The Beach Locals

Tuesday

Dear Elsie

I only took one photo today and it was of sunrise.

It was a given that we would go to the beach. I did some early work and then we set off.  One of the fun and pleasant things about going to the beach regularly is we get to know the locals. There’s Jo – a very well known local who sits on the same bench each day. He holds court speaking to all and sundry. He knows just about everyone. There’s Bernard who comes from Germany every year and slumps dozily on the bench, speaking to Jo and occasionally others between naps and dips. Then there’s Lucille and Norman who are as friendly as can be – always asking after David. Margaret is amazing. She’s 79 but as fit as a fiddle and has been known to play 36 holes of golf in a day and that’s after her morning swim. Carol, Moira, Peggy & Andrienne make up another quartet of ladies. And there are others – Paul and Sally (who loves to bake and often brings her fair), Phillip and his wife and a bunch of others whose names I haven’t learned. A happy, friendly bunch of regular morning swimmers all with one thing in common – our love for swimming at Fish Hoek beach. It’s a special community. These warm still days have us meeting regularly.

Home for breakfast and work before I had a (much needed) hair cut.

I worked this afternoon and then Julian and I walked to Fish Hoek beach and back, and then to the end of the road and back. I encountered some neighbours and had a catch up with them as well.

Our evening activities surround looking at our Norwegian cruise itinerary. Flam and games!

Psalm 55:22
Cast your cares on the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous fall.

It’s not about now – we are only passing through.

Keep the smile going.

God bless you.

In His Grip,

Gran xx 🙂

Posted in Day to Day Blogs | Tagged , , | Comments Off on The Beach Locals

Not Without Hope

Monday

Dear Elsie

Today was the day we weren’t going to go to the beach. The wind was expected to be quite strong, but when we woke up, it wasn’t. Sunrise at 6.49am

By 8am, it was a breeze so off we went. I had a wonderful swim in cool water. We were home by 10am and work began…not quite 8 hours of it.

Later, I went out to drop Claw’d flyers at the local vets and also stopped by one of Fish Hoek’s gems – Berry Express – where I bought 5kg of frozen blueberries for R300.

The neighbour messaged me with a photo of Raiku on her deck, admitting that it was not Claw’d she’d seen but this naughty boy. Caught in the act. Guilty for sure.

When I was on the radio, there was something I used to say quite often and it came to mind today, “nothing is going to happen to you today without the Lord’s presence, permission and purpose.” The Lord has a purpose in every trial, no matter how small or large.  I believe that. We are saddened but not without hope.

This evening we went out for dinner. Julian and I walked part of the way. When I first arrived in Cape Town, I was fascinated by trains. I never went on a train in Zimbabwe, so to see a train coming round the coast was always so picturesque for me. And for good reason.

You will be hard pressed to find a more beautiful setting for a train.

Psalm 54:4
Surely God is my help; the Lord is the one who sustains me.

It’s not about now – we are only passing through.

Keep the smile going.

God bless you.

In His Grip,

Gran xx 🙂

 

 

Posted in Day to Day Blogs | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Not Without Hope

Cycle Race Day

Sunday

Dear Elsie

Today was the day 35000 cyclists went by. It’s always a very quiet day because they close the roads early. Absolutely no traffic noise. Then the sudden appearance of a helicopter, which swooped low to catch the leaders spinning along the coast. It then circled back to film the next batch. Spot the dot…

Once the leaders were gone, there was hardly a noise – just the sight of the cyclists passing by in droves. With the roads super quiet, I took advantage of the peace and walked up Highway dropping Claw’d flyers in post boxes. Perhaps he has found a friendly old person to feed him and he’s not sure how to get home.  As I turned back, this was what I saw…

The beach looked lovely…perfect day for a bike ride. The organisers would have been super happy.

For the rest of the day, I did some reading, I did some puzzle and I did a little walking. While out walking, I did not see this chap who is said to be in the ‘hood.

The other thing that has happened is my parent’s marriage certificate has (finally) been located in Canada and two copies have been snail mailed – one to me in South Africa – maybe it will get here by the end of the year. The other to the UK – maybe it will get there in a few weeks.

I sure wish they could have scanned it and emailed a digital copy but that’s not how the Government of Ontario works. I think I need to give them a call to  make sure they actually will post them out the country. Otherwise, I’ll have to order another copy and ask a friend in Canada to have it sent to her. I should have done that in the first instance!

This evening we are waiting for guests to arrive. They are driving in from Bloemfontein and the guy is staying until June. They should be here in the next couple of hours.

And so ends the weekend.

Psalm 53:2
God looks down from heaven on the sons of men to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God.

It’s not about now – we are only passing through.

Keep the smile going.

God bless you.

In His Grip,

Gran xx 🙂

 

 

Posted in Day to Day Blogs, Living on Fish Hoek mountainside | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Cycle Race Day

The Lowest Day

Saturday

Dear Elsie,

Today was the lowest day since Claw’d went missing. It’s because it’s a week and I think reality has set in that it’s most likely he won’t come back. I spoke to the waste truck people today and they said they were not last week’s team, but they also said they never pick up dead animals and cart them off. It’s just not something they do. So that’s another door closed. The emotional fallout extends to all of us, including poor Raiku who is now a little lonely.

Emotionally, today, I’m finished and haven’t got anything more to give, but we will get over this and move on.

We went to the beach for a swim. Ruth came and cleaned the Seaview Apartment. The new guest comes tomorrow after the Cycle race. He is here for 3 months, excluding Easter.

I went to very busy shops to buy dinner and Julian arrived.

I also managed to have a nap.

And I spoke to Stacey who cheered me up no end.

I started the new puzzle.

David had dinner downstairs. We have  had dinner and are now about to watch a Grand Design.

Tomorrow is another day.

Psalm 52:8
I trust in God’s unfailing love for ever and ever.

It’s not about now – we are only passing through.

Keep the smile going.

God bless you.

In His Grip,

Gran xx 🙂

Posted in Day to Day Blogs | Tagged , | Comments Off on The Lowest Day

Looking

Friday

Dear Elsie

The mist hung over the mountains at the start of today. I love this kind of weather…

It resulted in a beautiful sunrise…

Despite some early rain, with the sea so flat and calm, I couldn’t resist going down for a swim. Mike had other work to do, so he stayed behind. With drizzle falling, I left my bag in the change room so it wouldn’t get wet and off I went for a lovely 30 minute swim. It was colder than the air temperature, so must have been about 16. So refreshing. Home by 10am, shower, breakfast, work.

After an early dinner I went looking for Claw’d again. I really wanted to see if there was any signs he had possibly been taken by a caracal, so I bush-bashed through the mountainside behind. I found porcupine scat and deer droppings, but no signs of caracals. I went up to Rob’s plot.

Up to his old shack…

& then right up to the very top of his 1000m2 plot.

While I used his stairs, they only go half way up the land. The rest requires some careful bush-bashing.

A little disturbing – remains of a fire…

I came down the Fish Hoek side of Rob’s plot, where there was an overgrown path. I picked my way down…fortunately I had a stick…

I needed to traverse across towards the blue cottage, in order to get around the dead bush wood.

No indication of caracals. No smell of decay. No sign of Claw’d. But maybe he’s there somewhere, hunkering down, catching mice, sheltering under rocks. Maybe he’ll turn up one day. Yesterday evening, I heard a ginger cat was seen around the derelict house, so I went there…..

It was quite a scramble up, but it’s a perfect hiding place for a cat.

I called & called, but the wrong cat came…

Turns out there was a ginger cat living at the house next door, so that’s another answer found.

Tomorrow, I’m going to try catch the dump truck when it comes past and ask if they happened to remember seeing my cat last week. And I also still need to make flyers for the houses on Highway in case the residents are not on the Whatsapp group.

And so the looking continues.

Psalm 51:10
Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

It’s not about now – we are only passing through.

Keep the smile going.

God bless you.

In His Grip,

Gran xx 🙂

Posted in Day to Day Blogs | Tagged , | Comments Off on Looking

Back to the Beach

Thursday

Dear Elsie,

Today was the day we went back to the beach. The water was cooler than recently but it was very refreshing. The waves were perfect. It felt wonderful being out by the blue barrel. The swim did my head & my heart good. There is a cold front coming in so there will be no swimming tomorrow.

There have been a number of projects going on at the house this week. Julian’s balcony ceiling board has been replaced and is looking good. The birds had been making a complete mess above the space and the builder had forgotten, so yesterday, Mike and Courage got it sorted.

In the night when I woke up, I saw on a local whatsapp group that there was a massive burst water main and so, again, we had no water. This has become an ongoing issue on the mountainside, which has very aging water pipes. Our street has been prioritized and in the next week or two, the road will be dug up and water pipes replaced.

Anyway, we woke up with no water. This spurred Mike into action to get in the plumber to connect a new skinny tank to the hot water cylinder. Through an intricate design, when there is a water outage, we will still have water.

While up there, I took a photo of Courage’s wall which is growing in size and stature for sure.

Still no sign of Claw’d. I went out last night and early this morning before sunrise. On both occasions I didn’t see a single cat. Tomorrow, I may ask Courage to go further up the mountain and see if he can see any signs of him. Today when we went to the beach we were stopped by 2 neighbours asking if we had found him.  The neighbours have been very kind.

Psalm 50:10-11
Every animal of the forest is mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills. I know every bird in the mountains, and the insects in the fields are mine.

It’s not about now – we are only passing through.

Keep the smile going.

God bless you.

In His Grip,

Gran xx 🙂

 

 

Posted in Day to Day Blogs | Tagged , | Comments Off on Back to the Beach

Waiting for Darkness

Wednesday

Dear Elsie

Today was another good day for you and I. I got to take you to school again. I gave you a big hug and goodbye and left you with your teacher while I headed back to Cape Town. We had such a special time together and I’m so proud of you! Granpa loved his gifts! The fizz pops were a great hit..

And the pajamas were too. Well done Stace!

I got a message this morning that a ginger cat was seen down the road, so I’m waiting for darkness to go have a look. There are not many ginger cats on this road and apparently they have been sightings both up and down the road. I went this morning as soon as I got home. I spoke to a couple of gardeners in the area and was touched that one of the ‘bosses’ had whatsapped the gardener a photo of Claw’d. The ginger cat seen of course, may have been Raiku, but the one from this morning was described as smaller, so I’ll go shine a torch in the bushes and look for cat’s eyes. I’m not optimistic because I feel if he was close by he would have come home, but I’ll go look anyway.

Meantime, the Ruth First is in the bay. It’s the Sea Fisheries Patrol vessel. Also knowing as a fishing guard vessel.

This afternoon, stiff from driving, I also took a walk to Fish Hoek for some shopping.

I hope to swim tomorrow.

I had a lovely couple of days in Swellendam being mainly on Granny duty. Now to change hats. I contacted a couple of guests and we’ll see a couple leave and a couple arrive in the next week.

We miss Claw’d like crazy, but will keep hoping. Off I go to get my torch ready for my night prowl.

Wise advice:

Psalm 49:16-17
Do not be overawed when others grow rich, when the splendor of their houses increases; for they will take nothing with them when they die, their splendor will not descend with them.

It’s not about now – we are only passing through.

Keep the smile going.

God bless you.

In His Grip,

Gran xx 🙂

Posted in Day to Day Blogs | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Waiting for Darkness

Hanging Out With Elsie

Tuesday

Dear Elsie

Today was the day you and I hung out. I hope you remember this day. We had a lot of fun together. Mama and Papa had to go to Worcester, so I got to take you to school.

I handed you over to your  teacher…

I went back to the house and worked until 12.20pm when I then went back to do the pick up.

We had such a fun afternoon. We threw the ball to each other (across the room) over and over and over again. And, couch acrobatics were done…

Then we went for a walk to the S sign. Elsie chose the path – you knew exactly where you wanted to go.  Fascinated by the S sign, we went there….

You climbed over the chain and when you were climbing back, you grazed your leg on a sharp piece of the sign, but you didn’t cry. You were so brave. A little bit of shredded skin is never nice to have.

Do you remember taking this photo?…

It’s one of the first photos you ever took of me. When we got home, you wanted to take more photos on the camera timer, so you lined me up with you behind and you took this photo…

This evening, Adrian and Stacey have gone off to a parent/teacher meeting.

Tomorrow, the plan is for me to take you to school and then drive home. Bye bye Elsie ’til the next time. Thank you for giving me such a lot of fun these last two nights.  It’s also fun having you standing next to me while I’m writing this and getting your running commentary.  One day you will read this and possibly not remember the occasion but I’ve got the photos to prove it! I love you my darling!

Psalm 48:14
For this God is our God for ever and ever; He will be our guide even to the end.

It’s not about now – we are only passing through.

Keep the smile going.

God bless you.

In His Grip,

Gran xx 🙂

Elsie has requested hearts here:

 

 

Posted in Day to Day Blogs, Letter to Elsie | Tagged , | Comments Off on Hanging Out With Elsie

Very Rainy Road Trip to Swellendam

Monday

Dear Elsie

Today is the day I drove through to your house on a very rainy day. It absolutely poured down but was particularly bad just for about 30km before & after Riviersonderend. That was when I drove at 80km an hour with my windscreen wipers on full speed and my hazard lights on. Granpa has stayed home as he has a couple of important tasks to get done. I’m not sure how long I’ll be here, but I need to be home by Saturday. I’m here to look after you Elsie darling and so that’s what I’m doing. Tomorrow I get to drop you off at school. How cool is that?

On this rainy afternoon, you are playing with my cell phone stand which has been a number 1, a Y, a torch, a clamp and hair tongs.

I worked this morning and left home at lunchtime.

There is still no news of Claw’d and I am absolutely gutted. I’ve put him on various groups and contacted local vets, Tears and the SPCA. I am hoping he will pitch up but with each passing hour, it is less likely. Not knowing is the worst. It was the most entertaining 7 and a half months we have ever had. I appreciated them both every day. I loved them to bits and now the partnership is broken, it’s hard to see Raiku looking, sniffing, waiting.  God knows.  Maybe he will pitch up. I pray so.

Psalm 47:8
God reigns over the nations; God is seated on his holy throne.

It’s not about now – we are only passing through.

Keep the smile going.

God bless you.

In His Grip,

Gran xx 🙂

Posted in Day to Day Blogs | Tagged , | Comments Off on Very Rainy Road Trip to Swellendam

Still No Claw’d

Sunday

Dear Elsie

It’s been almost 36 hours since I last saw Claw’d. There’s been no signs of him anywhere. I’ve put his photo on the Whatsapp groups with little response.

My head tells me this is the way with cats – they are a law unto themselves. You can’t control them. And sometimes they go missing, permanently. I’ve lost enough cats to know that, but it doesn’t stop me from being deeply saddened at the thought of him not returning.

I keep hoping for him to suddenly appear – calmly and quietly walking in, burying his head in his food and for life to carry on as usual. We are not the only ones waiting and worrying. Raiku looking down the passage, waiting for signs of Claw’d to appear.

I spent parts of the day trawling the mountainside looking for him.

I was up in the night checking if he had arrived. We closed the study door and left the window open and Raiku slept in our room. Only problem was he woke up not long after 4am, feeling very alert and ready to go outside. I stayed awake for a while until it was closer to 5am and let him out. I opened the study door so he could get back in and went back to sleep. When I woke up at just after 6.30am, he was asleep on my chair. I went out on the balcony to have a look to see if I could see Claw’d. To my astonishment David was on the mountainside looking for him. He had walked up the very steep rock steps to the blue cottage and walked across the  mountainside to our house.  He then came back over the gabion baskets which is a challenge on its own. He was tired but still able to go for a drive later in the day.

Anyway, we’ve done what we can for today. Tomorrow, I’ll phone Tears and hope that possibly, if someone has him, they will take him to a vet to scan him. He is chipped and we will get a call.  As David says, “Wherever he is, God’s got him”.

Psalm 46:5
God is within her – she will not fall – God will help her at the break of day.

It’s not about now – we are only passing through.

Keep the smile going.

God bless you.

In His Grip,

Gran xx 🙂

Posted in Day to Day Blogs | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Still No Claw’d

Where is Claw’d?

Saturday

Dear Elsie

Today when we spoke do you remember Raiku was around? He played with the ball and fish, but there was no Claw’d. And he’s still missing. I let him out at 5.30am this morning and he hasn’t been home since, which is very worrying. One of the neighbours said they saw him in the bushes across the road from them at lunchtime, but he hasn’t been up for food or water. It’s very out of character for this one to be out for so long.

I walked around the entire property and later onto the street, down the road, up the blue cottage steps, calling and looking, but no sign of him. He usually spends about an hour outside in the morning and then comes in to sleep. He buries his head in his food for a short time and then chooses a spot to sleep. Usually starting with my bed and then moving to the couch. But today there has been no sign of him.  Raiku was out until about 3.30pm. Then he came in and has been in ever since, but there’s no sign of Claw’d.

Mike and David are playing chess. Every now and then David goes out on the balcony to give Claw’d a call. I’ve put his photo on the street whatsapp group, asking if anyone sees him to let me know. We are  hoping he will return soon.

Meantime, for the rest of the day, we swam, I did some puzzle, read the rabbit book, had a rocking chair nap and cleaned.

The wind is howling this evening. It’s expected to be a strong south-easter throughout tomorrow and then abate on Monday.

Mark 10:43-33
Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all.

It’s not about now – we are only passing through.

Keep the smile going.

God bless you.

In His Grip,

Gran xx 🙂

Posted in Day to Day Blogs | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Where is Claw’d?

David’s Birthday 2024

Friday

Dear Elsie

Today Uncle David celebrated his birthday. We were sorry to not have you come to stay this weekend, but ill health has kept your family at home, which is wise. There will be many more opportunities & we’ll get to speak tomorrow.

David had a good day. He knew he would be a little more tired than yesterday because yesterday he was very active. We took him coffee & gifts and he appreciated them. Later he came up for breakfast. Egg and bacon,  chipolatas & cherry tomatoes on C’est la vie fresh croissants.

David had a restful day. I worked and then went to Karin’s birthday tea as it’s her birthday as well.

I picked up a little dessert on the way home. For dinner, Mike and David had pizza and I had salad.  David slept this afternoon. After dinner we watched the end of Cool Runnings. He and Mike are now watching chess.

I’ve just made tea and it’s the end of the birthday week.

Mark 10:21
Jesus looked at him and loved him

It’s not about now – we are only passing through.

Keep the smile going.

God bless you.

In His Grip,

Gran xx 🙂

 

Posted in Day to Day Blogs | Tagged | Comments Off on David’s Birthday 2024

David Recovering From Long Covid

Thursday

Dear Elsie

Today was the day a new resident was installed on the gabion baskets. He stands tall and proud and keeps watch over the stairs.

Julian read the book he’s just given me and it’s a delightful story about rabbits. This one…

So when he came across the wire rabbit for sale, he couldn’t resist buying it. Courage gave it an extra coat of rust-proof paint & once it was dry, he attached it to the gabion wire. It can always be moved if we want it somewhere else. It will remind us of Watership Down.

We swam today. It was a lovely as usual.

Home to work. In the afternoon, I did a big shop for the weekend, including some extras for David’s birthday tomorrow. David woke up this morning feeling a lot better. He took his bicycle to Kommetjie and cycled the boardwalk route and back along the road – a distance of 2km. He felt much better than when he did it last time. Cycling is easier than walking because he is sitting. He had a tail wind as well, which made it easier. Then he went for a swim at Dalebrook.

This evening he said this is the best he’s felt in a year. My terminology is changing. It’s gone from “David has LC” to “David is recovering from Long Covid.” As we know, this journey is not a straight line of recovery. It zigs and zags both up and down. There are dips and upswings, plummets and improvements. But today was the best day he’s had since his diagnosis and it showed. He came up at about 5pm and stayed until after 8pm.  Before he left, we watched half of Cooling Runnings and will possibly watch the rest tomorrow. David may be tired tomorrow – we’ll see if today’s exercise leave him with additional fatigue.  Before the movie, while he and Mike were chatting, I went down to David’s unit, put in some snacks and restocked his bathroom.  He didn’t know until he went down a short while ago.

Tomorrow is his birthday & we both agreed it’s been the hardest year of his life. For our family, this last year has carried with it many trials. All we can do is pray and continue to trust the Lord. We take one day at a time.

Mark 10:27
Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.”

It’s not about now – we are only passing through.

Keep the smile going.

God bless you.

In His Grip,

Gran xx 🙂

Posted in Apartment living, Day to Day Blogs | Tagged , , | Comments Off on David Recovering From Long Covid

He Gasped

Wednesday

Dear Elsie

Today was the day Granpa celebrated his birthday. We gave him his new tablet. He knew it was coming, but he didn’t know which kind. When he opened the box, he gasped!  He’s very happy.

We went to the beach as planned. When we got back, I made bacon and eggs for breakfast and then I went to work. Mike went for a haircut. When he got back, he had work to do and has only now started getting his tablet sorted. He is already loving it and it will be a super addition when we travel. Well done Stace! I’m not sure when I’ll get my husband back.

He’s happy then!

We went to Dixies for dinner. I walked, passing a gulp (yes that’s the official collective noun) of junior cormorants.

A beautiful evening – lovely setting – good food and great company.

Happy Birthday Mike!

Today when I was in the sea and also walking to Dixies, this refrain was going through my mind…

Wide wide as the ocean, high as the heavens above, deep deep as the deepest sea is my Saviour’s love for me. I though so unworthy, still am a child of His care, for His Word teaches me that His love reaches me everywhere!

Mark 9:35
Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, “Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all.”

It’s not about now – we are only passing through.

Keep the smile going.

God bless you.

In His Grip,

Gran xx 🙂

Posted in Day to Day Blogs | Tagged | Comments Off on He Gasped

Mike’s Birthday Eve

Tuesday

Dear Elsie

Today is Granpa’s Birthday Eve! Tomorrow is his birthday. I got him a very exciting birthday present (thanks to your Mom who suggested it). He knows what he is getting (a tablet) but he doesn’t know what kind and when he sees it, he is going to be very surprised.  It wasn’t cheap, but Granpa very seldom spends money on himself, so he deserves it. It got delivered today and is carefully stowed away for tomorrow morning. I also went and bought some miniature cupcakes to take to the beach tomorrow morning.

It’s one of the things the locals do. They take cake when it’s their birthday. As Mike spends some time sitting on the bench while I’m finishing my swim, he has gotten to know the locals better than I have… and he’s been the happy recipient of their birthday cakes too. Now it’s his turn to take and as the wind is expected to drop overnight, we are planning on swimming tomorrow.

I worked. I did some shopping. Julian left. I did washing and we have had a quiet evening. While last night there was Mike and Julian playing chess, tonight there is Mike and David. Although, I must add that from the sounds of it, it’s also a coaching session with David telling Mike what he should be doing. You don’t really want to be playing David. His comments are like, “if I were you I wouldn’t to that.” “Yeah, that move wasn’t great – it would be better if you did this or that…” but it is interspersed with, ‘I would have moved there as well.’ or ‘that move was not too bad’. He sees things in chess that are light years away from me. On the very odd occasion when I have played him, I’ve moved very gingerly and then looked at him to see if it was good or bad. I just never know what he’s thinking. It’s very intimidating.

This evening naughty Raiku caught a bird. Because it’s been so windy, we have kept the study window closed. That’s the window the cats usually use to go in and out. When it’s closed, they meow at the door to be let in. Fortunately, on this occasion, Raiku couldn’t bring his prey inside, so sat outside the front door proudly devouring his catch. It was only Courage who witnesses the sad meal. I went outside once he was done and swept up the remaining feathers. He’s going to have a sore tummy tonight.

Mark 9:24
Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!”

It’s not about now – we are only passing through.

Keep the smile going.

God bless you.

In His Grip,

Gran xx 🙂

Posted in Day to Day Blogs | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Mike’s Birthday Eve