just to the right of the road.

Took this photo at about 08h20 from the staff room window, overlooking the junior primary play grounds. The Drakensberg can be seen just behind the rise. The children out enjoying the early morning sunshine, after being confined to the classrooms for two days.

Sunset promising another beautiful day tomorrow.

Fortunately for us our bad weather never lasts long, winter just lest us know now and again who is in control.

Winter with a vengeance 2.

Well the weather Sangoma's  (Witch Doctors) weren't kidding when they predicted severe weather. Sometimes when they throw the bones to predict the weather they get it right.


Today's maximum temperature on the sattelite photo below.

The photo below shows the minimum temperatures for today. Estcourt lies right in the dark blue patch, just to the east of Lesotho.

Satelite photo below shows the cold front where it was at 15:00 today, slowly moving east over the Indian Ocean. The weather should be clearing from tomorrow, but another cold front is expected on Friday. Too much of a good thing maybe?


The N3 highway was closed at Van Reenens Pass, where the highway goes over the Drakensberg, heading north to Johannesburg and other major centres. This is the highway that passes behind my cottage, strange to see it so quiet. Fifty percent of South Africa's exports and imports are transported along this route.

The following photos I took this afternoon after school between 14h00 and 15h00.

Rode out of town on route R103, east, southeast, on the road to Mooi River to the top of Griffins Hill as distance of about 9km and took the following photos. Griffins Hill is about 150 metres higher than Estcourt.

It was freezing cold up here with a strong wind blowing.

If you enlarge the photo above you might just make out a farmers pickup truck driving through the snow, the truck is a silvery grey colour, which makes it hard to spot. Looking for missing livestock maybe?

Parked on the opposite side of the road, was an Indian father and his two sons, from Estcourt. The sons had convinced their father to take the to see the snow. Snow is a novelty to us, often falls on the high ground but not so near to town. Half the town was out looking at the snow. 

Taken in town looking towards the Drakensberg. Enlarge the photo by clicking on it and the mountains can be seen just under the clouds.

The mountain centre right of the picture, with snow cap, is NtabamHlophe, isZulu for White mountain. Took this photo just before I turned of right onto the farm where I live. This mountain is about 16km from my cottage. The Drakensberg can be seen behind it.

Tombi lying with her head on my foot, while I write this post. Whenever I'm working at the laptop or tying flies this is where she lies, just has to make contact with me.


Made a big pot of bean soup last night, will warm it up for supper tonight. Should keep me warm in more ways than one. 


Weather photos from: www.weatherphotos.co.za

Winter with a vegeance

Up to now our winter has been reasonably mild, chilly on some days with one or two days very cold. Today it's different with a huge cold front sweeping in over the sub continent from the southern oceans.

Above a map showing the maximum temperatures in South Africa to day, Most of the country was 15 degrees Celsius or less. Large part of central South Africa had a maximum of 10 degrees Celsius or less.

The map above gives the minimum temperatures. Most of the country was below 7.5 degrees Celsius, with a large part below 2.5 to 0 or minus degrees Celsius.

Satellite photo showing the cold front moving across the country at 15h00 this afternoon.


Heavy snowfalls are expected over high lying areas and farmers have been warned to bring their livestock in to shelter. This cold front is expected to last until Wednesday. 


So much for sunny South Africa.

Flies

Spent some time this evening tying some flies for a fly fishing trip I hope to take Saturday.
Size 12.

Something I saw on some one's blog. My impression of an "ausable bomber."

With two "wiggle tail" flies I tied. The photo's aren't very good took them with my Black Berry camera.