Today is going to be a good day!

I started this morning knowing it was going to be a jam-packed day, by saying to myself that "today is going to be a good day". It looked like it had the makings of a good day. The plans were: Take the car to get fixed (our Chery QQ3 has been giving us trouble and we needed to get it fixed) in Pinetown. A trip to galleria to meet family for breakfast. A cycling trip from the Payne residence in Toti back home. Band practice in the evening.

It started well by getting the car to Chery in Pinetown before they opened. No problems there! On the way to toti a very nice person in a white BMW hooted at us and told us that our back tire was flat! Ouch! We pulled over to see the damage and sure enough it was about half flat. We went for the spare and that was flat too! Ouch! We drove very slowly to the second nearest petrol station (the nearest one was on the other side of the road and we could not get to it) and asked the guy there to pump it up. He was not all that friendly but managed to pluck the energy up to do that for us. after he did that, he pointed out that the problem was the valve and not a puncture as such. We pumped up the spare and started to change it, only to get interrupted and asked to move the car (jacked up already) somewhere else because we were in the car wash place!!

We moved out of the way of the useless people of the petrol station and started to phone around for replacement tire prices whilst changing the tyre. I then went quickly across the Hi-Q Edwin Swales and asked if they could just change the valve - the guy had changed it before I finished washing my hands! Fantastic people and for R20 we were as good as new. We got to Toti in one piece although a little dirty!

Breakfast at Dulce in Galleria was awesome - good coffee with good company as well as good food - ALL GOOD! Carrie was talking to some friends she had found and I looked outside to see what the weather was doing (thinking about my cycle home) only to see a strong north east wind blowing (Ouch - 40km straight into wind). Never mind I got ready anyway.  I hit the road about 12 noon and walk about 500 metres into the ride when I discovered that my gears on my bike were not working properly and that's not a good thing! I had 'lost' my 2 smallest sprockets and I live on top of a hill! i carried on anyway. About 6km into the ride I phoned Carrie to tell her to pick me up on the way home because I now knew I was not going to make it up the hill and home. I have never ridden into wind like that before - I was standing as if climbing a steep hill and the road was flat!! OUCH!

We met eventually at BP in Moore road and decided to head up to Chery to collect car while we were out. All went well until Carrie got home and said it was still cutting out!! Guess what we are doing tomorrow morning????? NOT IMPRESSED!! The day got worse as I had to take my bike into the cycling shop to get the gears fixed although the up side is that it will get washed!! The day ended with a very decent band practice and I am very tired and going to enjoy the day tomorrow just chilling and may go and hit some golf balls tomorrow afternoon!

BL 30/12/2009

Updates!

If you would like to receive an email when any updates are put on this website - please send an email to me and I will add you to the list! This email will contain the links to the latest updates ONLY. NO SPAM WILL BE SENT! I hate spam emails so will not subject you to them!

BL 29/12/2009

1 down, 2 to go

Well actually I am almost half way through the 2nd one. I am talking about my exercise goals for the Christmas break. They are:

1. over 100 km on the bike

2. 2 longer than 6 km runs

Today I went for a run and it was over 6 km (see details) so 1 down, 2 to go! I say I am almost half way through the first one because I have already had 2 outings on the bike this week totaling 45.90 km (details here) so I am well on the way to completing that one! With a ride tomorrow from toti back home (about 38 km) planned - that goal is looking very good to complete too. Keep looking here for updates.

BL 29/12/2009

Another reason to hate motorists!

I am far from perfect when I am driving but there is a distinct attitude in South Africa that cyclists are not supposed to be on the road and this was highlighted again his morning when I went cycling. It was an awesome morning in Durban North / Umhlanga close to where I live and being summer there was the usual wind - the prevailing North Easter was blowing quite strong but that does not worry me because my route taken this morning means that the ever increasing wind was behind me on the way home. Carrie and I when tandem cycling always ride into the wind first to get the help on the way home!

My route this morning took me along a very familiar route towards and around Gateway (massive shopping centre on the Umhlanga Ridge). I normally do 2 loops to make up about 15 km but this morning I added a loop because I am on leave and have the time. On the first loop of gateway there is a traffic circle and it stands in the bottom of a 'dip' in the land. A cyclist can gather quite a lot of speed on the down hill section towards the circle and use the momentum to get up the side without losing too much speed provided that they use the circle properly. This morning as I had done about 200 times before I hit the circle with good speed always checking for cars behind me. As I hit the circle (probably doing 45 - 48 km/h) a greenish BMW with a local number plate came form the left and looked as though he was going to stop but DID NOT! Traffic rules say always yield to the right! I had to now stop within the circle with a car behind me within about 20 metres! I was so stunned that I did not even shout at the idiot. I am truly grateful that the guy did not hit me from the back. The green BMW did not look at the car coming behind me nor did he even say sorry and pull off at great speed! Truly a complete *%^#&*#^ that really should be not allowed to drive!

That put behind me and the ride carried on after I had apologized to the Toyota Tazz behind me and to my disgust it happened again. On the other side of gateway another circle and the same situation except this *&^%$ in a Toyota Hilux big double cab drove straight through the circle when I was already in the circle!! My right of way. Thankfully I was not going quickly at all and it was not really a major issue.

I have to say this though - I know I am a cyclist and I know that cyclists are sometimes idiots and I often shout at cyclists for doing stupid things on the road. I often sneak though red robots and the like when on the bike but I do believe that BOTH cyclist and motorists need to look out for each other and get along on the road because there are too many cyclists on the road to ignore them and far too many cyclists / runners killed by motorists.

The stats for the ride are here.

BL 28/12/2009

Back on the bike!

This morning heralded a major achievement for me. Some might say its trivial but after the last time I ventured out (see this story) on two weeks - I believe it was a massive achievement. I went cycling!! It was a beautiful morning. The air was slightly chilly for Durban at this time of year but once I had warmed up by plummeting down to the coastal road - I was all good and not cold at all. I followed the same route as the vomit session but this time I learned from that mistake and took some energy drink and did not feel like I was going to see Christmas lunch again 2 days later!

Here are the details:
Average:           24.9  km/h
Distance:       27.51 km 
Time:                1:06:04
Max Speed:      59.8 km/h

I was very happy with the ride and clearly the way to get faster is to increase your slow speeds. It clearly works a lot better than getting your fast faster (make sense?)

BL 27/12/2009

Merry Christmas everyone!

Its a bit late I know but anyway. I hope everyone had a fantastic day and was spoiled rotten by friends an family!

Christmas in the Laister house is a 5 step process. It sounds all stressful but is actually really good fun and turns out every year to be a really nice time over a very special time of year.

Step 1: is dinner at my parents house on Christmas eve. Since we (Carrie and myself) are the only 'Laister' family in Durban, its normally just the 4 Laisters. Sometimes its bigger but this year it was just the 4 of us. My mom does not really like cooking so this year we went traditional SA food and had a braai! She is actually a good cook but just does not think it! We had a great time around the braai despite the heavens opening and pouring out a huge amount of rain! (the weather in Durban this year has been very odd) We then headed inside for some games around the table which was very good fun and should be repeated more often. Plans are in place to have more games evenings both with family and friends so its all good times plans so far.

Step 2: Early Christmas morning the Laister house (upper campus - we live in a 'granny flat' on top my parents house albeit completely separate) arises pretty early for the first step of 3 on Christmas day. the first step was a cup of tea and then we start opening our presents to each other and sundry other presents from friends that had been delivered to the house. This is always the highlight for me as Carrie is the person I spend quite a time stressing over for presents and always hope that she enjoys them. I managed to give some very nice presents and she liked them so its all good. I was spoilt by her as usual. We had set a limit to the spending for the as the budget has been stretched rather thin this year due to various circumstances etc etc. We both blew the budget but only by R20 (me) and R8 (Carrie) so we are very pleased with the effort.

Step 3: This is a very short trip down to the 'lower campus' for the next round present unwrapping and a pot of tea! My parents have a tradition that one person is nominated as the person who hands out the presents but with strict instructions to go slowly because my mom enjoys the reaction that people give when opening the presents. The is almost always a story to every present and they get told as and when the presents are unwrapped. Tales of sneaky shopping, hints picked up from months ago whilst shopping and the like. This year we also had breakfast after the presents before we had to go to step 4.

Step 4: This involves the driving trip of the day. We head off to Amanzimtoti to the Payne residence (my in-laws) for the next round of presents! The drive is always easy because there are normally fewer idiots on the road than normal. Its a drive we are very familiar with (only taking 1/2 hour) and its a nice drive too. The Payne (nee Petzer) family gathered here with Gran and grandpa (Petzer) to exchange presents over a cuppa (spot the trend in the family?) and some snacks. Its always good fun and this was no different. The mood in the house was very cheerful and that certainly helps the giving and receiving of presents. We hung around talking for about an hour before making our way up to gran and grandpa's house for Step 5.

Step 5: This is Christmas lunch in the Payne / Petzer family and is always held at gran and grandpa's house which is less than 2 km from the Payne residence in step 4. Lunch involves the largest selection of Christmas meat known to man (turkey, gammon, ham and pork) with sundry salads and other goodies as well as grans mince pies and ice cream (this year Carrie's aunt Sue made homemade ice cream which was awesome!) The rest of the time is spent chilling out on the verandah and grass until late afternoon when we all disperse to out separate home to nap after another great Christmas day with family.

BL 26/12/2009

Parallel Universe moments galore!
Silly me - I have left my Christmas shopping to the last minute which necessitated a trip to Gateway yesterday afternoon. Having survived the car trip to a relatively close parking spot - i ventured into the shopping mall and saw how many people were actually in the place! It was chaos! To add to the chaos on the upper floor, Gateway management thought it a good idea to hold an antiques fair / display in the walkway. Stupid idea because now the thousands of people walking in that area now have to walk in an area about 1/3 of the original walkway size. The people at the tables in the display were loving this though - so many people walking passed - their sales must have increased dramatically.
Let me say - I do not well in crowds of stupid people! I am normally pretty good if people do not do stupid things like stop in the middle of the walkway or isle for no reason! You can imagine that a full Gateway would produce such moments. Last night was no exception! I was happily walking behind 3 people pushing a trolley. They did what i thought they would - STOP FOR NO REASON! but I saw it coming and stayed calm. This calmness was banished by some (insert word here) behind me who decided it was a good idea to shout BEEP BEEP! Being slightly frazzled - I turned around and said "Do not beep me when it is not me that causing the problem!" The guy turned out to be about 4 foot tall and probably weighed about 150 kg and would battle to walk backwards without going beep beep himself. This is where the parallel universe moment kicks in. I would have loved to have turned around and used him as a punching bag (he would never fall over without bouncing back up!) but alas I had to put up his laughing and quickly get away from the situation before the parallel universe turned into real life drama.
There were other parallel moments in the short time I spent at Gateway last night but they are too numerous to mention.

So close and yet not so familiar!
We decided to get out of the house on Saturday and go to Umhlanga beach and walk along the promenade. It was a very dark and slightly rainy day but that was fine because it meant that the crowds would be less than normal. Despite the weather we walked from Umhlanga plaza onto the promenade towards the lighthouse and then from there we walked the other way towards and past the main beach to almost the limit of the walkway before venturing back and home.
This was the first time for Carrie to do this walk and although we live relatively close - I think I have done it about 3 times! We have gone to the beach there quite a few times but we never walk along the walkway. While we were walking - we took some photos. See them here.
 

Day of reconciliation activities
The 16th of December is a public holiday in South Africa. Its called Day of reconciliation. I should probably know why its called that and the significance of it but I am not going to lie - I do not know why they call it that. All I know is that it is a public holiday and that means day off!
It was a pretty relaxed day overall. We started it off with pancakes for breakfast with my parents. We then went Christmas shopping at the new shopping mall at Amanzimtoti just south of Durban. The centre called Galleria is not quite finished yet and it does show but its like 95% done so its working and very busy! It's a nice centre and although very long - not very big which is quite nice. It has all the main shops in it. We did a bit of shopping but really battled to combine my first visit with shopping for Christmas presents as well as the crowds (most of whom were substantially overweight - another time though).

From there we popped for lunch at Carries folks place in Athlone Park (suburb of Amanzimtoti) and headed home for a nice night together to end a very relaxed day spent together!

Word of the Day for Wednesday, December 16, 2009
doff \DOF\, transitive verb:
1. To take off, as an article of clothing.
2. To tip or remove (one's hat).
3. To put aside; to rid oneself of.
After I finished sweeping, I grabbed my check, went to the locker room, and doffed the monkey suit, slipped into my jeans, sneakers and T-shirt and broke camp.
-- Reginald McKnight, White Boys: Stories
Any moment now and Max Linder would ride out from around the corner on a pair of white horses, fire blanks at a passing beauty, and doff his top hat to hide his face from the policeman.
-- Nina Berberova, The Book of Happiness
Benny doffed his cap grandly.
-- Thomas Maier, Dr. Spock: An American Life
And he became as a pillar of fire to superannuated peoples who had but to doff the lethargy of custom to find themselves young.
-- J. F. A. Pyre, "Byron in Our Day", The Atlantic, April 1907
Doff Middle English doffen, from don off, "to do off," from don, "to do" + off, "off."

Word of the Day for Monday, December 14, 2009
numinous \NOO-min-us; NYOO-\, adjective:
1. Of or pertaining to a numen; supernatural.
2. Filled with or characterized by a sense of a supernatural presence.
3. Inspiring awe and reverence; spiritual.
Smoking is a ritual, and it has all the numinous force of a ritual.
-- Thomas W. Laqueur, The New Republic, September 18, 1995
All Quests are concerned with some numinous Object, the Waters of Life, the Grail, buried treasure etc.
-- W. H. Auden, "Secular Hobbitism" review of The Fellowship of the Ring, by J. R. R. Tolkien, New York Times
Our culture is not much concerned with the numinous, but in language we preserve many of the marks of a culture that is.
-- Richard Mitchell, Less Than Words Can Say
My sense of the numinous is generally keenest upstate, in the fields and forest that surround my old schoolhouse.
-- Winifred Gallagher, Working on God
Numinous is from Latin numen: literally a "nod of the head," as in giving a command, hence "divine power."

Word most applicable to today:

This word is my own pick and mainly due to circumstances that I (and others around me) find ourselves having to deal with on most days.
Hypocrite
Meaning:
As per Wikipedia:
Hypocrisy is the act of pretending to have beliefs, opinions, virtues, feelings, qualities, or standards that one does not actually have. Hypocrisy is thus a kind of lie. Hypocrisy may come from a desire to hide from others actual motives or feelings.
Hypocrisy is not simply an inconsistency between what is advocated and what is done.
 

As per dictionary.com
–noun
1. a person who pretends to have virtues, moral or religious beliefs, principles, etc., that he or she does not actually possess, esp. a person whose actions belie stated beliefs.
2. a person who feigns some desirable or publicly approved attitude, esp. one whose private life, opinions, or statements belie his or her public statements.

Origin:
1175–1225; ME ipocrite < OF < LL hypocrita < Gk hypokrit s a stage actor, hence one who pretends to be what he is not, equiv. to hypokr (nesthai) (see HYPOCRISY ) + -tēs agent suffix

Related forms:
hyp⋅o⋅crit⋅i⋅cal, adjective
hyp⋅o⋅crit⋅i⋅cal⋅ly, adverb

Synonyms:
deceiver, dissembler, pretender, Pharisee.

 

BL 17/12/2009

Got up!
This morning I managed to get up and go running. I thought about going for a cycle but after Sundays vomit session (see below), I thought I would go for a run for a change. I have also been enjoying my running lately so I decided on the run!
after struggling to get out of bed i managed to bend at the hip and put on my shoes - I struggle with a stiff back and hamstrings in the morning. I hit the road at about 5:40 am and could have worn sun glasses but did not. The music was going in my mp3 player. At first it was difficult to get going but after about 4 or 5 minutes I loosened up (a bit) and (sort of ) got into my stride. By no means was it easy at all. I managed to do (in relative terms) a short distance of 3.16km. It took shorter than usual at 19:44 minutes working out to about 6:14 min/km. I am happy with the run and that is the first run early in the morning for a long time so I am happy all round.

BL 15/12/2009

Movie review...

We watched the movie Wolverine last night. After getting a good review from the video store we took it. I was actually quite disappointed with the movie itself although it did put some pieces in the X-Men puzzle for me. What I want to know is - Why movie producers put out a movie that is the end of the series?? Harry Potter did it correctly - the first movie is the start of the series and guess what - the second movie comes after the first one in the series! X-Men and Star Trek and the like do it the wrong way round! I know I get confused by movies but this is ridiculous!

BL 15/12/2009

Holiday traffic....

There is one thing I am always fascinated by - traffic in the morning! Not normally interesting at all but when the schools break up for holidays - its a dream! Where do all the parents go or when do they go to work? Do they even go to work? I believe its one of those things that I will never find out - I will just enjoy the super low amount of traffic on the roads for the holiday periods!

Itsy bitsy spider!
Two mornings on the trot now - we have found a spider in our shower! Not a huge one that could carry us away (like the mozzies at Sun down Ranch!) which is a good thing. It is just really weird to see the same spider in the same place at roughly the same time!
The problem for the little dude is that spider feet and wet shower tiles do not go well together! This fact is what makes it even stranger that it would be in the shower more than once! Maybe the brown colour is dirt and he was looking to get clean??

Sunday morning vomit session!
I planned to go cycling on Sunday morning and unlike previous unsuccessful attempts - I actually went!! I know its shocking news! I headed out for a longer ride at about 6:45am and for the first 15km felt good! I headed along the familiar route of down the hill from our house and along the coastal roads to the swimming pool and back. I have cycled this route many many time and can tell whether its a good ride by the time i hit the Umgeni river bridge. I was feeling good and decided to do another loop of Durban Country Club before heading home. I had enough time and was feeling good so the idea sounded good.
Well it turns out it was not a great idea at all! After about 21km when I start climbing up the hill to get home - I started feeling sick - NOT COOL! I thought it might be my cycling shorts but ala NOT! I believe it was a combination of lack of good nutrition from the previous day and the muscles in my back giving up and referring the feeling of being sick to my brain! Whatever it was - it was not cool and only got better once I lay down after my ride!
The problem then was that it came back once I stood up! Sunday was a very fragile day as a consequence and the only good thing was I slept pretty well on Sunday night. Here are the details:
Average:           24.6  km/h
Distance:       27.36 km 
Time:                1:06:31
Max Speed:     62.1 km/h
 

BL 14/12/2009